Cycle 2 charge USB device

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 8:29 pm

Mine arrived today in't post. Looks good and better made/more sturdy than it looks in the pictures.

But what I want to know is how do I wire it up so that I can still use my revo light? Wire in parallel? Unplug the light when it's not in use?

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 8:38 pm

Have re-read stus report now. Just need to figure out the carbon fork conundrum...

slarge · Post by **slarge** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 8:50 pm

Yes, you can wire the c2c in parallel with the Revo light. Carbon forks! Yes, small problem there.......

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 9:44 pm

slarge wrote:Yes, you can wire the c2c in parallel with the Revo light. Carbon forks! Yes, small problem there.......

a bit of plotting, planning and/or bravery required....

polarcherry · Post by **polarcherry** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 10:05 pm

When I first got my plug charger I had carbon forks (now Shand steel) I made a carbon fibre plate stem/steerer spacer which held the plug and electronics under the stem. It didnt move with the bars so made charging in a tangle bag easy and neat solution.

I can send you the plans if you want after easter

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 10:11 pm

polarcherry wrote:When I first got my plug charger I had carbon forks (now Shand steel) I made a carbon fibre plate stem/steerer spacer which held the plug and electronics under the stem. It didnt move with the bars so made charging in a tangle bag easy and neat solution.

I can send you the plans if you want after easter

Thanks that would be great

polarcherry · Post by **polarcherry** » Thu Apr 02, 2015 10:47 pm

Drop me a pm with your email

richvs · Post by **richvs** » Fri Apr 03, 2015 7:01 pm

I've been playing with mine today.

As you can('t) see from my completely unscientific testing, my Galaxy s3 at maximum uses nearly 800mA to run GPS, Locus and some other stuff.
Looks like the cycle2charge actually can put out about an amp at 15mph+. Phone in standby, all radios off is 250mA draw.
With the GPS, radios and screen off I was able to charge the standard battery at about 30-40% per hour.

I'll test it with the Revo another time.

Edit The x axis is not labelled but I wasn't playing with it for long so its probably only fifteen minutes wide.
Also I wasn't riding while the GPS was searching.

lionelrik · Post by **lionelrik** » Thu Apr 09, 2015 8:07 pm

So I took the plunge. Got a wheel built and ordered this little beauty last week through the website. The only problem is I haven't heard anything back from the company. Paid via Paypal and received the usual payment confirmation, but as yet nothing from Cycle2charge themselves. I shot them an email (in English, maybe I'll try German tomorrow), but still no response. Is this normal and am I panicking for nothing?

lionelrik · Post by **lionelrik** » Thu Apr 09, 2015 8:29 pm

Nevermind.......wouldn't you know it. 20 mins after posting this Dirk got back to me. Patience is a virtue!

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Thu Apr 09, 2015 8:44 pm

lionelrik wrote:Nevermind.......wouldn't you know it. 20 mins after posting this Dirk got back to me. Patience is a virtue!

I don't think I heard anything after ordering. It was a nice surprise!

Purty · Post by **Purty** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 9:05 pm

Hi,

Based on Stuarts review I dashed off and purchased a Cycle2Charge. I have wired the device to my SP hub, everything is fine. However when I wire in parallel with my Revo only 2 LED's light up. I have deconstructed the wiring and used the original Revo cable and the 4 LED's come back.

Next conundrum. Last week when I originally wired the system up the iPhone would charge directly from the USB output from the Cycle2Charge, now the iPhone does not even flicker. Other devices seem to take charge ok.

Third question, based on current thinking what is the best/cheapest inline/pass through USB buffer battery that is suggested to be used with this type of system?

Any advice?

Thanks,
Purty

Bearbonesnorm · Post by **Bearbonesnorm** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 9:22 pm

Based on Stuarts review I dashed off and purchased a Cycle2Charge. I have wired the device to my SP hub, everything is fine. However when I wire in parallel with my Revo only 2 LED's light up. I have deconstructed the wiring and used the original Revo cable and the 4 LED's come back.

Is that with something else plugged into the usb output? There's not enough output to supply the Revo and charge something at the same time.

rufus748 · Post by **rufus748** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 9:38 pm

Buffer battery? I purchased one of these from Amazon recommended on here. I paid £2.60 for it as its gold and not everyone's cup of tea! Works just fine.

Patriot PCPA20001GL FUEL Active Mobile Rechargeable Battery - Gold

Purty · Post by **Purty** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 9:43 pm

Hi Stu,

I can confirm that only 2 LED's are lit with Cycle2Charge wired in parallel with nothing plugged into the USB output.

Thanks for the advice on the buffer battery Rufus.

Chris.

slarge · Post by **slarge** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 10:08 pm

If only 2 LEDs are lit you might need to ride faster. I found that 4 LEDs only come on over about 15kph with a buffer battery being charged in parallel. I also got that patriot fuel cell thing (in gold). It all worked great until I snapped the micro USB connector off the pcb inside the buffer battery. So, if you use one, you may need thin USB connectors so you don't put strain on the pcb. Next thing is to work on weatherproofing the c2c connector - a plastic clip on cover is in the offing probably made from an aerosol cap.

Taylor · Post by **Taylor** » Tue Apr 14, 2015 11:16 pm

Re the micro usb being too fat, I popped mine onto a sanding wheel and took a couple of mil off and it fits perfectly now.

ianfitz · Post by **ianfitz** » Wed Apr 22, 2015 9:16 am

I've wired mine up on my communting bike and have done a few trips to and from work now. it seems to put out a lot more power than the Kemo that is on my main bike. it will charge an iPhone at very low speeds too - they are apparently fussy about the current they get for charging. also I no longer get the "this device is not compatible" message on screen when the charge does drop off. Not sure if that is due to the C2C charger or an update on the phone though...

Until I can figure out which solution I'll use with my carbon fork I will just leave it in a small padded bag in my fuel tank. Will be transferring it over to the Number 1 bike for the cairngorms though...

Tom · Post by **Tom** » Wed Apr 22, 2015 9:48 pm

ianfitz wrote: Until I can figure out which solution I'll use with my carbon fork I will just leave it in a small padded bag in my fuel tank. Will be transferring it over to the Number 1 bike for the cairngorms though...

Perhaps this is a solution for your carbon fork conundrum... http://www.ultimatesportsengineering.co ... ng-go-star

touch · Post by **touch** » Wed Apr 22, 2015 10:14 pm

You dont actually need a bung+top cap on your bike all the time. You can use it to preload the headset then torque up the stem bolts which will hold everything in place. You can then remove the bung and run your cable through the fork.
Best to keep the top cap with you though incase you ever need to set the headset preload again.

Cycle 2 charge USB device

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