210 Kilometers on the Electrom
A video detailing a 210 kilometer trip on the Electrom from Royston BC to Victoria BC.
A video detailing a 210 kilometer trip on the Electrom from Royston BC to Victoria BC.
Hello Electrom supporters, the day has finally come. We have a vehicle we are happy with, the testing is done, and we are ready to move to production of the Electrom.
In the next few days we will be contacting the Beta Test Backers and offering them the right-of-first refusal on their waitlist spot. As you may remember, the Beta Test Backers have the opportunity to claim one of the first five Electroms made.
After the Beta Test Electroms have been on the road for a few months we will collect feedback and, if needed, make adjustments. We will then take deposits and make the next round of bikes for the Platinum Backers, then the Gold Backers, and so forth. The hope is to have the Beta Test bikes in the hands of the new owners by the spring of 2021, but delivery may take place earlier.
The cost of this first run of Electroms will be $7100 USD. This is the price for a full kit*, without battery. The cost for one 72 volt, 20 amp-hour battery is approximately $800 USD. The Electrom has room for two of these batteries in the main fuselage, giving it a range of 60-100 km per battery depending on speed and terrain.
In order to move from the waitlist to the production queue, backers will need to place a 50% deposit. As we move through the production waitlist we will contact you to let you know when we will be able to accept your deposit.
Next week we will be sending out a link to a walk-through video of the new Electrom. Hopefully the video will answer any questions you may have about the Electrom and its specifications, but if not you can always e-mail follow-up questions.
*A full Electrom kit includes frame, fork all components, front fairing and rear tailbox. It is the whole bike except for the batteries.
First of all, let me say thank you to all of you who supported the Electrom project with your cash, kind words and advice. I hope that you will consider the final product worthy of the wait.
The Covid19 crisis has been difficult for all of us, but it has allowed me to concentrate on finalizing the molds for the Electrom bodywork and other details. The tailbox mold was the last (and most challenging) part of the puzzle.
I had no idea what kind of task I had set myself up for when this all started but I can say that I know far more about aluminum fabrication, electronics, mold making and just plain physics than I did before.
The first Electrom is complete and undergoing final testing. In truth, the chassis has been on the road since last March and has over 3000 kilometres on it. It has performed beyond expectations. As the Tailbox was the last completed component it it the only thing that is really undergoing testing at this point.
I will be contacting the Beta Test backers shortly to go over timelines and ordering procedures.
Thanks again to all of you.
Fabrizio
We’ve been testing the new molded carbon fiber front fairing & windscreen mount. It has exceeded expectations so far. It is extremely light and durable (so far). There’s lots of room for all sizes of rider and their different feet.
The dome of the windscreen is a bit higher than needed so on the production version we’ll drop the depth-of-blow (the windscreens are made by vacuum forming poly carbonate sheets in an oven). Next will be the rear tail-box. Stay tuned.
We have a mold! The first one anyway. This is the mold for the Front footwells/fairing support (Blue front part of the bike in the lower photo) . Next up we make the molds for the rear tail box. Then we actually get to start making molded carbon fibre body parts.
A few years ago I was riding the old version of the Electrom, and I took it over to Vancouver. While I was there I had the opportunity to have my friend Robin Coope take it for a test ride.
Robin is an extremely skeptical person when it comes to recumbent bikes so i really wanted his opinion. After he pronounced that it was “actually pretty interesting” and that I might be onto something.
I was very happy to here that and it was part of what made me feel that I should keep working to bring a consumer version of the Electrom to market. In his day job, Robin works on medical devices to research and cure cancer, so he has no time for bad ideas.
I spent a few years designing the
new Electrom frame based on all that I learned while riding the previous version, and when I was ready to build the new vehicle I again enlisted Robin’s help. He put his considerable skills in Solidworks to the task of taking my two-dimensional drawings and creating production ready 3D CAD plans that saw the new Electrom frame laser cut, bent, and welded. When it
came time to assemble those parts into a frame it was Robin’s skills in the machine shop that provided all of the other parts parts required to build a working product.
I am eternally grateful for his help.
Thanks Robin.
Fabrizio Cross
Closing in on being ready to make the molds for the Electrom body panels.
This is the front foot-well and fairing support plug. It is now polished to a “class A” finish, now it gets four coats of Mold-Release Wax, a misting of PVA Mold release, and then I make the mold. After that I do the polishing and waxing for the tail-box and its hatch, then make the molds for those parts.
The tail-box will be a bit more complicated as it will be a four part mold whereas the Foot-well is a one-part mold.
I’ve been busy carving the foam plugs for the Electrom Bodywork and
am almost ready to start to make the molds. This is a pretty exciting
milestone as it means we’re just a few steps away from a completed
Electrom with full bodywork and Tailbox.
Here’s a Photoshop mock-up of what the completed bodywork will look like as well as some shots of the rough plugs.
Hi Electrom fans, here’s a quick time lapse video of my commute home. I’ve been consulting at an e-bike and battery store up in Duncan, All Battery. The extra income has been great, but a fringe benefit is the chance to put some serious testing miles on the Electrom. I’m doing almost 100 KM per trip. The Electrom has performed beautifully.
We are pleased to announce that the Electrom Beta Sample has completed over 2000 Kilometres of road testing and is ready for consumer test rides. The Electrom does not yet have its final final fibreglass body panels and tailbox but all of the lights, signals and other components are as they will be on the final bike so is a fair representation of what riders will experience on a finished Electrom.
Please contact info@electrom.ca to arrange your test ride.
Test Ride Parameters:
I hope to see a few of you soon
Fabrizio
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