Electronically switchable chainless drivetrain developed for Alpha Bike concept
Rex just showed me this, looks pretty cool/expensive.
Sturmey Archer S3X, belt driven through the chainstay (looks quite draggy), clutch in the BB using a Shimano freehub body?
No rear brake for SS mode by the looks. And I wouldn’t trust my teeth to 3D printed handlebars.
Top work for a uni design project though.
Just noticed H+son rims in the picture.
Interesting how it could switch between fixed gear and free wheel with the bottom bracket they designed, looks super complex.
It’s an interesting idea. The designers would have achieved much greater efficiency by developing an electronically switchable fixed/free multispeed rear hub that could be used in either a conventional frame or a kevlar belt drive frame (like some Trek models). That might even have had some commercial potential. Of course, it wouldn’t look as sexy.
Here’s another interesting idea from the same source - Radical-looking RoundTail bike claims radically smoother ride . I wouldn’t be keen to buy such a bike myself though – too much flex, too much weight and too little efficiency (regardless of the designer’s claims).