The following is the best information and advice you will receive as a potential Over 50 e-bike buyer. We're not going to delve into Torque Sensors vs Cadence, or Aluminum Frames vs Carbon Frames etc. This article is aimed at Over 50 seniors wanting to improve their health and fitness through the use of an e-bike, as well as purchasing within a reasonable budget.
First and foremost - STOP ASKING OTHER E-BIKE OWNERS WHAT THEY RECOMMEND!
Like any purchase, it becomes a matter of personal choice. If it looks cool, buy it, doesn't apply to e-bikes. If you ask someone else's opinion, they will recommend the bike they bought, or the bike they should have bought and didn't. Believe me when I tell you, no one knows you better than you know yourself. With that said, you already know what to buy if you ask yourself the right questions. Once you narrow your choices to a couple, then you can solicit other opinions to help you make a final choice.
Budget - Bike Shop or Online Purchase
Set a budget and try to be flexible if possible.
Bike Shop - We always recommend you purchase from a local bike shop if your budget allows. Buying from a local shop provides extra benefits you can't get by purchasing online. Service after the sale cannot be overstated, especially if you're not a mechanically inclined person. Resolving issues after the sale face to face will always win out over dealing over the phone with someone hiding behind a keyboard. keep in mind, you're going to pay a premium to buy from a local shop, but we believe the benefits outweigh the extra cost. In addition to the higher cost, another downside to purchasing from a local shop is limited inventory and limited selection. The reason for this is economics. Most brands require bike shops to inventory and/or sell a certain number of bikes over a period of time to maintain the relationship and geographic protection. So, expect supply and choices to be limited in most cases.
Online Purchasing - If you're a little bit mechanical or know someone who is, and you have budget restrictions, then purchasing online will get you more bang for your buck. In addition to better pricing, purchasing online gives you a much better selection of brands. There are approximately 250 brands in the United States to choose from. That's about 245 more than your local bike shop, give or take one or two. The downside to purchasing online is questionable service after the sale, potential damage from careless delivery services, and resolving complaints can be a painful process.
#1 Rule for purchasing online - Reviews, Reviews, and more Reviews. Reviews are important because you get to hear from actual end users of the products. However, you need to know that Individual reviews themselves are mostly useless, and their weight should be treated as a grain of salt. Consider a grain of salt vs an entire truck load. Now you're probably getting the picture we're drawing.
Later in this article, we're going to tell you all the factors you'll need to consider as how to decide on which e-bike will be best for you. Once you narrow your choice of brands and style, you can then come back to review how best to use reviews to your advantage. As we mentioned previously, one review is meaningless as where all the reviews collectively will show a pattern of the potential positives, and more importantly the negatives. A good example of this would be after reading a bunch of reviews, you'll notice a high percentage will complain the assembly instructions were poorly written or drawn, or the bike felt underpowered and sluggish, or parts on the bike were cheap and poorly assembled from the manufacturer.
Remember, look for patterns both positive and negative and ask yourself if you can deal with those issues. Most brands will supply the warranty parts but installing them will become your problem.
Choosing the right e-bike for you
Choose a bike that fits your physical and mental expectations. This means find a bike which fits your body type along with any physical limitations you might have and will perform best within the riding conditions for how you plan on using it (hills, flat trails, city streets, etc.).
Size of E-bike
First, determine the size of bike you will need. Visit a local Walmart as they maintain a vast collection of regular bicycles of different types and sizes. They do not need to be e-bikes. Find a bike size which you feel comfortable on and confident that you'll be able to feel in control. All bikes have adjustable components like seats and handlebars to fine tune the fit (know there are limitations to these adjustments).
A good rule of thumb is find the smallest and lightest bike you can and adjust the seat to the highest position, then mount the bike sitting on the seat. You only want the tips of your toes touching the ground. If more than the tips of your toes are touching, then go another size up until you have just your toe tips touching the ground.
Style of E-bike
Most seniors will require a step-thru frame for ease of mounting. If you are concerned about balance issues, make sure the bike you purchase is equipped with a throttle. A throttle can be used to get the bike moving forward with both feet on the ground until you obtain the natural balance which comes with the forward motion. If you have serious balance issues, then you would benefit by purchasing a Trike style bike (3 wheels).
Tire width is another important factor. Wider tires have a larger contact area giving you better traction, improved resistance to flats, and a more comfortable ride. The downside to wider tires is they add more weight to the bike.
Suspension is another factor to consider. Most bikes come equipped with front fork suspension. Rear suspension is great if it comes equipped on your bike, if not, you can add a seat suspension post which will improve your ride comfort and help compensate for the lack of rear suspension.
Technical Thingies
In our opinion there are only two technical aspects you'll need to know in determining which bike to buy, and both are dependent on how you'll use the bike and where you will use the bike. Both items relate to power and distance. Power will be determined by the size of the motor and distance will be determined by the amp hours of the battery.
Let's start with motor size. A 250-watt motor is the equivalent of a human peddling a regular bicycle. Most entry level e-bikes come with 350-watt motors which is more than sufficient for your average e-biker of average weight riding casually on flat surfaces. If you encounter hills, you will be shifting gears often and probably getting more exercise than you planned on. We recommend a bike with a 500-watt motor to ensure a comfortable experience. If you're body type is really heavy or you live in a hilly area, you would benefit from a 750-watt motor. If you're heavy and live in a hilly area then you'll more than likely need a 1000-watt motor (Be sure to check local regulations as wattage may be limited in some localities).
Battery selection will depend on how far you plan on riding. The more amp hours a battery is rated at, the more distance you'll have to work with between charges. The distance you'll actually get will be determined by weight or load, how much you peddle vs how often you use the throttle as well as factors like terrain, wind resistance, etc. The good news here is there is a good chance it won't matter because the manufacturer has already selected the battery that comes with the bike and few manufacturers offer upgrades or battery size options unless you're willing to pay a hefty premium.
Lastly, Transporting your E-bike
If you're not lucky enough to live next to a park, trail, or quiet city streets, you're going to need to transport your e-bike. Weight of the bike will become a major concern. Most e-bikes weigh about 60lbs, while others can weigh as much as 100lbs or more. Folding bikes offer the ease of transporting in the back of most any SUV without a carrier. If you choose not to buy a folding bike, fear not, as there are several good carriers with ramps which are easy to load and unload for seniors, even if the bikes are heavy.
In Conclusion
There are a multitude of other factors which could play a more refined role in your decision. However, we have laid out the most important factors in giving you the ability to make a decision you'll be happy with. Especially if this is your first e-bike. Do not overspend on your first bike. We say this because once you have an e-bike and use it for several years, you will spend the entirety of that ownership period thinking about your next bike, and what you're going to buy.
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Reviews can be very helpful if you read all you can find from a multitude of sources. They eventually develop into a pattern consensus with both problematic issues as well as positive points.
Never, ever use reviews. There is not even one bicycle professional doing g e-bike reviews. If you know bikes, you see the really stupid things they do and say.
Companies, especially Amazon, will not let you review something after 30 days. They won't let you go back and change a good review without the seller's permission. Of course it is the best thing since sliced bread if you only review the first few days. BTW, this is on purpose. I have worked for companies that pushed us hard to get customers to give us reviews as quickly as possible after closing. There are even companies out there that specialize in burying bad reviews. Some of the aforementioned companies hired the…