The Gates Carbon Belt Drive Is Coming for Your Chain
Belt drives have long been popular in Europe, where bicycles are more of a lifestyle than a sport, and low-maintenance components are in high demand. Here in the US, though, the Gates Carbon Belt Drive only just gained a foothold in the designs of singlespeeds and commuter bikes with internal hubs, like the Breezer Beltway. But we noticed a funny thing at Interbike this year: Belt drives are expanding beyond the urban transportation market in the US, too. Dirt Demo played host to a number of fat bikes, mountain bikes, and touring bikes decked out with Gates Carbon Belt Drives partnered with the Rohloff internal hubs.
There are a few good reasons to go with a belt drive over a more traditional chain. The Gates Carbon Belt Drive—the only bicycle-specific belt drive option in the US—is lighter, stronger, easier to clean (forget chain grease—just wash it as you would the rest of your bike), and reportedly longer-lasting than a chain. For touring, a drivetrain that can handle more miles before being replaced (up to 10,000 miles in some cases, according to Paul Tolme at Gates) is a pretty big bonus, as most cross-county bike tourists have to stop at some point in the trip and change out the chain. For off-road travel, the benefits are even more apparent.
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“Belt drives are gaining popularity in fat bikes and bikepacking bikes because the snow and sand won’t clog up the drivetrain,” Tolme says. “We’re even seeing them in e-bikes, which tend to wear the chain more quickly, like the Faraday Porteur.”
Gates says it's still trying to break into the US market—75 to 85 percent of its business is still in Europe, where Tolme says people are willing to pay more for a nice urban bike. We were impressed with the selection of Gates-equipped bikes at Outdoor Demo, such as the MilkMoney 29er from Colorado brand Lenz Sport.
Expect to see more US bike frames of all varieties either equipped with a Gates Carbon Drive or designed to accommodate one soon. The cost of adding the drive is about $250—but depending on how much time you spend on your chain, the savings in maintenance hours might make up for that.
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