Thanks for your excellent review! I've had my Prodigy for a few months and I agree it's a great ebike for the money. Mine is mostly stock except for a bell and some MTB pedals with toe clips. Next up probably a mirror, and maybe a shock absorber seat post. Thanks for the hint about pushing the button to remove the battery. I'm in northern Colorado so I want to bring the battery inside during the winter.
You are welcome Jim! The seatpost makes such a difference, I rode without it yesterday and I missed it. I really like the Mirricle mirror, amzn.to/3X9cQgn, I've tried a ton and it's the best that I've found.
Thank you, it is a fun bike. The quality all around is a step up, even a lot of the higher end hub motor bikes are still using a cheap frame. At first no throttle was hard for me to get used to but now it is no problem at all!
@@ElectronSurfer I'm a throttle fan, but with so much torque I think I'd be willing to overlook it. This bike is sweet. PS: what's the gearing on this? I'd probably either swap out the cassette OR put a larger chainring on for more ability to maintain some higher speed.
@@thetds101 It is a 46t chainring to an 11-34 9 speed (I put that in the description every video). With the torque sensor you probably would not get your desired higher speed because it would take more torque to create the same amount of assist. Basically I think you'd be pushing harder than necessary. The TongSheng mid-drive kit (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-pMFDRuZcrvQ.html) gives torque with throttle as do some hub drives like the Surface 604 bikes (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2U3cTjTSu2I.html).
I actually did a second video talking about the grips and seatpost with links, ru-vid.com6JIaf2-NFko. I like the Ergon Biocork grips really well and the Mirrycle mirrors are the best I have found amzn.to/4bMHUu2. Thanks!
Any panniers seem to fit fine, the rail is short enough that even if they slide it won't be far. Bags with adjustable clips or ones like Arkel bags that clamp to the rail work fine. Loaded bags don't move very much in my experience but I did add a lower hook, I'll upload a short showing how I did that.
It does seem that the display is about 1 mph lower than the true speed, pretty common. It is super smooth and quiet, a real treat to ride. Is this a bike you are looking at?
Hi, thanks for the review! Couple questions. What has been your longest ride and how much of the battery did you use? What has been your highest elevation and did it significantly drain the battery? Lastly… how did you turn off your light? Thank you! 😊
That lack of bottom hook options for panniers really confuses me. Would love you to return to this in a few months after you have more experience with the bike.
It is goofy and most racks on premade bikes don't have it. As a long time bike commuter it is annoying. I did a short video about adding a clip to the open aftermarket rack threaded hole below the rack. I am at almost 300 miles on the bike and plan on a 500 Mike video coming up! Thank you for the comment
This is the XR, only in one frame size. I always include my height weight in the description with specs of the product, Reviewer Height/Weight: 5'10"(178cm), 175 lbs (79kg)
I have not, its pretty much the only one in their lineup that I haven't ridden. I'll reach out to Ride1Up and ask about it. I personally love the torque sensors. Cheers!
Yes you pedal all of the time, when I get to a hill I usually go up one assist level from where I am riding and shift down like you would without pedal assist to help the motor get more torque from the drivetrain.
I wish I could get my hands on this, but delivery is delayed until Feb-March 2023, and I’d need to get someone in the US to receive it and reship it to me abroad. Worry that they’d reject it as it’s Class 3 and it’s not allowed where I reside. Not sure what the process is for that.
I would think reshipping would be tough, are you close enough to the border to pick up on the US side? I would be surprised if they would reject a shipment based on ebike Class as I don't recall that being anywhere on the packaging. The Tongsheng mid-drive is a good option if you have, or can get, a suitable donor bike.
@@ElectronSurfer I live in Asia, so that's the issue. I don't want to jimmy one up, because they look godawful, and you just don't get the same geometry and balance if you get the wrong fit. I think those kinds of motors (Bafang has a dealer here in Seoul where they'll install it on your bike) are also restricted here (20 mph, I think...compared to 28 stateside). There are ways to derestrict most of them, I think. I just don't know if they would seize the bike here and I'd be out of pocket, or they wouldn't even let it leave the US. I'd love to know. Hard to get a definitive answer on that, and I'm not about to call Customs to enquire. ;)
@@canadianroot I got you, I will have a build video up soon of a BBS02 on a Hardtail from Bikes Direct. I actually think you get better geometry (fit really) and balance (lighter) with a properly installed kit. I take a lot of time trying to get everything to look as clean as possible, some builds I see are gut-wrenchingly ugly. I'll reply to you with that video when it's up. Most kit companies send you 250w Class 1 stickers, kind of silly. You can set the BBS02 programming so that it works like a Class 1 bike but with a quick change in the display kick the speed up as high as you want.
Your post says this is a 250 watt bike, but the details you post show it as 750 watt and that's also what the Ride1Up web site says. Your video also mentions 250 watt. Which one is it? Thanks.
It is 250 watt, I made a typo in that one spot. I don't see wattage advertised anywhere on Ride1Up's website, I had to go to the Brose site to see the wattage for this TF Sprinter motor. www.brose-ebike.com/de-en/products/
I just got the XC model and the suspension is great . The light switch does not turn off the light on XC model it’s always on . I put on a on and off switch to be able to turn it off . They also won’t allow the custom feature to be selected, I don’t know why they disable those features on the XC models , curious to know if you could change those features on your model.
On my XR the light was initially on all the time, but it was the light sensor. I was able to recreate your issue by going into menu>settings>system>light and turn it to "on". If I change that to "off" the light then works with the button on the display. I did read about other people with this issue, I can't see why the same display would work differently.
The button I am referring to is the first one on the bottom left, mine has a circle on it. A long hold gets you into the menu. I did ask Ride1Up and some models on the Prodigy have the light button disabled from Brose and there is no way to change that in the menu.
Nice, I use a Mirrycle bar end mirror, I really think it is better than all the others I have tried: amzn.to/3n1O3hp. The grips are Ergon BioCork which I totally love the feel of: amzn.to/3lrfVLK. Check back and let me know how you like it!
Hello! I have the XR model exactly like yours coming Feb/March, 23 (Love the color!). However, I have been split on maybe switching to the XC. I plan to mostly ride on the road about 95% of the time. However, I live in Michigan, where the roads are less than ideal...lots of potholes and bumps to avoid. The road is almost never 'flat'. (When it is, it's a treat!) I've wondered back and forth if I should upgrade only really for the suspension? I've never had a bike without them (usually ride 'traditional' mountain bikes) so I'm not sure how it will ride. I'm not sure it's worth the extra weight/off road tires though. If you can give any advice, I'd greatly appreciate it! I can't seem to make the choice on my own. :-)
Stacey, thank you for the comment. I periodically visit Port Huron, MI and can totally see the conundrum you have. I will be doing a video in the next week or so, weather permitting, with a suspension stem and seatpost on my XR, I will try and hit some rough roads to help you out. I would guess that the real weight of the XC is actually close to the XR with the racks and fenders, you are unlikely to feel that weight when riding. If I had to do it again I would buy the XC and add a rear rack and seatpost suspension as the the suspension stem costs more than the difference between the two models.. However, I do love the clean look of the XR. I'm not sure if this was helpful and again I appreciate the comment!
Can we change the torque sensor ? The fact it has no throttle and your limited to your own peddle power seems a bit of a turn off compared to me buying a Hub bike where I can select my speed assist
The assist is applied relative to how you are pedaling, it is very natural but may not be for everyone. I never find the power lacking, but I can see wanting a throttle. There are mid drives with throttles and all the same speed levels as a hub motor. I personally prefer the power delivery feel from a mid drive vs a hub.
@@ElectronSurfer Very Informative! How would you say the range is for you ? I heard these motors are more efficient especially at 250w. Also do you think this bike could survive some light trails and mostly city curb bumps ? I'm scared of hitting that motor Really considering hoping on this bike though because that style is to die for
I'm sorry to be slow to reply to this. These are very efficient between the need to pedal and the lower wattage motor. I am easily getting over 40 miles of range but I have not did a entire ride over 20 mph. My data suggests that all motors under 500 watts are very efficient, you start to loose a bit when you get to 750w and above and fat tires. I wouldn't worry about hitting the motor, the actual clearance is just about the same as any bike. That being said, I would not really want to curb jump this because of weight, rim quality, and unsure of the frame being up to that much abuse. I think some suspension protects the frame as the bulk of force is being taken up by the suspension. So for a curb hopper I'd go for hard-tail or full suspension.
I really like it, at first I missed the throttle but the response is so fast I didn't for long. I personally pedal even on a hub/throttle bike so for me it is great.
