If the chain is the weakest link on any bicycle, then the Gates belt drive is perhaps one of the most significant innovations in the bicycle industry ever. It’s no wonder, then, that we choose Gates Carbon Drive for our bicycles. Thanks in part to the Gates belt, we can truly live up to our promise that Mokumono bicycles are reliable and low-maintenance.

The benefits of Gates Carbon Drive:

From V-belt to Carbon Drive

In 1911, a young American engineer named Charles Gates purchased the Colorado Tire and Leather Company in Denver for $3,500. This early version of a tire repair shop produced leather tire liners that extended the life of car tires—a necessity rather than a luxury at the time. Charles Gates didn’t remain a tire repairman for long; in 1917, he introduced the V-belt, an innovation that has made the company a global player to this day. When Gates developed a drive belt for motorcycles in 1980, an alternative to the rusting, high-maintenance bicycle chain was inevitable. That belt was introduced in 2007 and quickly became a success, especially as the electric bicycle began to gain popularity.

Mokumono chooses Gates

“Discovering the Gates belt drive was a real revelation for us,” recalls Mokumono co-founder Bob Schiller. “For my graduation project at the Design Academy Eindhoven in 2014—the Epo concept bike—I looked at what other bicycle manufacturers were doing. At the time, I found Schindelhauer to be an inspiring brand, mainly because of its aesthetics, but certainly also because of their choice of belt drive. No question about it: it had to be on the Epo.” The Epo became Mokumono, and the Gates belt drive became the standard for our bikes. We make low-maintenance and durable bikes, and in that pursuit, the Gates Carbon Drive belt drive is simply the very best choice.

Drive with ease

The unique characteristics of Gates belts are due to their carbon fiber tension cords. Carbon fiber offers an unmatched strength-to-weight ratio, making the belts as strong as steel yet extremely lightweight. For our latest model, the rugged Polder, we chose Gates CDC belts. The CDC belt pairs well with the Polder’s rear hub motor. Because the motor’s power doesn’t run through the drivetrain, the CDC offers the advantage of allowing slightly more play when aligning the belt. With this drivetrain, you can easily cover thousands of kilometers.