Cube 400 Cross Hybrid E Bike: 5,000 miles Long Term Running Report.
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2024
- Having now done more miles with the Cube than ALL my previous bikes put together I've put this review on UA-cam to go through its history. The question is, if I just keep replacing worn out parts, will the bike last forever, just like Trigger's brush? But, this bike is no ordinary bike, it's an electric bike! From now on just how long will the Bosch electrics go without encountering a problem? To find out I will continue clocking the miles up which are to Date: 5,185.
love your videos Derek Happy christmas to yourself and Helen aHave a brilliant 2023 .
I thought you weren’t far from Calderdale, I lived in Luddenden for 20yrs but moved back to the Wirral 18 months ago. Excellent review Derek I’m after a Cube but considering compact with gates belt drive and hub gears, they look like quality bikes.
Hi Bob. Yes. Anything that gets away from gears and chains and everything else. From what I've read these belts need no special care and last for thousands of miles. As for the hub gears. Well. I don't know. My first ancient bike in the sixties had a Sturmey Archer 3 speed hub change. The bike was old and the hub gear had probably never been touched but it worked perfectly well. It didn't look as cool as a modern sports bike but it was reliable. You also can't go wrong with a Cube, even a cheap one like mine. Cheers.
Brilliantly put together Derek, and here's how sad I am, I remember watching all them episodes where all these changes and dramas took place - good old trusty!
Cheers Derek fabulous stuff
Hi Likeher 9. Thankyou very much for your kind words of praise. The question is (I think I've said this before) who will last the longest. Me or the Cube? I'd like to see the next 5,000 miles covered just to see if the mileometer changes back to nought after 9,999 miles or will it actually register the 10,000 miles. I heard they change back to all the noughts but there is room at the end for another number. Only time will tell. Cheers.
I discovered theie e-touring bike line; I love it! They are costly but they are built all what I would personally design an e-touring bicycle to be as :) They come in three frame geometries: 1) Standard 2) Trapeze frame style 3) Easy Entry (Step-Thru) frame. This business also has more color selection as well as Bosch/Battery Power selection for your personal liking.
Hi Tracey. Well, that's another one I've not heard of. I often wonder just how much better a £3,000 or even £5,000 e bike is compared to my £1,600 Cube e bike. This Cube is at the mercy of the chain and cassette, brake pads, jockey wheels and tyres. Do these items last longer on a dearer bike? That I'll never find out as this Cube is here to stay. As the miles pile up I'll just keep it going, one way or another. I'll have a look at e touring bikes. Thanks for the comment.
@@derektaylor6713 Torque ratings and installing a e-bike chain will help the ease of wear and tear on your bicycle. The industry also has superglide bike cassettes: they improve shifiting capability to help lessen wear of the bike chain. I don't understand why several e-bikes cost over $4,000/USD too. I custom built up mine for a little over $1300.00. The only thing I would do a change on mine is the geometry of the bicycle frame. It is currently a standerd one, but as I am getting older (not younger) I desire to have a low step frame for easier on and off my e-bike.
@@StarEssences Yes, I did have it told to me that my Cube is just a bargain basement bike and everything on it is not of the highest quality. But you could have fooled me. I suppose there are higher quality this and that but I don't mind replacing this and that and the other as non of it is expensive. The really expensive bit, I suppose, is the battery. Last count these were around £700 !!!! and then the motor itself. I friend of mine knows someone who had to have his Bosch motor rebuilt after only 7,000 miles. He had it upgraded as well and cost about £250. This isn't bad but I'd be a bit disappointed if the motor on the Cube needed a rebuild at only that miles. I'm not that far away from that now. He apparently removed the motot himself and sent it away. I couldn't trust myself to do that. I call myself 'Derek The Destroyer of Things'. In other words I'd make a mess of it one way or another lol.
@@derektaylor6713 I stick to the basics myself; I learned about bike mechanics through a couple of bike mechanic manuals in order to save on costs. I installed a bafang 750watt motor on my mtb motobecane frame only that also came with a 100mm coil front fork. (time of Covid was the worse; 2020) at that time there were screaming price deals on bicycles and a lot of people traveled America on bicycle :) Cube has their own specified website if you are interested in seeing their updated version of touring e-bikes etc. Check them out.
Thanks for the input. Thoroughly enjoyed it Im 63yrs old and my arthritic knees mean I've reached the point where it's either ebike or no bike. As I have cycled all my life and still do 20 daily, there is no way I am giving up, so ebike it is. Cube hybrid 500 or similar .
Yes, I agree. bad knees = e bike. I have a back problem. Keep cycling makes it a bit better, not completely right but it helps. And a 500 watt battery may be better as you will cover more miles. Strange thing with this video. When I put a 500 mile review on UA-cam, it instantly got lots of views so you'd think that putting a review on at 5,000 miles would create even more views but it hasn't. In fact, video for video it's had poor views. But apart from replacing routine parts the bike is superb. It's nearly four years old and has done enough miles to get from here to the other side of India and yet it still feels like new. Good luck with you purchase.
Enjoyed coming with you on your many journeys. Hope to see many more.
Hi Paul. Thanks for this comment (quite rare these days). Yes, videos get a bit thin on the ground at this time of year as we don't go away that often but I do have a few to show yet including 'Green, Green, Grass (or concrete!)' which is a bit different than my normal videos. But it's still a bike ride and really, that's what all my video are about. Cheers.
I really enjoy these updates, I'm afraid I'm a bit of a tech nut. Love to see all the technical stuff.
Hi Alan. Nice to hear off you. Yes, the only technical stuff missing was the latest chain and cassette change on the Cube. I didn't film this simply because I'd covered all that on Helen's flying Scott. Although undoing the cassette would have been quite entertaining as it was as though it had been tightened up by the world's strongest man lol. Cheers.
@@derektaylor6713 I dont know much about cassettes but the last time I last removed a block was by fitting the removal tool to the block then clamping it in a vise and turning the wheel, you still had to give it a good tug to loosen it though.
@@alanprice7584Good idea. Thoughts of my vice in the shed did fleet across my mind but at the time I couldn't think of a way of doing it. Maybe next time. The thing is that this cassette was on the original wheel that I buckled so it was some bruiser at Evans Cycles that must have swapped it over and tightened it up. Cheers.
Hello Derek, I want to by Cube cross 500w baterry. Is this good bike, worth the money?
Hi Tony. Yes, any Cube is a good buy. You've got the usual chain, jockey wheels, brake pads, cassette and tyres that will need attention from time to time. The 500 watt battery will be a better bet than a 400. It depends just how far your rides are and how hilly it is. If you go no further than 30 miles, then a cheaper 400 watt battery will do and of course the rest of the electrics are usual very reliable. Good luck with your choice.