Eurobike 2019: Ceramic Speed Electronic Drivetrain on a Prototype Canyon

Last year, Ceramic Speed broke the internet with its radical 13-speed drivetrain solution, this year they’re back with a mountain bike version.

The 2018 prototype, in case you missed it.

Ceramic Speed’s very novel 13-speed drivetrain from Eurobike 2018 was cool. It was unlike anything we had ever seen before. It used a prop fast and bearings instead of a chain and cassette, BUT it was just for road bikes.

Now for full-suspension mountain bikes!

At Eurobike 2019, Ceramic Speed has addressed that one major flaw and created a mountain bike specific version of its electronic drivetrain. The trade-off though is that it has to be fitted to a specific Canyon Prototype full suspension bike, and the sample they have on show doesn’t actually shift.

Still the concept is there, and apparently they have samples that are being used in the real world now and with good results.

Telescopic carbon prop shaft.

The mountain bike, or should we say, full suspension version of the Ceramic Speed 13-speed drivetrain uses a telescopic carbon prop shaft to deal with ‘chain growth’.

Inside the shaft lives a rechargeable battery, and a motor with and wireless control that connects to a bar-mounted remote.

The final version will not use a hand.

The system works by splitting the ball-bearing wearing drive unit at the cassette end so that half the drive shifts before the other half for a smooth and accurate shift.

Internal motor-driven worm gear.

An internal motor-driven worm gear does all the work internally. The prototype we see here is a 3D printed model that has actually been ridden, but final versions will be alloy.

This is how we would use it in the UK.

Obviously I asked how the system deals with mud, grit, and sticks, and the Ceramic Speed guys have been thinking about it too. The current solution is to have an open cassette that allows small particles and debris to be ejected from the back of the unit, but for mountain biking, in UK climates they suggest a cover like the one shown here.

Ceramic Speed is currently on the lookout for brands interested in the development of the system, so it doesn’t sound like we will be seeing this come to market for a few years yet.

Andi Sykes

Andi is a gadget guru and mountain biker who has lived and ridden bikes in China and Spain before settling down in the Peak District to become Singletrack's social media expert. He is definitely more big travel fun than XC sufferer but his bike collection does include some rare hardtails - He's a collector and curator as well as a rider. Theory and practice in perfect balance with his inner chi, or something. As well as living life based on what he last read in a fortune cookie Andi likes nothing better than riding big travel bikes.