Velowave 500 Watt Electric Mountain Bike Review – Is It For You?
A relatively new brand in the world of electric mountain biking, Velowave electric bikes are taking the world by storm by offering high quality bikes like the Velowave 500 Watt Electric mountain bike for extremely reasonable prices.
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Evaluating the Velowave 500 Watt Electric Mountain
One of the worst things that we have found about electric bikes in general is that they come with a huge price tag. With many of these bikes costing well over $3,000 it makes it difficult for the average person to be able to afford and experience the thrill of riding an electric mountain bike. It is always our goal to expose the world of mountain biking to as many people as possible, and with the Velowave 500 electric mountain bike we have found a new name that will allow more people to own an electric mountain bike at an affordable price.
High Quality Motor
In our minds the first and more important part of an electric bike to look at has to be the motor. Without a high end motor an electric bike does not perform that noticeably different from a normal mountain bike, and this completely defeats the purpose of buying one.
The motor on the Velowave 500 watt electric mountain bike is, as the name implies, 500 watts, and is a geared hub motor. This means that the motor is fully integrated into the gear hub allowing for a smaller motor to be used. Gear hub motors are by far the most common of all electric bike motor types as the can provide substantial torque without being excessively large or heavy.
With a 500 watt motor the Velowave electric mountain bike can reach a top speed of 25 miles per hour with pedal assist, and 20 miles per hour using just the throttle. While pedaling this smart motor, when in this setting, will give help you ride putting out some power. In the pure throttle mode you do not need to pedal at all and the motor will take care of everything.
Your electric bike speeds are very important to know because throughout the United States and rest of the world electric bikes are regulated based on their speed and motor type. Knowing what jurisdiction you live in is very important to understand before you buy an electric bike. For the most part a 20 mph max speed bike should be fully legal however please be sure to check your local regulations before making a purchase.
Powerful Lithium Ion Battery
Clearly the second most important feature in an electric bike has to be its battery. Often times this is where electric bike manufactures really drop the ball and decide to go with a low end battery that either does not have a long life, or does not hold it charge. Thankfully Velowave decided to go with a premium 48 volt, 13 amp hour lithium ion battery.
As with all the electric bike that we test ride we made sure to test this battery three separate times after a full change to determine whether or not it lived up to the promise of 35 miles on a single charge. Our tests showed that the battery performed within 0.5 amp hours of what was advertised which is well within the realm of error for a high capacity battery such as this.
With a fast charge time of only 4 hours, you can get up to an 80% charge very quickly, and we even felt as though 80% was a bit of an understatement. After fully depleting the battery a quick charge of 4 hours gave us between 85% and 90% charge every time. This is a great feature which allows you to get out and ride without too much planning or preparation.
Our favorite feature about the batter however was not its quick charge or its long life, it was the anti-theft mechanism for the integrated battery. Like most electric bike the battery on the Velowave electric mountain bike is integrated into the frame of the bike, however some bikes do not require a key to remove the battery. This means whenever you lock up your bike somewhere it is at risk of having its battery stolen. Thankfully the Velowave electric mountain bike requires a key to remove the battery ensuring that you can lock you bike up anywhere and be confident that all its parts will be there when you come back.
Suspension
An often overlooked part of an electric mountain bike the suspensions is certainly not something to take lightly. For an electric bike to truly be considered a mountain bike it must have suspension that is capable of handling rough and rugged terrain without a problem. Although not quite as important as in a traditional mountain bike, the suspension on an electric mountain bike still plays a big role in the comfort of your ride.
The Velowave electric mountain bike has a hard tail suspension fork and was surprisingly comfortable to ride for the price that you are paying. Normally we expect electric bikes to have subpar suspension, especially on electric bikes that are under $2,000 like the Velowave. However, after test riding on both city streets and our local bike trails we must admit that the suspension on the Velowave electric mountain bike is quite effective.
Able to handle rugged terrain, the hard tail suspension fork is reasonably loose allowing you to go over pretty serious terrain without much difficulty. However it is not so loose as to make riding on flat ground arduous. Often times a mountain bike has suspension which is too sensitive which makes just riding your bike on a flat surface a bit irritating. For a normal mountain bike is not an issue as you will not often be riding it through a city but for an electric bike it is very important. The Velowave can definitely be taken off road but you will also not have a problem casually riding it throughout your city.
Dual Shimano Disc Brakes
If you have read any of our other mountain bike reviews you will know that Shimano is the number one name in the world of bike components. They have been producing world class brakes, gears, shifters, and derailleurs for decades and are absolutely what you should be looking for when buying a high end bike. Like all electric bike the Velowave electric mountain bike has disc brakes, the minimum for an electric bike. However the brakes are mechanical and not hydraulic. If you have read our Rambo Megatron Electric Bike Review you know that hydraulic disc brakes are the best in terms of performance, however mechanical disc brakes are a close second.
In our opinion the difference between mechanical and hydraulic disc brakes is not huge, however we would have definitely liked to see hydraulic disc brakes on the Velowave electric mountain bike. Most likely Velowave decided to go with mechanical rather than hydraulic disc brakes due to the massive price difference between the two. These savings are then passed on to the customer which we can support, especially since the difference in performance between the two brake types is relatively minor.
As we stated earlier in this review we test road the Velowave electric bike multiple times on concrete, asphalt, and on numerous different dirt trails. After a thorough analysis of our rides we felt that the disc brakes performed best on the asphalt and concrete with excellent stopping power that was controlled and efficient. On the trails the brakes also performed quite well however there was a slight decrease in efficiency which is to be expected as dirt has far less traction and makes braking more difficult for any bike.
Overall the Shimano mechanical disc brakes preformed quite well and we would feel comfortable riding this bike on any reasonable terrain. While we would have liked to see hydraulic disc brakes, the savings that you get from having mechanical disc brakes are very noticeable. If this bike cost over $2,000 it would be quite disappointing to not have higher quality brakes but for this inexpensive price we feel as though it is more than reasonable.
Hybrid All-Terrain Tires
When buying an electric mountain bike one of their greatest features is that they can be ridden on so many different terrains. As long as you get a bike with a high quality motor like the Velowave electric mountain bike has, terrain type will no longer hold back your riding ability. If you have ever tried to ride a normal mountain bike on the beach on in the snow you will know how difficult and tiring it can be. With an electric bike with the proper motor and tires you will be able to conquer these difficult terrains with no problem.
We have already talked about the high quality motor of the Velowave electric mountain bike so now lets talk about its hybrid all-terrain tires. These tires are 27.5 inches and 2.35 inches wide which makes them a perfect cross between normal mountain bike tires and fat tires. This is great for an electric bike because they are not so big as to greatly increase the bikes weight, but they are also sturdy enough to handle all types of terrain.
A big advantage of slightly wider tires like the Velowave electric bike has is that they have more surface area and can glide on top of terrain more easily. This is perfectly demonstrated when riding through sand or snow. Normal tires are quite narrow and will quickly sink into the snow and make riding very difficult, with these 2.35 inch wide tires however, they will stay closer to the surface of the snow or sand and allow you to ride over, rather than through the terrain.
Giving this bike all terrain tires was a great addition as it makes the Velowave electric mountain bike so much more versatile than a normal mountain bike. These tires are not as big as traditional fat tires but are significantly wider than a normal bike tire. We felt that this is the best of both world as it gives you some of the features of a fat tire such as the ability to easily ride over sand, dirt and snow, but it also maintains the speed an maneuverability of a normal mountain bike.
Conclusion
After spending a good amount of time with the Velowave electric mountain bike testing, riding and inspecting it we strongly feel that it is one of the better electric bikes on the market today. While it is not the most high end or expensive electric bike, for the price you are paying the Velowave electric bike more than lived up to our high expectations. This is the perfect starter electric bike and we love that it is priced so that more everyday people can try out riding an electric mountain bike. We would recommend this bike to people that are looking for their first electric bike purchase, or any long time mountain bikers who are looking to get into the field of electric mountain biking. As with most electric bikes this is not exclusively a mountain bike and can be ridden casually, through the city, for your commute, or on a mountain trail, it really depends on what you want to do with it.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ideal height for the Velowave electric mountain bike?
The recommended height for the Velowave electric mountain bike is between 5’4” and 6’2” tall.
What is the maximum weight for the Velowave electric mountain bike?
The maximum tested weight for the Velowave electric mountain bike is 280 pounds.
Does the Velowave electric mountain bike come preassembled?
No, you must assemble the Velowave electric mountain bike yourself, however our team was able to complete to assembly with no issues. The bike comes with a full user’s manual with detailed and easy-to-follow instructions which make putting the Velowave electric mountain bike together very straight forward. You can also refer to the user’s manual.
