Poll: Primary Use of Your Alta?

[F451]

I'm live in Pac NW if you want me to come range test on your buddies trails

You, or anyone else here, are welcome to come ride with us any time, we ride in the Monroe, WA area if that is anywhere near you.

And I may be planning a day up at Walker Valley (east of Mt Vernon, WA) on an Alta. At the time I took the test ride on the Alta, the sales guy said they are letting people take their demo bike, the '17 MX, out for an entire day. He said people were getting a full days ride from one charge up there. I'm skeptical, but if they're offering to let people try it out for an entire day, why not?

The only issue is the dealership is pretty far away from me, and its on the other side of Walker Valley, plus once I test rode it all day I know I will have to have an Alta, so by not doing an all day test ride I'm saving myself 10k or so, Lol.

No seriously, if I end up doing the all day test ride I'll post up and see if anyone wants to meet up, up there.

 

[Philip]

Could an additional battery (double range) mounted as side bags work in the forest?

I think you should build add-on battery packs before the to-go chargers.

Some guys might want to buy small emergency add-ons, just enough to get them home if the main battery dies.

Some will want to increase their riding range. I might even buy/build an SM then, if I can make a 50-mile round trip to work.

I'd love it if it allows me to do 1-hour races, but that would mean adding 60 lbs to double the battery capacity. This is probably too much for racing. Although I did own a 525 lb fat pig KTM Adventure, so this won't be the heaviest bike out there. It will be good for flowing trails for sure.

That would definitely work and would be awesome but not for the single track riding we like to do. It would add too much weight and they would end up getting destroyed, or at a minimum getting hammered every time you had even a slow speed get off. I can pretty much count on eating dirt at least once or twice on a ride. If I don't go down on a ride it would be unusual.

If you ride these bikes more, you will notice that their extra weight does not feel when riding. It only feels when you are trying to lift the bike.

Good points on protection. The side batteries should be able to sustain crashes.

 

[F451]

If you ride these bikes more, you will notice that their extra weight does not feel when riding. It only feels when you are trying to lift the bike.

I was amazed at how light feeling the bike was on my short test ride, but mounting additional battery packs like saddle bags or panniers, I just don't see it working for the type of single track that we like. The bike is already 260 lbs? Something like that. Putting additional weight way back on the bike, plus them sticking out, sounds like an expensive day just waiting to happen.

But its a great idea for other types of riding, and who knows, maybe it would work out for single track, I've been wrong before that's for sure.

 

[Philip]

I'd put the extra battery packs on both sides of the stock battery. Having any weight high in the rear will mess up the bike's handling and stability really bad.

 

[Redwolf]

I was amazed at how light feeling the bike was on my short test ride, but mounting additional battery packs like saddle bags or panniers, I just don't see it working for the type of single track that we like. The bike is already 260 lbs? Something like that. Putting additional weight way back on the bike, plus them sticking out, sounds like an expensive day just waiting to happen.

But its a great idea for other types of riding, and who knows, maybe it would work out for single track, I've been wrong before that's for sure.

I have done lots of riding with bikes equipped with side cases, even in places they don't really belong. For the most part, if the cases don't stick out wider than your knees, the bike will fit into some very surprising trails. Wider than your knees, and they will be bumping trees and rocks a lot.

 

[F451]

I have done lots of riding with bikes equipped with side cases, even in places they don't really belong. For the most part, if the cases don't stick out wider than your knees, the bike will fit into some very surprising trails. Wider than your knees, and they will be bumping trees and rocks a lot.

Yes, I realize it can be done, but for me, it would bring too many negatives having them mounted like panniers for single track riding. Guys take their giant adventure bikes on single track all the time. They love it. I don't get it, plus they tent to destroy trails, but to each their own.

I like the idea of mounting slim aux batteries on either side of the existing battery pack, or better yet putting a battery pack in the empty "airbox" area (although I'm thinking that empty space would be better used by putting the delicate display there and having a slave display mounted like a normal speedo, but that's for another thread).

 

[TonyWilliams]

Ya, I agree. The cells are about 2.75” tall (wide in the saddle bag configuration, so two on each side is about 6-8” wide... the width of my knee with knee braces.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Yes, I realize it can be done, but for me, it would bring too many negatives having them mounted like panniers for single track riding. Guys take their giant adventure bikes on single track all the time. They love it. I don't get it, plus they tent to destroy trails, but to each their own.

I like the idea of mounting slim aux batteries on either side of the existing battery pack, or better yet putting a battery pack in the empty "airbox" area (although I'm thinking that empty space would be better used by putting the delicate display there and having a slave display mounted like a normal speedo, but that's for another thread).

The battery itself could add one or two “layers”.

Stock battery - (4 * 21S) * 4.2V = 354V
Add one layer - (5 * 21S * 4.2V = 442V (that’s probably outside the inverter semiconductor ratings)
Add two layers- ((6 * 21S) * 4.2V) / 2 = 264V (not sure how that might work with existing inverter

 

[TonyWilliams]

Or, just make the wedding cake layer larger by one cell width all the way around.

With a 250mm square, we can fit 126 cells that are 18mm in diameter, with 4mm between the cells.

Just increasing to 294mm square, we get 169-188 cells (depending how they are arranged)

That is a 49.2% increase in capacity with a battery that is 44mm wider (less than 2 inches).

 

[privateer703]

You make that as a drop in replacement and you'll get some takers.

 

[TonyWilliams]

You make that as a drop in replacement and you'll get some takers.

I have access to the cells, but I’m clearly at the macro view right now... as in, “what could work”?

 

[snydes]

I'll just be extremely happy if there is someone out there that can fix these batteries for us. I'm sure everyone here will. I think to some degree we are all experiencing a level of battery anxiety. Myself more than most...

 

[TonyWilliams]

I'll just be extremely happy if there is someone out there that can fix these batteries for us. I'm sure everyone here will. I think to some degree we are all experiencing a level of battery anxiety. Myself more than most...

The battery is the following:

1) a box... simple, can be duplicated
2) method to hold the cells... generic stuff in the industry
3) the actual cells... a commodity
4) a battery management system... needs to be integrated with whatever ALTA had going on.

Please don’t be afraid of the battery.

 

[TonyWilliams]

The battery capacity can be DOUBLED with:

188 cells per layer (adds about two inches to width)
6 layers instead of 4 (I think it will all fit).

 

[snydes]

Please don’t be afraid of the battery.

That is aside from the fact that it can kill you!

I am certainly relieved to hear this.

 

[TonyWilliams]

That is aside from the fact that it can kill you!

I am certainly relieved to hear this.

Yes, of course, be VERY afraid of sticking your finger into places that you don’t know what you’re doing.

 

[Butch]

Welcome Ed. I like my Alta; enough that I would buy one without factory support. I think the dash/ controller is the most problematic item. With a little luck, nothing will ever fail. With a little luck, we won’t break anything. Falling down is pretty uncommon for me because the bike is so easy to ride.

I wrote up my impressions when I got the bike here...
Alta Redshift MX Second Impressions - BARF - Bay Area Riders Forum

 

[F451]

Welcome Ed. I like my Alta; enough that I would buy one without factory support. I think the dash/ controller is the most problematic item. With a little luck, nothing will ever fail. With a little luck, we won’t break anything. Falling down is pretty uncommon for me because the bike is so easy to ride.

I wrote up my impressions when I got the bike here...
Alta Redshift MX Second Impressions - BARF - Bay Area Riders Forum

Thanks Butch! I checked out your BARF thread, very useful. I think my type of riding would be similar to yours if I owned an Alta. I would add in short commuter trips to the store or just to bop around locally if I got one, either the EXR or the MXR, dirt bikes are pretty easy to plate up here in WA State.

And your experience of hopping back on an ICE bike is the exact same as mine, and I only rode the MX for 15 mins or so! Amazing how quickly I adapted and began to enjoy the quiet, the power, the throttle response, the handling, etc. My KTM 350 is a killer bike and it feels crude now! Thanks alot Alta! Lol.

I will keep reading and learning and thinking about this. If Alta was still in business I would own one, probably sooner then later. I may still pick one up, although it would have to deeply discounted for me to feel comfortable dropping the coin.

And again, thanks to everyone for contributing, lots of great info on this thread.

 

[Butch]

Living here in the center of the universe, I am not too concerned about support, not to mention the support available from this site.
Support for any product is pretty much hit and miss nowadays with “just in time” delivery and tech heavy products.

Back in the day, even before my day, folks had to make shit to make their shit work. We now have the innerwebz and three D printing. I think this community rocks and can make our bikes work forever. Unless you crush it spectacularly, in which case it might be worth it for the story...

 

[Fod]

The battery capacity can be DOUBLED with:

188 cells per layer (adds about two inches to width)
6 layers instead of 4 (I think it will all fit).

What extra weight roughly would that be? Will this change the battery pack temperature to be cooler or warmer after a moto?