Has anybody seen this thing? Branded as a Kollter Banshee Storm. It looks like a full size or close to full size MX bike. It definitely has a unique look.
https://naticycle.com/ols/products/banshee-storm-type-r
https://kollterus.com/current-models
I bought one and here is my initial review
Photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/9fyBax29oT851ANY8
tl;dr; - I'm very happy with this purchase. If this thing is reliable for the next several years then this was a great decision. See below for specifics.
Sizing: The Kollter Banshee fits me very well and is comfortable for me to ride. I feel cramped on the Surron (even with riser bars, I could have installed extensions for the seat to help). I'm 6f/183cm tall, I weigh ~150lbs/68Kg, and I've got a narrow backside. This is a full size MX dirt bike with a narrow seat so it fits me pretty well.
Power: This thing might have more torque than any other off-road bike I've ever ridden, including some race ATVs. 22kw is 30hp, and that doesn't seem like a lot. But the torque is instant and unforgiving (that's a good thing). It took maybe 40 minutes for my right wrist to adjust to this much power, but after that I was hoping logs and roots and rocks like normal.
Range: I rode the bike for 2.5 hours today in some real muddy trails. When I put it away it showed 78V and 4/8 bars. When I started it hat 90.5V, and I couldn't actually tell if I could notice any decrease in power at this point. I was pushing the bike harder as I gained confidence so I'll try to pay more attention to this next time out. Regardless, I can only last 2-3 hours before I'm exhausted and this just needs to outlast me.
Transmission: I spent most of the day just riding in 2nd. I think it goes up to about 40mph in that gear, and that's more than enough for trail riding for me. I did find myself downshifting to 1st to get regen braking on some steeper/looser descents though. Also, having 1st gear so low made loading this thing with eco mode a breeze (more on eco mode in safety).
The travel required to change gears is longer than I am used to. This might bother some people but you don't really have to shift that much and it's just a 4 speed sequential gearbox. Replacing the guts is probably doable if it you can't get used to it.
Brakes: I would describe the brakes as more than capable. However it's a 2 piston floating caliper in the front, and a 1 piston floating caliper in the rear. Sand just gets in there and makes stuff squeak. I'm sure I will replace these with a 4/2 piston calipers in the near future when they start singing the song of their people. If you don't have a lot of sand they're probably going to be fine.
Suspension: The bound/rebound is adjustable front and back. I dialed everything back a couple clicks from factory settings and that felt pretty good on the trails. It was rolling and wheeling over rocks, roots and logs like a champ after that.
Tires: Standard MX tires. I forgot how much I missed having traction. I can crawl up hills with these tires.
Displays: The battery status display shows a charge indicator and is also a voltage meter. The display between the trees shows a tachometer, speedometer, odometer and gear indicator. It also apparently has a check engine light which I only noticed when the sun hit it just right and I freaked out for a moment.
Chassis: I was worried about the welds on the bike but everything seems to be holding together great. It is steel so it's pretty strong. As long as it stays together for the season I'll mark this as good.
Safety:
Eco mode - I thought this was the dumbest thing ever to have on a 22kw monster off-roader... Until I had to drive the bike up my carrier ramp and I could just put it in eco mode and 1st gear, and let it creep up. Now I'm super glad it's there because loading a 200lb bike by yourself is not fun. Eco mode feels like the power is restricted to 1-2kw of peak power.
Wireless keyfob - It plays little chimes when you lock and unlock the bike, which is weird. But my home appliances also do that so I guess that's just where we're at now in humanity. Also I no longer have to worry about snapping a key off in the ignition on a weird wreck.
That's it. It's an off-road bike. This bike has no tilt sensors or brake sensors that will cut power to the engine (I removed the sur-ron's brake sensors anyway). You're doing something inherently dangerous just by riding it.
General comparison to the Sur-Ron Light Bee/X: Apples to oranges. These are totally different machines made for different things. I'm not sure if they'll have a big overlap in audiences.
The banshee is a full size motocross bike. It's taller and it weighs ~220lbs/100kg, and you'll notice that difference the first time you have to pick it up. It has the standard issue chonk of a rear MX tire. It will go 80mph.
The light bee weighs half as much and costs about half as much. It uses a mountain bike fork, has half the battery capacity, and probably looks enough like a bicycle to not get hassled if you ride it around town.
The light bee was limiting me on power and traction. Also, I hurt quite a bit after a long ride from being cramped on it. You can add more power to the light bee pretty easily (Luna did some crazy 30+kw mod). And you can make it fit bigger riders better (extensions for seat and pegs. riser bars. etc). However I could not find a reasonable way to get a fatter rear tire on there.
Would I recommend one? This thing is not for everybody. I'm very happy with it so far and I think the price is fair. Buy this if you want a high powered electric MX bike (and you don't want to drop $11k on a KTM Freeride that's 500 miles away anyway because very few dealers are licensed to sell/service them).
Update log
Update (2021-03-25): I bought one. And it was just delivered today (Thanks Greg!) and I cannot wait to take this thing out on Saturday. It feels like a torque monster. I'll put out a write-up on my first experiences with it next week.
Also, a fucking massive shout out to naticycle's customer service. There was a shipping issue and Greg drove this thing half way across the country to deliver it to me. I would have never expected that.
A photo album that I will start adding more pictures to after work.
Update (2021-03-26): I gave the bike a once over before taking it out tomorrow for a big ride. Added a few more photos showing suspension and brake parts, as well as some chassis welds.
BTW: I ride regularly at St Joe State Park in MO if anybody wants to see it in person and you're around me.
Update (2021-03-27): I took the bike out for it's first real ride. Rode for about 2.5 hours on sand flats, trails, and hills. It was also very muddy and wet. Added more to photo album and put a bunch of details above.
https://naticycle.com/ols/products/banshee-storm-type-r
https://kollterus.com/current-models
I bought one and here is my initial review
Photo album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/9fyBax29oT851ANY8
tl;dr; - I'm very happy with this purchase. If this thing is reliable for the next several years then this was a great decision. See below for specifics.
Sizing: The Kollter Banshee fits me very well and is comfortable for me to ride. I feel cramped on the Surron (even with riser bars, I could have installed extensions for the seat to help). I'm 6f/183cm tall, I weigh ~150lbs/68Kg, and I've got a narrow backside. This is a full size MX dirt bike with a narrow seat so it fits me pretty well.
Power: This thing might have more torque than any other off-road bike I've ever ridden, including some race ATVs. 22kw is 30hp, and that doesn't seem like a lot. But the torque is instant and unforgiving (that's a good thing). It took maybe 40 minutes for my right wrist to adjust to this much power, but after that I was hoping logs and roots and rocks like normal.
Range: I rode the bike for 2.5 hours today in some real muddy trails. When I put it away it showed 78V and 4/8 bars. When I started it hat 90.5V, and I couldn't actually tell if I could notice any decrease in power at this point. I was pushing the bike harder as I gained confidence so I'll try to pay more attention to this next time out. Regardless, I can only last 2-3 hours before I'm exhausted and this just needs to outlast me.
Transmission: I spent most of the day just riding in 2nd. I think it goes up to about 40mph in that gear, and that's more than enough for trail riding for me. I did find myself downshifting to 1st to get regen braking on some steeper/looser descents though. Also, having 1st gear so low made loading this thing with eco mode a breeze (more on eco mode in safety).
The travel required to change gears is longer than I am used to. This might bother some people but you don't really have to shift that much and it's just a 4 speed sequential gearbox. Replacing the guts is probably doable if it you can't get used to it.
Brakes: I would describe the brakes as more than capable. However it's a 2 piston floating caliper in the front, and a 1 piston floating caliper in the rear. Sand just gets in there and makes stuff squeak. I'm sure I will replace these with a 4/2 piston calipers in the near future when they start singing the song of their people. If you don't have a lot of sand they're probably going to be fine.
Suspension: The bound/rebound is adjustable front and back. I dialed everything back a couple clicks from factory settings and that felt pretty good on the trails. It was rolling and wheeling over rocks, roots and logs like a champ after that.
Tires: Standard MX tires. I forgot how much I missed having traction. I can crawl up hills with these tires.
Displays: The battery status display shows a charge indicator and is also a voltage meter. The display between the trees shows a tachometer, speedometer, odometer and gear indicator. It also apparently has a check engine light which I only noticed when the sun hit it just right and I freaked out for a moment.
Chassis: I was worried about the welds on the bike but everything seems to be holding together great. It is steel so it's pretty strong. As long as it stays together for the season I'll mark this as good.
Safety:
Eco mode - I thought this was the dumbest thing ever to have on a 22kw monster off-roader... Until I had to drive the bike up my carrier ramp and I could just put it in eco mode and 1st gear, and let it creep up. Now I'm super glad it's there because loading a 200lb bike by yourself is not fun. Eco mode feels like the power is restricted to 1-2kw of peak power.
Wireless keyfob - It plays little chimes when you lock and unlock the bike, which is weird. But my home appliances also do that so I guess that's just where we're at now in humanity. Also I no longer have to worry about snapping a key off in the ignition on a weird wreck.
That's it. It's an off-road bike. This bike has no tilt sensors or brake sensors that will cut power to the engine (I removed the sur-ron's brake sensors anyway). You're doing something inherently dangerous just by riding it.
General comparison to the Sur-Ron Light Bee/X: Apples to oranges. These are totally different machines made for different things. I'm not sure if they'll have a big overlap in audiences.
The banshee is a full size motocross bike. It's taller and it weighs ~220lbs/100kg, and you'll notice that difference the first time you have to pick it up. It has the standard issue chonk of a rear MX tire. It will go 80mph.
The light bee weighs half as much and costs about half as much. It uses a mountain bike fork, has half the battery capacity, and probably looks enough like a bicycle to not get hassled if you ride it around town.
The light bee was limiting me on power and traction. Also, I hurt quite a bit after a long ride from being cramped on it. You can add more power to the light bee pretty easily (Luna did some crazy 30+kw mod). And you can make it fit bigger riders better (extensions for seat and pegs. riser bars. etc). However I could not find a reasonable way to get a fatter rear tire on there.
Would I recommend one? This thing is not for everybody. I'm very happy with it so far and I think the price is fair. Buy this if you want a high powered electric MX bike (and you don't want to drop $11k on a KTM Freeride that's 500 miles away anyway because very few dealers are licensed to sell/service them).
Update log
Update (2021-03-25): I bought one. And it was just delivered today (Thanks Greg!) and I cannot wait to take this thing out on Saturday. It feels like a torque monster. I'll put out a write-up on my first experiences with it next week.
Also, a fucking massive shout out to naticycle's customer service. There was a shipping issue and Greg drove this thing half way across the country to deliver it to me. I would have never expected that.
A photo album that I will start adding more pictures to after work.
Update (2021-03-26): I gave the bike a once over before taking it out tomorrow for a big ride. Added a few more photos showing suspension and brake parts, as well as some chassis welds.
BTW: I ride regularly at St Joe State Park in MO if anybody wants to see it in person and you're around me.
Update (2021-03-27): I took the bike out for it's first real ride. Rode for about 2.5 hours on sand flats, trails, and hills. It was also very muddy and wet. Added more to photo album and put a bunch of details above.
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