My introduction to e-bikes has been a mixed bag.  The first e-bike I rode was Portland’s own Biketown model – a giant clunky bike meant to be shared and abused by the masses.  While the e-bike version of this bike was a vast improvement over the analog version, it is an unwieldy beast with a rough ride on rough pavement.  Later, I purchased a Brompton e-bike (C line electric model), and have had mixed feelings about that riding experience.  Earlier this year I bought a used e-bike from an acquaintance and the bike motor failed on my second outing.

So, it was with some trepidation that I decided to order the Swytch ebike conversion kit – a “universal” front hub motor kit marketed as lightweight and easy to install – with the added benefit that if I didn’t like the system, my chosen bike could be simply restored back to its previous (and glorious) human powered version.

The Swytch Technology Company is based in the U.K. and is relatively new on the e-bike scene.  It uses a “customer funded” purchase order model, and appears to carry little if no inventory on hand.  From a purely machiavellian perspective, this is a great business model if you can pull it off.  From a customer service standpoint, it leaves much to be desired.  But with demand exceeding supply, this is a business model that appears to be working for them, for now.

It’s important to know key details about what you want to order before placing your order:  wheel size in ISO, rim drilling (Presta vs. Schrader), front dropout width (must be 10mm), desired battery range (10 miles for the Air and 20 miles for the MAX versions), whether you want brake/motor cut-off, whether you want a throttle, what kind of display you want.  The process for ordering is strange:  first you get yourself in line for a “batch” by paying a down payment consisting of the price of the basic kit.  Later, you are “invited” to complete the order with all of the details noted above and paying any extra cost for ad-ons.  Orders are shipped on a schedule, which appears to currently be about two months out.

I scoured on-line forums and customer reviews before taking the plunge and based on what I had read, was prepared for the worst:  orders with missing parts, orders with extra parts, orders with the wrong parts, orders that never arrived.  But I did place my order back in October and received the kit two months later, as expected.

When the kit arrived I was pleased to see that it was well packed, and with almost no plastic, meaning that I could recycle about 99% of the packaging.  All the boxes were labeled, making it easy to unpack and check off the items in the box, carefully comparing them to my order.  There were only two minor mishaps:  I had ordered an extra battery charger with a U.S. power cord, but it was shipped with a U.K. power cord.  And, I ordered my rim drilled for Presta, but received a rim drilled for Schrader valves.  Both problems were easily solved:  the charger power cord port is the same as my Brompton’s so I can easily swap them, and I often use Presta valves in Schrader rims.  My process for doing so involves cutting out a small collar from cloth rim tape to fit over the valve stem.  This provides extra protection from the tube attempting to herniate into the larger Schrader hole and also guards against the valve hole cutting into the base of the valve stem.  You can do the same thing with a small piece of extra tubing.

I had decided to order a 26 inch/559 wheel for my kit since I have 3 bikes with that wheel size.  The 1980’s Bridgestone MB3 was my chosen bike for the installation. I followed the steps in the instruction manual carefully, and read it through a few times and also looked at a few videos before starting the process.  Since the kit is advertised as being easy to install with no special tools, I did not take it to my shop but instead assembled it in my office, turning the bike upside down to begin, and using the small set of tools that I keep on hand there.

The first step is to remove the existing front wheel and swap out the tire and tube from that wheel to the Swytch motor hub wheel – a 36 hole rim with machined sidewalls laced in a 2 cross pattern.  I weighed the Swytch wheel before installation and compared that to the weight of my existing wheel (sans tire and tube) – the weight difference was 4lbs. 3 oz.  I also weighed my MAX battery (2lbs 9 oz) as well as the other components and came up with a total added weight of 8 lbs 8 oz – higher than the advertised claim of 5-6 lbs. but still reasonable.  Obviously, weight will vary based on wheel size and battery size as well as any extra accessories.  The wheel appears well built and spins perfectly true.

The front wheel installation went fine once I finally got my Kojak tire off of my existing rim.  After much frustration trying to get the bead off, I finally resorted to using my metal tire levers which are both narrower and stronger than my plastic ones but also run the risk of puncturing the tube.  Fortunately, the Kojak tire mounted easily to the new rim.  Once the anti rotation washers were secured in the proper position and with the motor cable pointed downwards (toward the ground when the bike is upright), I secured the axle nuts and pushed on the covers.

The next step is to install the magnetic disk and pedal sensor.  This kit does not include a torque sensor, and so is activated and controlled only by the rotation of the magnetic disk attached to the left side crank arm as it passes over the pedal sensor, mounted to the frame.  I found the instructions for this part of the process somewhat confusing and ended up dismantling my first attempt and starting over.  The magnetic disk needs to face in the correct direction (noted on the disk) toward the frame.  The inner connecting pieces are meant to grab onto the axle and center the disk so that it stays in the same position while rotating.  There are two hinges on the crank arm attachment that allow you to adjust the plane of the disk so that it is parallel to the frame, and once done should be tightened down with a 3mm allen key.  But, I learned that it’s best to zip tie it to the crank arm first, and then adjust the angle, and then tighten the hinge bolts.  Next up is the pedal sensor which when correctly positioned needs to be 3mm away from the magnetic disk. The sensor has an adhesive backing plus additional adhesive spacers (of which all were used for this installation).  I used the 3mm allen key to perfect the distance from the sensor to the magnetic ring, then zip tied it down using the supplied ties, after tightening down the angle bolt and nut.  I did not have any clearance problems because this is an 80’s mountain bike with a long bottom bracket spindle and plenty of frame clearance.  Modern “road” bikes may have significantly less clearance and thus require more problem solving for this step.

Off center clamp

Cables – a bit messy even after clean up.

Next up was installing the battery clamp (which houses the controller), installing the base display, and then hooking up all the cables, which are all color coded.  The battery clamp/controller comes with 3 different sized shims to accommodate different bar sizes.  I ended up needing to position the clamp off-center because the clamps fell directly on that spot that is between the stem clamp and the bar.  So, I used one set of shims for the bar portion and one set for the stem clam portion.  It all worked out fine and the clamp feels very secure.  I jammed my cables behind the clamp to get everything to fit. I took a little more time to adjust my zip ties and clean up the cable routing.

Now it was time to set up the base display.  You need to enter your wheel size and maximum desired speed (15 mph for the UK or 20 mph for the US), as well as the initial power level.  That’s when I discovered that the display shipped was not the same display as pictured in the manual.  It is smaller and operates differently.  So, I needed to download the pdf for that component, which I quickly found on the Swytch website.  After some fiddling I managed to get my wheel size set and to select my maximum speed (20) as well as the initial power level.  Then I lifted up the front wheel, turned the crank, and behold, I had power to the front wheel.  Whew!

On the first test ride, I noted that it takes several rotations of the crank before the power kicks in.  Likewise, it takes several seconds for the power to turn off once you stop pedaling.  Since the bike is slow off the mark, this means that you need to shift down before stopping at intersections, a bit of a feat with a derailleur geared bike because while you are slowing down for a stop you also need to pedal to shift down which means the motor is propelling you forward and your brakes need to be strong enough to bring you to a halt while the motor is moving the wheel forward.  I had not purchased the add-on brake/motor interrupter but in retrospect believe this could be a good idea if you are installing it on a derailleur geared bike.  Probably, I will learn to adapt to this by downshifting a little earlier. Internally geared hubs would be ideal for this system because you can shift without pedalling.

There are 5 power levels for this little 250 watt motor, which I think is overkill.  3 levels would probably be fine.  I started out on level 4 and it was way too much power for riding on flats.  I quickly overcame my maximum cadence in my top gear (45/12=92) at 20 mph, so I backed it down to level 2 and found that to be about right for general riding.  The power delivery feels smooth and the motor is nearly silent.  The motor has been proclaimed “free of drag” but I did find the drag noticeable when coasting and when pedalling with no power.  Not daunting, but noticeable.

On my first test ride I rode from my office to the top of Mt. Tabor (8 mile round trip).  What a blast!  But, I discovered it is really necessary to shift down while climbing as well as to increase the power level on steep hills.  Even so, it was really fun to cruise up to the top without feeling fatigued.

I purchased the “Max” battery for this kit which has a purported range of 20 miles.  On the first test ride I noticed that the battery charge level lights (5 total) and the display battery bar (4 lights total) did not seem to match up.  When climbing, after just 4 miles of riding, the lights on the battery went down to 3 of 5 and the lights on the display went down to 1 of 4.  When descending, the lights all returned to full power level.  This made me think that the charge level may be difficult to determine with any accuracy while cycling.

After 7 miles – battery charge level says 100%

After 15 miles – battery charge level says 25% (display) vs. 60% (battery)

To further test battery range as well as reliability during inclement weather, I took the bike out on a 15 mile round trip in a Portland late December rain storm.  My chosen route had several steep hills and their accompanying descents.  I started out in level 2, and increased the power to level 4 on climbs.  The display unit is meant to allow one to change the power levels on the fly by cycling through each level until you arrive at your chosen power input.  Unfortunately, with only one button controlling all operations on this display, I found that once I reached power level zero, I could not get the power to change while underway.  I had to stop, turn the display off, back on, and then select my power level.  I’m not sure yet if this is “operator error” or a malfunction in the unit.

While cycling the route, I noticed again a real disconnect between the battery level displayed on the battery and that shown on the display, plus the freaky zero power displayed on my climb back to my house.  Once I arrived home, I again found an extreme variance between the battery and the display, as noted in the photo above.  So, at this point I’m going to assume that it’s not possible to determine with much accuracy how much battery power is remaining.  With only 20 miles stated as the maximum for the largest battery offered, it might be wise to purchase several batteries so that you can install a spare if one wants to go on longer jaunts.  Battery maintenance instructions advise charging after every ride, and I think that is good advice given the lack of accuracy in the charge levels displayed.

So, how did this kit perform in inclement weather?  Well, just perfectly.  I found it wonderful to be out on a day I would not normally ride, and even though under power I still felt like I did something of a workout.  I had been concerned about how the magnetic disk would handle rain and road debris, but thanks to my mudflap everything stayed clean.  One thing I did notice is that I need to upgrade my brake pads for better performance in the rain.  The NOS Suntour pads are not up to par, and so I’ll probably install some KoolStop rain pads to insure more confidence for inclement weather.

I love how stealth the kit is – the bike barely looks altered from a distance and the motor is quiet.  I think the Swytch kit is a viable option for those not wanting to spend a small fortune on a quality e-bike, given its ease of installation (I spent $618).  I think converting an existing bike to an e-bike is an ideal way to go since you already have a bike that fits you, works well, and is beloved.  For older cyclists, I think conversion kits are a fantastic option to allow continued cycling without fear of fatigue or other health issues.

I’d love to see the Swytch Company “normalize” itself by stocking inventory for its kits and accessories and by making the ordering process equivalent to that of other online retailers.  It would be nice if the kit offered a lighting accessory, or at least a cable for it.  There is a way to hack the installation of a lighting kit, but probably most consumers will not be up for that.  The kit is probably ideally suited for 3 speed bikes, which are generally geared higher than touring or mountain bikes.  I’d also like to see the warranty/product registration process streamlined.  Currently, in order to secure your 1 year warranty, you must submit photos of your installation and receive approval from the company before the warranty is activated.  I submitted this documentation 5 days ago but have heard nothing back from company.

Overall, I’m happy with this conversion kit.  The upsides are the low cost, ease of installation and reasonable range with the Max battery.  The downsides are the lack of a longer range option, a torque sensor, lighting option, and a normal customer interface. The fiddly display is also a problem.  But, for my purposes – grocery hauling in my hilly neighborhood and general commuting – this kit is fine.  I love that I’m still riding a 37 year old bike and that with each grocery haul I’m not using my car.  That’s a real win.