Interbike 2010: Turner Bikes and Belt Drives

Press Launch

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It’s always a pleasure to see David Turner at events like the Sea Otter and Interbike. David is a great engineer (and a pretty handy rider too) but he’s got no time for marketing and hype. His always refreshing take on things is worth parching in the desert for. If he’s having trouble developing a prototype, he’ll tell you. If he thinks that a new hub, or BB standard is silly, he’ll tell you that too. His bikes come in simple colours, with simple graphics and he’s happy to chat about any aspect of them.

So without further ado, here’s the new RFX prototype.

Turner RFX

The flat grey of an unfinished proto, rather than the flat grey of a finished bike.

DW Link gives 6.5in/165mm of travel

This'll be Turner's first frame with the new 142mm thru-axle rear 'standard'

Unbolt-able dropouts in case of incident. Turner's first new derailleur hanger for 11 years appearently.

This was before the essential installation of technical zipties for the hose of the Rockshox Reverb uppydowny post.

Full 1.5in/44mm headtube for big (or tapered) forks. Lovely bit of head tube embossing too.

No, you can't buy one. That's why it says 'Prototype'. Out in 2011 though.

Turner Sultan

And now here’s the Sultan. A bike that Turner was initially a little sceptical about introducing a few years ago, but it’s proved to be a very big hit. For 2011 Turner has shortened the headtube (and is running a 44mm semi inset headset) to keep the front end down for 120mm forks.

Maybe it's just us, but big-wheelers are looking less kooky than they used to.

Tapered Fox 29er forks up front, a 44mm head tube and a degree slacker head angle to 69.5°

Post mount rear, first seen last year, Turner has now integrated it into its dropouts - which feature replaceable trunion bolts for the hamfisted.

Turner DHR

That’s not a 29er… Nope, the Turner DHR is finally in production. And by the sound of things, Turner reckons it’ll run out again in about three weeks, such is the demand for the first run of bikes.

There's a DW Link in there somewhere.

Now that's a low and mean looking stance.

Gates Carbon Drive

Gates has just launched its new Centretrack – OK ‘Centertrack’ in their parlance, as an update to the carbon belt system first introduced in 2007. The new carbon drive belt is thinner than the old one, and features a central slot which engages in the newly redesigned cogs.

Brand new sprockets in aluminium (or probably steel for hub gears)

Chunky aluminium chainring is actually lighter than the old one. Here's a good angle on the belt's slot.

The new narrow belt means that it should clear frames with Alfine hub gears better. It'll also keep the belt running centrally even if knocked off line (or if you've set the chainline up wonky)

The Squirt lubes guys were providing a fine public service, weighing bikes. We might run a few 2011 models past this tomorrow and see how silly bikes are getting these days.

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Chipps Chippendale

Singletrackworld's Editor At Large

With 23 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)

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