Heybike Explore Review

Mark Ranum

Mark is an outdoor adventure seeker, living in the beautiful state of Michigan. He loves trekking hundreds of miles through the wilderness, whether on two feet or two wheels, always looking for the next new trail or road to see where it will take him.

You may also like...

12 Responses

  1. S E Sponenburgh says:

    Does the Haybike Explore have hydraulic or mechanical brakes?

  2. Mark Ranum says:

    Thanks for the question. The Heybike Explore has mechanical brakes.

  3. Mike says:

    Hi Mark, thank you for this review. I just purchased this model E-bike today through amazon. I am 68 years old with severe rheumatoid arthritis in my knees, I can hardly walk short distances. I am around 270 lbs. and tried to ride my street bike with no success more than a half mile. I really miss riding and thought this bike would put me back on the road. With the assisted pedaling I believe I can get some exercise which is what the doctors want me to do. The bike is to arrive no later than next Friday 8/21. I read some bad reviews about problems customers had with this model, but also read many more good reviews. After reading your review, its giving me confidence that I made the right decision to purchase this bike. Take care and thank you again for your review. PS, I live in the Cadillac West area.

  4. Mark Ranum says:

    Hi Mike!
    Thanks for being a reader! I believe the Heybike Explore will be a Great ebike for you. After this review my then nine year old son commandeered this bike because it was easy for him to ride even given it’s large size and of course it was fast – which he loved. He put well over a 100 miles on it zipping around the neighborhood with his friends and eventually upgraded to a motorcycle style ebike, because it was cooler. After my son was done with the Heybike Explore, my 73 year old father took possession of it, because it was easy to get on and fun to ride. He still uses it to this day and absolutely loves it. The only thing that I would recommend for you, is to go in and personalize the pedal assist settings, because right out of the box this thing is a rocket ship on take off, almost to the point of being dangerous. I changed the PAS from the standard 0-5 to a much better 0-9, this helps spread out all that power over nine levels and offers a much smoother riding experience. The manual can be found here –> https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0516/9804/1009/files/Explore_User_Manual-2022.3.22.pdf?v=1647929496 and page 18 explains how to get into the settings.

    All the Best!
    Mark

  5. John Lincoln says:

    Mark,
    I am 81 years old and plan to ride primarily on roads. I am looking to get exercise and be able to easily negotiate the hills in our area. Would you consider the Heybike Explorer to be an appropriate choice? I am a little concerned about the weight. The fact that your 9 year old son didn’t seem to have a problem is encouraging. And are the fat tires a good choice for me versus looking at urban commuter bikes? I will appreciate your thoughts.

  6. Mark Ranum says:

    Hi John,

    Thanks for the question! If you are planning on riding primary on roads, a fat tire bike is not really necessary and you may want to consider a e-bike with smaller tires which will help reduce the overall weight. One such bike would be the Aventon Level.2 Commuter eBike, that review can be found here –> https://www.activegearreview.com/cycling-gear/ebike-reviews/aventon-level-2-commuter-ebike-review/ or depending on your height, I just finished reviewing the Velotric Go 1 E-Bike which is a very COMPACT and lightweight e-bike, that review can be found here –> https://www.activegearreview.com/cycling-gear/ebike-reviews/velotric-go-1-e-bike-review-a-versatile-and-efficient-companion-for-everyday-errands/ . If you do plan to venture out onto the trails every once in a while, then Heybike Explore is a solid choice and does also work great for road riding. One thing that I would definitely recommend is choosing an e-bike with a step-thru frame, which all three of these e-bikes have. The step-thru frame makes it easy to get on and off when stopping and starting. Happy to answer any other questions you might have.

    Thanks!

  7. John Lincoln says:

    Mark,
    Many thanks for the thoughtful and valuable reply. A further question is about the different wheel sizes – do the larger diameter wheels make for greater stability versus the smaller? Is one ride more comfortable than the other? And, any other thoughts you may have on stability with fat versus regular tires.
    Thanks,
    John

  8. Mark Ranum says:

    The fat tires being both wider and larger in diameter do offer a bit more stability and shock absorbing comfort to the ride. That is not to say that either of the other two e-bikes have an uncomfortable ride by any means. But if you are looking to maximize comfort and stability, then a fat tire bike is the way to go. On the plus side for smaller tires, they do offer more agility and maneuverability. From a replacement cost perspective, the fat tires are almost 3x the cost of a more standard size bike tire – I had to replace two of the fat tires on my ebikes from being worn out from mileage and they certainly don’t give those away. Hope that helps. Let me know if any other questions come up, happy to answer them.

  9. John Lincoln says:

    Mark,
    Thanks for the thoughtful and valuable reply. Another question. Is there a difference in stability between the small (Velotric) and the regular size wheels (Aventon)? And is there a difference in stability or smoothness of ride between the fat and regular tires?
    I look forward to your thoughts.
    John Lincoln

  10. Mark Ranum says:

    I would give the stability edge to the Aventon because the Velotric has a more compact frame, but it is not by much as they both offer a pretty similar ride. With fat tires bikes there will be slightly more stability and a bit more road noise from the knobby tires versus a standard bike tire, but the fat tires by no means take away from the smoothness of the ride, if anything they add to it because they are able to absorb more of the bumps and imperfections in the road. Let me know if you have any other questions.

  11. Andy Harley says:

    Anyone know where I can find a top cover assembly for the 48v battery case?

  12. Mark Ranum says:

    Hey Andy,

    Thanks for the question. Your best bet is going to be emailing Heybike directly and see what they suggest. support@heybike.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.