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9:ZERO:7 Puts a Belt on a Fattie, Along with NuVinci N360 Hub

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9:ZERO:7 Puts a Belt on a Fattie, Along with NuVinci N360 Hub

Having some fun with the name, 9:ZERO:7’s new fatbike is named the Tusken. As in the Tusken Raiders, or Sand People from that famous movie where Luke is looking for that droid in the desert. How does that have anything to do with their new fatbike? Well, thanks to the Tusken being the first fatbike offered withFallbrook’s continuously variable NuVinci N360 interal hub and a Gates Carbon Drive CenterTrack belt drive, the Tusken is perfect for adventures through the sand in deserts or beaches everywhere. Without external gears to worry about, sand in the drive train is a non-issue though, it’s equally as good in snow and other loose conditions – after all, it’s still a fatbike.

Joining the Origin-8 Crawler in the fatbikes-with-NuVinci N360 hubs category, the Tusken takes it a step further with the addition of the belt drive thanks to 9:ZERO:7’s 135mm spaced sliding rear dropout frame. The wheel is built into an offset design similar to that found on a Surly Pugsley for the necessary fatbike clearance. The Tusken gets built with cutout Rolling Darryl rims, Truvativ carbon handlebars, and a Race Face Turbine Crankset, BB7 mechanical brakes, Surly Knard Tires, and 9:ZERO:7’s aluminum fork.

Tuskens will retail for $2,950 in S(15), M(17), and L(19) frames in either anodized black or painted grey.

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a
a
11 years ago

Going for an inefficiency record?

Matt
Matt
11 years ago

I would love if the guy with the test lab in Colorado would test two things:

1. Internally Geared Hubs (including the NuVinci n360)
2. Belt drives

I’m guessing that the lack of data from manufacturers means both are more inefficient, but it would be nice to quantify exactly how much less efficient so that we could make a more-informed decision regarding them. And who knows, maybe this n360 + Gates setup is no less efficient than a not-perfectly lubed chain?

lukee
lukee
11 years ago

@matt- the guy did test belt drives. At low wattage the belt was more inefficient. At higher wattages it was more efficient. The breaking point was 208 watts i believe. This actually makes complete sense as a bike option for sand and snow. There is no way a chain drive with derailleurs is more efficient when it is filled with sand. Even if it is, would you rather have the extra 1% efficiency (what he tested for belt drive) or pay for a new drivetrain every few weeks. here is the link… http://www.bikeradar.com/road/news/article/chain-or-belt-drive-which-is-faster-36074/

stratosrally
stratosrally
11 years ago

I’m sure that to some fatbike enthusiasts the smoothness of the belt, the CV trans, and the fact that mud & debris is much less of an issue on the drivetrain will outweigh any minor loss in efficiency.

They’re not speed demons, they are smooth and steady endurance riders. Watch some YouTube vids of them in snow – it’s kinda boring because they’re just slogging away, keeping a slow burn going.

If I can budget yet another bike, I want one!

2 styles of riding, fast & full of huckin’ and slow nature rides across sand, mud, and snow – I can dig that…

Rentedshoes
Rentedshoes
11 years ago

Dumb.

nick
nick
11 years ago

Both gates belt drive and the nuvinci hubs are effecient, very in fact, having experience with both. BUT the nuvinci hub is suuper heavy, and the belts are expensive.

Get out of your holes and go see some bikes. Sheesh.

a
a
11 years ago

…ahh the old, anecdotal “evidence” trumps engineering theory, gambit.

The 360 is a friction based CVT and friction based CVT’s are inherently “lossy”. Of course Nuvinci dont give any hard numbers because why bother when they can wait 5 years for the anecdotal evidence to trickle down…

Androo
Androo
11 years ago

I think it’s super rad. Just can’t justify that price.

I’d probably prefer a standard Alfine to the Nuvinci, also.

Matt
Matt
11 years ago

@lukee
That’s excellent information that I didn’t already know, thanks for sharing.

Now if there was only a way to give the efficiency of a belt without all the power-sucking tension.

Hopefully FrictionFacts can do an internally geared hub vs. baseline standard chainring/cassette/derailer review sometime soon.

MB
MB
11 years ago

That loss in efficiency is gonna KILL their 40k TT times… 😉

Get over it. The people who care about these bikes don’t give a sh*t about your comments.

And learn to using google/bing/etc. Lots of data about IGH efficiency. Try “rohloff” and “efficiency” for starters.

Dirty chain test here: http://www.friction-facts.com/test-results/free-reports/free-dirty-chain-test

doug austin
doug austin
11 years ago

Forget the spooky conspiracy theory schtick about Fallbrook allegedly burying the engineering evidence regarding the alleged inherent energy inefficiency of the NuVinci hubs. Maybe they are. Whatever. I ride HARD, 15 miles per day, 6 days per week, 50 weeks per year. I went from a derailleur to a NuVinci 360 18 months ago and I’ll never look back. And the reasons why? NO maintenance in 18 months. Let me repeat – NO maintenance. Derailleurs constantly need adjustment and maintenance. In what what parallell universe could this be regarded as efficient? Plus the system is immune to dirt, grime buildup, stickssnd the chain never bounces off when you hit a bump. NuVincis are simply awesome. Customer for life here. Can’t wait to see what they do next.

diehipsterdie
diehipsterdie
11 years ago

I think it’s pretty cool, i have a nuvinci on my big dummy, its a great ride just never going anywhere really fast haha

Ryan
Ryan
11 years ago

Looks fun, which is why I ride. I’d love to have one!

Bikehoarder6
Bikehoarder6
11 years ago

Quote: new fatbike is named the Tusken. As in the Tusken Raiders, or Sand People from that famous movie where Luke is looking for that droid in the desert.

If it has ANYTHING to do with Star Wars – Then It’s totally Rad!

Andrew
Andrew
11 years ago

While I can’t comment specifically on the Nuvinci hub, I do own and have been riding all this winter on a sliding dropout 9:zero:7 with an Alfine 11 internal hub and gates center track belt drive. To sum it up, it’s awesome! Perfect for commuting and carefree riding. I ride anywhere from 8-20miles a day 5-6 days per week. I commute in the snow on single track trails to work and also entered winter xc style races with it and did well. I have done NO maintenance at all to this bike since it was built in November. I will also be beach riding this weekend in Homer and am happy to know that I do not have to worry about sand and salt chewing up my drivetrain! This is my real world test results: awesome!

MS
MS
11 years ago

Instead of the Tusken, they should have called it the Jawa, because Jawas drove what?

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