Electric Motorcycle – KZ440
Hi Folks!
If you are interested in building your own electric motorcycle, you have come to the right place! I’m working on posting all the information on how I built my own electric motorcycle to share with your. If you are ready to jump right in to building your own, please check out my BUILD YOUR OWN ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE instructional DVD set!
Here’s a teaser video to get you going.
To see all my electric motorcycle videos on YouTube, CLICK HERE.
For “Chapters” of how I built the cycle, please see the links on the sidebar, or click the links below. I’m currently going through and adding in all the details to this project. Don’t worry if all the detailed info isn’t there yet, I’m going to keep adding to it!
Donor Bike and De-ICE-ing LINK
(June 20, 2011 update) I have recently done some work on the cycle – cleaning it up, adding some fresh paint, and welding up a new battery rack that tucks the batteries more neatly into the frame.
The cycle uses a single-speed gear reduction. 14 tooth on the drive sprocket, and 72 tooth on the rear wheel sprocket. This low gearing was designed to give the bike good acceleration, with a top speed of 45 mph, the top speed limit in the area that I use the cycle in. (I mostly use it in the city, where it’s all 25 mph zones.)
The Briggs & Stratton Etek motor is rated at 150 amps continuous, and rates as a 8 – 12 HP motor, depending on voltage. With my 300 amp controller, and 48V of batteries, that comes to about 20 HP peak, which you get INSTANTLY from an electric motor. If I swapped out the inexpensive drive sprocket ($10 at the Farm & Fleet store) I could probably go 60 or 65 mph and still be within the amperage rating of the motor, although I wouldn’t have as good acceleration.
The cycle goes 20-30 miles per charge, depending on speed, weather, hills, etc. on 4 Optima Yellow-Top batteries. It charges overnight with a built-in 48V charger.
Here’s a video of my friend testing the cycle in the parking lot after updating some work on it.
{ 30 comments… read them below or add one }
nice job and congrats on your win for the car keep up the great work.
you are very inspiring.
by the way besides playing with your toys what kind of work do you do are you some kind of engineer or something
coooool! where can we more of that bike?
I am not an engineer.
I have a library card, internet access, and talk to whoever I can learn from.
I am self-employed and do some work in video production and odd jobs. I simply learn all I can while working on anything. Really, if I can do this kind of stuff, anyone can!
See more videos on the motorcycle at MY YOUTUBE EV MOTORCYCLE PLAYLIST.
-Ben
Awesome stuff Ben! Just wondering what the specifications of the bike is? Like 0 to 60, range on one charge, how long does it take to charge?
Sonny, there’s no 0-60 time on it, because it was designed for use in the city. The single-speed gearing is set up for 0-45mph, but with no clutch, and no shifting.
It goes 20-30 miles per charge, using four off-the-shelf batteries, and recharges in 8 hours or less.
Hey Ben, I have always been interested in buliding my own electric motorcycle. But I want to build a bike that has a decent range like 60-70 miles. I dont know what that would take but I think it would be a great goal. There are electric motorcycles on the market with that type of range and some even have 100 mile ranges or more. I know the batteries they use are high tech, but there has got to be a way I can do it with sealed batteries. So how do I do this? Also what would be a good starter bike? I guess I need something lightweight so I can go farther.
Thanks alot!
Oh yeah by the way your presentation was awsome, it was the most detailed one I could find on the internet. I was just hoping someone would ask a question about range. I am a college student so if I built an electric motorcycle it wouldnt just be a toy or luxury, it would be my daily driver, so it would be nice to have a bike with better range so it can go everywhere a gas powered motorcycle can.
A lightweight motorcycle will help with range. Still trying to cram in up to 100 miles range is asking a LOT!
I did recently test ride a Zero S. It was great! Very light, belt driven, and SMOOOOOOTH!
I also saw a fantastic homebuilt cycle at the Detroit MakerFaire – see that guy’s web page at: http://experimentalev.wordpress.com/
Sport bike frames can make excellent conversions because they have a lightweight frame and when you remove the engine and transmission, it leaves a nice space for you to build a rectangular area to hold even more batteries!
i was wondering, im tryin to make my electric vehicle, and i kinda need info on which would work better for my vehicle.. a belt of a chain because my vehicle is of my own design and everything and i want to make it as powerful and eassy on the battery as possible so that i can be my main car..
My cycle uses a chain, because it’s simple, and easy to change gear ratios on. Also, I’ve heard that a chain can be more efficient, because it can’t slip. I got to ride a commercially-built electric motorcycle a while back that had a belt drive. It was very nice and quiet. I think a cogged belt would be a great way to go, but I imagine it would be a bit more expensive for the parts than stock chains and sprockets would be.
whats a safe amount of batteries you can use without turning yourself into a crispy critter??lol because i was thinking of using about 6 l-ion batteries for my power source..
By “amount of batteries you can use”, I’m assuming you are asking about system voltage. On a DC system, higher voltage makes your motor spin faster. Higher voltage at the same power is lower amperage, which is good for range, and higher voltage at the same amperage is higher power, so there are all sorts of good reasons to go with higher voltages. “Low-Voltage” is usually considered anything around 42 volts or lower. That’s the point at which, most likely, the voltage won’t penetrate the skin and give you a shock. But that also assumes that you are touching bare wires or battery terminals. U.S. household wiring is 120V and we really never think anything because of it. But all the wiring is covered, and we have safety systems – grounding and fuse boxes. It’s the same with an EV. There really isn’t a particular voltage that you are going to “fry yourself” at. Higher voltages do have a higher risk of electric shock, assuming that you did NOT properly build your system with shrink tubing, battery boots, and work on it with the power connected.
Lead acid batteries are typically 12V, but Lithium are usually somewhere in the 3V range. You build several cells together to make a “12V Battery”. A 72V lithium motorcycle would be great, but remember that you will need something like 24 lithium cells, not 6 batteries.
hello, im wondering if that engine is strong enough if you want to make it go faster???(You’ll have to excuse the english)
The electric motor that I’m using is rated to pull 150 amps continuous at 48 volts. When I am cruising on the cycle, it uses a little less than 100 amps. By changing the gearing, I could increase the top speed, but also pull more amps. Since I live just outside a city, where the speeds are low, I’d rather have the lower amp draw and top speed, but YES, the motor is powerful enough for a higher speed.
thanks ben big help, ^_^ i watched your vids on youtube in high school and decided to try to make my own and this will be my first (hopefully best and last) vehicle so i want to say ty for the inspiration dude!
You are welcome! Just make sure to send some photos and videos this way when you are done with YOUR project to inspire others!
-Ben
will do !!
hi ben
justin again, does your video one the electric car show you how to hook up the aircon and radio to your powersource? cuz i only have your motercycle video, and it doesnt quite cover that part of my inquiry to give you an incite on what im trying to do.. im mixing the motercycle tech with the car comforts and tech into one awsome vehicle so if yes i’ll go ahead and make the purchase to get it of no, i’ll just have to figure a way out lol ^_^
Thanks for the answer!;-)
I aint very good at this electrical stuf so i’ll ask you, do you think one can build somthing like that with a washingmachine motor couse im looking for the cheepest solution i can find for the summer when they are raising the gasoline prizes here in sweden all the time…
BUILD YOUR OWN ELECTRIC CAR does NOT cover air-conditioning, just because my particular car didn’t have it. Power for things like the radio, headlights, airbags, etc. are all untouched. Those all run off the existing 12V electrical system, which is un-modified. The only change to that is adding a 12V charger or a DC/DC converter to the original 12V car battery.
For most electric vehicles, you have TWO electric systems, one at 12V for the original vehicle radio, lights, accessories, etc. and it ONLY does that, and a completely separate HIGHER voltage system that’s just for propelling the vehicle. There’s all sorts of good reasons not to mix the two, including that nearly all cars use the frame of the vehicle as the 12V- of the electrical system!
Most washing machine motors are not nearly as powerful as you would need to drive an electric vehicle. HOWEVER, there are now starting to be clothes washers that use a direct-drive AC motor. It’s a powerful motor right on the drum of the machine (instead of off to the side, and driven with a belt) which produces enough torque to spin a whole tub of wet clothing. If you had several of these motors, you might be able to build “hub motors” from them, where the motor drives a wheel directly. You would still need to figure out how to drive the AC power to the motor(s) and control their speed. Paul, at the Open Revolt project has been working on an Open Source AC Motor Controller. Perhaps several direct-drive AC clothes washer motors and an Open Revolt AC controller might make for a good start on a purpose-built vehicle.
I haven’t heard of anyone doing this yet, but it is certainly within the realm of possibility!
ok ty for the info ben , do you know any sites i could go to to study the electronic systems of a basic car?? cuz im stumped at the moment for that part lol any wisdom from ya i would be grateful for sir
justin
so you don’t think it would work even if its low geared? or that it would be hard to get it to work…
I think a web search for “Car 12V electrical” will get you all sorts of web pages that will help you out.
There are a lot of different types of motors out there, including motors from washing machines and other salvaged machinery. The important thing to keep in mind is how much power you can put through them, and how much is needed for your project. For my motorcycle, the motor is rated for 12HP at 48V. How many horsepower can an unknown motor from a washing machine put out? If you can find out, and it’s in the range that might work, great, go for it! You CAN using gearing to increase torque, but at the expense of speed. Depending on the motor and how you want to use the vehicle, that can be fine too. My cycle is geared in such a way that the top speed is 45 mph, but I’m just outside a city where it’s all 25 mph zones anyways, and only 45 just before my house.
hello me again, you must think im a pain in the…
but im just curius;)
how much power do you think one can put out from a car alternator if you convert it into an electric motor?
(not for a motorcycle, only for fun)
I believe that most alternators are designed for about 65 amps, while outputting 14.4V. If you multiply 65×14.4, you get 936 watts. Lets just call it 1000 watts for easy math.
Assuming you could easily convert an alternator into a motor, you should not expect to be able to convert any more than 1000 watts from electric power to mechanical power. That’s about 1 and a quarter horsepower. It might be good for something like a kick-scooter.
Power is pretty easy to figure out in general watts = volts times amps. Horsepower is roughly 750 watts. There’s lot of different types of motors out there, of different sizes, power, and cost. Very small motors generally are NOT appropriate for any kind of vehicle use, but taking something apart, and learning how it works can be lots of fun!
Thanks, that was about what i belived!
But would it work for “instant” use?
Hey, anything will work once, at least until you melt it!