Hello,
I am new to posting to the forum, but have been reading and following for more than two years.
In early 2012 I assembled a rear 26" MP II with external controller, Cycle Analyst, and 48V 10AH GM battery from GM Canada (Gary) onto a relatively inexpensive Giant mountain bike and have over 2100 trouble-free miles logged (see below for the one exception). I commute roughly 11 miles one-way with one decently-long and steep hill, and the MP II has excellent acceleration, torque, hill-climbing, and cruising with the cruise control at max throttle. After three years, the battery is still going strong.
I'd like to encourage anyone who is on the fence regarding assembling an electric bike with the Golden Motor kits to give it a try - you won't be disappointed! The only issue I had was with the key switch on the battery pack, and Gary sent me a new replacement after almost one year, no charge, which I installed and have had no problems since. Awesome customer service.
The one issue I had was with the key switch regarding the alignment of the locking pin which goes through the battery rack plate to lock the battery to the rack - if the pin does not protrude through the cutout hole cleanly with no friction (or simply pushes up against the plate), it tends to cause degradation in the switch contact performance over time with multiple lock/unlock cycles. I did not know this at the time, and was putting pressure on the switch almost every time I locked the battery pack. Eventually the contacts became very intermittent, and wiggling the key to get a solid connection no longer worked. This is a minor problem though, and easily solved. With the new key switch soldered in, I am careful that the battery is aligned with the locking plate hole and can be locked with little friction, and have not had a problem. I might Dremel out the locking hole in the plate to widen it a bit to ease the alignment, but so far this has been unnecessary. Since my battery is 3 years old, I don't know if this switch sensitivity is still a problem with the newer batteries.
Anyway, I appreciate the forum and especially all of the member's (and Alan's) knowledge and energy in answering questions and solving problems. I hope to contribute where I can.
Thanks!
