Belt drive road bikes

[Evo Sean]

Evening all

I've been commuting to and from work for some years now and have done so on a mixture of bikes ranging from full racers to my current hybrid. It's about time for a change for a few reasons that I won't go into in this thread, however, having ridden all sorts in all weather conditions I think I know what I need from a bike. Crucially it has to cope with everything a 22 mile commute in English winter can throw at you. Finding one is proving tougher than expected.

Essentially I would like a road bike with traditional drop bars
Hydraulic disc brakes a must but could compromise with cable discs.
Belt drive
Internal hub gears
Mudguard mounts

Does this exist?

The closest I've found is a bike from Scotish bike builder Shand. The Stoater Rohloff specifically, but the shifting is compromised by having it on the bars rather than the levers. I've fired off some questions to these guys asking if they can exchange the Rohloff with an Alfine 11 and incorporate traditional style shifters.

http://www.shandcycles.com/bikes/stoater-rohloff/

This is also a bit on the spendy side.

I've considered the BMC Allen challenge but that has flat bars.

What are my other options? 2k budget really.

Cheers.
Sean

[gazza285]

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[Evo Sean]

Thanks for the link. Interesting thread but nothing on drop bars.

[anonymous-user]

Tried here? :-
http://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/924132-belt-dr...

[Barchettaman]

A standard IGH chain drive with a full chain guard, something like the Hebie Chainglider, is worth a look.

IGH chains are beefier than even an 8-speed chain so last for ages.

Best of luck with your search!

[Dammit]

I had a look into this after looking at Rob English's personal winter commuter - the appeal of being able to simply show the bike the hose after a ride was strong.

However, belt drive, whilst a great idea in concept, is a massive PITA when it comes to -say- fixing a flat by the roadside as you need to get the belt tension "just so".

A chain is significantly more forgiving - and when it's raining cats and dogs, you've got 40Km to go, and you just want to get the new inner tube in and the wheels turning again that's important.

For those reasons I (and Shand, that's a nice bike) chose the Paragon Machine Works rocker dropouts - set the chain tension once, then the wheel goes in/out like a conventional vertical dropout bike - which means you don't have to pull the mudguards off as you do with a conventional track end.

[neilski]

Evo Sean said:

Thanks for the link. Interesting thread but nothing on drop bars.

22 ways to run a Rohloff Speedhub with drop bars.

http://www.cyclingabout.com/rohloff-hubs-with-drop...

[Dammit]

You only need one way to run an Alfine with drop bar levers:

[Evo Sean]

neilski said:

22 ways to run a Rohloff Speedhub with drop bars.

http://www.cyclingabout.com/rohloff-hubs-with-drop...

Some 'interesting' solutions, crikey some are hideous. The electric button sounds reasonable. Thanks for the info.

[Evo Sean]

Dammit said:

You only need one way to run an Alfine with drop bar levers:

Tell me more...

[neilski]

Dammit said:

You only need one way to run an Alfine with drop bar levers:

Oooh, a Shimano hub. What could possibly go wrong?

[Dammit]

We've built a number of Rohloff equiped bikes for people, we've also built a couple of Alfine Di2 bikes - if I were building my own it'd have 11 speed Alfine Di2.

[Quickmoose]

I don't have to allow for tension when removing the wheel on my Schindelhauer Ludwig 8, bit spendy again they do an 11 a 15 and an 18 I think.
Drop bars might be an issue...
They do do a drop bar bike, but I dont know abut mudguards and such... drop them a line.


Best bike I've ever owned though, even with flat bars...
http://www.schindelhauerbikes.com/en/bikes/Ludwig-...


Overlap worth a query too..
http://www.overlap-bikes.com/gentlemens_racer.php

really like that BMC, or that Canyon

Edited by Quickmoose on Sunday 24th January 23:14

[jamiebae]

It's possible for sure, but not with fully hydraulic discs. You can go for an Alfine Di2 hub which shifts using the brake lever, TRP HY/RD disc brakes and a frame from one of the many builders who offer something belt drive compatible. It won't be cheap but will be a lot less money than the Shand option as the Rolhoff hubs are massively expensive.

[Raven Flyer]

neilski said:

22 ways to run a Rohloff Speedhub with drop bars.

http://www.cyclingabout.com/rohloff-hubs-with-drop...

Solutions to problems that don't exist. Jeez that stuff is hideous!

[neilski]

Raven Flyer said:

neilski said:

22 ways to run a Rohloff Speedhub with drop bars.

http://www.cyclingabout.com/rohloff-hubs-with-drop...

Solutions to problems that don't exist. Jeez that stuff is hideous!

I'm not saying I approve, merely pointing out a few options. There are a couple of nice bits in there (Cinq5 & Van Nicholas), the rest just looks naff.