I created a purely mechanical Turbo Levo speed limit increase

[Eljay]

I had another thought while riding some dusty trails - I was thinking it may be a good idea to every now and again, blow out any dust or debris w/ compressed air that could get in to the gears as I could see this acting like pumice and wearing things down - it seems like the cover doesn't real seal things off but leaves a small opening - thoughts?

 

[Nifty 56]

Yes, available here:

Beta - LSS Planetary Gear v2 in Aluminum by JD_3D on Shapeways

But it is still a beta as I'm not sure if it will work well. Hopefully soon I'll get more feedback.

The AL gear is a good idea for it's own longevity but won't that just wear out the other gears more quickly? Everything being aluminium is the future!

 

[jd_3d]

The AL gear is a good idea for it's own longevity but won't that just wear out the other gears more quickly? Everything being aluminium is the future!

Hi @Nifty 56, yeah its possible the Al gear could wear out the other gears faster, however, wear is generally proportional to the number of gear teeth, and the sun gear has about 2x more teeth than the planet gear, so its life should already be double. The ring gear has around 4x so that should last even longer. Last time I priced out a full metal version of the LSS it was like $300-400 .

 

[Nifty 56]

Hi @Nifty 56, yeah its possible the Al gear could wear out the other gears faster, however, wear is generally proportional to the number of gear teeth, and the sun gear has about 2x more teeth than the planet gear, so its life should already be double. The ring gear has around 4x so that should last even longer. Last time I priced out a full metal version of the LSS it was like $300-400 .

Tooling up for it to be made in aluminium wouldn't be cheap.

 

[mjLevo]

I had another thought while riding some dusty trails - I was thinking it may be a good idea to every now and again, blow out any dust or debris w/ compressed air that could get in to the gears as I could see this acting like pumice and wearing things down - it seems like the cover doesn't real seal things off but leaves a small opening - thoughts?

To keep the dust out, has anyone tried a small bead of silicone over the gap where the cover meets the ring gear?

 

[VeloMikey]

Was the cover designed to spin with the axle or stay stationary? Mine doesn't rotate because it hits the swing arm slightly. FYI, I have 768 trouble free miles on mine!

 

[jd_3d]

Was the cover designed to spin with the axle or stay stationary? Mine doesn't rotate because it hits the swing arm slightly. FYI, I have 768 trouble free miles on mine!

The cover mounts to the axle so it is meant to stay stationary. There is relative movement between the cover and the main body so you can't use silicone to 'glue' the 2 parts together. But, if you really wanted to try this, you could widen the hole on the cover (so it no longer touches the axle) and then silicone/glue it to the main body. But then you'll still have a small gap between the axle and cover and you'll lose the easy serviceability. I'm not aware of anyone who's tried that, but it could result in an improved overall seal.

 

[Mcharza]

If you do that, use rather rubber o-ring and some grease. Still serviceability

 

[mjLevo]

Roger that. Encouraged to hear VeloMikey has a lot of trouble free miles. I'll skip any sealing effort and check for dust that I can blow out if necessary. Is there a particular lubricant recommend for the LSS? Expecting ShapeWays delivery today and excited to test ride.

 

[jd_3d]

Roger that. Encouraged to hear VeloMikey has a lot of trouble free miles. I'll skip any sealing effort and check for dust that I can blow out if necessary. Is there a particular lubricant recommend for the LSS? Expecting ShapeWays delivery today and excited to test ride.

Hi @mjLevo, there were a few previous discussions about this earlier in this thread. See these posts:

I created a purely mechanical Turbo Levo speed limit increase - EMTB Forums

I created a purely mechanical Turbo Levo speed limit increase - EMTB Forums

I created a purely mechanical Turbo Levo speed limit increase - EMTB Forums

 

[Nifty 56]

Roger that. Encouraged to hear VeloMikey has a lot of trouble free miles. I'll skip any sealing effort and check for dust that I can blow out if necessary. Is there a particular lubricant recommend for the LSS? Expecting ShapeWays delivery today and excited to test ride.

@mjLevo... so how was/is it?

 

[mjLevo]

@mjLevo... so how was/is it?

Exceeded my expectations! Close to 30 MPH is a big improvement. About 70 miles w/ LSS so far and thinking about taking a look and possibly blowing out any particles that may have got in the LSS. Have you done any maintenance on yours?

 

[Levored2019]

I went for a ride on xmas eve in the wet and the unit was covered in white froth I can only imagine the water inside the lss unit was being churned producing the froth, going For a ride tomorrow morning in damp conditions will be interested to see if it happens again

 

[King Liu]

The Giant Reign E has the sensor and magnet in pretty much the same configuration as the Levo, so I ordered one of these to try. Went on easily and works perfectly on my Reign E, so there will probably be more orders for these. I'll tidy up the zip ties properly later, but I've had no trouble with this pretty rough setup so far.

 

[Eljay]

Update - snapped a picture the other day of my LSS with Al cog with about 500 miles on it - it looks pretty darn good showing very little wear so far - I have gotten into the habit of blowing it out with compressed air between most rides just like I do with my brake pads - of course no way to know if this makes any difference but I do see visable debris fly out when I spray the air - haven't been riding my ebike as much lately because we've been getting a fair amount of rain and I tend not to ride my ebike too much in wet conditions

 

[jd_3d]

Thanks for the update @Eljay! I agree, for 500 miles I can hardly see any wear which is great news.

Update - snapped a picture the other day of my LSS with Al cog with about 500 miles on it - it looks pretty darn good showing very little wear so far - I have gotten into the habit of blowing it out with compressed air between most rides just like I do with my brake pads - of course no way to know if this makes any difference but I do see visable debris fly out when I spray the air - haven't been riding my ebike as much lately because we've been getting a fair amount of rain and I tend not to ride my ebike too much in wet conditions

 

[High Voltage]

Hi JD....The LSS spins ok...you can hear a noise only when in turbo above 30 km/h.... below that is difficult to hear that there is a noise of the LSS touching the drop outs.
So for the time being we will keep using the LSS and see what happen...

Hi JD... a friend of mine have install 203mm Hope disk brakes and he is getting only 33 kpH... before he reach 40 kph... what do you think can be the problem?

 

[jd_3d]

Hi JD... a friend of mine have install 203mm Hope disk brakes and he is getting only 33 kpH... before he reach 40 kph... what do you think can be the problem?

Hey @High Voltage, my guess would be that the sun gear (the one that sits on the hub) is not tight enough and may be rotating. That would cause the effect you are seeing. Can you try to put some tape or something on the hub so it's a tighter fit?

 

[rod_922]

Hi
Is this not made to fit the Turbo levo Hardtail 2019.
Just tried fitting, I have a different rear disc, shimano not sram, so doesn’t clip in?

 

[VeloMikey]

It was designed for the stock Sram rotors on the Levo. You can purchase Shimano Ice Tech Rotors and use this clip... Beta - LSS Clip For Shimano Ice Tech Rotor by JD_3D on Shapeways

 

[rod_922]

It was designed for the stock Sram rotors on the Levo. You can purchase Shimano Ice Tech Rotors and use this clip... Beta - LSS Clip For Shimano Ice Tech Rotor by JD_3D on Shapeways

thanks for the reply. These are stock on the turbo Levo hairdtail.
so I’d need to change discs, and then buy that clip above?

 

[High Voltage]

Hey @High Voltage, my guess would be that the sun gear (the one that sits on the hub) is not tight enough and may be rotating. That would cause the effect you are seeing. Can you try to put some tape or something on the hub so it's a tighter fit?

Many thanks JD... i will check it out

 

[VeloMikey]

thanks for the reply. These are stock on the turbo Levo hairdtail.
so I’d need to change discs, and then buy that clip above?

Yes, I replaced my Sram components with Shimano XT. JD prototyped the Ice Tech mount for me. I have 1250 trouble free miles on my LSS.

 

[jd_3d]

thanks for the reply. These are stock on the turbo Levo hairdtail.
so I’d need to change discs, and then buy that clip above?

Hi @rod_922, as VeloMikey said the LSS is designed for the Levo Full Suspension with the 203mm SRAM rotors. You could get the Ice Tech rotors and the special clip, but another option is to get the universal rotor mount clip here:

Universal Brake Rotor Mount for LSS - Slim design by JD_3D on Shapeways

I recently re-designed it based on feedback from someone to give it more clearance for the zip-ties to fit (you'll need 6-8 small zip ties to attach the clip to the rotor). So far its working well for them.

 

[rod_922]

Hi @rod_922, as VeloMikey said the LSS is designed for the Levo Full Suspension with the 203mm SRAM rotors. You could get the Ice Tech rotors and the special clip, but another option is to get the universal rotor mount clip here:

Universal Brake Rotor Mount for LSS - Slim design by JD_3D on Shapeways

I recently re-designed it based on feedback from someone to give it more clearance for the zip-ties to fit (you'll need 6-8 small zip ties to attach the clip to the rotor). So far its working well for them.

Okay thanks. I’ll give that universal mount a go.. ?

 

[Letford]

How do these fair with the weather in the UK?

 

[mjaybo]

Hi, I have currently have a 2019 Turbo Levo Comp, Running you LSS. With the standard rotors. I want to change to the Hope Floating 200ml Rotors. Which part do i need to order?

Thanks

 

[tcas146]

Just updated Specialized Mission Control to Version 2.2.0 Build 50.

Getting this error message:- see pic

Anyone else getting this with the LSS?

Has the big 'S' sussed out mechanical tweaking?

UPDATE looks like others are getting the error without the LSS so looks like a software issue.

 

[jd_3d]

Hi, I have currently have a 2019 Turbo Levo Comp, Running you LSS. With the standard rotors. I want to change to the Hope Floating 200ml Rotors. Which part do i need to order?

Thanks

I don't have a clip for the Hope rotors, but you can use the universal brake rotor mount here (along with some zip ties to attach it to the rotor arms):

Universal Brake Rotor Mount for LSS - Slim design by JD_3D on Shapeways

 

[jd_3d]

Just updated Specialized Mission Control to Version 2.2.0 Build 50.

Getting this error message:- see pic

Anyone else getting this with the LSS?

Has the big 'S' sussed out mechanical tweaking?

UPDATE looks like others are getting the error without the LSS so looks like a software issue.

Thankfully this does appear to be unrelated to the LSS, and hopefully just a bug on their side. But the fact that someone has written those 'warnings' about gear ratios being implausible is a little concerning. It seems like they may be trying to detect certain things. But in my opinion you should be allowed to put whatever drivetrain you want on the bike (i.e., a big 50 gear cog on the back, or a large or small chain ring up front).