Carbon Belt Drive Bike Review

Created by gates corporation a global leader in belt drive technologies gates carbon drive is the best high mileage bicycle drive on the market.

Carbon belt drive bike review.

The centertrack drivetrain has performed flawlessly on sealed roads and under all weather conditions. The carbon drive system consists of two sprockets and a carbon fiber reinforced belt. In belt drive world uses thegates carbon belt drive with shimano nexus 8 speed hub. I completed a two year 31 000km trip between europe and australia using a gates carbon drivetrain.

When it gets sandy or when the grit on. Say goodbye to high maintenance bike chains. A gates carbon drive. They were used on bikes at the turn of the century but the first commercial bicycle with a drive belt was the infamous bridgestone picina in 1980 the bridgestone picina was a folding bike popular in japan but never really sold.

I ve got a belt drive touring bike and a belt drive tandem sitting in my garage which both have 30 000km on their original belts. Whether you re an urban commuter rugged mountain biker ebike rider or casual cruiser gates carbon drive has a solution. Gates carbon cdx group set. Simply put the bike rides great.

This bike features the very latest in belt drive technology using the patented gates cdx group set with center spline which holds the belt on tightly with no slippage. Although the belt is remarkably strong bending crimping and or twisting it the wrong way can bring it to a premature end. Actually i ve done my research and the only bikes out there with these specs are around double the price. Get the latest mountain bike reviews news race results and much more by signing up.

I started with belts on my modified surly long haul trucker and 10 000km later i used dual belts on my co motion tandem. The polygon path i8 would stand out in the company bike racks against a flood of conventional mountain bikes. The history of belt drive bikes. The gates carbon drive belt is made of stretch free carbon fiber tensile cords covered by a weather resistant polyurethane outer.

The retro inspired electric bike is the latest to feature one of the most premium transmissions in the bicycle market. 22t gates cdx rear sprocket surefit 3 lobe. In the end i took the chance because there s no other bike out there with a chromoly frame a gates carbon belt drive a nexus 7 internal hub at this price point. To put that into perspective a standard derailleur drivetrain will rarely shift well after 10 000km.

Mechanical belt drives were used as pully systems as far back as 15 bc and started being used in heavy machinery in the 19th century. What is a belt drive bike. There s no doubt that gates carbon belt drive is an excellent drivetrain solution for long distance touring bikes. Initially met with skepticism gates carbon drive has gained industry acceptance and is now featured on hundreds of bike models from more than 200 brands around the world.

Say hello to simplicity and fun.