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electric pulse
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Stevenp74



Joined: 06 Sep 2003
Posts: 48
Location: Florida Panhandle

PostPosted: Fri May 14, 2004 4:47 am    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

do any of you remember the person who has the pulse he converted to all electric. I think he was in california? I am wondering how that project
came out.
Thanks
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Fri May 14, 2004 11:53 am    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

Probably you were talking about me. I'm in Washington state.

I can't fully comment on how it has come out because I've been struggling with legal issues. The early pulses had problems with the VIN's and did not have federal safety stickers (which supposedly all vehicles manufactured at the time were supposed to have). Washington state puts some additional restrictions on what constitutes a motorcycle beyond those of the federal requirements. Under those circumstances I have not been able to get clear licensing for my pulse, so I really haven't been able to find out how it performs other than short jaunts around my neighborhood with a transit permit.

On these, it has been great but I think the range is likely to be way too short. It's very hard to tell since short local jaunts aren't really good tests of range. Batteries are heavier than I like and I suspect I'll either convert back to gas (when I settle on a good power plant) or just build a new vehicle similar to the pulse which meets Washington state's paternal needs.

-Dave-
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guest
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PostPosted: Wed Jun 30, 2004 3:32 am    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

dave
Could you give me the size and type of electric motor you are using? As
well the type of batteries, controller etc. My pulse can hold alot more
batteries than most pulses, due to the special outriggers

thanks
Steve
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Thu Jul 01, 2004 6:55 am    Post subject: Electric Pulse Reply with quote

I use 6 Interstate lead acid batteries each with 88 amp hours. Each battery is almost 70 lbs. The batteries are in series and the overall system operates at 72 volts. I don't have a brand name on the motor. It was originally used to pressurize hydraulic systems.

I am considering switching back to a gasoline (probably motorcycle) engine or if I stay with electric to 6 Excide Optima batteries. which have a lower amp-hour rating (55-60) but are almost half the weight.

The performance is fine and I love the simplicity of the system overall but the weight is a real problem. I am going to be investigating my alternatives and either switch batteries or go back to petrol within the next month.

Feel free to write me at davmccoy@microsoft.com
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Thu Jul 01, 2004 7:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Oops.

You also asked about the controller. I started off with a Curtis PMC controller. The documentation I have left on this has the designations 1209B/1221B 1221C. After some problems I switched to an Alltrax AXE series controller which has been reliable and has some nice advanced features such as an RS232 port to customize the controller output.

-Dave-
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Bob Hichborn



Joined: 12 Feb 2004
Posts: 404
Location: Orlando, Fl

PostPosted: Thu Jul 01, 2004 8:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'd love to build an electirc powered Pulse, but am totally clueless about the tech and setup. Last night I happened to catch a Discovery channel show called "Suck Amps", very interesting.

http://www.suckamps.com/

I'm wondering if there is a commercially available vehicle out there that is a similar weight to the Pulse and that also generates a descent amount of torque and speed to make it a viable commuter vehicle. That system then could be mimic'd. From my limited knowledge of EVs, battery weight and life has always been an issue.
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Jeremy



Joined: 03 Feb 2004
Posts: 5
Location: Evansville, IN

PostPosted: Fri Jul 02, 2004 8:52 pm    Post subject: Electric cars and parts Reply with quote

Hi Guys,
When I looked at Electric cars in the past, I found this site to be very informative. It is all about converting gas cars into electric. It has links to many other electric vehicle sites too.

http://www.electroauto.com
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Jeremy Dawes
Pulse 218
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steve
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:20 pm    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

Dave ,do you know the H.P. rating on your electric motor ? With motors
getting more efficient and batteries getting more effiecient and smaller,
perhaps this electric conversion has possibilities.
Steve
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 12:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jeremy....thanks for the link.

So, I've been prepping our Rv to get it ready for my wife to take to south Florida for one of her dog shows and I started thinking....

If you were to convert to electric and also add a small gas generator (as all RVs come with), you could use the generator to partially power the electric engine, charge the batteries( so you could possibly use less of them, thus reducing weight), and run any cockpit assessories. This would also somewhat solve my AC installation issues, in that I could integrate an electric AC unit, used in RV's, that would also run off the generators power.
Those RV generators use about a gallon of gas per hour, which ends up equating to a pretty good MPG.

Having removed the entire back of the Pulse, I've found there is quite alot of room back there, if you didn't have the motocycle engine and gas tank.

Dave, can you verify this? Do you have any pictures of the installation you could share?

Thoughts?
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elden simons



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 369
Location: Brampton, Michigan

PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 7:34 am    Post subject: minor mumblings Reply with quote

Only as a thought and not requiring a response...
I seem to recall that portable generators need frequent servicing.
Run a couple of hours and then change oil, do adjustments and the like...
No, really...continue with the subject. Something good will come out of it all!
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Sun Jul 04, 2004 8:41 am    Post subject: Electric Pulse Reply with quote

Someone asked about the horsepower of my engine. I don't know what it is but I'll see if I can find out. It's plenty powerful. I can burn rubber easily and even with the added weight the system will go faster than I have been willing to drive it on local roads. Generates so much torque on the low end that I don't use a transmission.

Yes, the size of the full system with motor and batteries is quite small. The batteries and motor combined occupy the space formerly occupied by the motorcycle engine. Obviously I don't need a gass tank and all the space above the engine frame area is now empty so essentially the cargo shelf behind the rear seat could go all the way to the back of the vehicle if one chose. Plenty of room for a generator. I have contemplated installing a generator to extend range, but not sure if this would work out and not many sources for information for this application of portable generators so I have never taken any steps in this direction.
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Paul
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 4:33 am    Post subject: Washington regulations Reply with quote

Dave,
Have you found any online information for licensing a three wheeler in Washington? What were some of the problems you found when you tired to license it?

I live in Washington (south Settle) and will sometime need to have my Tri-Magnum inspected and re-licensed. It was originally built in Washington but I bought it in Oregon and I will need to get it inspected before driving it.

Paul M
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elden simons



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 369
Location: Brampton, Michigan

PostPosted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 9:04 am    Post subject: Subject: Irrevelant Reply with quote

Posting removed by my self

Last edited by elden simons on Thu Jul 08, 2004 6:30 am; edited 1 time in total
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Bob Cervero



Joined: 26 Aug 2003
Posts: 63

PostPosted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 5:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sorry. The Miller Electric refers to the Miller Electric Co. which makes welders. Orange County Choppers is building a normal chopper motorcycle for them. It's gas powered.
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Bob Hichborn



Joined: 12 Feb 2004
Posts: 404
Location: Orlando, Fl

PostPosted: Wed Jul 07, 2004 11:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Bob, when you and Don were doing all the restoration and mods on your Pulses, did you guys discuss electric conversions at all? Just curious if you two might have any insights.
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Bob Cervero



Joined: 26 Aug 2003
Posts: 63

PostPosted: Thu Jul 08, 2004 12:01 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

No, Don and I never considered converting to electric power. Our main consideration was simplicity. We just removed the yamaha 400 and put a 750 Kawasaki in its place. We did discuss the merits of a shaft drive system, such as a Goldwing but that would have been much more complex, so we went with the Kawasaki. A lot of research as to engine physical dimensions and such was done to be reasonably confident that it would fit in the space that the Yamaha 400 occupied.
While electric power might work, it is certainly a more complex alternative. Then we would also have had to consider horse power, range, weight and battery life, which are not well known. The Kawasaki 750 did not have those unknowns.
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Stevenp74



Joined: 06 Sep 2003
Posts: 48
Location: Florida Panhandle

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 5:19 am    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

Dave
If you can measure the dia. of your motor it will tell us about the H.P.
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Wed Jul 14, 2004 12:39 pm    Post subject: Electric Pulse Reply with quote

Responding to a couple of questions since I haven't hit the site for a few days.

My electric motor is about 7 inches in diameter. Runs on 72 volts. My memory is it uses about 450 amps at this voltage when I floor it.

In terms of difficulties with licensing the litestar pulse and potentially tri-magnum as a motorcycle in Washington state...

In addition to the usual 3 wheels in contact with the road and weight restrictions Washington adds a couple of other wrinkles

Steer with handlebars -No definition of handlebars and I could probably overcome this for inspection and then put the wheel I prefer to the butterfly yoke back on.

Driver sits astride powerplant - I guess for the Pulse it depends on what "astride" means. I'm sitting well in front of the motor, but one leg does go on the right and one on the left of the powerplant. For the Tri-magnum this could be trickier.

The state patrol at its own discretion can waive these restrictions and other and license a vehicle as a motorcycle that does not comply with all restrictions. I have not had the government turn me down, but I don't live that close to a state patrol inspections station and the one I visited wasn't very friendly. When I tried to deal with this in advance with the state office (since these vehicles are licensed all over the country) the beareucrats in the state office pretty much told me to jump in the lake. I thought about getting into a legal scrap but a local lawyer I retained told me to just get the vehicle inspected and see if there was anything they didn't like or if it just passed.

This was all made more complex since the state originally licensed the vehicle and then noticed a problem with the vin and wanted to inspect it. Early litestars had some problems with their vins. One of our fellow pulse owners had a valid vin on a later pulse and just submitted his registration and received plates no sweat.

Mostly I have just not had the time to run the gauntlet and hate dealing with administrative hoops.

WA codes are online here:

http://www.leg.wa.gov/rcw/index.cfm?fuseaction=title&title=46
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Steve C. Schmidt
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PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 7:39 pm    Post subject: PICTURES OF DAVE'S LITESTAR Reply with quote

http://www.autocycles.org/009ol.html
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Bob Hichborn



Joined: 12 Feb 2004
Posts: 404
Location: Orlando, Fl

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 8:21 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hey, sorry to go off subject, but the pictures Steve just posted of Dave's electric Pulse uses some nice looking "fasteners" for the fiberglass body parts. Dave, do you know what they are and where they were purchased?

Back to electric discussion. You know.... It's just odd that Washington, of all states, would not embrace someone converting a vehicle to electric to save on gas, reduce ozone attacking fumes, etc.... Go figure........
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lite9dave



Joined: 27 Feb 2004
Posts: 40
Location: Seattle

PostPosted: Fri Jul 16, 2004 1:12 pm    Post subject: Electric Pulse Reply with quote

The fasteners are original equipment. I had assumed all the early Litestars used the same basic design.

It is odd that with all the emphasis on "green" that WA gets us so tied up in red. I think the issue has to do with tax base. Washington does not have state income tax and until a recent referendum slashed rates the state made a LOT of money on exhorbitant licensing fees. Those are gone, but the enforecement infrastructure and "just say NO" attitude about vehicle licensing remain.

I'm sure I'll prevail on this once I'm willing to spend some serious time in the ring. Others face mechanical challenges. I just have some administrative ones to boot.

-Dave-
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elden simons



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 369
Location: Brampton, Michigan

PostPosted: Sat Jul 17, 2004 5:24 am    Post subject: Trail Blazer Dave Reply with quote

More power to ya...
I give up too easily.
Hope there are contacts that see the situation as you do (green).
Short of rallying an organization in your neck of the woods, such points about cruel and unusual State limitations on public access to recreation and travel must be on the minds of State or local officials that own a motorcycle also. Hmmm....who are they and would they listen?
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igotpulsed



Joined: 23 Aug 2007
Posts: 23
Location: Conneaut, Ohio

PostPosted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 3:17 am    Post subject: electric pulse replay Reply with quote

I am replying to this post to bring it to the front of the system as it appears there is a lot of interest in electrifying a pulse. Maybe more people will reply with information. Maybe we can hear from Dave if he has any further comments. If you look at the pictures available linked above looks like a pretty good installation. Technology has improved in the last few years so maybe its feasible to build an electric pulse if it fits your needs. Hope we get some comments. Thanks everyone.
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Grimace



Joined: 11 Apr 2006
Posts: 12
Location: Salem, Oregon

PostPosted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 11:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

There is a place here in Salem Oregon that is a premier dealer for electric cars and batteries. The company is even working with Neil Young on his project of converting his Lincoln Continental convertible into an electric car that has a small generator on board to charge the Lithium Ion batteries. The web site for Neil Young's project is http://www.lincvolt.com/. The website for Salem Electric Wheels is http://www.electricwheelsinc.com/. Give them a look for possible battery leads.
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Stevenp74



Joined: 06 Sep 2003
Posts: 48
Location: Florida Panhandle

PostPosted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 1:25 am    Post subject: electric pulse Reply with quote

The electric conversion has been done with as I understand limited
success. Dave has never posted the distance he was able get out
of his batteries. I work next door to our robotics lab and they
ran the calculations using lead acid batteries and the distance is
limited. It would take 1200 Lbs of batteries to get around 100 miles.
New battery technology is showing up every day, but with a large
price tag. Using lith. ion batteries it would cost about 12 thousand to
convert to achieve 120 mile range.
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