Fat Bike Rental

[Elite7]

Guys,

I was posting to see if anyone has rented electric fat bikes for hunting? I have a spot that I have wanted to hunt for a couple of years. It has about a mile of hiking, biking, and horse trail and then runs into a landlocked piece of BLM. The BLM road will take me to within a mile of my preferred hunting location. I am looking at around 6 - 7 miles total one way. Terrain isn't all that crazy. I dont mind walking it, but I havent tried it yet because I am not going in that deep unless I know i have a good means of getting the meat out. I would love to hear the pros and cons of the possibility of renting them. It looks like a cheaper method compared to llama rentals and horse rentals. Thanks!

 

[KeatonMullenix]

I hauled off and bought one last year. Just like any new piece in hunting, it was a blessing one day and a curse the next. The bike I bought will go about 5-8 miles on a full charge in pretty rocky terrain with no trails. The blessing is the speed in which you can get to your spot. The curse is when your battery dies, chain breaks, deraileur explodes, brakes squeak or squeal pushing game.

I too took the approach of “I don’t mind pushing it if I have to.” Eventually I had to and it was pure hell. These bikes are not typical bikes. They have a motor and a battery, typically adding ~12-15lbs to a traditional bike. Add in fat tires and rims and it gets cumbersome. Pushing it with a heavy or even moderately heavy pack makes it worse. Add a trailer in the mix and it’s a comedy of errors.

I suppose without being even more long winded I would say that when everything is working great, it’s a phenomenal tool. When it fails at any point, and it will if you use it enough, it is useless.

That said, every issue I have run into has been from neglect or rushing. I now have a saddle bag with a pick to clean grass from deraileur cogs, an extra chain, a spare deraileur, no5 Allen wrench, homemade solar charger, pliers etc. so that if I’m way in (3.5 mi max at our place) I can repair In ~20 minutes.


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[KeatonMullenix]

I would give it a shot for sure. It has made my hunting more enjoyable and efficient after learning things the hard way.


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[missjordan]

I have heard of rentals in large cities but none that are available in rural areas or for hunting purposes.

I really recommend purchasing a E bike over renting. Once you ride one for the first time your going to want one. They are a lot of fun and i love my Ebike. Here are my pros and cons.

Pros being they can get you away a few miles. Mine on average could go up to 17 miles or so on a single charge on what i would call “average hunting terrain”. On a logging road or large trail that’s sort of maintained and has consistent grade whether it’s up or down hill. I have a single wheel trailer for my bike and it pulls great. They are also a great form of exercise too in the off season.

Cons- they do walk a fine line as far as what’s legal or not. Lots of research out there on both sides from a state and federal level and I’d make sure to educate yourself on the subject. Even if you find a rental i would still do plenty of research

Last thing is it’s really easy to want to treat these like a dirt bike and have that mentality you can point it at any hill or trail and climb your way out of it with no thoughts. But they don’t work miracles and trails that are really rocky or over a 12% grade aren’t made for these bikes in my opinion. However if you stay within you and your bikes limits you’ll have a ton of fun. They still can get you into some incredible places even if you have to push them up and over some obstacles.




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[nsparks]

I understand getting a fatbike for non motorized areas but what does an Ebike gain? You'd be limited to motorized roads and trails in which case you may as well get a dirt bike that is much more capable.

 

[JakeC]

I understand getting a fatbike for non motorized areas but what does an Ebike gain? You'd be limited to motorized roads and trails in which case you may as well get a dirt bike that is much more capable.

Several states have regulation that basically states an electric motor with less than "x" amount of watts isn't considered a motor at all. So you can get some assistance from the bike in areas that don't allow motorized vehicles. At least this my understanding of it.

 

[elkocd]

Several states have regulation that basically states an electric motor with less than "x" amount of watts isn't considered a motor at all. So you can get some assistance from the bike in areas that don't allow motorized vehicles. At least this my understanding of it.

This is not really the case much anymore. Both BLM and Forest service they are NOT allowed on any non-motorized trails. Some states like MT did allow them for a while, but have now said they are NOT allowed on non-motorized trails on state lands. Private lands like timber company lands are all different, but most have inacted specific rules that they are now NOT allowed.

In short there was a a window that some agencies did not know what to do with them so they defaulted to the federal 750W rules that apply to them on streets etc..., but now almost every agency is treating them as motorized regardless of the wattage. IMHO that now makes them just a quite motorcycle in terms of hunting. Not many places left you can legally use them on trails where you could not use a motorcycle ot atv. Enforcment officers have all been brought up to speed and are looking for them now.

 

[ndbuck09]

The trail you're describing sounds like a perfect trail for a regular hardtail mountain bike. 8 miles on a mtb that you peddle is nothing really. I'd find a way to either rent a bike in a nearby town on your way to where you head in, buy one, or get one from a buddy. If you buy or borrow, make sure it's a good bike and not some old neglected piece. You can get a bob trailer or saddle bags and also have a bit in your backpack. Or you can just have 50lbs in your pack and ride in like that. However you do it, it's really not worth the hassle of dealing with the e-bike for something that's 8 miles.

 

[mtnbiker208]

one of the reason you had problems with your ebike is you bought a cheap bike with an expensive motor on it. unless your in the 5grand range, you are getting sub worthy components. Motors are expensive. Doesn't matter if it is an internal combustion or an electric motor. motors are expensive. Also as been stated, they are motorized and will not get you access to nonmotorized terrain easier.

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just a little fyi, I have pulled about a dozen bulls out on bikes with a bob trailer. Using a bike to hunt is not easy and it helps if you ride bikes regularly.

 

[KeatonMullenix]

Mtnbikr is right on the money. I bought one of the bikes marketed for hunting, replaced the junk components with premium components and my experience has been much more positive. My next e-bike will be a build from ground up in the $4-5k range. A lot of guys will turn their nose at that and say get an ATV/UTV. That’s not the point (which is an entirely new and big argument).

Get a bike that you can trust. Trust is built by using it. You probably didn’t buy a gun off the shelf and not practice with it. If you did you probably experienced the same heartaches you would experience if you get a bike and make your trip its first use.


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