We're seeing more high-end bikes with ourboard bearing or 2-piece cranksets. Currently there are conflicting standard and a lot of manufacturer variation with these new designs, and this presents special consideration for installing PAS sensors. See below for all the details, and keep in mind - if you can't or don't want to install the pedal-assist magnet and sensor, you can always just use the throttle!
Do I have a 2-piece crankset or outboard bearings?
Probably not. These are still uncommon and limited to high-price bikes. But there's some simple ways to check - our standard Pedal-Assist hardware mounts to the bottom bracket spindle on the non-drive side (rider's left side)
Square taper spindle
This is the ideal setup for easy installation of the Pedal-Assist magnet and sensor - this will install with the parts included in the kit. Taper length varies by manufacturer and bike, so - if the magnet fits a little loose, use hot glue during installation to stick it to the spindle to keep it from moving.
Installation video: https://youtu.be/vFYyvEu9WR8
If you want to remove your cranks and bottom bracket and have a "permanent" installation, we offer hardware for that too, but it is not usually worth the trouble compared to the easy way. Minimum chainring size is about 28t, and the PAS magnet attaches to the bottom bracket spindle on the drive-side. The sensor attaches to the bottom bracket cup. Call us for details: https://youtu.be/gFyre65nAGc
"American" One-Piece-Crank
This will install alright with the normal parts included in the kit. But they tend to not be uniformly sized or run very straight so the magnet will take a bit of squeezing to press in place.
Installation video: https://youtu.be/vFYyvEu9WR8
Outboard Bearings:
If you see that there's no exposed bottom bracket spindle, you probably have a modern proprietary crankset.
For this set-up you will need to install the pedal-assist sensor on the "Drive-side" (rider's right hand side) next to the chainrings. Starting April 2019, we will be offering a special split-disc magnet for this that will install using no tools on 4-bolt (64BCD) and 5-bolt (74BCD) chainrings. Minimum chainring size is about 22t.
For this, you want to use a "Right Hand" pedal-assist sensor, not the "Left Hand" sensor included in the kit. Though the sensors look identical, they read the direction of your pedaling, so will only work when installed on the correct side.
See the installation here (off-bike for clarity, but the magnet disc will install just fine on-the-bike without any tools): https://youtu.be/69XZihlNW6g
If you want to remove your cranks and bottom bracket and have a "permanent" installation, we offer hardware for that too, but it is not usually worth the trouble compared to the easy way. Minimum chainring size is about 28t, the magnet disc attaches to the chainring bolts and is for 4-bolt cranksets only, the PAS sensor attaches to the BB cup. Call us for details: https://youtu.be/ENuL1KlKu18
