ACM2 after 1-2 weeks: first impressions/review

[Nick McCutcheon]

After much deliberation, I decided to cancel my order for the MSX and pick up an ACM2. I initially was a bit worried it wouldn't perform as well as I had hoped, but most of my concerns have gone away after I've been riding it and getting used to it over the past 1-2 weeks. Here's my overview what I think of it so far!

Build/ride quality:

Like most Gotways (from what I hear), the quality isn't the best. Two of the frontmost screws holding the two shell halves together were stripped out of the box, but this appears to be only a cosmetic issue. It was also calibrated a bit backwards when I got it, but that was easily fixed with a calibration. However, it feels pretty solid while riding, and it doesn't really feel as weird as some have described it as. I am a bit of a pedal scraper, so the lower pedal height hasn't been great, but the occasional scratch I get here and there doesn't really damage the pedals much at all. The dihedral angle I measured was about 10 degrees on each pedal. I initially hated this, and had some cramping in my ankles. However, I started to like it more and more with each ride, since it makes you feel more anchored into the unit when riding at high speeds/turning. Now, it feels comfortable to me, and I don't even notice it that much. The pads included are thick and very nice, I don't really have any complaints about them other than the fact that the paint layer is already starting to fracture off on the top of the left pad (where I put most of the pressure when getting on and standing still). I wasn't used to the riding style of always having your legs touch the pads, but I really like it now that I've had the chance to adapt. It really helps you feel more in control of the unit and adds to its stability. All of that aside, I have had a pretty major issue with the rim though, but I'll get to that later.

Performance:

I used it mostly in the sport mode, as the other two modes felt unnaturally/artificially squishy to me. Wow, what power this thing has! It goes from 0-30kph in no time, and it doesn't take too much longer to get to 40kph and stay there. It feels great to ride, and I'm pretty surprised at how good of a cruiser it is. It's a little bumpier than how I imagine am 18" wheel would be, but I got rid of most of the roughness by deflating a bit from 45psi to 40. It also handles hills and offroading pretty well. It can handle any asphalt hill no problem (my riding weight is around 180lbs), and most offroad hills with some maneuvering. I did try to climb a very steep hill (it seemed like 35 degrees or some crazy angle - my 14D couldn't even start to get up it) and it got surprisingly far up the hill before slowing down and triggering my 100 amp alarm, at which point I immediately stopped and walked it up the rest of the hill. As far as offroading goes, I was initially having a bit of trouble transitioning from a nimble 14" wheel to a 16" wheel, but as I went through the same trails more and more and started to trust the unit, I got a lot better at offroading. The only thing I think it could improve on (this is just a super nitpick) is recovering from big bumps, but I may be a bit biased coming from a torque-ier 14" wheel, and I'm very happy with its offroading capabilities. 

Range:

I went for the 1600Wh model, and the range is amazing! I went on a 42 mile trip the other day, and I still had 15% left when I got home. The throttle beeping was a bit annoying, but it wasn't excessive. I was going between 35-40kph for the majority of that trip, so I'm sure if I slowed down I could easily hit 55 or maybe even more miles. Before, I was limited to how far I could go, but now, I'm limited by where I can go ? I'm finding that I've gone pretty much everywhere there is to go! Maybe I'm not exploring hard enough... then again, it's only been a week or two. I've gotten to the point where my feet were going numb for standing for so long! Absolutely no complaints about range/battery life.

Extras: The point of the ACM2 isn't to be flashy or filled with features, but it definitely has everything I need. It may not have fancy lights or speakers like the King Song wheels do, but the RGB effect on the battery indicator is a nice touch and the headlight has a very far throw, if not a bit of a narrow one. I don't really use the light that much except for when I'm riding on middle-of-nowhere offroad trails, since it points straight ahead and blinds car and pedestrians, but is great for creating shadows on uneven patches of road. For night riding, I got myself a headlamp that was suggested on this forum and it seems to be doing the job well, except for offroad night riding. It doesn't create shadows in sandy or uneven areas, due to how the light comes directly from your line of sight, but using it in combination with the built-in headlight makes for great night time offroading. I strapped a bluetooth speaker to my elbow pad's inner velcro attachment point using velcro straps (it was too quiet when strapping it to the wheel) and that's been able to satisfy my riding music needs. The included USB port is nice for charging during breaks, but I don't use it too often. Overall, it has everything I need it to have and I was easily able to compensate for what it lacked with other easy-to-use products.

Overall, this is a great wheel and I've been really happy riding it everywhere! I even upgraded my pads and helmet to make sure I'm mostly protected from any high-speed falls. If I left anything out that anyone would like to know, just ask in the comments and I'll respond. 

Now, on to my big issue...

The Issue

A few hours ago, I was riding along, and I hit a pinecone. No big deal, I've run into a few pinecones here and there and I've been fine. However, it felt like an unusually hard hit, but no harder than hits I've had from going over really rough patches of offroading. I didn't think much of it, and kept riding. a mile or so later, I was riding on a smooth patch of road, but I noticed there was a rythmic thunk coming from the wheel that I could feel. I thought that was odd, because of how smooth the road was. I pulled over to inspect the wheel, and I saw that the rim had bent! My tire had not popped (and still holds air very well), but there was a very noticeable bend in the rim, as if someone had taken a hammer and hammered part of the rim inwards. At this point my heart sank. I've only had this thing for two weeks and I've already run into an issue that could require a very expensive part to fix?? I was heartbroken. I went back home, and I was able to get it mostly back into shape using a chisel (as  pry tool), a bench vice, and some pliers. However, it wasn't quite there, and still had a noticeable bump when riding, so I pried it one last time. This was a fatal mistake. It went perfectly back into alignment, it was round and no longer flared out, but now, it had a crack. It wasn't a structural crack, but it was a crack nonetheless. It seemed to ride fine, so I took it on a one hour test ride just to make sure everything was well. During that ride, I hit two minor bumps that I usually handle no problem (transitions from sidewalk to road that are a tad bit taller than usual). The tire still holds air fine, and the ride still feels smooth as ever, but lo and behold, two very small yet visually noticeable bends in the rim on the side that bent initially. I'm really worried that side of the rim's structure is compromised from the crack, and I'm afraid to keep riding for fear of worsening the situation. I'm also afraid this isn't covered under any sort of warranty that I'm not even sure if ewheels provides, as I tried to fix it myself and just ended up making it ultimately worse (although it still feels fine to ride, there's no indication while riding that anything is wrong). I really am disappointed, mostly in myself, that I ran into such a major issue without even having this wheel for a month. What should I do? If I have to pay for a new motor I guess that's what I'll have to do, but for now I hope it's ok to keep riding...

However, issues aside, I really like this wheel. Unless you're a dumb pinecone-hitting enthusiast like me, you can't go wrong with its awesome speed, power, and general performance. Also, I'm exhausted from trying to fix the rim and not having slept much the night before, so I apologize for any typos. I also won't be responding for a few hours, since I'll be sleeping.

[Hunka Hunka Burning Love]

That’s a lot of words in very large paragraphs.   I’d say up that tire pressure.  Fool you once....  Also I’d say fill the crack with JB Weld original epoxy using a needle or toothpick into the crack and overlay the area a little bit.  Plus post some photos before starting to let us see.

[US69]

Yeah, to less tire pressure? show us photos of crack and bents....

[Marty Backe]

Hi Nick,

Glad you fully adjusted to the ACM.

Sad to hear what happened. That's not a defect with the ACM per se. What you describe is a classic example of what happens when you hit a hard object at high speed, and usually with a lower tire pressure. I've never heard of a pine cone doing this, but I guess there's always a first for everything.

Didn't @meepmeepmayer semi-recently have a bent rim with his ACM? And he fixed it. Maybe he can chime in here? 

[meepmeepmayer]

Cool write-up

About your tire rim:

• Before you speculate any further, ask @Jason McNeil whether this is a warranty thing, or if there's something else he can do.
• I had a bent rim too (info in this thread, and link to my original thread in the first reply). For me it happened one moment without apparent reason, so don't blame yourself too much, it seems to be more of a random thing that can happen. Some stupid pine cone isn't that hard. Probably mostly bad luck. Or maybe the metal already had a weak point from the start.
  I also got some cracks when bending it back, but these are absolutely no problem. Sad to hear yours apparently are a problem and you get more rim bending now. I would not worry too much about further damaging the rim. Either it happes, then you need a new motor anyways, or it doesn't happen and you're good. So ride and see.
  You can do Hunka's epoxy idea, I did that too, but I think it's more psychologically calming than actually doing anything. Can't hurt though. If you have a wobble afterwards, it might be the epoxy itself, sand it back until the wobble is gone.
• (And some photos would be nice, though your case seems clear.)

[Cloud]

When I had bent rims on my 14 inchers, I believe I was able to bend them back in shape with a hammer after heating them up with a torch. But it was so long ago I already don’t remember the details. I remember looking for a car repair shop that can fix bent rims only to find there were very few, they charged over $100 and didn’t guarantee the result. So I think I was able to do it myself. Just be careful with the torch so as not to affect the magnets in the motor - only heat up very locally.

Edit: yeah use rubber hammer if possible

[Nick McCutcheon]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I would quote you all, but that would take up too much space. I’ll see if I have any metal JB weld left, but like @meepmeepmayer said, I’m not sure how much that would do structurally. And yeah, I guess the only option is to keep riding and see how long I can go before possibly needing a new motor. Here are pics. And yeah, I’ll email Jason and see what thinks. 

[meepmeepmayer]

Uh that is a real crack I thought you meant more like hairline cracks (I have two of those). Makes sense that this won't hold for long. A new motor it is, I guess. Though that kind of damage should be under warranty, it's not bent from some impact, it's broken from something minor!

[Nick McCutcheon]

27 minutes ago, meepmeepmayer said:

Uh that is a real crack I thought you meant more like hairline cracks (I have two of those). Makes sense that this won't hold for long. A new motor it is, I guess. Though that kind of damage should be under warranty, it's not bent from some impact, it's broken from something minor!

Yep, I feared that this crack was too major. I found some metal JB weld that I’ll try and apply tonight so it can cure overnight (takes 4-6 hours to cure). I emailed ewheels, I’ll see what they say. My only worry is that I may have voided the warranty by trying to fix it... Agh what a mess I’ve gotten myself into. At least I still have the 14D!

[Marty Backe]

2 hours ago, Nick McCutcheon said:

Thanks for the replies everyone. I would quote you all, but that would take up too much space. I’ll see if I have any metal JB weld left, but like @meepmeepmayer said, I’m not sure how much that would do structurally. And yeah, I guess the only option is to keep riding and see how long I can go before possibly needing a new motor. Here are pics. And yeah, I’ll email Jason and see what thinks. 

That is a substantial crack 

Can you tell us your tire pressure is? If it's >40-psi there's no way something like that should happen from running over a pine cone. Except for that, you didn't hit a curb hard or anything else?

[TremF]

Gotway and their sub-par materials and dodgy electronics really worry me. I suppose in such a niche market it doesn't pay to make things last as how many would by another?

Currently my ACM2 seems to be playing nice and I've had no spills or problems. Hopefully I will get a decent run out of this ACM but I'm keep a close watch on the Ninebot One Z10. So far I've seen and heard some good things and want to see how the retail units perform but I'm thinking my next wheel, and any that follow, likely won't be a Gotway.

[Marty Backe]

27 minutes ago, TremF said:

Gotway and their sub-par materials and dodgy electronics really worry me. I suppose in such a niche market it doesn't pay to make things last as how many would by another?

Currently my ACM2 seems to be playing nice and I've had no spills or problems. Hopefully I will get a decent run out of this ACM but I'm keep a close watch on the Ninebot One Z10. So far I've seen and heard some good things and want to see how the retail units perform but I'm thinking my next wheel, and any that follow, likely won't be a Gotway.

I've never had and material problems with all the Gotway wheels that I've owned. Could be a random failure or a hard hit that he didn't realize that he made. All wheels can be bent if an obstacle is hit the wrong way.

Keep in mind that the crack was caused by the attempted repair. The actual failure was a bent rim, and we weren't there to see the actual conditions that caused this.

[Hunka Hunka Burning Love]

This is one of those difficult situations for a dealer, but when you read the detailed account of off-roading, recovering over big bumps, multiple rim bends, 40 psi (how much do you weigh @Nick McCutcheon?), and using a chisel (!?) and pliers resulting in the crack I’d have to say it’s not a warranty claim.

I’ve tried bending metal items back into shape, and there’s quite a technique to attempt to do so without placing excessive pressure on the metal to avoid cracks and introduce new deformities.  It looks like this metal is stong and not that ductile so extreme care needs to be followed to avoid further damage during a repair.

All rim bends I have seen are outwards.  What was the bend like originally?  How did you do the repair exactly?  Sorry, but I’d say in this case I would just man up, accept that I’ve used maybe too low of a pressure, taken the wheel off-road is my responsibility, and buy a new motor if the JB Weld doesn’t do the trick.  Going at 40 kph and higher I’d probably lean towards new motor (or rim if they sell them and you think you can replace it which isn’t that easy @Hansolo).

If I were a dealer I would be making people tick a disclaimer that damage cause by going off-road, stunting, jumps, and customer repair attempts are not covered under warranty.

[Nick McCutcheon]

I weigh 180 when riding, and my tire pressure was 40-42 psi. And yeah, I’m pretty sure warranty is out the window at this point. I’ll see what ewheels says about getting a new motor. 

Before attempted repair, the bend looked like this (pic from @Tbx Nicolas) but less severe. 

[Marty Backe]

Nick, after re-reading your paragraph about the rim problems, I'm beginning to think that maybe you've been riding the wheel too hard? You talk about riding off of sidewalks onto the street, and all the off-road riding. Are you riding the wheel fast when on the trails? And jumping off of curbs is something I always try and avoid. If I recall you said that you're close to 200-pounds? That's tough on any wheel.

And again, what tire pressure? At your weight I hope it's been in the mid-40's psi.

This is all to say that when you eventually get your wheel running again, try to avoiding hard, jarring motions with the wheel.

Replacing the ACM motor is not hard. Probably a couple hours of dedicated work and a few hundred dollars.

[Marty Backe]

Just now, Nick McCutcheon said:

I weigh 180 when riding, and my tire pressure was 40-42 psi. And yeah, I’m pretty sure warranty is out the window at this point. I’ll see what ewheels says about getting a new motor. 

Before attempted repair, the bend looked like this (pic from @Tbx Nicolas) but less severe. 

Oh, OK, not too heavy, but not a light weight either 

That is a major bend. I really find it hard to believe the a pine cone could do this. Maybe there was a hidden rock that you didn't see? Guess we'll never know. 

Looking at the bright side, maybe you've just gotten rid of all your future bad luck, and now you're in for a long stretch of good weather, so to speak.

[Nick McCutcheon]

14 minutes ago, Marty Backe said:

Oh, OK, not too heavy, but not a light weight either 

That is a major bend. I really find it hard to believe the a pine cone could do this. Maybe there was a hidden rock that you didn't see? Guess we'll never know. 

Looking at the bright side, maybe you've just gotten rid of all your future bad luck, and now you're in for a long stretch of good weather, so to speak.

17 minutes ago, Marty Backe said:

Nick, after re-reading your paragraph about the rim problems, I'm beginning to think that maybe you've been riding the wheel too hard? You talk about riding off of sidewalks onto the street, and all the off-road riding. Are you riding the wheel fast when on the trails? And jumping off of curbs is something I always try and avoid. If I recall you said that you're close to 200-pounds? That's tough on any wheel.

And again, what tire pressure? At your weight I hope it's been in the mid-40's psi.

This is all to say that when you eventually get your wheel running again, try to avoiding hard, jarring motions with the wheel.

Replacing the ACM motor is not hard. Probably a couple hours of dedicated work and a few hundred dollars.

I found a crushed-looking pinecone when scanning the area, but it is very possible I missed something. This was at night, after all. Let’s hope all the bad luck is out of the way! At this point I’m just waiting to see what ewheels says about how much a motor will cost.

I don’t go fast on trails for fear of hitting big bumps (how ironic this is now), and I really only go off curbs if I find myself barreling towards them and unable to stop in time (when turning corners or going through unfamiliar areas, for example). So, not very often. Admittedly I probably push the wheel a tad bit further than some, but not to the point where I would expect a failure. I

[Hunka Hunka Burning Love]

Even people riding on two wheels experience these rim bends.  Considering that their weight is shared between two tires I think electric unicyclists should ride with higher pressure to avoid similar damage.  All our weight is concentrated on a single contact point.

https://advrider.com/index.php?threads/how-does-rim-damage-happen.1183760/

[electricpen]

2 hours ago, TremF said:

Gotway and their sub-par materials and dodgy electronics really worry me. I suppose in such a niche market it doesn't pay to make things last as how many would by another?

Currently my ACM2 seems to be playing nice and I've had no spills or problems. Hopefully I will get a decent run out of this ACM but I'm keep a close watch on the Ninebot One Z10. So far I've seen and heard some good things and want to see how the retail units perform but I'm thinking my next wheel, and any that follow, likely won't be a Gotway.

While Gotway has had their problems I'm fairly sure all the manufacturers have similar rim construction. I had a bend even worse than this one on a KS-16s which most people consider pretty bulletproof. I kept riding this one btw after attempting to straighten it and eventually the tire lost the ability to hold air. I suspect it was from this but it might have been from glass laceration in the tire. There is, unfortunately, a lot of broken glass on the ground in some parts of the city where I live. Anyway just wanted to point out this is not a Gotway issue, any time you hit a bump going fast enough this can happen to your rims. This damage pictured below was from hitting a raised crack in a sidewalk while going a little too fast 

[TremF]

6 hours ago, electricpen said:

While Gotway has had their problems I'm fairly sure all the manufacturers have similar rim construction. I had a bend even worse than this one on a KS-16s which most people consider pretty bulletproof. I kept riding this one btw after attempting to straighten it and eventually the tire lost the ability to hold air. I suspect it was from this but it might have been from glass laceration in the tire. There is, unfortunately, a lot of broken glass on the ground in some parts of the city where I live. Anyway just wanted to point out this is not a Gotway issue, any time you hit a bump going fast enough this can happen to your rims. This damage pictured below was from hitting a raised crack in a sidewalk while going a little too fast 

 

Ouch at that rim damage. I've gone up a few curbs and bumped the rim (lets me know I need more air lol) and as for glass... my route to work usually includes a couple of subways and on the ramp out there's often broken glass I need to dodge. So far where tires are concerned I've had no punctures in around 2.5years of riding on 4 wheels now.
My comment regarding Gotway's sub-par materials and dodgy electronics isn't just this rim issue but their axle on the original ACM snapping and shim? problems for some (on the Monster), plus the poor Monster case design (I dropped mine on the second day of owning it and the top handle/light area was a mess), pedals snapping, the axle nut loosening, MOSFET's blowing, wires melting, chargers smoking (MSuper X 100v) etc. It could be that Gotways are most popular so there look to be more problems but they haven't done themselves any favours.

Anyway, after seeing all the Ninebot One Z10 video's, and Marty's opinion on it, I'll be keeping an eye on it and it, or something like it, could be my next wheel. I'm hoping for a good year or two with my ACM2, because it's my favourite wheel of the 4 so far, before I change so plenty of time for others to release similar wheels and compare.  

[Hansolo]

I have change a rim on an ACM there is 2 weeks, it's not very complicated. the difficults is:

- have a rim (asks to a dealer)
- Disassemble a flask (I hope that's the right word), the ball bearings may not want to quit the axle ?
- Be carrefull to yours fingers when you put the new rim.....The magnets are very strong!!! ?

[Tbx Nicolas]

Or you can unleash all your hanger toward people by hitting hard the rim with a hammer. This can work however I will not be responsible for further damages ?. Heatig the bend point could help to put it back more easily. 

If a crack has form inside, straightening the rim will still leave the eadge of the crack cutting the inner tube. I made a successful repair one time by hammering the crack spot once back into place to smooth it out. No flat time occured. But since the rim was replaced because the rider kept on bending his rim... 

[Cloud]

On ‎7‎/‎29‎/‎2018 at 4:33 AM, Nick McCutcheon said:

I went on a 42 mile trip the other day, and I still had 15% left when I got home.

May i ask you what your weight is? I am getting similar results with the ACM2 i recently got. about 15% left after 40 miles. I was hoping to squeeze about 50 miles out of it. Of course i am not always riding 20kmh at perfect conditions, so i shouldnt complain... 

[Marty Backe]

33 minutes ago, Cloud said:

May i ask you what your weight is? I am getting similar results with the ACM2 i recently got. about 15% left after 40 miles. I was hoping to squeeze about 50 miles out of it. Of course i am not always riding 20kmh at perfect conditions, so i shouldnt complain... 

Wow, you guys must always be racing. My ACM2 is a minimum 50-mile wheel, with a mix of riding conditions and not going particularly slow, but also not riding at >22-mph all of the time. Riding weight is 175-pounds.

[Cloud]

1 hour ago, Marty Backe said:

Wow, you guys must always be racing. My ACM2 is a minimum 50-mile wheel, with a mix of riding conditions and not going particularly slow, but also not riding at >22-mph all of the time. Riding weight is 175-pounds.

Well i am around 190 these days, i guess 195 with clothes, so the range is understandibly shorter, traveling at around 20mph most of the time...i will keep trying to make the 50mile mark - do you drain th battery to almot zero at 50miles?