It’s quite possible that demand in China for kits has exceeded supply to the extent of Golden needing to triage. I’ve been at a private airport that had only a few planes and before I could even open my mouth a guy across the counter exclaimed that he was a doctor; implying that his need for a plane was greater than mine. Needless to say it did not matter that I was only there to pick up a package from behind the counter. Maybe you could write Philip a nice email explaining your greater need for a kit than his fellow country men in the heart of the P.R. of China and that the missiles there in South Dakota are not really aimed at them. Maybe that would encourage him to send you a nice email telling you everything you wanted to know. No offense.
There was a time when it could be said that if North & South Dakota seceded from the US, they would possess the most powerful nuclear arsenal in the world. That time, however, has passed. Nearly all (or all?) of the missile silos have been decommissioned and filled or imploded. The world can rest easy knowing that most of the unaccounted for nuclear weapons are somewhere in the remnants of the former Soviet Union.
I did place an order through the website yesterday, then emailed sales@ inquiring about the rear wheel kit. Philip emailed me this morning telling me the kit will ship after PayPal clears. I guess that at least answers my original question on how to get the rear wheel kit instead of the front; just email them & ask.
I was a little concerned to learn that the dropout spacing for the motorized rear wheel is so much wider than standard; that's a piece of information that should be made more readily known to potential buyers. Thanks to Patrick for the heads-up on that. The bike I plan to use the kit on is an older Pro-Flex mountain bike that has an aluminum frame with a steel rear triangle. I've done spacing adjustments in the past, but if Patrick's info is correct, stretching my Pro-Flex dropouts from the current 135mm to a 160mm dropout spacing may be a bit much for me, so I'll probably enlist a buddy who owns a bike shop and the proper tools for such a project. But first I need to see if it's truly 160mm or if there are ways to narrow that. For those unfamiliar with adjusting frame spacing and alignment, Sheldon Brown has some excellent info at
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-spacing.htmlIt's too bad that everything about buying one of these motors has to be such a mystery. Way too much guesswork in this whole process. I guess that's part of the adventure of being an early adopter; we could go with the Crystalites of the world, but where is the fun in that?
And besides, I'm too cheap to pay what they're asking for these things!