CVT Is there anyone who doesn't want a NuVinci CVT hub??

Do you want a NuVinci CVT hub?


  • Total voters
    82
They always seemed to me like a wonderful solution for chain driven motorized bikes. If Dave Staton likes them, they are well made.
The weight issues comes with some serious mountain bikers I know, their prefernce seemed to favor the Shimano Nexus 8 which comes in around 3 lbs. but more even money too.

Also, I came across this on an electric bike board a while back, dunno how accurate it is but the guy is talking about dyno tests that reveal a 1/3 loss in power through the NuV:

http://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=5845&p=92409&hilit=NuVinci#p92409
 
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The nuvinci is great except for the weight. It has many MANY advantages over a normal straight geared system and requires almost no maintenance. However it's expensive and it does add enough weight to change the handling and portability characteristics of your ride where a lighter system may not. I have a friction setup which may be the lowest and simplest of all bike motor systems and a nuvinci system... Which ones better? It all depends on your needs. The friction setup is quieter and simpler on maintenance, much lighter and requires less maintenance however the nuvinci requires chain lube and adjustments and is a pain to change the rear tire on or fip/carry the bike but it can go anywhere with variable gearing and the engine can be synced with the pedaling. To make a long story short you just have to weigh pros and cons for your situation. If a simple or cheap setup works for your needs by all means go for it, but if you have more needs why shortchange yourself.

As for the dyno tests, I'd say a quarter loss may be reasonable. I definitely can't travel up steep hills as fast with the NV setup as I can with the friction unless its an extreme hill. Up some of the average hills with full throttle and max pedaling on the friction in a ducked position I can maintain 27-28mph (GOOD HILLS) on the NV same conditions maybe 22-24. However if I want to totally stop pedaling for long inclines the NV can climb really steep inclines around 20 with NO pedaling while the friction would just burn up its clutch and bog.
Everything has its pros and cons, select whats best for your use. You'll run into this for EVERYTHING you buy/use/make/ingest etc in your life. It's just the way of things.
 
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The nuvinci is great except for the weight. It has many MANY advantages over a normal straight geared system and requires almost no maintenance. However it's expensive and it does add enough weight to change the handling and portability characteristics of your ride where a lighter system may not. I have a friction setup which may be the lowest and simplest of all bike motor systems and a nuvinci system... Which ones better? It all depends on your needs. The friction setup is quieter and simpler on maintenance, much lighter and requires less maintenance however the nuvinci requires chain lube and adjustments and is a pain to change the rear tire on or fip/carry the bike but it can go anywhere with variable gearing and the engine can be synced with the pedaling. To make a long story short you just have to weigh pros and cons for your situation. If a simple or cheap setup works for your needs by all means go for it, but if you have more needs why shortchange yourself.

As for the dyno tests, I'd say a quarter loss may be reasonable. I definitely can't travel up steep hills as fast with the NV setup as I can with the friction unless its an extreme hill. Up some of the average hills with full throttle and max pedaling on the friction in a ducked position I can maintain 27-28mph (GOOD HILLS) on the NV same conditions maybe 22-24. However if I want to totally stop pedaling for long inclines the NV can climb really steep inclines around 20 with NO pedaling while the friction would just burn up its clutch and bog.
Everything has its pros and cons, select whats best for your use. You'll run into this for EVERYTHING you buy/use/make/ingest etc in your life. It's just the way of things.

That's a very well constructed answer Jakesus - like your bike itself - but how exactly do you synchronise the motor with the pedals? I thought your Staton NuVinci was a chain driven rig when last I was drooling over the pics. How much exactly is a NuVinci hub from Staaton?
 
These are my feelings on some of the points covered so far.
On my Staton gear drive I use 22T on gear box & the old 36T on the Nuvinci. While I can use the whole Nuvinci transmision range I would mainly use just 50% of it from about 20% through to 70%. So when starting off I would be at 20% and when crusing along on flat ground I would have the transmission at 70%. Either side of this range is for up or down step hills. I find with this gearing may pedal cadence is spot on.
As for loss in the transmission I really do not notice it and is no issue for me.
I think when looking at a Nuvinci you are building a mortored bike boardering on a motorcycle and are moving away from the simply mortored bike. So their will be some gains and losses with the system. A friction drive is the foundation of our passion in motored bikes and can get you going very cheaply with minimal fuss and the Nuvinci is at the other end of the scale.

This place have the hub for under $300 us http://www.cyclone-tw.com/order.htm but I have never delt with them.

Alex
 
That's a very well constructed answer Jakesus - like your bike itself - but how exactly do you synchronise the motor with the pedals?
Haven't we gone over this already? The motor and pedals are ALWAYS synchronized... inputOne + inputTwo = totalInput. When you shift, you can feel (thru pedaling and your throttle) what cadence works best for your totalOutput.

How much exactly is a NuVinci hub from Staaton?
$380, but thankfully we just found a site offering it at $300. NICE tip, Hardcarve1.
 
For me, the NuVinci is too involved of an addition. I have front and rear friction drives on my cruiser "Mr. Hyde", which is actually a simple setup. To reduce resistance and experiment with gearing, I'm changing the rear drive to an old Staton chain setup.

So the spare rear FD can now bolt onto my other cruiser "Girlie".

Besides, the NV would be too heavy for me. Right now, it takes two people to carry/lead "Mr. Hyde" up the stairs, ala water buffalo style. My wife pulls the front with the dog leash, and I've got the tail end.
 
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Hardcarve, the input for the nuvinci is a direct geared (no freewheel) 30 or so tooth sprocket and another freewheel to the right of it that does freewheel so the pedals can stay stationary while motoring. They're synchronized in the way that whatever gear ratio you're in you can pedal along at the same corresponding RPM from the engine. Anywhere from low revs and slow pedaling to screaming the engine at max RPM while pedaling at a fairly high cadence. I also use about a 20-90% of the gearing for normal riding. Too high and you're just going to bog the engine unless you're going the 32mph top speed, too low when starting out and your engine just pushes you to about 9mph then revs until you can let off the throttle a bit, shift and hit the gas again. While in the 20-90% range you can shift fairly easily under power without letting off the throttle. At the extreme ranges you have to ease off the gas to be able to shift. I generally just let off the gas enough to keep the clutch engaged but not push the bike too much so I don't have a jerky ride and burnt up clutch.
For the majority of my riding I don't need the NV at all but it definitely helps while scaling steep hills and off road where the need for low end power and higher speeds in clear areas are a must for an exciting ride.
 
I have just resumed riding the Nuvinci because the wheel that the bike shop laced was done incorrectly (3X cross). I have laced the wheel witha 1X cross pattern and did the job myself. I was amazed at how easy it was to get the wheel true after looking at youtube for help. I would recommend that you have your wheel laced with a 1X pattern as I have given my wheel a real work out with no problems.

I must admit the more I ride the Nuvinci the more I like it with and without motor. I have no issues with the weight now and find changing ratios so much better than sprockets. I now find riding my standard bike strange. You do notice after a ride of about 20km the hub is slightly warm so their must be some resistance or friction happening in side, or does the oil generate heat when it's put through load.
 
I've never actually felt the hub after a ride. The only explanation is friction if its warm. I don't see how it could possibly work without friction being generated.
NV setups definitely sound different than normal MB's. They sound more like small dirtbikes thand MB's due to the shifting.
 
Developer Kit

In regards to the Nuvinci, you haven't seen anything yet from Fallbrook. One of the issues with running your motor in to your gearing and using a shifter is that it technically is not an automatic transmission as described by Federal law and most states. This will make the Nuvinci a true automatic constantly variable transmission. The kit will be available early next year. I apologize for the photos of the sheet I got at Interbike but I don't have a scanner.
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