I know there are other threads here about batteries, but the members here are often "tinkering" and seem to have a better understanding of them than other resources.

I have a Rad Mini ST2. Right now I do daily short rides to work and back and local errands on the bike. It may take two or three days of riding for the battery level bars on the LCD display to go down one bar, although I know that it's being drained each time I ride.

My question is: Should I put the battery on the charger after each ride regardless of the display status or should I wait until it's down to one or two bars to charge it?

It seems like the battery, next to tires, is the most expensive replacement item so it makes sense to get the most out of it.

Thanks in advance.

I recently read the threads talking about the fact that a blank key will unlock a Rad battery. I know the absolute prevention is to take the battery with me whenever I go into a shop. But I wonder what innovative ways people here have come up with to protect the battery. Could a bracket be epoxied onto the battery through which a cable lock could be passed? I know that anything is just going to slow down the persistent thief, but it might deter the lazy criminal. 

Last weekend I stopped by one of the largest bike shops in the Seattle area to look at locks. I asked if I could bring my Rad Mini in for a safety inspection. The guy was pretty wishy-washy about it and said that they couldn't work on the Rad Power components. I asked if they worked on bikes and he said "Of course". I then said, so my Rad Mini is at least 85% bicycle. Does that count? He told me to bring it in for an "estimate". Did not instill confidence in me.

In just the past month, I researched, test rode and purchased an ebike. Having read several helpful posts from others, I thought I would document my experience for people on a similar path.

First, a little background. I am 65 years old, ride a motorcycle but haven't been on a bicycle in 20 years. I live in the Seattle area in an apartment. There is no place for me to assemble or work on an ebike outside and, through a process of minimalizing my life, I have only the basics of tools.

My best friend owns a Rad Power City and had a good experience with their customer service, so that was a good place for me to start. I wouldn't consider buying a bike without test riding it so it was an easy decision to visit their facility in Ballard, north of Seattle.

I first did a lot of online research and found there were many ebike "manufacturers" out there. Many bikes looked similar and I discovered that these companies bought from common fabricators and assembled the components into their own models. I still was impressed with Rad Power because of the price point and variety of models from which to choose. So I visited Rad Power and test rode the City, Runner and Rover. I came away pretty much sold on the Runner 2.

When I got home, I made a list of pros and cons. Free shipping was a nice option and I decided that I could assemble the bike in my living room. I watched their assembly video and was sure I could do it with the tools they provided and the odds and ends that I still had. But there were some cons for me to the Runner 2 that I couldn't get past.

I would never ride with a passenger (I don't on my motorcycle, either) so I didn't need the "passenger package". I would end up replacing the passenger seat with a luggage rack anyway.

And every test ride told me I would be replacing the seat to appease my butt. The Runner 2 seat is fixed to the post so I would have to replace both.

For some reason, I had convinced myself that I didn't want a "folding" bike, so I didn't test ride the Mini. But the more I read about it, including the info in this forum, the more I thought I should give it a try. So I made another visit to Rad Power and test rode the Mini Step-Through 2. It turns out that was the bike for me!

I ordered the bike on Thursday. I ordered an Ibera rack, trunk bag and panniers from Amazon. Also ordered a Cloud 9 seat. The Amazon order showed up on Sunday and Monday and the bike arrived on Tuesday.

I set up the living room so I could watch the assembly video as I put together the bike. It took about an hour and a half. The video was easy to follow and the tools provided were adequate. The perfectionist in me wanted a torque wrench, but I have lived all of my life without one, so I went with my gut feel on tightening things.

I only hit a couple of things that the video didn't cover. The rear brake lever didn't move at all. I had to loosen the rear brake cable to give it some slack and move the pads away from the disc. Also, a connector at the front and the brake light connector were not plugged in.

The rack and bags were easy to install. I later ordered an extension cable to move the brake light out to the end of the rack. Changing the seat was a little challenging. The rails were a couple mm wider than on the stock seat. I had to squeeze the rails together just a bit so the Rad seat bracket would fit onto the Cloud 9 rails. Luckily one tool I kept was a huge vice grips which gave me enough leverage to do that.

The battery was fully charged, so I could take it out for a spin right away. I spent some time adjusting the seat and brakes and getting familiar with the controls.

I wanted to be able to throw the bike into the back of my Ford Explorer. More research and I read about people using a 50 gallon tote to store and move the bike. That looked reasonable, but I wondered about lifting the whole thing up into the Explorer, given it was a 70 pound bike.

It turns out that I can fold the handlebars down and lift the front wheel into the Explorer, then lift the rear wheel up and roll the bike in. A couple of bungee cords secure the bike in place. There is just enough clearance to do that. No back strain! 

I am definitely sold on this ebike. It is fun to ride and I find myself taking the long route on it to do errands. My plan is to use it to commute to work and run local errands. There are several scenic rides locally that I'm looking forward to as well.

So I hope this helps someone as they are planning their first ebike purchase. I know that the posts on this forum helped me a lot in that process.

I own a motorcycle and have just ordered a Rad Mini ST2. I'm curious if there are any other motorcycle riders here and what their thoughts are on when they ride one over the other. Right now I'm going car-less so these are my two primary forms of transportation (I can take the bus when needed). The plan is to use the Mini on errands, get me to work and back, and any other local jaunts including scenic outings to get some exercise. For longer rides and out of town adventures I use my motorcycle (Honda Shadow).

I'm also interested in how motorcycle riders have dealt with the differences in rules of the road for ebikes.

Thanks!