The Stealth Bomber is a bike I've wanted to try since it appeared. The website proclaims 'Bikes on Steroids' and the YouTube videos present an awesome picture. But it was only a picture. That was until yesterday when I was finally able to see, feel and ride not only the Bomber but also the Fighter. Melbourne, Australia is the home of John Karambalis, the force behind Stealth Electric Bikes. Melbourne is a great place to ride and John, it turns out, is a gentleman and scholar of all things two-wheeled. His factory is a bike fanatics dream with all sorts of projects in the works.
Let me say from the start that both the Bomber and Fighter are not only on steroids, it's an exotic variety of electro steroidal injection that goes into them. It bulks them up and gives them power like Usain Bolt on some performance enhancing drug from the future - without even coming close to working up a sweat. As such, this puts them both in a weight and power category above and beyond anything else electric that I've tried. I thought that I'd be comparing them to the Opti, my only clear terms of reference, but they are such different machines it quickly became apparent that comparisons would mean little.
The test ride was in beautiful wilderness parkland, the perfect setting to put them through their paces on flat, winding single track. I started out on the Fighter. Easy to manoeuvre, especially given a flick of the twist, the power to weight ratio is the first thing you feel. Power is 2kW for it's 35kg mass. It comes with a 2-speed Schlumpf BB drive or a 16-speed derailleur setup as an option. Standard also are 6 Pot Hydraulic 203mm front and rear brakes (8 Pot is an upgrade option), 160mm RST Storm Air front and 200mm DNM 3-way coil / air shock on the rear. Over rocks and log jumps, given a twist of the throttle it effortlessly leaped and bounded while negotiating tree branches with surprising agility. It's mass just seems to disappear. A little flick and it was gone with the wind. The 2-speed is an easy, set and forget arrangement, unless you want low range, kick your shoe on the axle button. I'm used to needing to switch gears a lot on the Opti, not so on the Fighter. It has ample power to cope with your requirements across the range. That amount of power and low weight come at a cost somewhere and that is it's 15-20 km range with it's 10 Ah battery. For the sort of riding we did, this would be ample as long as you're able to transport the bike to your riding venue. Lifting it is easy, so no problem there. Maximum speed on the flat was around 55-60 kph and it gets there really quickly. A matter of a few seconds and you're cruising at high speed.
It was now time for the Bomber. It's a fearsome, gnarly beast. Weighing in at 57kg with 3kW on tap, it's not for the meek. Riding a sub 30kg bike every day, it was a steep learning curve on the really fast ride that John took me on. The learning curve took a momentary elastic form, sliding on loose rock, misjudging the weight and momentum and ended up with the Bomber on top of my leg increasing the degree of bloody gravel rash on my right leg. A few seconds to bend the crank back a millimetre or two and I was back. Now this was fun. Sliding it around and jumping something with this much bulk and mass is an adrenaline fuelled workout. The standard RST 203mm front fork and 250mm DNM 4-Way rear coil / air shock soaked everything up while the 6 Pot 203mm front and rear brakes pulled this behemoth up very effectively. Options are 8 Pot brakes and White Brothers Groove 200 fork. The V-Boxx 9-speed makes this a more familiar setup for me, more control over your input yet vastly different to the Opti. Like all hub motors, it obviously doesn't drive through the transmission so the effect of shifting gears is only noticeable at the pedals, not on the throttle. Range on the Bomber is 30+ km at high speed between 60 and 80 kph. Slow it down with one of three power settings, pedal and you'll go considerably further. The battery capacity on the Bomber is 20 Ah.
Both bikes are silent. An attribute that is very desirable but also a reason for caution. It's an amazing feeling flying through the wilderness in complete silence yet when nobody or nothing can hear you coming, you need to be extra vigilant. Another impressive attribute is it's ease of internal access. The LiFePO4 battery is going to take years of abuse, when it's time to replace it, just pop the cover off. Couldn't be any easier. Same with the controller, easy to get to and replace should something go wrong. Any wiring issue that may occur over time can be fixed in minutes. Not that this would be a problem. Both bikes are built to last, to take a beating and not miss a beat. They are downhill tough, virtually unbreakable with the possible exception of riding through deep water, not particularly advisable with any electric bike. The monocoque frames exhibit a forward looking design philosophy. The challenges producing a bike with this kind of durability and power are many. John has succeeded without going anywhere near 5 digits on the price tag. He's working on new developments with a simple upgrade path from current models. It's all Plug & Play simplicity.
It's clear that running a big powerful hub motor at 72V has it's pluses and minuses. The brute power means less range than you might expect from another bike and a lot more weight in the form of unsprung mass in the rear wheel. Not that it's at all noticeable. My preconception was that a heavy hub motor would compromise the ride. Not so. For a big, heavy bike, it is supremely balanced. Jumps that would be impossible on any other bike are a breeze. A lot of attention has gone into tuning the excellent suspension, combined with the sheer thrill of massive and silent power, presents a winning combination in my mind. Something that will really appeal to the electro rev-head like myself. They're available in high torque or high speed setups, giving you a choice depending on your preference according to your riding conditions. It's also clear where their names come from, the angular flat panels reminiscent of the early stealth aircraft designs of their namesakes. Are these bikes really stealthy? According to John, nobody has paid any negative attention. After riding it, I'd say it is very stealthy, no noise, no pollution, no damage. With sensible riding, it'll fly under the radar. In the wrong hands, someone's going to get hurt.
Given the extreme specs of these bikes and the build-up to finally getting to ride them, I've been wondering for a while what my final impression would be. Well, I needn't have wondered. The specs don't lie. They are truly extreme bikes, more at home off-road in the hands of a motorbike rider than a cyclist yet able to be mastered by a skilled bike rider in a matter of hours riding technical off-road trails or much sooner if you stick to the smooth stuff. These are magnificent, desirable machines that will, no doubt, last the distance.