Pinion gearboxes, though still a niche choice, are growing more popular for bikepacking lately. Personally I’ve stuck with traditional drivetrains, but my husband switched to a Pinion a couple years ago. Since then we’ve bikepacked 2400+ miles side-by-side on our respective setups.
Briefly, a Pinion gearbox is an enclosed system of internal gears that sits at the bike’s bottom bracket, replacing the rear cassette as means of shifting. To transfer pedaling force it’s paired with a Gates carbon belt drive instead of a chain.
I thought it would be fun to write up this purely anecdotal and non-technical account of our experiences riding side-by-side on a Pinion and a traditional drivetrain, including the pros and cons of each setup and my thoughts on which is best. Not that it’s a competition or anything. Well ok, maybe just a little.
If you’re considering a Pinion for bikepacking I hope it helps!
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Backstory: How He Came to Hate Derailleurs
Long story short, once upon a time I bikepacked and toured over 10,000 miles alone. When my husband finally realized this was more than a passing phase and took time away from work to join me, I was stoked. We outfitted him with a Fargo, cousin to my own beloved Shadowfax, and off we went on some shorter trips together.
Those early trips went poorly, for his bike and for our relationship. First, a derailleur in the spokes derailed our traverse of New Mexico (I blame the frozen mud). Then a snapped chainring slowed us down on the Great Divide. How does one snap a chainring just by pedaling?? (Answer: most likely a loose bolt.)
What the heck? I never had issues like this. He’s stronger and heavier than me, was he putting too much force through the drivetrain? I was the one maintaining our bikes…. Had I messed up? Was it just really bad luck?
Our riding grew tense as I listened to the sound of his drivetrain, cringing at every noisy shift. Stupid arguments ensued. This was not the path to the adventure couple bliss I yearned for.
Understandably he developed a grudge against traditional drivetrains. He’s a technology connoisseur and an early adopter, and not one to give up easily. Before I knew it he had researched alternatives and set his heart on a Pinion gearbox.
At first I was skeptical, mainly because I didn’t know how to help maintain it. And it would mean an expensive new bike, nicer than mine at the time (totally not jealous I swear). But when I realized he would be invested in bikepacking on his own terms and would probably enjoy our trips more, I was all for it. Anything for a successful bikepacking partnership and harmonious relationship.
So he got his new bike, a Solace OM-2P with Pinion C1.12 gearbox and Gates belt drive, with money he’d made working while I was off bikepacking alone. He named it Kuiper, after the Kuiper Belt (an astronomy thing), and over the next couple years we took three major trips together: five weeks in Central Asia, two months in Morocco and Portugal, and a couple weeks on the Cape Loop in southern Baja.
Me, I stuck with my traditional drivetrains which don’t tend to give me much trouble (knock wood): a Shimano SLX 1×12 on my Chumba Stella and a SRAM 2×10 on my Salsa Fargo.
We’ve ridden our traditional and Pinion drivetrains side by side, in all the same conditions, for over 2400 miles of bikepacking. The rest of this post shares our experiences (purely anecdotal and your mileage may vary) of the pros and cons of each.
Gearing
How you feel about the Pinion’s gearing relates to how you feel about 1x drivetrains in general. I made the switch to 1x on my Stella mountain bike and I like my 1×12 Shimano SLX drivetrain for most bikepacking applications, especially more rugged terrain. It goes low enough for the climbs and high enough for my (usually leisurely) needs on flats and downs.
His Pinion is a 12 speed with 600% gear range, which is actually larger than my Shimano 12 speed’s 500%. His low gear is even lower; he can grind up climbs at an annoyingly impressively slow pace. And unlike my SLX, his gears are evenly spaced with no big jumps.
In other words, if you’re open to 1x gearing in general, the Pinion is even better than the current best traditional 1x drivetrain.
Winner: Pinion
Damage Resistance
The rear derailleur is arguably the most vulnerable part of a traditional drivetrain bike. This is a big deal for bikepacking, especially on long trips where the bike might end up boxed on an airplane, shoved in the cargo compartment of a bus, or strapped to the top of a local taxi.
I’ve bent a few derailleur hangers while bikepacking, and honestly the Pinion’s lack of this dangly bit is one of its biggest selling points in my opinion. When our bikes go into the cargo hold of a local bus or into cardboard boxes at the airport, I’m the only one stressing about the orientation of my derailleur.
My most recent derailleur hanger incident happened during a trip together in the Moroccan desert. His Pinion was looking pretty good as I crouched in the sand to replace my hanger, saddle hooked over the scraggly branch of the only tree for miles. To his credit he never said “I told you so” but I could tell he was thinking it.
Winner: Pinion
Mud, Dust, and Chain Maintenance (or Lack Thereof)
Belt drives aren’t exclusive to Pinion bikes, but they are a major selling point. Instead of a metal chain, my husband’s bike uses a Gates carbon belt to transfer force from the cranks to the wheel. This setup is famously robust to the types of muddy, gritty, and excessively dusty conditions that can bring a traditional bike chain grinding to a sticky halt.
My traditional drivetrains have been pretty reliable, even in messy conditions, and I haven’t had major issues. But they do take a bit more care, and when we ride together through the worst mud and dust he sometimes has to wait (mostly patiently) while I clean and lube my chain.
Though usually more robust than a chain, the belt can sometimes slip off the sprockets. This happened memorably in Kyrgyzstan when a pebble found its way into his belt and we found ourselves crouched in a ditch in a gnarly thunderstorm. But once he found the pebble and dialed in the proper belt tension, it’s been pretty darn reliable.
Tensioning the belt is the one task of his that rivals the occasional annoyance of lubing my chain. The sliding dropouts on his frame have been a little fiddly (maybe we just haven’t figured out the secret yet) and he’s more hesitant to remove his rear wheel because of the re-tensioning required. I’m sure long-term Pinion riders get this down easily, but in the beginning it’s a matter of strumming the belt like a guitar string and listening to the pitch (there’s an app for it, kind of like a guitar tuner, but it’s hard to get a good reading).
Belt drives don’t need lubricating, so he’s never had to stress about running out of chain lube in a remote corner of the world like I have. They do tend to get a little noisy though, and I tend to want to ride farther away from him when that happens. They can be lubricated with silicone lube for a quieter ride, but he doesn’t usually carry this while bikepacking.
Winner: Pinion, once you get used to the belt drive
Maintenance and Field Repair
One of the most common arguments against an internally geared setup like the Pinion is its lack of DIY repairability. I’ve put a lot of effort into learning how to repair and maintain my own bike on the road, so when my husband got his Pinion I worried about trip-ending issues I wouldn’t be able to help fix.
The deal with internal gear mechanisms like the Pinion (or Rohloff) is that big issues can’t be repaired on your own or in the field, BUT they are extremely unlikely. You’re not going to find someone who can work on them in the far corners of the world, or even in many major US cities; you’ll have to send them off for service in the rare event of a big issue.
In exchange for this worst-case inconvenience you get a low maintenance, highly reliable system the rest of the time. Instead of replacing chains and cassettes every few thousand miles, the Pinion simply needs a quick occasional oil change.
That said, it’s not totally true that you can’t fix anything on the road. His first real issue with the Pinion was a shifting problem caused by a couple loose bolts on the gearbox cover. After a few minutes of roadside panic we were able to diagnose the problem, tighten the bolts (after adding a dab of threadlocker) and continue on our way.
As for preventative maintenance, since he got his Pinion I’ve replaced one 12 speed chain while he’s done nothing, but he’s due for an oil change sometime soon.
Winner: TBD, so far so good on both sides (knock wood)
Spare Parts to Carry
A Pinion requires a few tweaks to your bikepacking repair kit. Here are the drivetrain-related spares and tools we each carry while bikepacking.
What I carry for my traditional drivetrain: chain lube and rag, several spare chain links and master links, one spare shift cable
What he carries for his Pinion: spare Gates belt, two spare shift cables, Pinion lockring tool (unlikely to be needed, enables removing the front sprocket and is not a tool most bike shops have on hand).
The biggest difference here is the belt. They’re extremely strong, but they can snap under extreme stress and you won’t find a replacement along your route. I carry just a few chain links and they take up almost no space. He carries an entire spare belt which is much bulkier, though in exchange he doesn’t have to worry about chain lube. The belt coils up fairly neatly, but still, I’m happy not to have one in my bags.
Winner: Slight edge to traditional drivetrain for not needing a spare belt
Feel and Functionality
An internal gearbox is a totally different mechanism from a cassette and derailleur. Riding a Pinion bike feels different, but my husband says it’s easy to get used to and he likes it better. A few specific notes:
Shifting multiple gears at once: This is handy! It reminds me of the friction shifters on my touring bike, but better because you can even do it while stopped. No more getting stuck in the wrong gear at the bottom of a climb.
Grip shifters: Some people hate these, but he likes them. Honestly they seem more ergonomic to me than my MTB-style shifters, but hand issues are a very individual matter.
Engagement lag: One valid criticism of the Pinion is that it takes a bit longer to engage when you start pedaling. He compensated for this by splashing out on an instant-engagement Onyx hub, which has the nice side benefit of being wonderfully quiet.
So Why Don’t I Ride a Pinion?
What I’ve written so far makes the Pinion sound pretty darn good! Certainly my husband is a big fan. So why do I still ride traditional drivetrain bikes? A few reasons.
Weight: I’m significantly smaller (and if I’m being honest, weaker) than he is, so keeping my overall bike weight lower is a bigger priority for me. Depending on how you measure, a Pinion gearbox is at least a couple pounds heavier than a modern traditional drivetrain.
Variety: You can only put a Pinion on a frame specifically built for it, so the choice of bikes is much more limited. As a bike nerd and someone who likes to play around with different setups, I don’t want this limitation.
Cost: A pinion adds a significant chunk to the cost of a bike, though it’s hard to tell exactly how much because you can’t simply buy a Pinion gearbox on its own. To be fair, I also own a pretty nice titanium bike, but the drivetrain doesn’t represent such a hefty chunk of its overall cost.
In Conclusion
So which is better for bikepacking, a Pinion or traditional drivetrain?
My husband adores his Pinion, but I don’t feel motivated to give up my cassettes and derailleurs any time soon. I hope this comparison shows that either can work fine and both can get through the same tough conditions, so choose the one you’ll be most excited to ride.
The most important benefit of the Pinion so far, in my opinion: relationship harmony while bikepacking together. And that’s priceless!
More Bikepacking Resources
If you liked this post there’s lots more where it came from:
- Bikepacking Food Guide: Hearty Squish-Proof Menu Ideas
- Baja’s Cape Loop: Desert Bikepacking Meets Mid-Winter Beach Vacation
- Bikepacking With a Dropper Post: Impressions of a Reluctant Convert
Or visit the bikepacking home page for lots more!
About the Author
Hi there, I’m Alissa, founder of Exploring Wild. I’ve traveled over 20,000 miles by bike and still can’t stop planning my next ride (and helping you plan yours). Pavement and panniers or singletrack and seat bag, I love it all. On my bike I feel free. Learn more about me here.
Bikepackers: Join me on Patreon for my most current and personal writing, individualized trip prep help, and a community of likeminded supporters.
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That was an excellent review, comparing the two systems, pro and con. I’m not in the market right now but your review would definitely help someone who was. Thanks, Mel.
Thanks Mel!
Thanks Alissa, another great review! You inspired me to cycle your Kazakh/Kyrgyzstan route this summer – which was AMAZING!
Took my pinion gearbox & gates belt – worked a dream, bulletproof!
Hi Justin, so glad to hear you enjoyed the Central Asia route! It’s sooo stunning, one of my all-time favorites for sure. And good to know the Pinion and Gates setup was a success for you. My husband would certainly agree!
I’ll add another few pluses and minuses for derailleurs vs pinion. A rear wheel for a pinion (or rohloff) is considerably stronger than one for a derailleur type drivetrain (a wheel for a rohloff with 32° is going to be stronger than a 48° with a cassette). A rohloff or pinion has proprietary replacement parts. Ability to get said replacement parts is dependent upon rohloff or pinion staying in business. Even if they stay in business – if there’s a change in who runs the company or they hit financial hardships they’re likely to discontinue producing replacement parts. It’s common in industry. There’s more money to be made selling a complete expensive new unit vs a cheap replacement spring/circlip/oil seal/cog of whatever size you need… With a pinion it’s a proprietary gearbox requiring a specific frame which can’t accept a regular crank. Will the industry decide to get a new standard for gearbox frames in 8 years? With a traditional derailleur drivetrain you will continue to be able to get derailleurs, shifters and cassettes in 20 years even if SRAM and Shimano go out of business. There’s other companies such as Ltwoo, sensah, microshift and due to the millions of derailleur bikes in existence someone else would step up to fulfill the place in the market. I like the rohloff and have worked on many bikes with a rohloff for MTB, touring and recumbent applications for nearly 20 years. One of the downsides to pinion/rohloff drivetrains in a reduction in efficiency. A rohloff loses 1-2% whereas a pinion loses ~5% vs a derailleur drivetrain. This is in addition to the weight. As far as gear range and technological updates – derailleurs are a fairly mature technology but I’d argue that for at least the next 10 years they’re still going to be seeing more improvements than pinion/rohloff due to the amount of $ that SRAM, Shimano, sensah, Ltwoo, microshift… are able to invest in R&D. It’s worth noting that a rohloff is going to take wacky 4 bolt disc rotors as well as likely uncommon length spokes. A 26″ rohloff wheel takes spokes that would be typical of a 24″ wheel. Available but don’t expect that tiny bike shop in some remote location to have the right length in stock – you shouldn’t need them but bring a few extra spokes for the rear wheel. The pinion requires proprietary cranks. They’re typically fine but if you’re particularly short/tall you might have trouble getting proper length cranks to fit your legs. While derailleurs are absolutely a less durable design – so many millions of them have been made since long before we were born and $$$$ invested into their development/refinement they’re pretty darn good. If pinion/rohloff was to sell 100,000,000 of them they’d be able to make them far better – just like derailleurs.
I’ll add another few pluses and minuses for derailleurs vs pinion. A rear wheel for a pinion (or rohloff) is considerably stronger than one for a derailleur type drivetrain (a wheel for a rohloff with 32° is going to be stronger than a 48° with a cassette). A rohloff or pinion has proprietary replacement parts. Ability to get said replacement parts is dependent upon rohloff or pinion staying in business. Even if they stay in business – if there’s a change in who runs the company or they hit financial hardships they’re likely to discontinue producing replacement parts. It’s common in industry. There’s more money to be made selling a complete expensive new unit vs a cheap replacement spring/circlip/oil seal/cog of whatever size you need… With a pinion it’s a proprietary gearbox requiring a specific frame which can’t accept a regular crank. Will the industry decide to get a new standard for gearbox frames in 8 years? With a traditional derailleur drivetrain you will continue to be able to get derailleurs, shifters and cassettes in 20 years even if SRAM and Shimano go out of business. There’s other companies such as Ltwoo, sensah, microshift and due to the millions of derailleur bikes in existence someone else would step up to fulfill the place in the market. I like the rohloff and have worked on many bikes with a rohloff for MTB, touring and recumbent applications for nearly 20 years. One of the downsides to pinion/rohloff drivetrains in a reduction in efficiency. A rohloff loses 1-2% whereas a pinion loses ~5% vs a derailleur drivetrain. This is in addition to the weight. As far as gear range and technological updates – derailleurs are a fairly mature technology but I’d argue that for at least the next 10 years they’re still going to be seeing more improvements than pinion/rohloff due to the amount of $ that SRAM, Shimano, sensah, Ltwoo, microshift… are able to invest in R&D. It’s worth noting that a rohloff is going to take wacky 4 bolt disc rotors as well as likely uncommon length spokes. A 26″ rohloff wheel takes spokes that would be typical of a 24″ wheel. Available but don’t expect that tiny bike shop in some remote location to have the right length in stock – you shouldn’t need them but bring a few extra spokes for the rear wheel. The pinion requires proprietary cranks. They’re typically fine but if you’re particularly short/tall you might have trouble getting proper length cranks to fit your legs. While derailleurs are absolutely a less durable design – so many millions of them have been made since long before we were born and $$$$ invested into their development/refinement they’re pretty darn good. If pinion/rohloff was to sell 100,000,000 of them they’d be able to make them far better – just like derailleurs.