The rear motor is currently only available for pre ordering Swytch Max+ kit. All other Swytch products are only available with front wheels. This product is not available in folding/narrow motors.
There are several factors to consider when looking at whether the Swytch Rear Motor is compatible with your bike.
Type
The two main motor types are freewheel and cassette. The Swytch motor wheel is a cassette motor wheel. The difference between a freewheel motor and a cassette motor lies in how the rear gears (cogs) are attached to the motor hub and how they function mechanically.
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Freewheel Motor:
- A freewheel system has the ratcheting mechanism built into the cogset itself. The freewheel threads onto the motor hub using an external thread on the hub.
- The motor hub is threaded, and the entire freewheel screws onto it as a single unit.
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Cassette Motor:
- A cassette system has the ratcheting mechanism built into the motor hub (called a freehub body).
- The cassette, which is a collection of individual gears, slides onto the freehub body and is secured with a lockring.
You will need to use the gear cogs from your original wheel, if you have a freewheel you will need to replace the cogs ith cassette cogs - this can sometimes affect performance, so you may wish to choose a front wheel instead. Single Speed bikes are not compatible, you will need to select a front wheel.
The easiest way to check if your bike has a cassette or freewheel rear wheel is to walk the bike backwards. If the pedals spin when you do that you have a cassette rear wheel, if the pedals stay still then you have a freewheel. You can also look at the cogs as they indicate which one is compatible.
Size
Firstly, your bike will need to be either 26", 27.5" or 28" (29er/700c) to fit a rear motor.
Most common bikes fit our rear motor wheel - some smaller road bikes won't fit because of the size of the gap between the forks.
The solid axle rear motor wheel will fit standard 135mm fork widths with a 10mm axle. If you have an older 130mm fork width these should still fit but might need a bit of pressure to fit into the gap.
The thru-axle rear motor wheel will fit both 142mm and 148mm fork widths with a 12mm axle.
You will need to have between a 7 and 11 speed cassette, 12 speeds are not compatible.
More detail on rear wheels can be found here - https://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-spacing.html
Hub Brakes/Gears/Dynamos
A key point to remember is that the Swytch wheel will replace your back wheel, so you will not be able to keep your hub from your current wheel - if that contains gears, a dynamo or the braking system - you will need to work out how to replace those elements if you still want to use them.