No longer Flying Blind (sort of...)

For some reason, after putting a guard on the left side of the Upper Battery Tray, I felt the compelled to make an identical piece for the right sided of the bike, even though it serves no functional purpose.  Still looks better, and more importantly is more symmetrical (OCD issues).

Up until this point, a test ride was an excercise in guesswork.  My speedo didn't work and I had no way to measure anything except with my multimeter.  The speedo cable I got with the bike was the wrong one, so I reluctantly ordered one from an eBay retailer. 13.95+shipping and now I can see my speed tops out at 43mph (very close to what I geared for).

I also wanted to know Voltage at any given instant, so I can see how much the batteries are sagging under load.  One of my ELMOTO.NET brothers was selling a cheap voltage panel menter, so I went for it.  Unfortunately, I may have it hooked up wrong, because as soon as I use any juice, the voltage display varies wildly, and shows negative values often.  Seems to work fine at static readings.  I will hold off making a permanent bracket until I figure it out.

I'm still shopping eBay for an analog current gage that will fit in my Tach location. The hard part is finding one that looks right with a black face and white graphics.

Earth Day

I spent Earth Day at the local Community College displaying El Gixxer along with some other EV's.  Although I'm not a terribly social person, it was cool to hang out with the other local EVer's. When we weren't answering questions from the casual observer, we were busy comparing notes on our projects.
This video doesn't have much of the EV's in it, but I neglected to take any pictures (doh!), so I can only blame myself.
Earth Day Video

The Earth Day experience has inspired met get this thing road-worthy.  I need to start securing the batteries in the racks so they don't shift around. First on the list is a Guard for the left side of the Upper Battery Tray - to keep the batteries from falling out. 

The removable Guard is necessary for battery maintenance.  A simple piece made from 3/16 sheet aluminum, and of course cut with the plasma cutter.  The Guard mimics the geometry of the tray, but extends the left side of the tray high enough to prevent shifting of the power pack.

Performance Corrections & Wiring Cleanup

I was so enamored by the fact that my creation actually worked, it completely escaped me that it wasn't working as planned.  The acceleration and range were on par with a toy.  I initially suspected the batteries weren't capable of generating the amps needed.  A quick visit to the B-B Battery site shows these 17AH units can do 299A for up to 5 seconds.  Pack voltage seemed plenty high after charging:  78.2V

I knew that any one of the components with temporary connections could be suspect.  First on the list to correct was the main battery disconnect.  Gone is the 30A breaker zip-tied to the wiring panel.  In its place is a real battery disconnect switch, mounted in a new aluminum bracket behind the battery tray.  Since I don't need access to the wiring panel to flip the power on, I could now ride with the tank on.

I also needed to mount the 400A  fuse, rather than suspend it off the contactor terminal.  I know there are mounting blocks for these fuses, but why not take advantage of the acrylic wiring panel, and save myself $20.  Looks cooler too.

Subsequent test rides still showed something not quite right.  Three trips down the street and back later, the bike would barely limp up the driveway, but the pack voltage was still 74V.  The best thing I could think of was to pull some data from the controller while riding.  This would also give me a chance to tweak the controller settings.  Upon connecting the controller to the software, my neglect was evident.  The "Under Voltage" slider was was maxxed out, essentially cripling the controller immediately.  By hitting the "Defaults" button, reasonable starting values were inserted, but I upped the top speed and Max Output Curent a little just to be safe.

Acceleration is much better and the controller logs show almost 180A.  I will need to get some lights wired up ASAP so I can test the range.

Starting to feel like a real motorycyle.

Frankenstein Rides Again

Technically, I've got dozens of things to finish up before El Gixxer is road worthy, but I just can't wait. In EV Motorcycle lingo the first ride has been coined "Frankenstein Mode". Components are are jury rigged and zip tied just good enough to get you down the block. It's not pretty but it works.

Acceleration with my 17AH battery pack is pathetic, and top speed seems to be about 20MPH. Nevertheless, it was just as thrilling as hitting triple digits on any other bike.

After four trips down my street and back (probably 1.5 miles total) the batteries were definately done, but it was enough to put that mile-wide EV grin on my face.

It's Alive

An early morning wiring session got me to the point where I need to fire it up. I connected the negative side of the battery pack for the first time, and cautiously flipped the breaker: No smoke.

The Alltrax had the the LED indicating green, but when I twisted the throttle gently nothing happened. Fully opening the throttle turned the LED red. Panic!

I then realized I hadn't engaged the contactor. A flip of the switch and the contactor clicked closed. Now the rear wheel spins happily in response to my twisting wrist.

Cue Oingo Boingo's song "Weird Science"

Burn Notice

Seems like every EV project has one of these episodes.  I thought I was being real careful with my connections.  But my grip on a connecting cable slipped and the end of it managed to contact the wrong spot.  It immidiately lit up a bright-white arc and proceeded to burn anything close for a fraction of a second.

The damage to the terminal and the nearby finger were minor.  But I think another helping of caution pie will do me some good.

Vanity and Power

As is often the case with a well used bike, many pieces are not quite original or altogether missing.  Such was the case for my mirrors:  missing in action.  Truth be told, I never liked the the Gixxer stock mirrors from the 80's and early 90's.  I went searching for something a little more fashionable.  I found this "blingin" set for a reasonable price at RoaringToyz.com.  The chrome is a little over the top, but matches the fasteners I've been putting on the body work. I'm fairly sure my kids are horrified by my sense (or lack) of style.

I started playing with the battery layout.  The six 17AH units fit with room to spare in the upper battery tray.   The maze of wires is starting to hit home.

The "dedicated charger for each battery" scheme has one serious drawback - cable management.  Where am I supposed to stuff these things?