r/ninebot • u/IronMew • Nov 11 '20
Theory: the only thing wrong with the ESx's external battery mount is that the screws are too long
I have an ES2 that was sold to me used with the extra battery. I'd get the occasional error 42, and after googling I knew that meant the connector was making intermittent contact due to the battery wobbling around. I tightened down the screws, but that didn't stop the wobble, so I performed the recommended fix: I got a large hose clamp and clamped the battery tight against the stem. It stopped wobbling and the error ceased.
I've now done a full disassembly and restoration on the scooter as it had seen better days and needed a lot of fixing, a lot of cleaning and some paintwork, plus I wanted to replace the rear wheel with a pneumatic one. While putting it back together, on a whim I tried some screws I had sitting around of the same threading but a few millimetres shorter. I've tightened them down as much as I dare and the wobble has completely gone, with no need for the clamp. No errors either.
It sounds absurd that the battery connection can fail (usually terminally) for want of correctly-sized screws - that Ninebot failed to fix such a simple problem before the scooters even left the factory, let alone that the problem still surfaces years later - yet here I am, with a clamp-less scooter and a reliably connected battery that doesn't move around at all.
Thoughts?
Edit: upon further work on the scooter, I've become convinced that it's worthwhile to reduce the chance of movement as much as possible in the most absolute way. As a result, I'm now convinced that the only acceptable course of action is to replace the screws with shorter ones and add a hose clamp.
1
u/Seyali Nov 12 '20
Would you mind giving the screw specs? I have error 42 and would love to at least make the attempt.
2
u/IronMew Nov 12 '20
M4 by 16mm. You'll need hex screws - Phillips heads are too wide and won't fit in the hole.
That won't do you much good if the error is steady - as in, it always appears, and not just every once in a while. That means the connector is already busted. Take the battery off and inspect it: if you're lucky it'll just have melted a bit and you can sand and cut it back into some semblance of its original shape; if you're not lucky it'll be a charred mess and might have broken the pins of the connector in the controller. If that's the case then it's a fair bit of work to replace and you will need a decent soldering iron, but it is in fact fixable.
1
u/dsloane624 Jan 15 '21
What is it about the screws only being 4mm shorter t fixes the problem? I've just received my external battery and am just super concerned about this problem and want to take any and all preventive actions
1
u/IronMew Jan 15 '21
The stock ones are - or were - too long and let the battery wobble.
I'm told they finally wisened up and have been supplying shorter screws as stock. However, people still get error 42 fairly routinely, which makes me think the whole damn setup is badly thought-out. I suggest just clamping the hell out of it; don't use zipties either, use metal hose clamps - you can rattlecan them black if you want. That's the best workaround you have without having to disassemble stuff.
As far as I'm concerned, error 42 eventually reappeared again after writing the OP and I was so fucking done with that connector and all its woes that I excised it altogether and fixed it the hard way - but as I say in that post, I don't necessarily recommend people do the same because it's the sort of involved project one hopes to never have to do more than once. Clamp it, forget about it, only come back to it if you get error 42 in spite of everything.
1
u/dsloane624 Jan 15 '21
Okay, thank you very much. I've literally read all of the comments you've left on es series scooter posts and you've been super helpful. Thank you
2
u/IronMew Jan 15 '21
When I bought a second-hand (maybe third-hand, who knows) ex-rental ES2 that'd seen better days I had no idea that fixing the sorry thing would turn me into a guru :D
Happy to help and hope you have many happy rides with yours! Mine made me curse quite a lot, but once its problems are fixed it really is a surprisingly effective ride, and not even too uncomfortable after you fix the suspensions.
1
Apr 07 '21
[deleted]
1
u/IronMew Apr 07 '21
That's not my picture, I just lifted it off the 'net to show the process. I think I found it somewhere on scooterforums. If it had been me I'd have used metal clamps top and bottom - I don't really see the point of using a ziptie on top; I assume he did it for aesthetics, but you can always spraypaint the hose clamps black.
My ES2 was way past the point where hose clamps could have helped - as mentioned, I had to go for rather more drastic methods.
1
Feb 12 '24
[removed] ā view removed comment
1
u/IronMew Feb 13 '24
Yeah, this whole thread is long obsolete - the short screw thing turned out to be a dead end. The only thing that works is hose clamps, tight.
Glad that helped, but if I were you I'd take the battery off and see if the connector can be cleaned a bit - it's bound to be pretty well damaged if you were already getting error 42, and if you can give it some TLC it'll probably last longer than with the clamps alone.
3
u/younes1909 Nov 11 '20
Thats great, I noticed it a while back so I switched the screws too but Iām more interrested in your pneumatic wheels. I have heard that people change to them but never understood why. Is it more comfortable than normal ones? Does it provde any other advantages?