Suntour V-Boxx
Friday, August 25th, 2006What does the future hold for upgraded bikes in downhilling? Internal Transmissions stand a strong chance of becoming very prevalent. There are a few companies that currently race/build internally geared bikes.
Honda’s RN01 is one of the most expensive downhill bikes to produce and they perform amazing well on the downhill circuits. If you’ve ever seen one you know what they’re capable of. Suntour is releasing their internally geared transmission during eurobike this year and it should be interesting to see where all this eventually takes us. There’s a lot of different types of internal transmissions and I say the more the merrier.
Gboxx is another major player in the game of internal transmissions. The Suntour V-boxx is using spurgears that are on different shafts. It does not use chains or a planetary system inside of it. There are numerous benefits to internal gearing but the cost behind these bikes are not cheap.
How the GT IT-1 works.
How It Works (from popsci)
At the heart of the IT-1’s design is Shimano’s new Nexus 8 hub [A]. As you pedal, the chain on the right side of the bike [B] turns the hub’s axle, engaging its internal gears. (You shift from the handlebar as you normally would, lengthening or shortening a cable attached to the hub.) The cog on the left side of the axle [C] turns a second chain [D] that drives the rear wheel. The hub’s internal gearing determines the speed of this chain.”
[more at suntour] [more at gboxx]
