Electric Hunting Bike Guide: Find the Best Hunting Ebike for You

Hunting is a great activity. The camaraderie at camp, being outdoors in nature, and seeing wildlife brings a sense of adventure, peace and joy. For years hunters have gotten from camp to their deer stand or hunting blind on a noisy ATV, four-wheeler or Mule. This is less than ideal for several reasons. Serious hunters are now realizing the benefits of using an ebike.

First, they are not quiet or stealthy, which can scare off the game you intend to hunt (or photograph if you are a picture hunter). Second, they are less than environmentally ideal with carbon emissions created in the heart of natural habitat.

An Alternative Hunting Vehicle: Electric Hunting Bikes

Hunting ebikes solve the mobility issue for hunters. The best electric hunting bikes offer several advantages and are becoming more and more popular.

They are incredibly quiet. In fact, the only noise you’ll hear is probably your own breathing or the quiet spinning of the chain. Whisper-quiet motors which are electric and powered by lithium batteries increase the power you apply to the pedals (called pedal-assist or pedal assistance) and/or offer a throttle for 100% motor power transfer without you pedaling a wink.

Gas automobile engines emit a foul odor in addition to being noisy. If you’ve been driving around the hunting area looking for the best spot to set up for a while or heading to the tree stand, you’ll likely have also driven away game. Because e-bikes run on battery power, there will be no exhaust scent to alert others to your presence.

They are quite powerful. Getting out to the hunting location can involve crossing some rugged terrain. This means traditional bikes would be a struggle, especially when hauling your hunting gear through boggy bottoms or sandy trails. A fat tire electric hunting bike amplifies the power you put out with a rear hub motor or a mid-drive motor. Plus, their wide tires with knobby treads allow you to traverse off road rugged terrain while climbing hills with ease.

The best electric hunting bikes have a cargo rear rack and load capacity which allow you to carry the hunting gear you need to your destination, while rear fenders keep your back from being cascaded with mud and water.

Traveling range on hunting bikes with a powerful battery can extend past 60 miles on a single charge, taking you to your desired spot and back on even the largest of hunting leases. With a top speed at 20+ mph (and some, like ZuGo bike higher than 28mph), you’ll arrive at your location quickly and quietly.

Things to Look for in Your Electric Hunting Bike

Strong Build Quality

The leading hunting ebikes come with a quality build, including a durable frame of aluminum, steel or titanium, able to withstand the abuse you’d expect an ATV to absorb. They should also be able to stand up to bad weather and the environmental conditions you experience while hunting.

Stopping Power

You definitely don’t want to go careening off into the woods or over a cliff when you are hunting so being able to stop quickly for an unexpected obstacle or when carrying a load is crucial. For this reason, we highly recommend an ebike with hydraulic disc brakes a. You’ll need the stopping power of a hydraulic type of brake on the front and rear over a mechanical disc brake or rim brake.

Comfortable Ride

Okay, as a hunter you aren’t trying to win the Tour de France. You aren’t looking to be “aero” on a road bike or outfitted in skin-tight spandex unless you are wanting to be mocked by your hunting companions. You DO want to be comfortable on your bike. Look for a hunting ebike that has a longer motorcycle-style seat over a traditional tiny bike saddle. A suspension fork is also a must to help shock absorption over difficult terrain. Bikes for hunting should also be fat tire (meaning the tires are very wide) as this improves rider comfort as well as providing traction.

A Powerful Motor

Many road ebikes or mountain ebikes have mid drive motors or rear hub motors that provide only 250 watts of pedal assistance. Why? They want their bike to be feather-light. For serious hunters, having a bike you can pick up with a single finger is less important. You demand sturdiness and power over racing-type performance. An electric bike for hunting should have a more powerful motor. We recommend a 750watt motor with a long battery range on a single charge. This powerful electric motor will ensure your fat tire ebike can succeed at hill climbing and powering through any muck while having good carrying capacity.

Clear Display

The last thing you want to do is get stuck far from camp. Make sure the bike has a large, clear LCD display to let you know how much charge remains in the lithium battery on your e bike.

Other Hunting Ebike Questions

Can you drag or carry a deer with an ebike?

It depends. The average white-tailed deer weighs 107.56 pounds field-dressed. Males weigh more, females less. However, a Red Deer can weigh 312 pounds field dressed while a Roe Deer might only weigh 46 pounds field dressed. Many ebikes have a weight capacity of around 325 pounds of on-bike weight. Carrying a deer on a small pull trailer can also work, but you will need to watch battery life to make sure you make it back to camp.

In general, a field-dressed deer weighs 78% as much as an undressed deer (multiply the weight by 0.78). Before buying an electric bike for hunting, check the manufacturer’s specs on the bike’s weight capacity and towing weight load.

Is it illegal to derestrict an ebike?

On the road or public property, most states have laws against turning off speed governors on electric bikes. However, on privately owned land, you can de-restrict your ebike and allow it to travel at higher speeds. However, you will need to ensure the bike is restricted the moment you ride it on roads or public lands (anywhere but on private property).

Note: Some manufacturers’ warranties are voided when you unregulate the speed on their ebikes. Make sure you check the warranty.

Why ZuGo Bikes Make the Best Hunting Ebikes

In our opinion, ZuGo is the best electric hunting bike around. If you are a serious hunter or weekend warrior, we invite you to check out our selection. If you’ve read our guide above, then you realize ZuGo checks all the boxes.

ZuGo Bikes include:

• a powerful 750watt motor.
• a range of up to 80 miles per charge.
• Fast charging under 4 hours with our 5amp Battery Supercharger.
• 350 lbs weight limit for carrying capacity.
• fat tires with a gnarly knobby option for grip.
• Reliable Shimano components.
• Gear ratios designed for adventure.
• Top speeds of 28mph.
• Pedal-assist or pure throttle modes.
• More comfort-focused than typical electric mountain bikes.
• Rear rack options for carrying your gear. 

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