🚲 How-To DIY Step By Step: Build Your Own Super Strong Torque Arms 💪

For super high output ebikes
I know what you're thinking, "I thought this guy hated torque arms", I'm not even going to get into that right now, but I dare the TA nannies to come to this video and tell me how I'm being a bad influence and how I should be telling everyone and their mom to run torque arms, even if they have a mid drive, or if they don't even own an ebike.
Anyway, how to build your own custom super-strong customized torque arms. I'm just using some steel shelving that I got years ago from the hardware store. It's about 5mm thick and it's perfect for this job. You don't have to use this mind you, any thick steel will work and you can cut your own custom shape if you'd like.
After you have the right shape, you'll want to orient the arm so that it lines up with the frame, then you will want to make a template for the size of your axle. I'm just using the cutout from the existing torque arm that was supplied with my kit (that sucked and wouldn't even fit my bike) but you can make this out of paper, tape, basically anything that will allow you to transfer the dimensions (and orientation, don't forget) to the steel you're cutting.
I just spray painted the "stencil" on the steel and then used my dremel to cut out the shape of the axle very carefully. You don't need to use a dremel, but it does make it a lot faster. You can just drill a bunch of holes, then use a file to cut out the rest. Don't cut too much, you want to start checking your tolerances once you get closer to the shape. You want this to fit very accurately, not so small that you have to hammer it on your axle, but not so big that there is too much play. Just right.
After you've checked and rechecked and it slides easily on the axle, but also is very close tolerances. I like going the extra mile and putting a few bends in the TA so that it "hugs" the shape of the frame. Most frames are round and welded to the flat dropout area, because of this weld and roundness it's not a straight shot to the axle. I compensate this by putting a few bends in the metal.
You'll need to get some hose clamps that fit around your TA and your bike frame, don't get them too large, as you don't want a ton of excess potentially interfering with your wheel or chain.
You can opt to paint your torque arms, however it's not really necessary unless you're using mild steel or some other steel that is not galvanized or zinc coated for corrosion protection.
I also opted to put a small piece of rubber (cut from an old bicycle tire) between the hose clamp and the frame. Doing this may prevent the hose clamp from cutting through your paint and possibly corroding over time. It's not necessary, but I think it's a nice finishing step.
5mm thickness should be more than plenty for my 6KW build, however once you know how to make torque arms like I showed you in this video, you can make them much thicker, and much longer to be even stronger and more powerful.
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⛧ \\ Table of Contents: \\ ⛧
00:00 - Intro \ Parts
00:54 - Cutting The Arms
02:57 - Fitment
05:47 - Finishing Touches
07:03 - Time To Install
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Пікірлер: 38

  • @sixfoursoul2538
    @sixfoursoul25382 ай бұрын

    Thank you for this video! For all those who are clueless why this is important if you ride an E bike chances are sooner or later the torque from the axle spinning in the opposite direction is going to shred your dropouts especially if you have an aluminum bike, it finally happened to me after a year of riding, this is overlooked by most eat bike manufacturers but trust me it is a very real thing that can hurt you or even kill you if you do not have these on an E bike that has a 750 W motor and up....

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    2 ай бұрын

    Thanks man, I actually sit on both sides of the fence because I got a lot of flack for saying in a lot of instances you don't really need torque arms and I've built a lot of bikes that don't have them (without any issues). I take a nuanced stance that if your frame and power level requires them, then they should be used for protection, but if they don't, then you don't need to run them which is dependent upon a lot of individual factors. I feel I have gained the experience to know if and when I need to run them. A lot of people tend to think you need to use them for all applications, upon all ebikes, for all purposes, and in all scenarios, no matter what. This is something I don't believe. Of course it won't hurt your bike to install them even if you don't need them (although you do sacrifice some convenience, and it will cost you some money (or time, or both)). I don't have a problem with people running torque arms on their bikes even if I don't in some circumstances. I not only take responsibility for my choices, but I have the means to correct a problem if it comes to that. I do have a problem when strangers try to tell me how I should use the things that I own, that I bought with my own money.

  • @sixfoursoul2538

    @sixfoursoul2538

    2 ай бұрын

    Well no matter what case you're in at least you're making good content I'm in a situation now where I never thought I would be in I've had my e-bike for over a year have over 1500 Mi on it's a Chinese e-bike and now I can't ride it because the axle keeps twisting out the only way to save this bike now is to find some type of welder or I hope these torque arm actually work whatever it is I have a challenge in front of me

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    2 ай бұрын

    @@sixfoursoul2538 Thanks man! Yeah, if you can get someone to weld on new plates for the dropouts you'll be back in business, that's what I would do. I have a welder so I can make such repairs. If you're inclined, you can get a stick welder for very cheap and it will do the job just fine, it just won't look pretty but it will be very strong. Or find a local welding place and tell them what you need, shouldn't cost too much to repair. 👍

  • @hightech-lowlife
    @hightech-lowlife8 ай бұрын

    1. I'm seeing some comments from viewers coming to this video and not knowing what a torque arm is. I was going to include a small blurb in the beginning of the video, but if you're watching a video on how to make your own TA's then you probably already know what they are, but a lot of you apparently don't, so here's the part I would have included in the beginning: A torque arm is an additional piece of support metal added to a bicycle frame to more securely hold the axle of a powerful hub motor. It’s designed to help your bicycle’s dropouts (the part of the bike that holds onto the axles of the wheels) resist the torque of an electric hub motor. When you convert a standard pedal bicycle into an electric bicycle, the bicycle’s dropouts may not be designed to handle the torque produced by the electric hub motor. This is where a torque arm comes in. It grips the flat part of the motor axle and connects to the bicycle frame in a sturdy way to help resist that torque from forcing open the dropouts. Torque arms are particularly necessary when dealing with more powerful motors. From my personal experience smaller motors of 1000 watts or less are usually fine to run without (if your dropouts are steel), but once you start getting up to about 3000 watts, problems can occur, especially with front forks and weaker materials like aluminum. In these cases, a torque arm is required to resist the torque of the hub motor. 2. I'm also seeing the usual "that's not strong enough" when you speak about anything regarding torque arms. Most concerns are with the hose clamps: PF already did a test of tensile strength of a lot of hose clamps and almost all were over 1000lbs before failure (mish golds are over 5000), even at 1000, that's about 20x the weight of this entire bike. kzread.info/dash/bejne/nKiBstNrnKqTaLg.htmlsi=hdVrSRshWkTjnPjV&t=729 The QS205 (5KW Motor) puts out a max of 182NM of torque, which is 134ft-lbs of torque. The motor I am installing on this bike is 3KW, but will see peaks of 6KW, I'm confident that these hose clamps are more than strong enough for this application. If they are not, I will make a video on it, and also show my solution. This video is just showing one way to make them, you can add additional hose clamps, or even come up with stronger attachments (create your own steel clamp that is bolted, etc). Thanks for watching.

  • @HolgerBeetz
    @HolgerBeetz8 ай бұрын

    Just a side note for those with a 3D printer: Some simple OpenSCAD script / CAD designing enables you to design a perfekt template matching your axle plus the angle related to the dropout of your frame. I even did a two part torque arm in OpenSCAD which was lasered from 6 mm stainless steel. There are a lot companies doing this for a relative low price compared to those mucho U$$$ torque arms from Grin.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    These are great tips Holger, thank you. Yes once you have the 3D model you can get them cutout from a service like send-cut-send in whatever thickness steel you needed and it's not "too" expensive, especially if you need something precise and robust. 👍

  • @markj6984
    @markj69843 ай бұрын

    best advice get rid of the hose clamps and buy heavy duty hose clamps. the screw on with a big bolt rather than a weak piece of aluminum. never really have to tighten them. u saved me alot of hassel i have two of those same cheap torque arms and one grin v4 but none of them fight correctly and everytime i ride the bike i worry. im doing this tomorrow lol

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    3 ай бұрын

    If I beak a hose clamp I'll replace them with stronger ones (and document that on my channel), but due to the pivot point they don't see nearly as much torque, plus they are good for hundreds of pounds of force. I have these on a 6KW bike and there are zero issues, but if you don't trust it, go for it. You can add two or three (or more?) if you want but it's overkill. If you really wanted you can use U-bolts, or make your own clamps from thick steel. 🍻

  • @E-BikingAdventures
    @E-BikingAdventures8 ай бұрын

    Hose clamps are relatively strong, but they are still just thin strips of metal. I understand the mechanical advantage, but I would feel better by putting 2. Doubling them up side by side.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    You can put 3 if you want 😎

  • @E-BikingAdventures

    @E-BikingAdventures

    8 ай бұрын

    @@hightech-lowlife . Wow! Three hose clamps. What a beast!

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    @@E-BikingAdventures You can also extend it as far as you want and also just weld directly to the frame if that's not strong enough 👍I will test on my new 6KW build and if the single hose clamps break, I'll be sure to let you guys know.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    More research, PF already did a test of tensile strength of a lot of hose clamps and almost all were over 1000lbs before failure (mish golds are over 5000), even at 1000, that's about 20x the weight of the entire bike. kzread.info/dash/bejne/nKiBstNrnKqTaLg.htmlsi=hdVrSRshWkTjnPjV&t=729

  • @tacticooldennis
    @tacticooldennis8 ай бұрын

    Hose clamps don't exist with torque arms because of their quality to do this type of job, but simply due to their universal nature. You would be better off bending the steel to cradle the frame or finding a hole to bolt it to.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    It's possible, this is the 2nd critique of "hose clamps not being strong enough", but unless you have data it's speculation. I will test these on my 6KW build, if they break I will let you guys know for sure. If they can handle it then I would confidently refute this speculation. I state that you can weld directly to the frame. The further from the pivot the less strong the hose clamps need to be due to leverage. You can also double and triple up the clamps if weary. Maybe for my next higher power build I will make a video on how to make even stronger torque arms. Most people are not running 6KW to their dropouts however, and these are more than enough for that.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    More research, PF already did a test of tensile strength of a lot of hose clamps and almost all were over 1000lbs before failure (mish golds are over 5000), even at 1000, that's about 20x the weight of the entire bike. kzread.info/dash/bejne/nKiBstNrnKqTaLg.htmlsi=hdVrSRshWkTjnPjV&t=729

  • @aayala1053

    @aayala1053

    8 ай бұрын

    ​@@hightech-lowlifethat would be pretty intense. The 6 inch lever arm with a 1000lb breaking force, that set up should withstand 500 foot pounds of torque from either side, or maybe 1,000 ft lb of torque overall. Even at 6kw, you are at way less torque

  • @chikararexzpo
    @chikararexzpo8 ай бұрын

    I had the same exact problem when I was using that same exact brand but matte black The drawing process is 48 hours not 24 hours they lying😐 I find that really helps when you put it in a tiny room with a big box fan No light no heat🤨

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    Yeah I've never seen any paint that stays that tacky after such a long time, most will dry fully within 1 day 👍 Thanks man!

  • @bbllrstv13
    @bbllrstv138 ай бұрын

    Oh no....now you're even making custom beefy torque arms?! Big torque arm really got to you huh? 😂

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    I totally did this on my own volition, I was not threatened in any way or coerced to make this video whatsoever *blinks twice* 😅

  • @bbllrstv13

    @bbllrstv13

    8 ай бұрын

    @@hightech-lowlife I knew it! 😂

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    @@bbllrstv13 🤐😎

  • @merevoyt8265
    @merevoyt82658 ай бұрын

    I‘m new to mtb riding but what id that for

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    Really only necessary if you're running a hub motor 👍

  • @catlos2006
    @catlos20068 ай бұрын

    🔥

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    Thanks man!

  • @AlaskaBikeDoctor
    @AlaskaBikeDoctor8 ай бұрын

    What problem is this solving? Also, looks like this adds quite a bit of work to a flat tire repair.

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    www.ebikeschool.com/torque-arm-need-one/ 100% makes changing tires more of a pain, but hub motors already complicate this, and if you're familiar with that, then this is just another 5 seconds added to the process, pretty easy to take on and off.

  • @matox01tekk
    @matox01tekk8 ай бұрын

    tell you what i watched the entire video without knowing what torque arm is or what is it for, so basically i watched the video to find out but i didn't

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    Thanks for watching, I was going to explain what they are in the video, but I figured if you were looking to build your own then you'd already know what they are and that info would be redundant/annoying 👍 www.ebikeschool.com/torque-arm-need-one/

  • @sgtgotten
    @sgtgotten8 ай бұрын

    How to Fix a non problem?

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    8 ай бұрын

    Most likely they are not needed, however this build is 6KW, and once you start getting higher up there in the torque it becomes more and more of a necessity.

  • @stellaji888

    @stellaji888

    4 ай бұрын

    Once you start doing some high performance mods, you have to make sure you’re safe. These give you peace of mind.

  • @mihaiiorgu6756
    @mihaiiorgu6756Ай бұрын

    use some laquer after paint if it's sticky

  • @hightech-lowlife

    @hightech-lowlife

    Ай бұрын

    This particular paint just needs a very long time to dry 👍