Category: 2 Wheeled Scooter
Does a Seat With a Back Make A Difference? Sunlite Backrest Saddle
Picked up this seat, wasn’t sure what difference it would make, if any. Synopsis: A seat with a back makes a big difference for stability. I would buy it again.
This is the seat I bought, the Sunlite Backrest Saddle, 9″x11″. It was the cheapest I could find at the time (~$35 at time of purchase). I bolted it onto my eBikeboard and took it for a spin. It took a little getting used to, but the difference was obvious from the first ride. Now I’m quite comfortable with it and it’s hard to describe why it would make a difference. Maybe just because it keeps me from shifting around in the seat as much.
I would like a seat that is softer and had a better tightening mechanism for the back brace pad. It’s pretty lightweight, which good and bad. The size is good, it’s comfortable enough and it’s not obnoxious on the scooter. The seat pan is plastic, so I don’t know how much abuse it can take. I would like something a little softer and better built, so maybe I’ll spend more money next time and try to get a nicer one. All-in-all, it gets the job done!
Fluid Horizon: The Mobility Scooter I’ve Been Looking For
Synopsis: After more than 400 miles and 12 months, the Fluid Horizon scooter (with a seat) is a mobility winner. Why? It does it all. From street to store, 3 mph to 20 mph, it works equally well. Folds down and fits in a vehicle trunk. Slightly heavy, but you can trolley by grabbing the front wheel. Programable LCD screen, 3 modes, lights, brake light and bell. 48V 10 ah battery as tested, real-world range of 8-10 miles with 10aH battery. Solid rear tire has a different ride feel than inflatable, not as forgiving, but with front and rear suspension I have no trouble riding off a curb. I would recommend this scooter to anyone with good balance looking for super-convenient and capable mobility assistive device. As tested ~ $800-$900.
This scooter is FANTASTIC for mobility purposes.
Here’s a video I made that shows the seat and folding the scooter. Also an off-road and street ride.
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Originally I looked at a Glion Dolly for its trolley capability, but when folded, you can grab the front tire and trolley this scooter super easily, and it has a much fast top speed. *(I have recently acquired a Glion SNAPnGO… detailed post to come.)
FAST OR SLOW
I have tested a fair number of scooters for mobility assistive devices over the years. The dream was always to have something that could go slow OR fast, could fold up and be carried in the trunk of a car, wasn’t too heavy, and had decent range. This is the first scooter that has checked all the boxes for me. It’s a little bit expensive, but so is anything in the mobility space.
For mobility, you have to add a seat (~$100), but Fluid doesn’t sell a seat. Multiple companies sell the same Unicool T8 scooter with their branding. REVRides, Apollo, EMove, Fluid. You can buy it from the factory via Alibaba. This is an advantage, because there are many sources for parts. I bought my seat from REVRides, you can see it here. Each company has slight differences in their scooters, like battery size or color. Make sure you look closely when comparing models.
Watch how this quickly folds down to a compact package:
A very important feature is the adjustable handlebar height. You might not think about it, but you want a different height if you are standing vs. sitting. This scooter allows you to drop the handlebars down to a usable height when sitting. You can’t do that with say, a Xiaomi Mi M365, standard rental scooter.
The other real trick about this scooter is how people react to it. You have to take into account how the general public acts around whatever you are riding. There are zero problems riding this anywhere around people. In fact, I get a lot of compliments and questions about my scooter. (You might even be reading this after I referred you to my site!) I ride it very slow in stores, and at fairs or farmer’s markets.
The big surprise is how fast this scooter goes! When you hit the street it doesn’t accelerate super quickly, but it accelerates more higher up in the speed curve until, at 185 lbs, I hit 20-21 mph! That’s a game changer. With that speed, and a 8-10 mile range, I can ride to stores and switch modes into the 3 mph mode, and ride straight into them.
BUILD
The Fluid Horizon is durable. I have done whatever I have wanted, I haven’t babied it, and it has held up wonderfully. My front plastic cap which holds the battery in the compartment came loose, but I used some silicone and popped it back in. I have taken this scooter on multiple dirt roads and opened it up, and had a ball! I can’t believe how well it works on dirt roads. It can’t handle soft sand or gravel, but a regular dirt road is no problem.
SERVICE
I bought my unit used with 8 miles on it, so essentially brand new. When I was buying it, I tried to get a voltage reading by touching the charging pins with my voltmeter probes. DON’T DO THIS. I touched the live probe to the ground and POP! a puff of magic smoke, and the controller was gone. Embarrassed, I bought the scooter and set out to replace the controller.
Fluid would not sell me parts because I did not by the scooter directly from them. What?! So… I bought one from REVRides, popped it in and was back in business. I don’t know why Fluid were so weird about supporting their scooter after the fact. But recently, my grandson broke my LDC bracket and my conscientious son contacted Fluid to replace it and they were SUPER responsive. So I don’t know, maybe things have changed since I originally tried to deal with Fluid. Hopefully, they are selling a great scooter.
OVERALL
This PERFECT for RV park and campgrounds. Used it for nightly runs to the garbage, or to take our registration back to the office. Super convenient. At night, I turn on the lights and it is easy to ride in the dark. Front headlights, plus rear light/brake light. It’s great for city streets and riding inside stores. You can fold it up and put it in the trunk. Flats? Solid rear tire and poured some Slime in the front tire and haven’t had one the whole time I’ve been riding it.
Side note: My grandkids love this scooter and are constantly riding it. Caution is advised, one crashed and broke his wrist.
I charge my scooter with this Luna charger. It can vary the charging amps and the percentage of charge. It’s great for when I need a quick charge, but it’s also great because most of the time I can charge my battery to 80%.
Here’s another good review of the Fluid Horizon: Electric-scooter.guide
Swagtron Swagger Is a Surprisingly Great Mobility Assistive Device
Been a while since I have posted, but here’s a good one for you. The Swagtron Swagger. I added a foldable seat mount, extra long seat post, and a Schwinn seat. Small, light, inexpensive seated scooter for stores, sidewalks and general riding. After more than 6 months of riding this thing everywhere, I can say I LOVE IT!
So you don’t have to read to the end…
CONCLUSION: The Swagtron Swagger with a seat makes for a simple, lightweight, inexpensive, reliable mobility assistive device for stores, smooth roads and fun. I definitely recommend the Swagtron Swagger for people with balance looking for a slick, easy, inexpensive mobility solution.
THE SET-UP
I have been riding this setup for 7 months now and it is a winner. I bought the Swagger refurbished during a holiday sale. Here’s the link to the current Swagtron listing: https://swagtron.com/product/swagtron-electric-scooter-swagger-v1/ about $239 when I am writing this. (I paid much less). The big advantage of this carbon fiber scooter is it is lightweight, only about 17 lbs, and 22 lbs with the seat. I can easily pick it up and carry it onto a train or put it in a trunk.
The Lixada seat is a bolt-on solution (-$65): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076RYCVVM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Review of the seat: Meh. It works fine, it just looks clunky. If anyone or manufacturer has a better solution, I would love to hear about it.
You need an extended post (~$23): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076RYCVVM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Review of the seat post: Great. Love the markings on the back which allow me to quickly adjust centering and height every time.
And I used a Schwinn No Pressure Bicycle Seat (~$19): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000DZGLVY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Review: Great. I put these on every seated scooter I can.
At those prices the full set-up runs ~$346.
THE SCOOTER: SWAGTRON SWAGGER
First of all, this is not a powerful scooter, but if you accept that, what it can do is kind of amazing!
The Swagger has 5 speeds on the LCD display, 3 is perfect for stores.
It has an LED light on the front that is BRIGHT. No horn. The LED is easy to read and simple to use. You hold the main button for 5 seconds and it turns on. When I am done I just put it away and the auto shut-off shuts it down in a few minutes. I put my handicap sticker right below it and covered the front logo with black gaffer’s tape.
It folds quickly and easily, and the folding mechanism seems strong. The battery lasts long enough for a full day of shopping, and a bit more. I keep it in my trunk and charge it every week or so, or after a long ride. There is a battery level indicator on the LCD and it gives a general idea of the state of the battery.
This scooter has small, very flat, wheels. They are great on smooth surfaces, but the flatness of the wheels makes turning somewhat exciting because the edge of the tire is not curved, so when you lean into the wheels while turning at speed… well, I would be very careful. It can slip quickly. I would not recommend going very fast on this scooter if you are inexperienced.
I have ridden this scooter on all sorts of terrain and it has surprised me how useful it has been. It can’t handle too many bumps in the road, but it is light so it is easy to pick up and carry between rough spots.
The brake is an electric brake and it is not very strong. But this scooter is so much like a kick scooter that dragging a foot is an effective enough way to slow down, I hardly ever use the brake. I would like it to be stronger if I went faster more. There is a stomp brake using the back fender, but with the seat added it is not very practical to use.
Speed? I would say 10-12 mph with my 200 lbs. Range? 2 – 4 miles in the real world, but I usually ride it in stores and I can use it several times before I recharge. I do occasionally ride it down to the train, about 1.5 miles. The scooter has a low voltage cutoff, so when it is drained it suddenly stops. You can feel the performance degrade slight right before it shuts down, so there is some warning. The good news is the scooter is so lightweight and small that you can kick it and use it like a kickscooter. There is some drag from the motor, to not enough to make it impractical.
I have done almost no maintenance. My grandkids rode it till it was dead several days in a row. They rode it down the dirt road at our family campout at the KOA. Sprayed it off and wiped it down, oiled the back wheel a little and that has been it.
BTW, my grandkids ride all my scooters and they love this one. It really is a lot more peppy with a youngster on it. Being able to set the speed of the scooter really helps with young kids that want to go too fast.
SEAT MOUNT
I knew I needed a folding mount that stuck up less than the folded height of the scooter. This Lixada one met that requirement, but it is mounted to the scooter with what essentially are two giant hose clamps. It works fine, it doesn’t look good. I didn’t want to drill holes if I could avoid it. Perhaps someone has a better solution, but I think any seat that mounts to common scooters will work for this application. I did not use the seat or the post that came with the mount because they would not go high enough.
The seat mount works well enough, but it is clunky looking. It is held in place with two giant hose clamps. 
They give you a piece of clear plastic to put between the mount and your scooter deck and I cut it to size with tin snips
I drilled two holes were I needed to make a cut for the clamp band and then sliced between them. 
I believe the holes have the added benefit of stopping the slice from continuing to crack.
Tighten up the clamps and you are ready to add the extended seat post. Here is a picture of the provided seat and seat post in the mount
This mount has held up fine and is relatively simple to operate. It would operate better if the manufacture quality were higher, the pin doesn’t move as smoothly as it could.
EXTENDED SEAT POST
To get the seat up high enough I needed a longer seat post. The UPANBIKE 450mm (17.7 in) one I bought works great, and the markings on the back make it super easily to line up perfectly every time. 
SEAT
I put the Schwinn No Pressure Seat on all my seat scooters. Enough said.
BATTERY
The battery is a 24v 3800 mAh Lithium, which gives you 91.2Wh, well within the FAA limit of 100 Wh. I haven’t tried flying with this scooter, but theoretically I might be able to. It recharges pretty quickly, under 2 hours. This is nice is I ever do run it all the way down, I can be back up and running in a short amount of time.
HOW I CAME TO THIS SET-UP
I was looking for a lightweight solution for an electric scooter that I could easily transport and use in public areas like stores. I came upon the Glion Snap ‘N Go : https://www.amazon.com/GLION-SNAPnGO-Travel-Mobility-Scooter/dp/B07CPD2HQ4. Looked great, but it is $1650 and though I contacted the company and tried to make arrangements, I could not find one to ride to evaluate. They did offer to sell me one and let me send it back if I didn’t like it, but I didn’t want to lay out $1650 to find out about a product. I started looking for other solutions.
CONCLUSION: SWAGTRON SWAGGER
The Swagtron Swagger with a seat makes for a simple, lightweight, inexpensive, reliable electric scooter for stores, smooth roads and fun.
Pros:
- Lightweight
- Relatively Inexpensive
- People react favorably to it in the real world
- Easy to maneuver
- Easy to fold
- Recharges in under two hours
- Cool carbon fiber pattern
- Airline compatible
Cons:
- Flat wheels
- Ineffective brake
- Obnoxious branding (I covered it with Gaffer’s tape)
- Seat mount is not the best (not Swagtron’s problem)
What Do You Want?
Went for a ride this past weekend. My wife is a runner so my scooter is how I am able to participate with her. She said she would like to incorporate a stop at nearby grocery as part of the run. I hopped off and grabbed a shot of my eBikeboard scooter in the isle. I love the eBikeboard because it has 3 speed settings and I can slow it down to mobility scooter speed (4 MPH) or speed it up and ride with my wife as she runs or really speed it up and run over to the store by myself.
The really unique thing about this scooter is I can ride it from the street right into the store. So important for people like me who have mobility issues. Otherwise I could ride it to the store and then what? This scooter fills the gap. If I could just find one that could run errands, cruise with someone running, ride in stores…. and would fold and fit in the trunk and was FAA approved for travel!
I do have to say after I had been in the store for a few minutes the manager came up and confronted me and told me my scooter had to go and I could lock it in his office while I was shopping. My wife wasn’t having any of that, and she emphatically told him this was my mobility device. He backed down like he had been accused of using a racial slur. He suddenly was emphatically apologizing, so much so he sounded defensive. I didn’t even have to say a word.
Since I started riding scooters I have only been confronted a few handfuls of times, and most times it has gone well. I have had a few people angrily confront me, but in life when someone starts in on me I try to take their anger as information that they are upset. I usually let them say whatever they have to say, I get it, scooters are confusing to people who don’t use them regularly. But I also know that the law is on my side, and I can ride what I need to where I need to. If I have to prove my scooter has the right classification, I can do that. If I have to prove my disability, I can do that. But I think most people realize pretty quickly that hassling someone over their ADA mobility device is not a good look.
Winter is coming this week. Scooting is going to start to get interesting again…
Mobility Takes A Seat
For me, mobility means I need to be able to sit down. Typical mobility scooters do not fit my needs in that they are heavy, slow and let’s face it, kinda ugly. I started using scooters 8 years ago and during this time I have ridden many different scooters. Every person that uses mobility assistive devices has different needs, some needs stability over everything else. But I still can walk short distances and have good balance, so I want to ride something more nimble. And I travel a lot. So I would ideally like something that was FAA friendly.
Many of my scooters hit the mark on one thing but not another. I keep trying different solutions as my budget allows.
A while ago I made a nice find in this GoPed ESR Sport. I bought if from an on-line classified ad and the person I bought it from had it under a pile of stuff in their garage. It wasn’t working but I took a chance, and when I replaced the batteries it popped back to life.
This GoPed ESR Sport is quite a peppy scooter. The tires are solid, just like on my GoPed kickscooter and there is no suspension so the ride is… let’s say it can be challenging. But the torque is amazing and the scooter really takes off and can really handle hills. The solid tires are nice for not getting flats in a hazard-filled urban riding environment, but you have to be really, really carefully hitting bumps. I would say top speed seems like around 15 MPH.
I was looking around at the scooter parts I had and found the original scooter seat post I made and shockingly the holes where in exactly the right place to mount it to my GoPed ESR Sport. I put on a seat with springs for more cushion and this is an amazing ride!
This scooter is great for running to the store and then riding through the store. It maneuvers tightly. One big drawback is it is not waterproof, so no riding in the rain. Also, it is pretty heavy. I can lift it, but it takes effort. All-in-all, this GoPed ESR Sport is a great ride, especially with the added seat. I think at some point I will try to make the seat folding.
I hope to ride and evaluate new scooters coming out. I back Eon scooter on IndieGoGo and they haven’t delivered and it doesn’t look like they will, despite their protestations. They also promised me a refund which has never happened and they don’t return my emails so… looks like I have lost all my money. It would be nice to have a scooter from a reputable company. I have noticed the Glion Snap N Go online, something like that would be nice to at least evaluate, but there is no where I know that I can go and test ride these scooters.
I will keep posting about what I ride and how it works in the hopes of passing useful information along.
Renter Scooters Change Scooter World Overnight
All of a sudden, everyone is talking about scooters. As a dedicated scooter rider for nearly a decade, it has been with mixed emotions that I have watched the world of rental scooters unfold.
I understand the appeal of these machines, and I have been very excited to see the progress in design and build in the new scooters coming out. I even backed a new scooter on IndieGoGo called the Eon (which at this point is looking like a scam and I have nothing to show for my money. Not happy with IndieGoGo or PayPal for how they handle their business, let alone Eon, but just let me say I would be VERY skeptical about spending money with IndieGoGo and WOULD NOT use PayPal and absolutely would use my credit card. More about this on another post.)
Lime and Bird scooters have appeared in the downtown area of the city where I live, but I have not yet taken the opportunity to ride either to evaluate them, maybe because I already have my own scooter to ride. I have seen many people riding them, and they seem to be really enjoying themselves.
The problem for me with the new popularity of rental scooters is the problems arising from the users of the new rental scooters. People with zero riding experience can easily rent one and hop on, and suddenly they are learning how to ride in a very challenging environment. After they ride them they leave them…wherever. By now most people have heard the about the issues, and much contention has arisen.
For someone who depends on scooters for mobility, I am cautiously optimistic about the future of rental scooters and scooter use in public places. I think there should be designated drop-off areas so they don’t end up everywhere. I think people should take care when riding, and not just grab one on a lark and carry their shopping bags as they try to navigate people and the skills required to ride.
The argument against these scooters because hospital visits are going up is a canard. Use has shot up, injuries have shot up. Duh. I never understand the “THIS IS DANGEROUS!” argument people take up when then don’t want something for whatever reason. Everything we do includes an element of risk, but that’s life. How about my motorcycle, you want that? Plenty of danger there. Maybe my baseball which has caused me pain, or maybe the knives in my kitchen that I have cut myself with? What about the over 250 people that have died taking selfies?
People do stupid things, and one of the stupidest is being surprised when people do stupid things. Stupidity is not an argument against efficacy. So people do stupid things with scooters too, what’s new?
I hope that I do not incur additional prejudice from people because of the new popularity of rental scooters. I need my scooters to navigate life, they are not a lark for me. We will see what the eventual outcome is, and if people hassle me I am already used to it so whatever, but I am glad that people are starting to understand the value scooters can provide society. Just like anything else, we need to use our powers wisely.
Dakota Lithium Clean Republic Battery Build
Posting my review of the Dakota Lithium Clean Republic 12V 10aH LiFePO4 Li-on battery. I have 2 – 24V Currie battery packs that I use for my scooter and bicycle. SLA batteries are cheap, say $25 a battery vs $100 for a Li-on battery, and they will get you on the road, but… heavy, limited range, limited life compared to Li-on.
So I finally scratched together the $400 I needed for 4 batteries and made my order. The batteries arrived quickly and were well packaged. The were an exact replacement for my 12V 10Ah SLA batteries.
I have used these packs all summer and they have been fantastic. They are much lighter and last much longer. How much longer? I would say at least double my SLA’s. I have used them in a 48V configuration with my e-Bikeboard scooter, on my 250W 24V 16″ Electric bicycle, and my 450W 24V 26″ electric bicycle, and… I even have used them with a step-down converter and my 12V Minn Kota electric outboard. In every application these batteries have performed exceptionally.
Another benefit is the power does not lag as the battery is used. With SLA’s the scooter starts to go slower as the battery drains, not so with these li-ons. The power stays constant throughout, but, when they die they die without warning. On…off.
You can see I have adapted the power connection to Anderson Power Poles. I charge the packs with a Li-ion charger that came with my eBikeboard scooter.
Hopefully it will take me years to find out how long they last, but so far they have been great, delivering all the power I have asked of them.
Air Travel With GoPed Kickscooter
When I travel by air my GoPed Knowped has become indispensable to me. My first modification was to add a seat. Then I made the seat a folding seat and that is when the scooter really opened the world up to me.
I have been using this configuration for years now and it works great everywhere. The GoPed is super sturdy and can stand up to day-in-day-out full scale abuse. I don’t treat it gently, I push it hard and ride it over every kind of surface imaginable. I have crashed it hard and literally drove over it with my RV and it just keeps on rolling. Quality product all the way.
Here is how I travel with it. When booking my airline ticket I indicated that I am able to walk short distances so they will not be surprised when I show up with a mobility device. Then I fold it up and put it in the car for the ride to the airport. I carry a duffle bag and a blanket to wrap around it in a Schwinn handlebar bag. I take it directly from the car to the shuttle folded.
Once I get off the shuttle I open the scooter up and ride it to the ticket counter to check in and get my duffle bag tagged. Once of the MAJOR benefits of this set-up comes at TSA security where I ride it ride up, fold it up and put it on the conveyor belt for screening. Goes right through the scanner, no problem.
Then I ride it down to the boarding gate. While waiting for the plane to board I fold the scooter up, wrap it up and bag it. My wife and I carry the bag down the walkway together, and I drop it off at the end by the door to the plane with all the scooters and baby carriers.
When we arrive at the destination I wait a few minutes after getting off the plane and they bring it to me at the end of the walkway with all the strollers and baby seats. We usually carry it out to the waiting area so as to not block other passengers and then set it back up. The bag and blanket go back in the handlebar bag and I start making my way to ground transportation. Another GREAT thing about this set-up is I can ride it on and off escalators, NO PROBLEM. I can ride it straight onto shuttle trains and always have a seat.
This scooter REALLY helps me navigate the world and be able to keep up with the people I am traveling with. With it I am mobile, almost the same as everyone else. People always stop me and ask me where I got the scooter and I tell them it is a GoPed, but I customized it. I think a lot of people could benefit from this design, it has been a solid performer for me under every condition imaginable and has changed my life.
I carry this scooter in the trunk of one car and ride it in stores, etc. I carry my CityGlide scooter modified with a folding seat in the other. I always keep one handy.
Eon Scooter Does Not Deliver
Back in October of 2016 I backed the Eon scooter through IndieGogo. Here are the bullet points:
- The scooter is vapor-ware. Not a single scooter has been delivered, or even photographed since October 2016.
- The Eon does not give refunds.
- Eon manipulates its social media so that people cannot make negative comments and so that people will not see them.
- Knowing what I know now, I will not back another crowdfunding product.
This scooter really looked promising with a fold-down seat, low weight and features like water resistance, turn signals and a headlight and taillight. As an idea, it’s a great one. As a scooter, it’s a bad one because it does not exist.
I finally got tired of the games and asked for a refund, which was refused. I then checked with my bank, who after investigating found the could not get my money back because I used PayPal and they did it as an ACH transaction. PayPal won’t give your money back after 180 days, which it has taken longer than to realize Eon is not delivering. That leaves me with no product and no money, and it was no small amount.
Some day Eon may deliver scooters, who knows. But right now it looks like the campaign is starting to implode. If you are interested in finding out more information about Eon you can check out their website, but it points directly at the IndieGogo campaign. If you want to know about the problems that are going on, this website has a thread from Eon’s ardent critics.
The short answer to a long story, Eon does not deliver.
#eonscooter
Traveling
Been a busy time. Work has been extra busy and been traveling. Took my KnowPed folding seat scooter with me and sometimes TSA separates me and gives me the extra going over that people using devices get. But one worker had me fold up the scooter and put it on the conveyor belt to run through the machine. I had never thought about trying that, but it worked! So after that I began folding it and running it through the scanner with my belt, shoes, laptop and 3 oz. liquids in a quart-sized Ziplock bag. Made things quicker.
I also ride my scooter right onto the escalator. As the stairs emerge it pushed the seat up into me, but because I am standing it fits just right and I stabilize with my legs. Then at the bottom I just roll off. Probably looks scary, I had someone tell me they had elevators, but it works great and is super easy.
Another great thing about my scooter is that it rolls just as easily backwards as it does forwards. I can easily go 10′ or more in reverse no problem. This thing is awesome.