29.03.2024

Electric Hunting Bikes

Recently electric fat-tire bikes have entered the realm of hunting.  The ATA show this year featured a few different national brands of these bikes being marketed specifically at the hunting community.

Sticking with my mantra of being hyper-local, I was able to get my hands on entry level Shooter-750 manufactured by a company called Huntin’ Wheelz based right here in Clare, Michigan.  This electric hunting bike’s specs equal or exceed the brands with the bigger marketing budgets but at a fraction of the cost.

Some of you may remember an article I wrote in the early 2000’s about utilizing mountain bikes as a tool for hunting.  While the bikes were a great tool for eliminating scent and going quietly into the woods, they did have their drawbacks.  Under pedal power, I found I often arrived at my stand sweaty which was less than ideal. Even though mountain bikes were made for off road adventures, I often found that their tires were less than adequate for coping with fallen branches, rocks, and the like often found while hunting.

Scouting, and especially tending to game cameras used for scouting during the summer is a great use for a fat tire e-bike.  The video shows just how scent free you can remain riding one of these.  You could even do better by wearing gloves.

You can buy nice racks and trailers for these bikes to pack a deer out with you after the hunt. With any luck, I hope to have pictures of this in the fall!

Here are the specs for the bike:

  • 750 Watt Bafang Rear Motor
  • Removable 48 Volt Panasonic Li-ion Battery with 110 Volt Charger
  • Digital LED 5 Speed Pedal Assist Controller w/Twist Throttle featuring Velo Large Ergonomic Grips
  • Tektro Disk brakes and controllers (Press brake and motor stops)
  • 6061 Aluminum Alloy Frame with Suspension Front Fork
  • 26″ x 4″ Kenda Tires on Dual Wall Aluminum Alloy Rims, with Stainless Steel Spokes
  • Suspension Seat Post with Velo Comfort Seat
  • Performance: Top Speed 20 MPH
  • Travel Range of Approximately 20-25 Miles without pedaling, and 30-35 Miles with Pedal Assisting

For those of you who may be wondering… in Michigan a bike that has functional pedals and has a top powered speed of less than 20mph is considered non-motorized.

There is a USB port on the battery pack which is perfect for supplying power to a cell phone or GPS that is on its last leg.

 

An ample lighting kit is included which should be enough to get you to your stand in the dark.

The 750 watts of power is supplied to the rear hub by either pedal assist (the bike senses torque applied to the pedals and gives 5 levels of assist), or simply by the throttle integrated into the right hand grip.  The throttle will give you full assist on demand at any time.  The bike easily gets up to 20mph.  It will be a welcome break not having to pedal with all sorts of cold weather hunting gear, a backpack, and a weapon.

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