A conversation regarding weight distribution with a co-worker motorcyclist left me concerned that I might have too much weight too far forward. With the lightweight pancake motor replacing a transmission, and dangling SLA batteries where a radiator should be made me shudder when Chris used words like "high-side" and "rapid stop" and "if it goes over jump and get the hell away". Yikes. The theory goes, under hard braking the rear might not have enough weight and could begin skidding if weight is too far forward.
Anyway, how then to weigh a very big motorcycle? Using Google, suggestions from using scales at the dump, to horse scales and then long debates about the accuracy of using bathroom scales for the purpose. Not having a dump or horse handy, I went to the bathroom tonight to grab the trusty old scale.
Getting the bike onto the scale was the next trick. I decided to try front wheel first, putting the rear in the swingarm stand for stability (I could just visualize this thing rolling over with a part of me under it). I then put the scale down and tried shoving the whole bike on it.
The scale did not appreciate this technique - the top literally flew off, upsetting and dislodging the internal mechanism so it didn't work any more. Because it was of the highest quality Chinese metal, I took a crack at fixing it, and to my surprise and relief, did so successfully. The secret is to unhook the springs, then re-thread them through for the needle nose pliers to pick up.
SO back to the weighing. I decided to get the wheel up on some 2x4 chunks about the height of the scale, then rolled it from the sturdy wood to the ricketty scale. Front - a mere 225 lbs.
After trying to lower the back wheel onto the scale for the rear weight (unsuccessfully), I repeated the 2x4 rolling trick but this time without the security of a stand. It wasn't bad to my surprise, and once on the 2x4's rolled it back onto the scale. Rear - a solid 232 lbs.
SO the total weight, assuming we were flat enough overall, 458 lbs. This is about 100lbs less than I expected, and nearly 100 lbs less than stock. And to know the rear is actually HEAVIER than the front is an even bigger shocker. Given that 200 lbs of the weight is batteries, that leaves only 258 lbs of wheels, chassis, chargers and fairings. Now that the chargers are removable, some hacksaw dieting could get the bike to 400 lbs pretty quickly, and a total weight with me as pilot under 600.
I posted to the ZX-11 forum asking about what the weight distribution should be, I'll go check my manual too in case its something for mechanics to worry about.
Some followup:
Stock Dry Weight: 502 lbs (http://www.zx11.info/zx11/specs.htm)
Stock Wet Weight: 581 lbs (http://www.mcreports.com/Pages/Indivbikes/Kawasaki/ZX11C.html)
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Earth Day 2008
Today was the REAL Earth Day, April 22nd. I had been confused since it was all over the press all weekend and week and just kept on going.
I had skipped the AM bicycle ride, then rode the e-moto into work, then back home, then back to work, then offered a quick demonstration at 1 pm in honor of Earth Day. So at 1 I did a little show and tell to a new crowd, its beginning to almost feel automatic. I need to make the bike easier to take apart for these demos, it looks so ordinary that the coolness is not so obvious to the non-motorcycler. The plug gets the best comments and reaction, it really is a strange juxtaposition coming out of the gas tank and basically sums it all up.
Then home I went again, fearing rain, and riding back on a truly green machine, a bicycle.
I had skipped the AM bicycle ride, then rode the e-moto into work, then back home, then back to work, then offered a quick demonstration at 1 pm in honor of Earth Day. So at 1 I did a little show and tell to a new crowd, its beginning to almost feel automatic. I need to make the bike easier to take apart for these demos, it looks so ordinary that the coolness is not so obvious to the non-motorcycler. The plug gets the best comments and reaction, it really is a strange juxtaposition coming out of the gas tank and basically sums it all up.
Then home I went again, fearing rain, and riding back on a truly green machine, a bicycle.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
My "EV Out Of Gas" Story
After my shockingly successful initial run of V1.2.0 at 60 volts, I woke up today and finding my usual bicycle ride canceled, I slipped on a pair of jeans over the cycling kit, got out the heavy leather jacket and went to the garage before 7 am in the morning sunshine.
The traffic was sparse but quick, I went along over 30. I had decided to go up Spruce Avenue with the goal of reaching Inspiration Point in Berkeley, a famous lookout to the east in the hills, about 8 miles away. And this required 1000 feet of climbing. Its a very familiar route on my bicycle, and I assumed it would give me a chance to improve my riding skills and check out the e-moto's true performance and range.
I went up the hill at what I thought was a conservative 27 mph pace, stopping occasionally to check the motor temperature with my hand. I ran with the headlight on, and didn't coast to stops very efficiently.
I got to the top of Spruce and Wildcat Canyon drive, where the route is mildly climbing. Onward into the park, I really noticed the road was rough/bike shaking. I noticed my top end was gone, unable to get over 30 mph. At the "Brazil Room" parking lot, I made the very risky decision to push on, despite the lack of a fuel gauge. The odometer said 7.1 miles. Down the little hill I went and on to the final climb, being conservative but knowing I might get stuck very far away from any outlets, my family asleep at home thinking I was out riding a bicycle.
I made it to the Inspiration Point overlook, parked the bike and took a few camera-phone pictures in the bright sun assuming it would be good for my sales brochure for the bike.
And the time was also giving the pack a rest/recovery period as mentioned in "Secrets of El Ninja" - I was living them today, all of them. Back on the bike I turned around, going mildly downhill, coasting in a way not unfamiliar from the bicycle approach. On the final downhill S-curve I realized I had to make the climb back to the Brazil Room, which is nasty on the bicycle and would challenge my electric horse. I was regretting my speeding in the AM and cursing my inefficient acceleration/hard braking style as I sputtered at the top of the hill at 10 to maybe 15 mph. And I wished for regen. The sputtering was literal, the green "neutral" light flashing/stuttering in tune with the starving motor. I realized suddenly if the DC-DC converter dropped below 12 volts, the solenoid could shut down and kill the bike. I was in trouble, this converter never ran with less than 3 batteries (36 volts).
I parked at the Brazil Room to give the bike a break and to look for an electrical outlet. I was wishing for a long extension cord, but assumed a park ranger might be able to hook me up. It was early, no one seemed about, and I recalled its mostly downhill from the Brazil Room. So I mounted up the tired machine, and it seemed to appreciate the rest. I was back to 20 mph or so, mostly coasting, avoiding the brakes. I had long since turned off the 35 watt HID. I tucked as if I was doing 100, squeezing any advantage I could from the heavy, full fairing bullet I had lobotomized.
Reaching the top of Spruce was a victory, it meant civilization, cell phone coverage and power outlets. Down the hill I went, suddenly Berkeley was waking up and the hills were alive with Volvos. Wishing for
more regen, I was over 20-30 mph. The brakes were fine, but most acceleration was greeted with the green light stutter. Down Oxford, the light was green and I was in serious coasting mode, milking the lights, doing my tuck and watching out for cars coming up from behind. I was trying to remember where friends lived in case I needed to bail. The stop signs and red light blocks south of campus provided breaks and kept the traffic around me in check. I turned down onto Shattuck and kept on gliding, again not unlike a bicycle. I was psyched at this point because I knew I could walk/push it from here.
I made it over Ashby BART and did my final stoplight, right down Fairview with the Hazard lights blinking at under 10 mph. I parked in front of the house, opened the gate and garage and with the final umph I got back to my Kill-A-Watt box. WHEW. 16.4 miles.
The critical element I had missed in the construction of V1.2.0 was access to measure pack voltage with the multimeter. So I took out the drill and made 2 holes over the ends of my battery punch-down block where the chargers are wired to the batteries, and measured 56.3 volts. This was not nearly as low as I expected given the struggle I had getting home. I turned on the power to the chargers and checked in throughout the day, noticing the batteries at the ends of my series were last to finish charging, the first battery on the ground side took most of the day. Is this normal? The pack got back over 62 volts when fully charged - it had been at 63.8 before Thursday during my flame-out of the DC-DC converter.
It was 8am, I took off my jeans and coat, put on the cycling shoes, took off the knee warmers and realized I had the heart rate monitor on for the moto ride. I would have liked to know what my rate was the first stutter!
I got on the bike and cranked out for 2 hours, covering 29.1 miles at nearly 16mph, almost the same pace my EV ran that morning on a less challenging course. During the ride I thought a lot about EV's, and was amazed at gasoline and ICE technology, and bummed out at reading about the corruption by ZAP in Wired last night. Passing the Ashby BART on the way home (bicycle this time), I noticed the graveyard-like EV parking lot, each stall including a sun-bleached charger unit. I stopped by and picked up the EV1 paddle, the plastic faded by the relentless sun. I looked at the other chargers, each apparently with a long-dead motion sensor. I'll call BART to see whats up with these units, likely a relic of the 2003 mandate that CARB caved on regarding EVs.
Almost running out of gas on my EV was a sobering dose of reality. Sure, one can read about EVs and batteries being the limit, but to actually experience this limit, to coax a machine so hard for a seemingly simple trip to a level that doesn't even match myself on a mere bicycle, is disappointing.
Despite how dirty gasoline is, its completely amazing in what it does so easily all around us every day. $4+ per gallon is cheap for that magic, its a sweet deal, treat it well. Any magic will be in batteries, batteries, batteries. I have proven anyone can do the mechanical side, the magic is the batteries, their energy density and charging. I always thought the EVers maybe whined too much, but after today I now truly qualify myself as one. I want stock in A123 and a pack to go please!
TODO:
0. emergency solenoid override/auxiliary power supply.
1. long extension cord storage/mechanism.
2. LED flasher on the FRONT of the bike for daylight, 35 watts is too much.
3. need the power meter/gauge working
4. voltage check/meters for each battery
5. check tire inflation
6. get a map of outlets
7. lighten the bike? weight is bad
8. regen? a simple drag brake option? anything?
9. why did the batteries at the ends of the series take so long to recharge compared to the others?
10. invest in battery technology, do battery tech, it IS the Achilles heel for EVs (everything else is there)
The traffic was sparse but quick, I went along over 30. I had decided to go up Spruce Avenue with the goal of reaching Inspiration Point in Berkeley, a famous lookout to the east in the hills, about 8 miles away. And this required 1000 feet of climbing. Its a very familiar route on my bicycle, and I assumed it would give me a chance to improve my riding skills and check out the e-moto's true performance and range.
I went up the hill at what I thought was a conservative 27 mph pace, stopping occasionally to check the motor temperature with my hand. I ran with the headlight on, and didn't coast to stops very efficiently.
I got to the top of Spruce and Wildcat Canyon drive, where the route is mildly climbing. Onward into the park, I really noticed the road was rough/bike shaking. I noticed my top end was gone, unable to get over 30 mph. At the "Brazil Room" parking lot, I made the very risky decision to push on, despite the lack of a fuel gauge. The odometer said 7.1 miles. Down the little hill I went and on to the final climb, being conservative but knowing I might get stuck very far away from any outlets, my family asleep at home thinking I was out riding a bicycle.
I made it to the Inspiration Point overlook, parked the bike and took a few camera-phone pictures in the bright sun assuming it would be good for my sales brochure for the bike.
And the time was also giving the pack a rest/recovery period as mentioned in "Secrets of El Ninja" - I was living them today, all of them. Back on the bike I turned around, going mildly downhill, coasting in a way not unfamiliar from the bicycle approach. On the final downhill S-curve I realized I had to make the climb back to the Brazil Room, which is nasty on the bicycle and would challenge my electric horse. I was regretting my speeding in the AM and cursing my inefficient acceleration/hard braking style as I sputtered at the top of the hill at 10 to maybe 15 mph. And I wished for regen. The sputtering was literal, the green "neutral" light flashing/stuttering in tune with the starving motor. I realized suddenly if the DC-DC converter dropped below 12 volts, the solenoid could shut down and kill the bike. I was in trouble, this converter never ran with less than 3 batteries (36 volts).
I parked at the Brazil Room to give the bike a break and to look for an electrical outlet. I was wishing for a long extension cord, but assumed a park ranger might be able to hook me up. It was early, no one seemed about, and I recalled its mostly downhill from the Brazil Room. So I mounted up the tired machine, and it seemed to appreciate the rest. I was back to 20 mph or so, mostly coasting, avoiding the brakes. I had long since turned off the 35 watt HID. I tucked as if I was doing 100, squeezing any advantage I could from the heavy, full fairing bullet I had lobotomized.
Reaching the top of Spruce was a victory, it meant civilization, cell phone coverage and power outlets. Down the hill I went, suddenly Berkeley was waking up and the hills were alive with Volvos. Wishing for
more regen, I was over 20-30 mph. The brakes were fine, but most acceleration was greeted with the green light stutter. Down Oxford, the light was green and I was in serious coasting mode, milking the lights, doing my tuck and watching out for cars coming up from behind. I was trying to remember where friends lived in case I needed to bail. The stop signs and red light blocks south of campus provided breaks and kept the traffic around me in check. I turned down onto Shattuck and kept on gliding, again not unlike a bicycle. I was psyched at this point because I knew I could walk/push it from here.
I made it over Ashby BART and did my final stoplight, right down Fairview with the Hazard lights blinking at under 10 mph. I parked in front of the house, opened the gate and garage and with the final umph I got back to my Kill-A-Watt box. WHEW. 16.4 miles.
The critical element I had missed in the construction of V1.2.0 was access to measure pack voltage with the multimeter. So I took out the drill and made 2 holes over the ends of my battery punch-down block where the chargers are wired to the batteries, and measured 56.3 volts. This was not nearly as low as I expected given the struggle I had getting home. I turned on the power to the chargers and checked in throughout the day, noticing the batteries at the ends of my series were last to finish charging, the first battery on the ground side took most of the day. Is this normal? The pack got back over 62 volts when fully charged - it had been at 63.8 before Thursday during my flame-out of the DC-DC converter.
It was 8am, I took off my jeans and coat, put on the cycling shoes, took off the knee warmers and realized I had the heart rate monitor on for the moto ride. I would have liked to know what my rate was the first stutter!
I got on the bike and cranked out for 2 hours, covering 29.1 miles at nearly 16mph, almost the same pace my EV ran that morning on a less challenging course. During the ride I thought a lot about EV's, and was amazed at gasoline and ICE technology, and bummed out at reading about the corruption by ZAP in Wired last night. Passing the Ashby BART on the way home (bicycle this time), I noticed the graveyard-like EV parking lot, each stall including a sun-bleached charger unit. I stopped by and picked up the EV1 paddle, the plastic faded by the relentless sun. I looked at the other chargers, each apparently with a long-dead motion sensor. I'll call BART to see whats up with these units, likely a relic of the 2003 mandate that CARB caved on regarding EVs.
Almost running out of gas on my EV was a sobering dose of reality. Sure, one can read about EVs and batteries being the limit, but to actually experience this limit, to coax a machine so hard for a seemingly simple trip to a level that doesn't even match myself on a mere bicycle, is disappointing.
Despite how dirty gasoline is, its completely amazing in what it does so easily all around us every day. $4+ per gallon is cheap for that magic, its a sweet deal, treat it well. Any magic will be in batteries, batteries, batteries. I have proven anyone can do the mechanical side, the magic is the batteries, their energy density and charging. I always thought the EVers maybe whined too much, but after today I now truly qualify myself as one. I want stock in A123 and a pack to go please!
TODO:
0. emergency solenoid override/auxiliary power supply.
1. long extension cord storage/mechanism.
2. LED flasher on the FRONT of the bike for daylight, 35 watts is too much.
3. need the power meter/gauge working
4. voltage check/meters for each battery
5. check tire inflation
6. get a map of outlets
7. lighten the bike? weight is bad
8. regen? a simple drag brake option? anything?
9. why did the batteries at the ends of the series take so long to recharge compared to the others?
10. invest in battery technology, do battery tech, it IS the Achilles heel for EVs (everything else is there)
Thursday, April 10, 2008
V1.2 Launched! 11.1 Miles, 43 mph+
Immediately I could feel the presence of the extra battery when I hit the throttle - everything was much crisper even on acceleration, and top speed came up much quicker too. The motor felt hotter to the touch, but nothing crazy.
The most shocking part was putting the Kill-A-Watt on the chargers was that after 11.1 miles - the 2nd longest day ever - only 0.68 KW-hr was necessary to get the batteries back up. Super efficient, check out the estimated mileage of 54 miles.
I'm getting to like this bike a bit too much, time to start the next project...
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
V1.2 Launch Tomorrow!
Lots of progress:
The GOOD news is that with the QUDA out of the bike, I could read the back, where beyond the Chinese text it said DC 20V-60V. Moving the Vicor aside, I wired up the QUDA and checked the voltage, 11.89.
Despite the desire to run isolated DC-DC, I put the QUDA back in and finished up the wiring. A little motor test at 1 am confirmed it all working, its time for some fairings and some riding! And maybe some smaller fuses - 7 amp 250 V might be too steep.
I also got the 13 tooth gear in the mail. That will be V 1.2.1+
TODO for V1.2.1
- 5 batteries now, full designed capacity. Next stop, panniers!
- 5 chargers, re-organized and bundled vertically.
- 12 conductor connector between bike and charger, allowing chargers to be removable as an option (allowing 5 other 12 volt supplies as an option - solar?).
- Cleaned up wiring - nicer plugs.
- Increased size of pre-charge resistor to 750 Ohm, 10 Watt for 60 volts.
- Upgraded DC-DC converter - well, not quite, smoked it:
The GOOD news is that with the QUDA out of the bike, I could read the back, where beyond the Chinese text it said DC 20V-60V. Moving the Vicor aside, I wired up the QUDA and checked the voltage, 11.89.
Despite the desire to run isolated DC-DC, I put the QUDA back in and finished up the wiring. A little motor test at 1 am confirmed it all working, its time for some fairings and some riding! And maybe some smaller fuses - 7 amp 250 V might be too steep.
I also got the 13 tooth gear in the mail. That will be V 1.2.1+
TODO for V1.2.1
- Serial Gas Gauge please?
- Fusing on the post DC-DC converter side (12 volt side), find a 7amp 60volt for the high side. Amps are key versus voltage, so maybe it was a broken device?
- 13 tooth gearing - ideally we have the gauge in place to keep an eye on the amps.
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