Electric bike

[hillrunner]

I had the original electric Polaris Ranger. It was good for getting places quietly. I sold it two years ago and miss it for that purpose. I've been considering an e bike but I don't trust it on rocky trails in the dark. Winke has some sort of 4 wheels electric cart he rides around in. It's probably stupid expensive.

You'll notice they are on smoothly mowed trails with those electric carts. They are on the 4 wheeler when the terrain gets even slightly challenging.

 

[omicron1792]

These lithium powered golf carts for hunting are pretty dang good now. Plenty of power and room and are quiet.

 

[RGrizzzz]

These lithium powered golf carts for hunting are pretty dang good now. Plenty of power and room and are quiet.

What's the clearance like?

 

[bigboreblr]

Keeping my eyes open on this thread..........

Anyone use one to drag a deer back to camp with or without a cart? Anyone use theirs around salt water. Originally wanted one more for surf fishing, but can be real handy at camp too. No rough trails really, either up the snowmobile trail or down the main dirt road to the other end of the logging lease.

Bought my wife a cheapie Vivi 2 or 3 years ago. Kinda would like a pedal one. Thinking they might change laws on ones w/o pedals. Basically electric motorcycles in the future law. NY loves laws.......

Got the 2wd Polaris electric ranger at work..... NEver used it off-road though. Borrrow the line crews machines when we need one.

 

[omicron1792]

Better than you think, they can be lifted and mud tires put on them too.

Was at a big farm this weekend and we drove them everywhere with no issues.

 

[loshonhora]

Omicron, was the terrain where you drove the carts hilly? I've been looking into a lithium powered cart, but I'm worried that it can't climb out of our creek bottoms. I'm also curious whether anyone has experience with lithium powered carts in cold weather. if it can't run in November or December, it's worthless to me.

 

[omicron1792]

Omicron, was the terrain where you drove the carts hilly? I've been looking into a lithium powered cart, but I'm worried that it can't climb out of our creek bottoms. I'm also curious whether anyone has experience with lithium powered carts in cold weather. if it can't run in November or December, it's worthless to me.

Hilly. Lots of creeks. Went right through.

I’ve played many a round of golf on hilly courses that golf cart did great. And those weren’t supped up lithium’s.

 

[buckdeer1]

What is that 3 or 4 wheel one Bill Winke uses

 

[cbw]

I had the original electric Polaris Ranger. It was good for getting places quietly. I sold it two years ago and miss it for that purpose. I've been considering an e bike but I don't trust it on rocky trails in the dark. Winke has some sort of 4 wheels electric cart he rides around in. It's probably stupid expensive.

How did you like the electric Ranger? Been eying them. Why did u sell? Would u buy again?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[RGrizzzz]

How did you like the electric Ranger? Been eying them. Why did u sell? Would u buy again?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

It was good for what it was. I consider it a very quiet people and stuff mover.

I sold it for a few reasons. The biggest was to upgrade to a crew size vehicle so we could use it as a family. The range was decent. I converted it to Lithium batteries as the lead acid were getting older. I didn't maximize the Amp hours, which limited the range. We only used it occasionally, so I worried about how the batteries would age with limited use. It was kept in a barn without power, so I couldn't trickle charge it. Lastly, part of that property is accessed via crossing a creek. I didn't love driving it across water, as the batteries sat it bottom of the unit.

Knowing all that, I'd still like to have another one for hunting use because it was so quiet

 

[356]

I have one, and have found it clearly does not replace the side-by-side, but is great for getting into the woods and to the far blinds. Changing rear flats is a pain (experience), but overall it has been a good purchase. It also makes me plan what I need to take to the blind, and is great for checking a few non-cell cameras that I still have out there.

Mine will definitely NOT climb step hills, although it does pretty good in first gear. If the battery goes dead, be prepared for a workout! Another lesson from experience

.View attachment 46604

Three years ago I was asked to report the "good, bad and ugly." Here it is:

Good: This particular e-bike is the Heybike Mars Electric Bike Foldable ith 500W Motor, 48V 12.5AH Removable Battery, Shimano 7-Speed and Dual Shock Absorber with a rider weight rating of 300#. The heybike brand is still going strong. While made in China, these are distributed by a California based company, so parts are available. Another good--I've not needed any parts from the company. The original price was $950 including shipping. Top speed is 26 mph, which I can realistically achieve only on a slight downgrade. In the woods, 8-12 mph is normal.

The battery is good for a long weekend of hunting. This was tested during a recent management hunt that included several hours of scouting followed by approximately 14 miles going to and from the hunting areas. I put 23 miles on the bike, and when I arrived home, the battery was dead, but it never left me stranded.

The bike is quite, and with the factory rack and additional mounts, can carry a two man pop-up blind, two small Tri-pod chairs and my hunting bad with "stuff."

Rear flat tires are a pain (I've had three). The last one I fixed using the green-slim stuff, and it actually worked. The rear derailer will get caught is brush and tale weeds. I am on number three. These are cheap ($10). The first was replaced under warranty, the others I bought off amazon. This is a problem with all e-bikes with external deraillers. I've learned to avoid tall weeds, grass and soybean fields. I had to adjust and tighten the headset, and the brakes can be noisy (if you are not careful).

There is "no ugly" yet.

Overall: The heybike has served me well. It is not as powerful as some, but does better than I anticipated and qualifies as a "bicycle" for Missouri parks (750 watt limit).

The current model is the Heybike Mars 3.0, which boosts a 1400 watt motor and top speed of 32 mph.