Drill Bike 1.0On Road (1.0)
OwnerFritz Martin
LocationRichmond, Vermont US map
WebWebPage
Vehicle1981 Kawasaki KZ550 LTD
MotorPerm Motor PMG 132 Permanent Magnet DC
DrivetrainHTD belt reduction to jackshaft, 530 chain final drive
ControllerAlltrax AXE 7234
Be careful with lithiums - the current limit on the AXE is averaged - with low esr batteries, your current can spike to 200% of the current limit for short periods. Recommend limiting top speed to 80-90%.
Batteries16 Dewalt DC9360, 36.00 Volt, Lithium-Ion
Nanophosphate Lithium. These batteries are unmodified DeWalt 36 volt battery packs. Mounted in hacked up flashlight bases. I run them 2S8P (72 volts, 18.4Ah)
System Voltage72 Volts
ChargerDewalt DC9000
Charge on board with dual 36V 320Watt supplies - charge time about 2 hours.
DC/DC Converter CUI
200W DC/DC - very nice small package, wide input voltage range - available from Digikey.
InstrumentationStock + 2 DVM for battery pack monitoring.
Top Speed70 MPH (112 KPH)
Can go 70, but because of my commute and direct drive, I have limited it to 52 by fixed gear ratio. That makes it very quick and fun on the roads I drive.
AccelerationQuick.
Range11 Miles (17 Kilometers)
Commute is 6.7, 7.5, or 9 miles one way. Into town and back is 8 miles. Haven't gotten stranded yet!
Watt Hours/Mile110 Wh/Mile
This is measured using Kill-A-Watt so it measures the total energy from line input and includes energy used by chargers.
EV Miles
Start:12,525 Miles (20,152 Kilometers)
Current:15,126 Miles (24,337 Kilometers)
Total:2,601 Miles (4,185 Kilometers)
 
    As of 5/9/2013
Seating Capacity2 up
Curb Weight230 Pounds (104 Kilograms)
A little over half the weight of the original bike.
TiresStock
Conversion Time1 year (1 out of 4 weekends)
Conversion Cost$3600
Geared this way and with 150 amp current limit still has plenty of gusto. No problem zipping up 5% grade at 45mph riding 2-up.

I am now going into my fifth year of three season commuting on this bike. So far it has been trouble free - just oil the chain now and then, turn on the switch and twist the throttle and smile! It's a shame that A123 went bankrupt because these batteries are still the best in existence - several hundred full discharge/recharge cycles and they still run at full capacity - not a bit of sag detectable.

Keep those conversions coming, I am always amazed at the variety and creativity of conversions posted on evalbum. Looking for a conversion I can do for foul weather commutes. Counting on you guys for inspiration!

code by jerry