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I've been ebike curious for a while, and becoming more so. My latest thoughts are running towards the combined pinion gearbox and motor with a belt drive.
It looks like a really good idea, but I'm a bit worried about belt drives handle mud. My riding generally involves much mud and I'd imagine the a belt isn't as good as a chain at shedding mud.
Does anyone have any real world experience of a belt drive in serious mud on a mtb?
Midland Trailquests Graham is your man but I can’t remember his exact username.
Ramsay from TrailCoach has a belt drive on his bike. That seems to get used in all weathers and he seems a handy rider.
I suspect it will be ok. The belt isn't loose, so I'd assume it would squashed mud out the way - much like a chain does...no real experience though, so no idea.
So long as it's not the really thick, claggy, clay type mud that sticks to everything and builds up (the type that stops your wheels turning), it's completely fine. It pushes the mud out the sides when it reaches the cog.
Nah, Graham broke everything he touched and wasn't really very representative.
I have a belt drive on a Nicolai Ion GPI. Being a full suspension bike it has a belt tensioner to deal with the chain stay growth as the suspension compresses. It has done a total of 2465 miles on the original running gear except the belt tensioner that failed in short order and cost me a small fortune to replace with the completely different revised version. Mud is handled just fine as the Gates sprockets are designed to let it squeeze through. The belt can make a slightly annoying noise when very dry but I spray a bit of silicone on it to quiet that.
So, after those 2465 miles
Aluminium front sprocket - shagged but still working
Belt - worn, probably because of that shagged front sprocket. But still working.
Stainless rear sprocket - looks A1, I will continue to use it with a new belt
Maybe relevant that I'm not that heavy, about 72kg and a chunk of those miles were probably uplifted so not as much pedaling as you may think. I would guess the wear on an e-bike is going to be higher but probably still very acceptable.
However I don't think the belt drive offers very good value. The parts are not that readily available in the UK and cost a premium. When compared to running a waxed chain as I do on another bike...the chain and sprockets can last ages since it doesn't have to do any shifting and is way more cost effective. Price is all I have against the belt setup though
Wot the buccanneer say - also my issue with belt drives is the repairability aspect. I carry a couple of quick links and a couple of chain links to fix a broken chain. You would have to carry a belt to replace a broken belt.
this may be more theoretical than a real issue but thats why I specced a chain not a belt on my shand
Ryan van Duzer and his mate John with the dog seem to do epic miles on them.
and even if you didn’t have any spare parts, literally any bike shop would be able to get you going in short order.
with the best will in the world, nobody can say the same about a belt.
chains are easier to rely on.
Cheers for the feedback. I too rely on chain driven systems and quick linjs plus decent maintenance means they last a long time. I was hoping that the belt drive system would be simpler, less maintenance and, from what I've heard, better suspension performance due to the reduction in wheel mass (basically mass the suspension has to deal with).
Still pondering though. The rest of my brain is fixated on frame (and associated gubbins), which makes it hard to move from Santa Cruz.