i didn't actually put together the fact that the ryan running this site and the ryan at ebikeescape.com were the same until i stumbled over this thread.

even before that, i was using some of your references on your site in order to help inform accessory shopping. so thanks for that.

ejoness: did you ever get any of the measurements you were looking for?

Quote from: Ryan on June 24, 2019, 02:48:04 PM
CustomTAYLOR33 Reflective Rim Tape

so, i quite like the look of the reflective rim tape linked here, but i'm having a little trouble telling what diameter i would need for the radwagon 4. the rim size doesn't seem to be clearly documented for the custom tires used on this bike. anyone have any more data on that? i tried measuring, but i'm genuinely unsure if i'm measuring it right (and i get something off from the available values for that store page, seems like somewhere between 18" and 19")

Quote from: JimInPT on July 11, 2021, 09:13:36 AM

I think if you use a long U-lock or robust chain/cable to tie your ride to the rack or cart corral with a gap between it and the bike, you should be ok, as any vibrations in those from carts banging around shouldn't get transmitted to the bike frame to set off the alarm.  You might have to experiment with sensitivity settings, but it's inexpensive to try out the idea.  My guess (recovering mechanical engineer) is that unless your bike frame is touching the rack, it'll be fine.

I have a very long U-lock for a similar reason; I don't want the nice Rad paint job to get all banged up by rubbing and bumping against a rack.

reasonable, and i will definitely play around with that.

Quote from: JimInPT on July 11, 2021, 09:13:36 AM
Hey, as long as I've got you here - what in the h#$l is that spring thingie between the front fork and lower downtube that holds the battery?

that is the deflopilator. it deflopilates 

seriously, all it does is help keep the front wheel straight-ish (i.e. not flopping) when the bike isn't in motion, helps with loading and unloading (since you're not supposed to have your kickstand in place while doing so)


back to the original topic, re: securing battery: i'm currently exploring the possibility of trying to use some kind of cable lock to secure around the bottom edge of the battery to prevent sliding. a retractable cable is a woefully inadequate method of securing a bike like this as a primary lock, but if it's flush to the battery/frame instead of looping out to an external object, it might be sufficiently hard to get a cutter in. especially if i use your heat-molded tube trick 

yeah, i was actually eyeing one of those, and i think it's a great idea and i'll probably get one, but the major grocery store i'll be going to most often only has two places to chain up a bike:

• a tiny bike rack that isn't actually anchored to anything and weighs substantially less than the radwagon.
  
• and the cart return corral. it's actually pretty robust, something sensible to chain up with that's secure, but i wonder if someone returning a cart might set off the sensor. i could (and probably will) test it, but it seems a likely issue to me.
  

but in a general sense this is absolutely a useful and important avenue to pursue, i agree. i'm just trying to hedge my bets, since this is basically my car at this point. a missing battery isn't just an inconvenience and an economic hit, it's me being stranded somewhere.

but life is compromise. i can't get perfect, i can only try to manage risks to the limits of practicality. and i totally appreciate you engaging with me on alternative approaches.

Quote from: JimInPT on July 11, 2021, 07:38:59 AM

Quote from: esotericist on July 10, 2021, 10:08:00 PMthe obvious answer of "just take the battery with you" is problematic, as i am disabled with impaired hand mobility, and while it's possible for me to remove the battery, it requires an exceptional amount of effort to do so without dropping the battery. i'd prefer another answer, if at all reasonably possible.

Aside from your difficulty removing the battery, I just created a post for a carrying bag that makes it a LOT easier to stow and carry a Rad battery, here:  https://www.radowners.com/index.php?topic=1165.0
Perhaps this bag might be useful to you.

yeah, that's totally valid (and a nice looking bag!), but i'd have to solve the getting-the-battery-from-bike-to-bag-without-dropping-on-asphalt part. which, if it comes down to it, i'm willing to do, but i worry that'll require me to void my warranty adding a handle or something. plus stores around here get really wiggy about carrying zipper-able bags into them, which is frustrating (more than one store i frequent explicitly disallows backpacks, no exceptions. you might imagine how that makes me feel given my hand situation, and how much easier it is for me to wear a backpack than carry bags.)

another thing i considered, if i can solve removing the battery, is getting some kind of lockable box (tractor toolbox, maybe?) mounted to the bike, and just putting the battery in that. for my primary use case of leaving the bike unattended while in a store, it might be enough. still not as ideal as having a real lock on the battery, but possibly enough for handling a 30 minute shopping window.

(slight tangent: also in my list of moderately high priority things to solve due to my hand issues: looking into getting some hydraulic brakes at some point. ideally with levers that are closer to the handles. i can work the mechanical disc brakes, but not as easily as i'd like, and brakes kinda need to be easy.)

so i recently bought a radwagon 4 to function as my primary method of bringing home groceries, and i didn't know until after i already received it that the lock on the battery was something of a gentle suggestion against theft rather than any actual obstacle (i was suspicious once i looked at the keys, then came to radforums to confirm since i had encountered these forums briefly while researching what to buy. thanks for your diligence, guys)

the solution JimInPT used for his radmini step-thru 2 is rather elegant, but with the frame configuration of the radwagon 4 it looks a lot harder harder to brace a u-lock against something to keep the battery from moving. the obvious answer of "just take the battery with you" is problematic, as i am disabled with impaired hand mobility, and while it's possible for me to remove the battery, it requires an exceptional amount of effort to do so without dropping the battery. i'd prefer another answer, if at all reasonably possible.

anyone have suggestions? am i going to have to fabricate a component i can lock into place, or is there something that might work with minimal alteration?

(my ideal solution would be replacing the core on the lock with an actual damn lock, but that looks impractical with the battery casing's design)