Battery Security Question for City Riders

[PonjoCat]

Hi,

This is my first post, and I want to thank everyone in advance for any help. This forum is awesome, and I've learned a great deal reading your posts.

I am planning a mountain bike conversion using a Cyclone mid drive and 52v Shark battery. My use will almost exclusively be to the beach and back (from Culver City to Venice/Santa Monica beaches), and I am concerned about someone stealing the battery. I realize that the Shark can be taken off the bike pretty easily by its owner, but I would not have a good place to store it securely when I am either on the volleyball court or surfing (in either scenario a person could easily walk away with my backpack while I am engaged in a sport). If I lock the bike up, I am afraid that it wouldn't be too hard for a thief to remove the battery using brute force. The bike, btw, will be locked up with a very good kryptonite lock. So I have a few questions, from basic/general to specific:

1. What do others in similar situations do with their battery/bike? (Even if I take the bike down to the sand, if I go in the water I would not be around to intervene if someone tries to steal it.)
2. Is having the Shark that much better and/or easier for charging than a built-in battery?
3. I am a decent metal fabricator, and I keep thinking that it would be better to fab a metal triangle a la a Sonders (I think theirs is plastic, but the design would be similar), and weld it to the frame for battery placement. (I am using a metal frame, and I could do just about anything to it), however, when I see pictures of people installing batteries, they are usually just using the bottle cage bungs to screw the battery bracket into the frame. I am assuming this is b/c it is easiest for the home builder, but I thought I would see if there are other disadvantages to built in battery "boxes".

Thanks for any feedback you can give me. I am mostly interested in how experienced users mitigate having a battery stolen.

Jon

[commuter ebikes]

You could fab a box out of aluminum that would be the exact shape and size that you need. Put a locking door on it that opens with a key. With this setup, the thief would have to either defeat the lock or the hinges (or steal the entire bike).

You could bolt this battery box to the frame using the water bottle cage bosses. The bolt heads would be inside, inaccessible to the thief.

You could run the power wires through a rubber grommet.

The only disadvantage of this is the amount of time that it would take you to build it and, of course, the added weight.

[PonjoCat]

Thanks for your comments CE, and you have some good ideas about fabricating a battery box. I'm still wondering what others do when they lock an e-bike up at the beach? Do you take your battery with you? Maybe I am being too paranoid about battery theft?

[commuter ebikes]

Thanks for your comments CE, and you have some good ideas about fabricating a battery box. I'm still wondering what others do when they lock an e-bike up at the beach? Do you take your battery with you? Maybe I am being too paranoid about battery theft?

I would not be able to leave my bike unattended at the beach. I only leave my bike at home and work where they are very secure. Everywhere else, I stay with my bike.

I don't think you are being paranoid. Batteries are expensive. The aluminum battery box would probably cause the thief to move on, unless he wanted to pry it open or drill out the lock.

I find myself wondering if your chain and lock are adequate. To my knowledge, the chains that are adequate are too heavy to carry around. Remember that it is very easy to use a long bolt cutter for all cables and even medium to large chains. Also, powerful, portable drills and grinders are available.

I don't know how much your bike is worth, but you might want to look into how people secure their motorcycles that they don't want to be stolen. On YouTube there are guys who have built up beautiful motorcycles and then they develop a few layers of security to make a theft almost impossible.

[Andr3w]

I leave mine locked up on the beach in a visible area, but the area where I often surf has pretty minimal foot traffic and only one entrance ramp to get on the beach. You can also set your gear in a way to prevent the battery and motor from being visible. I guess it all depends on your area and if things are known to be stolen, but I leave my backpack with keys and spare boards on the rocks with little concern.

[PonjoCat]

Thanks for your feedback! I am trying to design and fabricate a simple cage that will allow me to enclose the battery and keep it fixed to the bike when I lock it up. Sadly, leaving a backpack on the beach while away (in the water, etc) in Venice Beach, is just asking for it.

[commuter ebikes]

This guy built a good one: http://electricbike.com/forum/forum/...y-in-the-frame

[PonjoCat]

This guy built a good one: http://electricbike.com/forum/forum/...y-in-the-frame

Great find Commuter ebikes! Thx

[805gregg]

Check out You Tube videos on Cyclone builds, those are very noisy, that would be a deal breaker for me, the BBSHD would be fine for your purpose.

[FatMarty]

I've had a shark stolen; so you aren't paranoid - it's well know by novices that these batteries 'are the most expensive part'.
I get that comment all the time when showing off my build to inquirers.

[Max-Ebike]

Sorry to hear about your stolen battery. Was the battery locked? In other words is it easy to break the lock that comes with the battery?

[FatMarty]

No - I left the key in it in my case. :-(

[ykick]

People steal. No way around that lowest fact of life.

If I have something I positively can’t have stolen, I keep it with me. Plus, I’m large, nasty and seriously “armed” enough to thwart most any POS from directly mugging me. Gangs of 3 or more may be a problem and disadvantage but that’s for another discussion…

What I’m getting at is take your battery pack with you when parking. Low life crackheads are starting to learn the most expensive component of an eBike is the battery pack. And be wary buying used battery packs off CL/eBay without charger. Especially, ones that look like they were “pried off” their mounting bracket.

Check with your home owners insurance or shop renters insurance that might cover your eBike while using it away from home? That’s probably the best “compromise” since a determined thief will always find a way…

[FatMarty]

Yep - It's kind of funny though - I had cut the nose off the shark to try mounting inside frame with another battery thinking I would do a dual voltage type thing; so as far as I can figure there is zero market for my shark which was missing a nose and the mount!
Still - it hurt a lot - like around $600 worth of a lot.
I used 16 T-25S security screws on each side of my aluminum box I built to secure other battery; so I'm really not too concerned about a thief getting it.
Even if they have the special security bit it is going to take quite a bit of time to accomplish getting in there and the mounting screws for the battery box are all interior to the case.
I always try to lock up in a well traveled area to thwart vandals and such; also everyone who sees my bike notices it and often comments on it so I don't think a thief can work unencumbered on my ride.
When I went to a concert a couple months back downtown I found a big black tie thing going on at the art museum and locked it right in front of the valet :-)

[Dale H]

Good post ykick, I've heard it said that locks were only to keep an honest man honest. And I agree that insurance is probably best given the nature of thieves. If someone stole my battery, I'd pretty much be sunk as I invested nearly $600 in it from Luna. I'm leaning toward building an aluminum triangle frame box w/lock for it now..... Currently when I use it for commutes it is stored under lock and key at work, and if I stop at a store to pick up anything on the way home, it goes in the store with me or I do not shop there. I have been asked by one store to please take my bike out, and I responded " ok, I'll take it out and my money as well to your competitor who allows me to bring it in". The competitor really appreciated it when I told them..... Happy motoring folks!

[Eric Luna]

I use to be afraid of getting a battery stolen wheni first started ebiking in the big city of San Francisco which is known for rif raff even taking bike lights off a bike.

I would carry the pack with me when i locked bike to post etc....

eventually i got complacent and stopped worrrying about it..... and i never got a battery pack stolen.

And i have never heard of anyone getting a pack stolen. i think theives donnt know how to sale them yet.

It may have changed since then.... but i would say dont even worry about it and take your chances :) until you get your first battery stolen.

[ykick]

I’m definitely overreacting to the “fear” but dammit when you’ve had entire bikes and even motorcycles stolen, it changes you. Coupled with the fact I can no longer afford to lose $5 let alone $500 worth of bike or battery. That sort of loss can be the difference in making monthly health insurance payment or not...