BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
Gates has revealed a value belt drive that will cost around half of the price of the brand’s premium CDX drive system.
The new Gates Carbon Drive CDN system has the same carbon fiber tensile cord technology and CenterTrack sprocket design as the premium offering and comes optimised for lower tension.
“CDN is our value-oriented belt drive for people who want a clean and stylish city bike for getting into town or around the neighborhood,” says Todd Sellden, director of Gates Carbon Drive. “It’s for bicyclists who ride in jeans or skirts and casual shoes, not spandex and race gear.”
The CDN belt has nine carbon cords embedded within an engineered polymer belt with a patented 11 millimeter tooth pitch profile that allows for a lower tension. The front sprocket is made from reinforced composite embedded with glass fibers and comes as an integrated crank assembly for easy factory installation. The rear sprocket is made from steel.
The new value CDN belt will be manufactured in Dumfries, Scotland, where the system has been develped and tested for the past five years.
Gates will launch CDN at the Taipei Bike Show and is currently booking appointments.
“Interest is high,” says Frank Scurlock, global sales director for Gates Carbon Drive. “Brands have been asking for this, with the goal of using it on high volume bike models for the general public.”
CDX remains the application for mountain biking, cyclocross racing and long-distance bike touring.
