2,600 Km Riding a Cheap Electric Bike

One of our workers reports about his experience with a $800 Chinese cheap electric bike.

cheap electric bike – new front rim

cheap electric bike – headlight

cheap electric bike – display

Purchasing experience

My Samebike 26 LO folding cheap electric bike was bought in February 2020 for 775$, roughly 780 € at today’s exchange rate. It is one of the most popular affordable electric bikes, at least on the web. There are many cheap electric bikes for sale, but few get so many reviews and videos as the Samebike 26 LO. It’s one the best cheap ebike I could find in February 2020.

It was delivered reasonably fast. I had to mount front wheels, saddle, mud guards and pedals, attach the brake cables and regulate the disc brakes. Following the instruction manual, illustrated in color, that took me about 40 minutes. That is normal for almost all best budget electric bikes

Specifications and versions

The Samebike LO26 has got 26″ wheels, 48V 500wh hub motor, a 10.4 Ah (or 250Wh) removable battery, 21 speed, five assistance levels. Torque is not specified. There is a unique size, medium, which is quite limiting. It’s a fully, the hydraulic front shock has about 60 mm travel, the damper is a bit rigid but both do a decent job on small bumps and shallow holes. It’s got a real electric klaxon, much appreciated for safety. The Shimano shifter, with three speeds up front (three chain rings) and seven in the hub, on the cassette, is smooth and precise enough. Grips and saddle are acceptable. There is even a headlight, which has never worked. Not bad for a best budget electric bike.

Riding experience

I’ve ridden the bike for more than 2200 km, mostly to commute or to go shopping, during 2 1/2 years. Every time I left, I rode downtown, 200 m lower, since I live on a hill. Therefore, I thoroughly tested brakes and climbing capabilities.

The motor delivers rather good power, especially on flat roads, whereas uphill you can notice that its torque is a bit limited, although more than sufficient on shallow climbs. I estimate its torque around 45 Newton meters. On steep climbs, it lets you wish you had a bit more torque.

The shifter pleases me with its smooth shifting and the battery performs reasonably well. Brakes are noisy and just sufficient.

I like the way it handily folds, fitting almost any car trunk.

The fork shock is correct, but the damper is noisy, unless you grease all its joints, and is shaky.

It’s no e-mountain bike

I expected that, and I like buying mountain bikes and equip them with city bike tires, so I can absorb shocks on bumpy roads, at the same time enjoying faster tires.

All its MTB components seem so fragile, that I never dared to venture off-road. I had to ride on a flat, a bit rocky path a couple of times; as a result, my front rim was damaged and had to be replaced, see the picture. Nevertheless, since I often ride on bumpy asphalt roads, I like the fact that it’s got full suspensions, although a little weak ones.

Battery performance

The battery performs correctly, allowing me to ride about 50 km with a low assistance level two out of five. The range has not diminished after 2200 km. It’s quite inexpensive, you can buy it online for $200 plus delivery cost.

I had a battery incident once. It was 33° hot, I rode about 30 km, the display indicated still 65% battery charge. All of a sudden, the battery stopped working.

cheap electric bike – calipers – the washer I added is on the upper pad, barely visible

cheap electric bike – broken protection ring

cheap electric bike – replaced tyres

Components quality: barely sufficient
- All the components are not very resistant, and their quality is barely sufficient, excepted the motor, the shifter, chain, cassette, derailleur, and probably the battery, that I find all satisfying for the bike price.
- Mechanical disc brakes are noisy (sometimes even when I don’t brake) and fragile; they consume pads rather quickly, I have to replace them every 300 km.
- I like its generously powerful motor, although it’s a bit too noisy.
- Pedals are really low, even for curves, I already scratched them on the asphalt, see the picture.
- I had to embed washers between the pad and the calipers, because on the side without piston the gap was too large, causing the pad on the piston side to wear off much faster than the other. The pad retaining screw on the rear brake broke after 300 km, so I had to replace it with a iron thread, see the picture.
- The tires were so lousy that I had to replace the rear tire after 200 km, because it was worn off. I eventually replaced the front one too, it was really noisy, had insufficient grip and slowed me down. I had to replace the rear tires three times because of three punctures within the hot months of June and July 2022, perhaps the weight of the bike is not so well distributed.
- Theere was a plastic ring on the chain ring to protect my pants against the dirt of the chain, it fell off (broken plastic supports) the first time that the chain slipped off the chain ring during a shifting, see the picture.
- After 2000 km, I sometimes started hearing a strange noise as my left pedal reaches the bottom level of its loop.
- The battery charge level is not displayed accurately enough.
- After 2,600 km: the chain ring is remarkably twisted, soon to be replaced
- After 2,600 km: the rear rim is remarkably twisted, needs replacement although not urgent
- With 30 Kg, it’s a bit heavy
Worth buying?

Maybe, depending on several conditions:
- You must have some mechanical skills to perform by yourself frequent interventions and adjustments, otherwise it can be annoying and expensive.
- You must be flexible and patient regarding the size, the noise, the likely defects.
- You don’t need to rely exclusively on your ebike for daily commuting.
- You can’t afford buying a good quality E bike.
- You are willing to forget about mountain biking.
Quick comparison with a more expensive ebike

Since 2013, I have been riding a 2013 Velo de Ville with Bosch Active Line 250 Wh & 50 Newton meter motor, 300 Wh rack battery, paid 1800 $, or 1809 €. After 6,500 km I need no mechanical intervention, excepted a regulation of its Shimano Nexus eight speed hub shifter. Its hydraulic cantilever brakes work very well and don’t consume much their brake pads. Its mid motor delivers a smooth assistance, always well harmonized with my pedaling. Lights (they can turn on automatically at dusk) wheels, battery and all its components are performant and resistant. The battery has still got 80% of its capacity, I just had it tested from a nearby certified Bosch ebike reseller. Even the paint is resistant.

Your thoughts in the comments are very welcome!