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Hey guys, I'm Dustin, and today I'm going to show you three things you need to know about step-through electric bikes.
All right. Today, I'm going to show you three things you need to know about step-through electric bikes. Right here, I have the sixthreezero Simple Step-Through E-Bike and I'm going to use this to show you the three things you must know if you're searching for a step-through E-bike. Now, when you go and you Google and you look up and you're just searching for a step-through electric bike, it's a very broad term and there are a lot of things that can distinguish one step-through bike from another step-through E-bike. The first thing you must know about step-through electric bikes is not all step-through heights are created equal. On the Simple Step-Through right here, I'll pull out my tape measure, we have 10 and a half inch step over height.
The reason I bring this up is that the way that people define what is step-through and what is not step-through is very broad and some companies could define step-through really up to 20, 21, 22, and 23 inches. So, you can see that at the 10 and a half inches on our step-over height, some companies could have even doubled the height to step through. Not to say that it's not a step-through E-bike, but how difficult or easy it is to step through makes a big difference. You can see with the 10 inches, really, you don't have to get your foot very high at all to step through. If you're talking about a step-over height up here, it's going to make it a little more challenging to get the foot up and over.
So, it's really important that you as a rider search for a step-through E-bike really knowing the height that you want or need, especially if you have difficulty lifting your leg or your foot and you need it to be as low as possible. According to the geometry and the mechanics of our bike, this is the lowest possible step-through height we were able to manufacture with a 26-inch wheel. So, if you're looking for the lowest possible point, you really want that simple... Well, hence the name Simple Step-Through. You really want that simple step-through ability. This is definitely an E-bike I would recommend for you, which transitions me into our second most important thing you should know about step-through electric bikes is not all wheel sizes are going to be the same.
When you're searching or researching for your step-through E-bike, number one, not all the step-through heights are going to be the same. Number two, not all the wheel sizes are going to be the same. Now, another thing that I'll just point out, just because one bike may have a 16-inch wheel, and like ours has a 26-inch wheel, it doesn't mean the step-through height is going to be lower. There's only so much clearance from the ground to this bottom part you can have, whether it's a 16-inch, a 20-inch, or 24-inch, whatever size it may be. Now, I can't confirm this, but I'm almost certain this is just about the lowest possible height you can have a bike frame to the ground with a step-through, regardless of it being a 16-inch, 20-inch.
The reason for that is that if you start to put these pedals too low, whether it's a 16 or 20, or 24-inch, as you start to turn the bike, the pedals are going to hit the ground and it's just not going to function properly. So, there has to be a certain amount of clearance between the ground and your crankset to make sure you can turn properly. You could push this limit of lowering it more, but then on certain turns, your pedals will scrape, things like that. Okay, now getting back to the wheel sizes. In the market, you're going to see 16-inch, 20-inch, 24-inch, and 26-inch wheels and it's important to figure out what's most important for you as a rider. 16-inch wheels, and 20-inch wheels, as I said, they most likely won't lower the step-through to the ground that much.
If you're looking to use the bike as a regular bike or to use the pedal assist a lot, with the smaller wheels, it means you're going to have to pedal more times. So, your legs are going to be working even harder to turn those wheels over more and more times because for every pedal on a 26-inch wheel, it's going to require two and a half times pedaling on a 16-inch wheel or one and a half times, one and three-fourth times. You're going to have your legs working a little bit harder on the smaller wheels. So, it's important for you to think about how you want to use it. If you want to just use the throttle a lot on a 16 and 20-inch, that's not a bad idea. But if you actually want to ride like a normal bike or use the pedal assist, having a larger wheel is going to be way more practical because you're going to cover more ground with each pedal stroke.
You're going to be able to go faster. You're going to be able to go uphill easier. So, it's going to broaden the spectrum of how you can ride your step-through E-bike versus having a very small wheel. Again, this is a 26-inch wheel. I like this because it's more practical. I can ride this like a regular bike. I can put it into the pedal assist and I can hit top speeds, 25 miles an hour, 28 miles an hour if I'm really turning over the pedals. That's going to be a lot harder on a 16-inch, 20-inch. The other thing is you're going to have fat tires and thin tires. That's another thing to consider. The fatter the tire, the more the battery will drain, and also the harder it's going to be to get up to speed if you are going to do pedal assist. Again, the thinner tires are going to go faster, be easier to pedal and be able to cover more ground much easier.
Now, the last thing to consider, the third thing if you're considering a step-through electric bike to know is not all step-through E-bikes come with a throttle. In the world of E-bikes, most times the pedal assist is standard. In the case of this E-bike, you have five levels of pedal assist. So as you're pedaling, you can either have assistance level one all the way up to five. Five is going to give you the most assistance and you'll be able to go the fastest. But it also has a throttle, meaning, you can just use this thumb throttle, push this down, and the bike will go, and you don't have to pedal at all. So, if you're searching through step-through E-bikes and you think you may want a throttle, make sure you look for that in the specs.
Again, if you're just searching and you land on one, not all of them are going to have that option. Some may just be pedal assist. Now, pedal assist is standard. The throttle is usually an extra piece to be added on. I enjoy having the throttle. Sometimes, you want to take a big break from pedaling, you just hit that, and give your legs a rest. Also, sometimes it's nice to start the bike off with the throttle from a dead stop at a stoplight. Things like that just make it easier to get going. Then you can let the pedal assist kick in as you get going up to speed. But again, for you to determine, just important for you to know.
Recapping, the number one most important thing to know when searching for a step-through E-bike, not all the step-through heights are created equal. Simple Step-Through is 10 and a half inches. Make sure you find the right step-through height that accommodates your body. Number two, not all tire sizes are going to be the same across step-through electrics. Make sure you buy the right tire size for the type of riding you're going to be doing. Number three, not all step-through electric bikes have a throttle. Determine if that's something you want. Make sure you check the specs, so you can get the right step-through E-bike for you.
Now, if you have any other additional questions, please comment below or shoot us an email, at team@sixthreezero.com, or call us, at 310-982-2877. Also, you can find this bike on our website, sixthreezero.com. Navigate to the E-bikes, you will find it on there, the Simple Step-Through electric bike. Lastly, if you don't know what bike is right for you, take our proprietary body fit quiz on our website, answer a few questions about your body and your life, and our proprietary algorithm will recommend the perfect E-bike for you. In addition, we have a 30-day test drive for your E-bike policy. If you don't love it in 30 days, send it back, no questions asked, no money out of your pocket.
Lastly, before you purchase, download our Facebook pedallers... Sorry, join our Facebook pedallers group and also download our app, two great places to talk to riders before you purchase. Ask them questions, see how they like their E-bike, and become friends. It's a great place to get a lot of information. After you have your sixthreezero E-bike, you can join the group, download the app, track your rides, and make new friends. It is a ton of fun. Thank you for sticking around and don't forget, it's your journey, your experience. Enjoy the ride.
DISCLAIMER: The 365-day return policy mentioned in the video above is no longer valid. Please refer to www.sixthreezero.com/pages/30-day-test-ride for the updated policy.