Reid E-Trail 2.0

[raptordesigns]

I've recently purchased a Reid E-Trail 2.0. It uses the Ananda D10 display, but the programming has been customised to suit the bike. I've put together a revised set of display/control instructions which are attached as a PDF and may be useful for some, as the bike itself is short on operational documentation.

The E-trail 2.0 is an entry level EMTB with an Australia-legal 250W Ananda M100 motor with good torque and a smallish 374Wh battery. I've put less than 100km on it so far and will review it once I've ridden a range of trails.

Details: here

JOhn R.

 

[raptordesigns]

Review Part 1: Assembly, first impressions

I've received bikes in a box before, and the Reid unpack and assemble experience was fairly typical. Lots of open space required, mainly to stash all the removed packaging. Everything arrived well padded and it took about 10 minutes to remove all the cable ties and cardboard from the frame and separated front wheel and make a big pile of recyclable bits. I plugged in the charger to the battery separately while doing the assembly. A little head scratching was required to get the handlebars aligned and the cable runs straight. The bolt attachment of the stem to handlebars required a lttle more force than I'd like; the bolts did not go easily into the stem, but did not appear to be cross threaded. More head scratching when it came to the Suntour Q-LOC through-axle on the front wheel; I'd not encountered the unit before. The stem wasn't straight on the fork either, so that needed to be adjusted. Apart from that (and setting the seat height and checking torques) pretty much no more work was required to get the bike ready for a test ride once the battery was charged. (It took an hour out of the box).

Reid only supplied their generic bike manual with nothing specific to either e-bikes or this model, and at time of writing they have not made a video about the bike model or the control system.

Having done due dilligence before purchase, I'd determined that the display was an Ananda D10 model and there are a couple of documents on the web with various instructions which represent a superset of what the Reid version can do, as the firmware has been configured to restrict the options somewhat (in particular there is no wheel circumference setting, and the maximum speed setting tops out at 25km/hr/15.5mph). The display retains controls for a headlight, but there's no headlight on the bike. There's a socket for it under the engine cover but no cable run in the frame.

Looks: The bike has clean lines. It's simple and elegant particularly with the muted charcoal colour scheme. Friends comment that it has the looks of a much more expensive unit.

Observations:

Brakes: I'd never encountered Nutt disc brakes before but first impressions have been favourable. The 180mm discs give good stopping power and the brakes seem both effective and well modulated.

Gears: A 38 tooth chainring, 11-36 cluster and Shimano Alivio (the Reid site says Altus) 9 speed gearing came well adjusted and changes smoothly. The combination means that you will probably max out spinning the pedals at about 35km/hr.

Suspension: This is where the bike shows its budget nature. The Suntour XCM32 Boost forks are a bit harsh and the preload adjustment range is elusive; I have yet to try them on any really gnarly terrain, but the experience seems similar to one of my old bikes. In that case I replaced them with Manitou air shocks after they developed some rust, making a big difference.

Motor: The Ananda M100 is touted as a high torque unit and it certainly makes the best of the 250W limit on the bike. At a legal 250W you're not allowed a throttle so you have to put some effort in. The proportional nature of the assistance setting based on a torque sensor gives a very smooth response. Someone's done well writing the engine firmware, as response is always smooth, never jerky. It's like having stronger legs; you never feel like you're being pushed along. At the top end assistence doesn't cut out abruptly, but drops away smoothly between 25-27km/hr. The motor is hush quiet.

Range: Another budget consequence, the battery is only 10.4Ah, so range is limited (they say up to 70km) so this is not a bike for long days in the saddle on tough terrain unless you are careful only to use assistance when absolutely necessary. Really tough climbs do chew the juice significantly. I have yet to do a ride longer than about 33km on a combination of flat and undulating terrain (used 35% of capacity) so have yet to test the limits.

Display and controls: A display/control manual would have been nice, but isn't included. That's why I wrote the version referenced in the first post. (I've offered Reid the source.) Nevertheless basically the bike operates pretty similarly to almost every other ebike I've encountered, so the only things you miss out on without the manual and have to experiment with are things like how to zero trip information (press and hold MInus key), set backlight levels and check the actual battery voltage (vs the approximate bar graph, which interestingly isn't actually evenly proportional per segment)

Tyres and rims: Unbranded 29" rims and Maxxis Rekon 29" x 2.4" tyres provide a little respite from the suspension harshness at low pressure. The Recon is variously advertised as an "agressive trail tyre" or "a light duty trail tire designed to go fast in technical terrain". Might be a good idea to not forget the spare tube.

Next post: Ride impressions

 

[raptordesigns]

A quick ride report, as I put in a 40km ride over varied terrain including some steepish climbing, roads, gravel/dirt tracks, roots, mud sand and water crossings, but nothing particularly technical.

As this is an Emtb forum: battery stats first. 34% used (64% remaining) based on actual resting voltage on completion. 4 out of 5 bars left on battery health display.

Assistance was only used when climbing or on soft sand, almost all on level 1 of 5.

The XCM32 forks (100mm travel, not 120 as originally advertised) handled many rough rooty sections and short drops comfortably as well as several ditches, but not without some banging. The drive system provided an intuitive and pleasant ride. I never felt like the motor was working against me or likely to cut in with more power than I needed in any situation, and because of the fact that you need to put in some pedal force, it almost felt natural, (but with bionic legs).

So, so far I'm happy with this inexpensive 250W machine. It might not cut the mustard if you're riding long steep trails or with hard core riders with more powerful non-street-legal units, but at realistic normal mtb speeds it opens up the trails to those of us who are getting longer in the tooth or not quite so athletic. The suspension needs work.

With this bike, the 25km/hr limit can be circumvented with a little effort (don't ask me how I know this!), but it's not a commuter and for normal trail work, there's no point.