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Mi-Tech like it's about £1800 in total for frame, gearbox and shifter. That's a fair bit cheaper than Nicolai's £1400 on top of the base frame price.
Looks like they're charging 1500 Euro over their frame price for the Pinion. Remember that the euro exchange rate was sub 1.15 until the last month or two.
"Maßrahmen means ? It costs an extra 100 Euros"
A bargain for custom geo. They do custom carbon at very keen prices as well. Interesting.
The Nicolai Order Generator currently only lists the Helius with the Pinion option, not the Argon 29er.
The order generator only allows you to order a Helius AM Pinion but we've got customer orders in for an Argon Pinion, an AC29 Pinion and waiting for confirmation on a 650b Helius AC Pinion.
I've looked into building a steel hard tail around one but other projects, cost, availability and time have stopped me going any further. If anyone is interested in getting this going, email me (matt@18bikes.co.uk)
Matt
If Pinion make the gearbox case in a aluminium, then it's going to be limited to aluminium frames.
I suppose if it catches on, they will eventually make steel or titanium cases, or even cases that can be bonded in to a carbon frame.
How do you figure that, looks like it just bolts onto a 'standard' of some sort, it'd be harder to make from anything other than machined aluminium, but not impossible.
Plus this
That's because the British don't like change.
Steel hardtails are a Brittish quirk, aliminium FS bikes are a global market.
I'm assuming, possibly incorrectly, that Pinion make the whole case, not just the outside bits with their name on, and that the case is then welded to the frame tubes.
If pinion, or anyone else, made a case in steel or titanium, or if the case bolts to the tubes somehow, then yes, it could be made to fit any frame material.
From my understanding they produce the case and that connects to the frame via three bolts, ergo, excluding bimetalic corrosion and all that, the case can be bolted to any material
Here's a pic of a Pinion frame without the gearbox mounted:
http://fotos.mtb-news.de/p/960686
Looks like the piece with the mounting holes in it is cast aluminium and the tubes are welded onto that. Unknown whether Pinion make these castings or leave that to the frame manufacturers, but either way it's basically just 3 mounting holes so there's no reason it couldn't be made in another material (e.g. steel or carbon).
Ah, right, I assumed wrongly again.
That would explain [url= http://www.jeronimocycles.com/Proyectos-de-Montana/jeronimo-pandora-ti.html#comment-28 ]this Spanish titanium frame[/url] that I found on a [url= http://pinion.eu/discover-pinion/partners/ ]link on the Pinion website[/url] then.
I think there must be two versions.
[url= http://fotos.mtb-news.de/p/960682 ]This one[/url] appears to be welded to the case.
[url= http://fotos.mtb-news.de/p/960681 ]This one[/url] is definitely bolted.
I'm assuming, possibly incorrectly, that Pinion make the whole case,
Graham - go have a look at the
[url= http://www.pinion.eu/PDF/pinion_catalogue_2012_web.pdf ]Pinion Catalogue[/url]. There's a description of the mounting 'bridge' on pages 20-21. The description specifies that it's been forged and stress tested which suggests Pinion probably can supply this part. Can't see any reason why the bridge couldn't be made from another material if the manufacturer designed it properly - on the Nicolai frames I've seen look like the bridge is two machined parts welded together.
I think there must be two versions.
Those two photos are definitely of the same bike, just different sides.
So they are, it's just me getting confused. And they mention the possibility of carbon frames in that catalogue too.
Thats a very well placed bush hiding the fact you still need a delicate mechanism dangling off the back of your bike.
you still need a delicate mechanism dangling off the back of your bike
Apparently that was a pre-production prototype which used a rear chain tensioner, however the production version is supposed to have a front tensioner like on this bike:
http://www.pinkbike.com/news/Pinion-Gearbox-First-Ride.html
I'm still not a fan of tensioners, front or rear
I know what you mean but they're always going to be necessary on a full-sus unless it pivots around the BB.
Which would be a bugger with this up so perhaps some new frame designs should be explored
I'm still not a fan of tensioners, front or rear
perhaps some new frame designs should be explored
The only (?) way to ensure zero chain extension is to pivot around the centre of the drive. Nicolai did that on their own GBoxx designs. The downsides are that you add bulk (as you've separated drive and input) which implies additional weight - the Pinion is remarkably compact. You also restrict suspension to single pivot designs. A tensioner of some kind is a lighter, simpler solution and, since it's just a tensioner, if it gets knocked you can bend it back straight enough to work. The Pinion tensioner is tucked out of the way as well.
I'm with Podge here - there's something irritating about still requiring a chain tensioner having finally dispensed with the rear mech.
I cant see a little added weight being an issue to anyone buying a full suspension bike with gearbox.
plus most FS bikes are single pivot (either traditional or lever driven shock) anyway.
Fit a smaller chainring on the pinion for clearance, extend the rear pivot to take a twin sprocket on the drive side & stick some sliding dropouts on it... I know its not "quite" that easy but there is your most basic solution.