Bike Shop Girl

Empowering daily life by bike

Tern HSD

New Tern Cargo Bike Accessories

Cargo Bike Reviews, Reviews

If you have been following me for a while, you know that the Tern HSD electric bike is such a brilliant bike. It is nimble yet stable, and super capable allowing you to expand your use of daily biking as you grow. Today, Tern launched more accessories to make the HSD an even more capable bike.

I could write 10,000 words on these accessories but instead – I made you a couple of videos.

Tern Family Biking Accessories Overview

New Tern Accessory Walk Through

Links

My review of the Tern HSD electric bike back when I was a bike shop owner.

Product Links:
Clubhouse Mini
Clubhouse MadPad
Storm Box Mini
Storm Shield Mini
Doghouse Mini Details
WeatherTop Bag

Tern HSD Duostand Kickstand Upgrade

Articles, Cargo Biking, Electric Biking Tips

The Tern HSD electric bike is one of my favorite electric bikes right now and Tern is about to make it even better with a new DuoStand kickstand.

In my opinion, one of the most important components of a good everyday bike that allows people to bike more and worry less is a solid kickstand. The Tern HSD ebike has everything I would want in a standard ebike – lights, fenders, built-in lock, comfortable position, the ability to carry more stuff than a normal bike, but less than a true cargo bike but the stock side-mounted kickstand wasn’t ideal for my family or lifestyle where I’m often carrying heavy backpacks or one small child while my other one bikes.

If you are wanting to carry some light cargo or a kid on the back of the Tern HSD electric bike, the new Tern DuoStand kickstand is for you.

Tern DuoStand Kickstand Details

• Made specifically for the Tern HSD
• Retails for $90
• Max load capacity of 132 lbs/60kgs

This upgraded two leg kickstand will cost you $90 in the US, but really adds stability to your HSD while still being easy to use, and tucked out of the way. The design of the Duo Stand is straightforward and clean. One main u-piece that has welded on feet. A spring on one side that looks like it will be easy to replace when the time is needed.

This kickstand does have a max weight limit of

132 lbs/60kgs like the rear rack of the Tern HSD, so keep that in mind so you aren’t sitting on the saddle of the bike with the kickstand on unless you do weigh under 132 lbs and don’t have cargo on the back of the bike.

To install, I just needed to remove the old kickstand and install the new one with two 17mm wrenches and the parts provided by tern. 

Conclusion

After trying the kickstand with a kid and cargo, I believe the kickstand is exactly what most people would want for their Tern HSD. An easy to use dual kickstand that isn’t a super expensive upgrade. For someone wanting something burlier or expecting a higher weight capacity then you probably should be looking at the Tern GSD dedicated cargo bike with the atlas kickstand. 

Tern HSD S8i Electric Bike Review

Articles

Are you in the market for a low-maintenance electric bike or trying to understand the differences in Tern HSD electric bike models?

In this video and article, I’m going to be reviewing the Tern HSD S8i electric bike that utilizes a Bosch mid-drive motor, Shimano internally geared hub and a Gates belt drive. This is a great bike for many but a lot of bike shops don’t cover the fine details of this internal hub or motor so today we are going to be doing just that! 

Earlier this year, I did an overview of the Tern HSD electric bike which you should check out here. I have also done a pretty comprehensive Tern HSD P9 review and have found this is a wonderful ebike that fits in many people’s lives. Make sure to check out the links for those articles and videos.

Tern HSD S8i Electric Bike

What Makes the Tern HSD Special?

Before we go too deep into the S8i HSD model, some of the key features of the Tern HSD in general for me:

  • One size fits most. You can easily change the fit and handling of this bike with the adjustable Andros stem or two stage seatpost. This also allows you to share this bike between multiple height people.
  • Low step through for easy on and off. These bikes weigh 50lbs and it is nice to be able to step off the bike instead of leaning the bike and swinging your leg over
  • The bike is capable but not a huge cargo bike. You can get a good amount of groceries on this bike with the additional accessories like the Cargo Hold 37 bags or front rack options BUT it isn’t a huge cargo bike designed to carry 400+ pounds or 2 kids on the back. Instead, you can carry about 130 lbs on the back or one decent sized child. 
  • The depth of the available Tern accessories makes this one of my favorite electric bikes because you can make it whatever YOU want it to be. 
Tern HSD Frame

Tern HSD S8i Electric Bike Details

Retail on this bike is $3800. You get an internally geared Shimano hub, gates belt, and upgraded Magura brakes over the $3200 P9 model.

The internally geared hub is good, but it isn’t specifically designed for cargo hauling or shifting under load. The biggest benefit for this system is that you can shift at a stop, and that the gears are all inside the hub so you don’t have a derailleur hanging down to get beat up or dirty.

Shimano Internally Geared Hub Note: You must pause your pedals when shifting this internal hub. It doesn’t handle the torque of hte bosch motor and your pedaling well when shifting. If you live in a hilly area, this may not be the bike for you due to this.

The gates belt drive is super nice and quiet, it helps keep a cleaner bike as there is no lube to fuss with. To adjust the tension the gates belt drive is very easy with the help of an app to hear the sound of the snap in the belt. I like to check after 100 miles when the bike is new and then every 3-400 miles after that.

Tern HSD S8i with Bosch Active Line Motor

Is the Tern HSD S8i for you?

There are a few people I think the S8i is for:

  1. You want relatively maintenance free biking. No chain to lube. Just keep the tires inflated and battery charged.
  2. Newer or inexperienced riders – the internal hub system is very nice for people not used to shifting, or remembering to shift before a stop. 
  3. The gates belt drive is sexy. I’m based in Colorado where the Gates US office is. There are many people that swear by the gates belt drive, and love the look of it.

Who is it not for? 

  1. Someone that needs a lot of assistance from the motor. Check out the new P9 Performance model
  2. Someone that is going to be climbing lots of hills, again check out the P9 Performance model
  3. Someone that knows how to shift and doesn’t need anything fancy, check out the standard P9 non-performance model and save some money. 

Other Tern HSD Electric Bike Resources

Disclaimer: First off, since writing this article I have gone to work for Tern Bicycles. This article was written before this, and in no way biased. If anything – I went to work for them because they make such wonderful bikes!!

Tern HSD – The Crossover of Electric Bikes

Articles, Cargo Biking

Tern HSD Crossover Electric Bike

Updated December 13, 2019 – Read my Tern HSD review here!

A couple of years ago Tern launched the GSD, a surprisingly compact and capable cargo bike (read my review here). This week they have launched the Tern HSD “Haul Stuff Daily” which I am naming a crossover electric bicycle. If you are looking for the review of the HSD

This isn’t a gigantic 3-kid-hauling cargo bike but it is more capable than a single-occupancy bike like we see all over. Maybe you only have one kid to bring so you don’t need a full cargo bike or you want to be able to pick up groceries on the way home without feeling like your bike is going to tip over. The HSD may be for you.

Meet the Tern HSD Crossover Electric Bike

3 different models with several different color options and a lot of accessories to make your bike even better for daily life by bike. Depending on your country you may not have the full-color line-up available, for example in the US I don’t believe our importer ordered all available colors. 

HSD P9 starting at $3,099, HSD S8i starting at $3,699, HSD S+ starting at $4,999 more on these below.

  • Gross Vehicle Weight (rider and all cargo) 374 lb
  • Rear Rack Carrying Capacity 132 lb
  • Height range of 4’11 to 6’6
  • All models use a Bosch system ranging from Active Line Plus to Performance
  • One battery mount
  • Suspension front fork
  • A lower step thru than the GSD – waiting for measurements
  • 8cm taller Physis Handlepost for a more upright available position which can be adjusted very easily
  • Utilizing a rear rack (think like the Tern Vektron) that can carry up to 132lbs
  • Atlas H Dropouts – sliding, ability to take a belt, and new trailer mount (?!)
  • All models come with an Abus frame lock mounted for the rear wheel 
  • Many new accessories – will post a separate article about these
  • New passenger kit coming soon
  • HSD S+ comes with a Cane Creek Thudbuster ST
  • Belt drive options thanks to the new dropouts
  • Flat fold design from the GSD for easy transportation
Tern HSD Flat Fold

Model Line Up of the Tern HSD

The idea that there are multiple models at launch is exciting to see as this must be a bike that Tern believes in. If you remember the Tern GSD they launched with one model, the S10, and a year or so later the S00. 

Tern HSD Blurred

If you look at Tern’s site some of the areas of models are pixelated and I haven’t been able to find full spec so they must be coming with new not to be released yet product. This is good and bad – bad as it may mean delays if spec’d parts are delayed from other brands. Good as it is wonderful to have the latest and greatest.

I do like the price range though and $3100 with carrying capacity is a very affordable electric midtail cargo bike. Not sure what I mean by midtail cargo bike? Read more here.

The Missing Pieces

The timing of this release is for Eurobike – a huge bike tradeshow in Europe. There are still a couple of big unknowns which in my opinion is big and could define this bike in many different ways…

What’s the passenger kit? Can it carry 2 small kids as long as they are under the 132 lb weight limit of the rear rack? Will it be an evolved Clubhouse or something else completely different.

Tell Us About the Trailer Hookup The screenshot below from Tern’s HSD video is the closest I could find to the trailer attachment they mention on their website. I’m looking forward to learning more about this!

Tern Trailer Attachment

Tern HSD vs Tern GSD

The most common question flying around the internet right now. Some folks are having buyers remorse (don’t!) and saying this is the bike they really wanted. Well let’s begin with, this isn’t available yet and won’t be until at least Spring of 2020 maybe even later if there are delays like they had with the Tern GSD. The GSD is a wildly popular bike so I’m sure you’ll be able to sell it next year! 

How do the HSD and GSD differ?

The following bullet points are directly from Tern:
        • HSD is shorter in length
        • HSD is lighter
        • HSD is easier to vertically park
        • HSD doesn’t carry quite as much cargo
        • HSD can carry 1 kid, not 2
        • HSD is rated to 170 kg, instead of 200 kg
        • HSD has a suspension fork
        • HSD has a lower step frame, by 4 cm
        • HSD’s riding position is different and much better for taller riders – the cockpit is longer and the handlebars are 8 cm higher
        • The riding position is also better for shorter riders, with a shorter cockpit and a lower stepover
        • HSD only comes with a single battery
        • HSD comes with Bosch Gen 3 motors vs. Gen 2 for GSD
        • Gates Belt!! Two of the HSD models come with belt drives
        • HSD has an optimized trailer mounting location on the dropout
        • HSD has a custom Tern Atlas dropout that slides and has a break for a belt
        • Every HSD comes standard with keyed-alike frame lock
        • HSD is cheaper, with the HSD P9 cheaper than the GSD S10 by $800

For me, personally, the will most likely become our yang to the Urban Arrow Family and depending on how the Passenger Kit works out it may replace my wife’s GSD as we have 2 children but she uses the GSD as her daily commuter without the kids but then carries them to the pool, zoo, etc. If it doesn’t carry 2 kids, then it will be the single occupancy bike that can pick up groceries and carry our 18-month-old. The HSD is a bike that makes sense, much like driving a Subaru Outback. It’s not too big but very capable. It has some extra room to carry things but not so much that you feel like you are driving a massive bike around all the time. 

A New Market of Crossover Electric Bikes

I look forward to getting in a Tern HSD to review and then I can really tell you what I think about using the product in daily life. Mark my words, this is the beginning of a new market of electric bikes – the crossover electric bikes. Electric bikes with accessories designed specifically to make biking even more useful and to replace car trips.

Updated December 13, 2019 – Read our Tern HSD Review

My Tern HSD review is here