E-BIKES - the way to hunt in the west

[Litehiker]

OK, I now have my BLUETTI AC200 MAX energy station (lithium iron phosphate) battery and the Canadian made Off Grid Trek foldable solar "blanket" to charge my bike.
STILL waiting for the bike but "It should be here any time now" - sez the company.

As for where I'm legal to hunt, yeah, I've hunted the Jarbidge Wilderness on foot. I'm a backpacker so I know a Wilderness Area is for human foot and animal hooved travel only.

BLM lands are OK for E-MTBs unless otherwise designated. You always see ATVs on them hunting season.

 

[Litehiker]

McRanch, Take a look on YouTube at the E-CELLS Super Monarch Crown e-mtb.
TWO wheel drive (selectable), TWO batteries, dual suspension, 400 lbs. max load (not including bike weight), hydraulic brakes and now with torque-sensing power assist - you twist in the amount of assist with the rotating grip, like a motorcycle. This bike is powerful.
$4,780. before state taxes. (Introductory discount of $1,000. If there is a better hunting e-mtb out there I have not found it. And I mean better features and quality. The HQ is in Parumph, Nevada, a small town 40 miles north of Las Vegas. The company is veteran owned.

 

[Magnum44270]

Gross.. non motorized only. Walk or peddle in!

 

[coyote wacker]

Back in the late 80's I wanted to hunt in a bike or horse only area in Northern Michigan was turkey hunting so needed to travel in the dark in the mornings.....picked up a 18 speed Mountain Bike payed close to $400 back then....still use the bike today....
Put a sling on my shotgun and off I went....it was the best idea getting back off the road to hunt and never saw a person once I got a mile off a vehicle traveled road....
One day was going over some small hills come over the top and there was a herd of elk right in front of me 30' and scared me and the elk at the same time had to hit my brake so not to hit one....
Almost got hit buy a herd of elk riding down the trail they were moving across the trail I was on we were all confused....
Another time come over a hill walking down the trail was a coyote going the same way I sped up got 3' behind the coyote before it almost turned inside out trying to run away....
I got very close to many deer most just stood there as I passed most would wait until i got real close before running....
Even rode up on a 300 lb. bear a mirror 50 ' away that couldn't figure out what I was or where I was going once I stopped....

 

[Litehiker]

coyote wacker,
My friend in Pennsylvania has an e-mountain bike he recently began using for deer hunting. He is THE most successful deer hunter I've ever known and hunts NW Pennsylvania and western New York every year where he is usually bags at least two deer a season.
He says on an e-mtb he can always get within 10 to 20 yards from deer before they trot or WALK away. He says as soon as he dismounts they run away.

magnum44270,
Will you be 80 next fall? If not then you have NO clue of how age cuts down on endurance of even the fittest hunters.
i still ski and backpack so yeah, I'm not just riding around on an e-bike.
I've done my share of tough trips and hunts in the back country. I backpacked the Grand Canyon North Rim to South Rim when I was 74. Try that when you are 74. My avatar here is a photo of me on the last day on the South Rim trail.
For CREDS this photo was taken by Len Backus, himself 71 at the time.

 

[Mcranch]

coyote wacker,
My friend in Pennsylvania has an e-mountain bike he recently began using for deer hunting. He is THE most successful dec hunter I've ever known and hunts NW Pennsylvania and western New York every year where he is usually bags at least two deer a season.
He says on an e-mtb he can always get within 10 to 20 yards from deer before they trot or WALK away. He says as soon as he dismounts they run away.

magnum44270,
Will you be 80 next fall? If not then you have NO clue of how age cuts down on endurance of even the fittest hunters.
i still ski and backpack so yeah, I'm not just riding around on an e-bike.
I've done my share of tough trips and hunts in the back country. I backpacked the Grand Canyon North Rim to South Rim when I was 74. Try that when YOU are 74. My avatar here is a photo of me on the last day on teh South Rim trail.
For CREDS this photo was taken by Len Backus, himself 71 at the time.

That would be two tough old birds, my knees are hurting thinking about the adventure.

 

[rscottb]

I came to the same conclusion last year. I live in AZ, which is very similar to NV. I found that the best e-bike value for me was to convert a standard mountain bike into an e-bike. I started with a Trek Roscoe hardtail (12 speed w/27.5"x3.0" tires) and added a Bafang BBSHD mid-drive motor with 1,500 peak watts. Mid-drives just seem to have better torque than the hub motors. My set up has both power-assist peddling and straight throttle. Very pleased with the outcome.

I am interested, but the foto is hard to see details with the background.

Would you please send another foto?

Thank you in advance.

 

[rscottb]

Litehiker,
Obviously you have already done quit a bit of research, my concern is with the packout. Everything you pack out is going to have to be on your back I would assume. Having all that weight up high on a skinny tired bike on a mountain trail seems like a big wreck in the making.
I do think here in the mountains the ebikes will be of limited use, at least on a motorcycle you would have full power until out of gas and you would not have to worry about the effect of cold on battery performance. I think that some of the guys that are buying them expexting motorcycle like performance in the mountains may be disappointed.

My experience in doing my ebike as a grocery getter is the higher the weight the iffier it gets. Every balance movement feels like you may go over. It is hard to do a box on the back rack with 25 pounds of stuff, sure feels less steady. A cart (dog cart) is much steadier with the weight,

With whatever works for you, test it first before the big day to start hunting or glassing.

 

[WapitiBob]

E-bikes are illegal here but packing isn't an issue. Buy a Burley off craigslist and strip it down. Add an adapter axle from robert axle project, and go hunt.

 

[NW Hunter]

McRanch, Take a look on YouTube at the E-CELLS Super Monarch Crown e-mtb.
TWO wheel drive (selectable), TWO batteries, dual suspension, 400 lbs. max load (not including bike weight), hydraulic brakes and now with torque-sensing power assist - you twist in the amount of assist with the rotating grip, like a motorcycle. This bike is powerful.
$4,780. before state taxes. (Introductory discount of $1,000. If there is a better hunting e-mtb out there I have not found it. And I mean better features and quality. The HQ is in Parumph, Nevada, a small town 40 miles north of Las Vegas. The company is veteran owned.

Litehiker, I got one in my garage.
It's crazy powerful.

 

[Litehiker]

Congrats NW Hunter. We both have a very good hunting E-MTB with Samsung batteries (Korea), BAFANG motors (China), ROK SHOX rear shock (USA), Shimano gear set (Japan), Good 6061 aluminum frame (Taiwan), and good 4.25" BULLDOZER V tires (Thailand). The brake discs are 2.2 mm thick instead of 1.2 mm.
Dave Cleveland shopped around to build a durable bike at a moderate price (look at the RAMBO Rattler price!) with the best components he could find for the price. It's a lot of bike for the $4,800. price.

 

[NW Hunter]

Congrats NW Hunter. We both have a very good hunting E-MTB with Samsung batteries (Korea), BAFANG motors (China), ROK SHOX rear shock (USA), Shimano gear set (Japan), Good 6061 aluminum frame (Taiwan), and good 4.25" BULLDOZER V tires (Thailand). The brake discs are 2.2 mm thick instead of 1.2 mm.
Dave Cleveland shopped around to build a durable bike at a moderate price (look at the RAMBO Rattler price!) with the best components he could find for the price. It's a lot of bike for the $4,800. price.

I agree that there is a lot of great components on this bike.
I'm getting it set up for a wilderness hunt. I will be trying out my generator at home to see how the recharging process works with it.
I'm also learning how the batteries are affected by the cold.
Have you had any issues with your batteries dropping drastically in charge at say 30 degrees Fahrenheit? I have purchased Bakcou battery jackets to keep them warm.

 

[kgarrett]

Interested in hearing how your experiences are once you are up and running. Need to justify one of these myself

Have a side by side and an ATV. Look at an e-bike as a supplement, not a replacement to hiking. Ride in a few miles to access the trailhead. Have never hunted with an OHV.

 

[NW Hunter]

Kgarret, I truly wanted a side by side but I don't have any space at my place for storage of that and s trailer. This was my solution to my issue. I bought it as transportation to my access points using USFS roads.