A belt drive city bike in 1986?
05-12-14, 12:38 PM
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A belt drive city bike in 1986?
And it was a "folder", kinda...
Bridgestone Bicycle Catalogue 1985-23-bridgestone-0pc-14b
I never knew these existed so long ago. It's surprising that they had kevlar belts for bikes almost 30 years ago.
Bridgestone Bicycle Catalogue 1985-23-bridgestone-0pc-14b
I never knew these existed so long ago. It's surprising that they had kevlar belts for bikes almost 30 years ago.
05-12-14, 12:57 PM
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Wow, neat! I bet those can fetch a pretty penny from collectors.
05-12-14, 01:09 PM
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There's a shaft drive bicycle at Orville and Wilbur's shop, archived at Henry Ford Village in Dearborn. I think it was built in the 1890s
The tour guide dude there was spouting some stuff about how it's so much better and maybe there was some kind of conspiracy that was the reason we were still using chain drive today.
I waited until the group was moving on and talked to him for a while. I wasn't confrontational at all and we had a nice chat, but I did mention to him that shaft drive had plenty of downsides and there was a very good reason why we aren't using it very widely today. I think he probably knew all that but he's got a script.
The tour guide dude there was spouting some stuff about how it's so much better and maybe there was some kind of conspiracy that was the reason we were still using chain drive today.
I waited until the group was moving on and talked to him for a while. I wasn't confrontational at all and we had a nice chat, but I did mention to him that shaft drive had plenty of downsides and there was a very good reason why we aren't using it very widely today. I think he probably knew all that but he's got a script.
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05-12-14, 02:13 PM
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There's a shaft drive bicycle at Orville and Wilbur's shop, archived at Henry Ford Village in Dearborn. I think it was built in the 1890s
The tour guide dude there was spouting some stuff about how it's so much better and maybe there was some kind of conspiracy that was the reason we were still using chain drive today.
I waited until the group was moving on and talked to him for a while. I wasn't confrontational at all and we had a nice chat, but I did mention to him that shaft drive had plenty of downsides and there was a very good reason why we aren't using it very widely today. I think he probably knew all that but he's got a script.
The tour guide dude there was spouting some stuff about how it's so much better and maybe there was some kind of conspiracy that was the reason we were still using chain drive today.
I waited until the group was moving on and talked to him for a while. I wasn't confrontational at all and we had a nice chat, but I did mention to him that shaft drive had plenty of downsides and there was a very good reason why we aren't using it very widely today. I think he probably knew all that but he's got a script.
05-12-14, 03:47 PM
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I agree, shaft drive sounds heavy and harder to work on to me. I've set backlash on helical cut gear sets before, and it's an involved process. Machining tolerance are also much higher than that of a chain drive, which drives up manufacturing costs. I did have a shaft drive Yamaha motorcycle though, and I absolutely loved not having a chain. Luckily, it never required maintenance during the time that I owned it.
Given the forces, weights, and power involved, it's REALLY hard to come up with an improvement over chain drives for powering bicycles, especially if mass production at a reasonable cost is a goal.
05-12-14, 04:48 PM
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Hated the shaft on my old Nighthawk S. Made the rear all squirrelly when getting on/off the throttle hard. MUCH prefer the belts on my Harleys.
Given the added weight,plus power loss,no way would I want a shaft drive on any of my bicycles. Chains work just fine.
Given the added weight,plus power loss,no way would I want a shaft drive on any of my bicycles. Chains work just fine.
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05-12-14, 06:16 PM
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05-13-14, 12:19 AM
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I'm not sure, really. It was only a 495cc, so not a ton of power. I did get'er up over 100mph though, so it wasn't a total slouch. I gotta say, I was skeptical, but power transmission was always smooth. It never leaked, and was super quiet. I was impressed overall. But like I said, setting up gears is no trivial matter. It can easily be done wrong and come out leaving something to be desired--even from the factory. Yamaha did mine right though, it was 29 years old and flawless when I ditched it for my Ducati. That doesn't mean it's an easy system to miniaturize for a bicycle though, nor would it be cost effective.
05-13-14, 12:31 AM
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By the way, have you ever seen those 2WD mountain bikes with the shaft drives? Christini actually made a full suspension version:
Christini AWD Long Travel Bicycle - Four Wheeler Magazine
And a chain drive:
Tretta AWD Bicycles put that lazy front wheel to work
Also, a flex cable drive: MOMBAT: 1991 Legacy 2WD Ovation
Christini AWD Long Travel Bicycle - Four Wheeler Magazine
And a chain drive:
Tretta AWD Bicycles put that lazy front wheel to work
Also, a flex cable drive: MOMBAT: 1991 Legacy 2WD Ovation
05-13-14, 12:53 AM
#10
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By the way, have you ever seen those 2WD mountain bikes with the shaft drives? Christini actually made a full suspension version:
Christini AWD Long Travel Bicycle - Four Wheeler Magazine
And a chain drive:
Tretta AWD Bicycles put that lazy front wheel to work
Also, a flex cable drive: MOMBAT: 1991 Legacy 2WD Ovation
Christini AWD Long Travel Bicycle - Four Wheeler Magazine
And a chain drive:
Tretta AWD Bicycles put that lazy front wheel to work
Also, a flex cable drive: MOMBAT: 1991 Legacy 2WD Ovation
