Shimano Linkglide, is it worth the money?

Lets take a closer look at Shimanos linkglide system on an ebike. does it work, is it any good, lets find out.

[@pastori70]

I’m going to upgrade to Linkglide system. At the moment I have Deore XT 12-speed, but the system eats chains and cogs for breakfast. I have an eBike. My wife has Linkglide. Her drivetrain shows no wear at all! Definitely upgrading for the next season. Shimano CUES and DT Hybrid = tank.

[@ashleyscarth8363]

i swap out my sram 12 speed to a 10 speed saint rear mech with 11-36 cassette with 30 tooth chain ring on my ebike just going use the power mode if climb get hard

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@lukeh7854]

Wait though, what’s the deal with microspline hubs?

[@NonLegitNation2]

only for 12-speed all other linkglide cassettes use HG hubs. That is IF there are 12-speed linkglide cassettes, I'm not sure if there are.

[@Bikeaddict4235]

My wife’s bike has a basic 9 speed Shimano setup without a clutch , it drops the chain regularly so I’d like to swap it. Does anyone know Can changing e-bike gear numbers ie 9 to 10 or 11 mess up the motor settings ?

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment, yes it can, minor changes should be ok

[@Bikeaddict4235]

Thanks for taking the time to answer, not sure I understand what a minor change would be? Ideally I’d like to swap out the drivetrain for 11 speed would that be classified as minor?

[@mikeleaver6092]

@@Bikeaddict4235 I swapped a 9 speed shimano to the 10 speed linkglide system, cassette, derailleur, shifter and chain replaced. No mods necessary and the system is great. Best upgrade I’ve done on my e-bike

[@Bikeaddict4235]

@@mikeleaver6092thats great, which e-bike system do you have .? Shimano, bosch ? Yamaha etc

[@mikeleaver6092]

@@Bikeaddict4235 I have a Trek Dual Sport 2+, it has a Hyena rear hub drive and torque sensor in the bottom bracket. Probably not has much torque on the chai as a centre drive, however, it still makes the drive much smoother than the original setup😉

[@muscles3929]

I installed the XT 11 speed on my my Specialized Levo about 500 miles ago and it is absolutely great. I can shift while putting the power down and it’s holding up much better than the Sram X01 did.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comments

[@mattclark1278]

Quick details: 11 speed vs the standard 12 speed hyperglide. 11-50 vs 11-52. No need for a long-cage derailleur. Any Shimano chain will work (though the LG chain is waaay tougher). They shift a little slower, but stronger and smoother, especially under full power. And no - despite the four assertions it's much more expensive the entire cassette/chain/derailleur/shifter component group can be pieced together for < $400 USD (in XT format). Zero reason to not buy it.

[@jiw71]

I have the Shimano Deore 10 speed (11-43) linkglide drivetrain on my hardtail e-mtb (e-7000 motor). Just turning 3000kms . Original chain (still under the .5 calibration) and cassette and shifts flawlessly. I'm impressed!

[@GC16199]

Good morning, I installed the 11 speed Linkglide system on my originally SRAM / Bosch setup. So changed freehub etc, all is good but I was wondering what chainring I should take, I have a SRAM 12 speed chainring now but I have a feeling its not the best fit for the Linkglide chain.

[@denis_roy_7]

Thank you for the video! Question: is it safe to hang the bike like you did so high on the drop saddle post?

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching, yes as long as the post is fully extended.

[@denis_roy_7]

@@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic Good to know, thanks! Greetings from Québec (Gaspésie)!

[@321bytor]

...lovely and warm in Sowerby Bridge...that's a first! 🤣

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comment, we have been lucky lately

[@Cobretti_GTI]

0:33 We have a beatifull white...... and i was like. the bike is not white ma men hhhhahahahhahah🤣🤣🤣. Excellent explanation about linkglide :). and i agree, very good looking bike.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@thediscoman2001]

great video mike but why doe you keep trying to shuv buying new, there is a vast second-hand market out there for us mere mortals, i do know that most manufactures dont like there sponsors or people that are use dealer software to endorse buying second-hand motors but alast some of us have no option when the warranty has expired and like most company's i.e Bosch, shimarno ect. we are on our own as they wont f all to do with us so why shuv it down our necks,being a third party battery repair and motor guy dont you think its about time you did some videos on the second-hand market and the pitfalls of buying in this area

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi thanks for your comments, give me a call and we can discuss how this could be done and what you have in mind

[@micktheshaggy3977]

Few months ago I've decided to bite the bullet and spent some extra money for 10s Linkglide drivetrain (cassette, RD, shifter and chain), but it is still waiting for the installation, so I can't provide any feedback yet. Before switching to Linkglide, I want to suck out every bit of life that still left in my Sram Eagle (NX) cassette and the two chains I swap every 500 km, they were expensive (especially the cassette) so I want them to pay me off. That cost of Eagle components was the trigger for the decision to switch to Linkglide, my calculations say that I will be able to save some money on chains and cassettes. As for the cost of the transition - I'm not sure about UK recent prices, but where I live, every part of the Linkglide 10s was then actually cheaper than Sram NX.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment, Good thinking, I think that belt drive is the answer and hub gears or a motor with gears built in.

[@wilko2907]

If I get 1000miles of any cassette I call it a win currently using ethirteen on 500 miles no issues

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

A thousand miles is good going

[@Yoda-em5mt]

Just put a 10 spd linkglide cassette on today it shifts great down shifting under load no worries but it is slower to up shift under power its ok if you back off a fair bit probly because the teeth are deeper. I,m only running the linkglide cassette with a 11spd sram chain (SHIMANO CHAINS ARE SHITE )with a xtr shifter and xt rear mech works great .

[@Pete68T]

Chains and Sprockets are a Pain What ever they are,They Always Need Cleaning on an Offroad Bike,And Get Damaged ,I Hope Now that the Pinion MGU is Coming out All E MTBs Will Get Somthing Like that with a Belt in the Next Few Years,So We Can Say Goodbuy Chain its been Nice This Last 200 Years😊

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comments. Carbon belts, hub or motor gears are the future

[@gary7vn]

I won't miss chains and derailleurs. Not. at. all.

[@gary7vn]

I could not agree more. I have a Rize MD with 120 Nm middrive. It eats my freewheel like cake. @@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic

[@grantnewby3756]

The best thing I did was replace the lightweight and not fit-for-purpose Sram cassette for a complete Linkglide setup on my Turbo Levo Alloy Comp. Who needs to worry about weight on a heavy E-Bike. We are talking about grams and hundreds of dollars. The whole Linkglide setup was the same cost as the Sram cassette. $350 here in Australia. It lasts longer and you can replace the smallest cogs easily if you need to. A no-brainer for an E-Bike.

[@ebikescrapper3925]

Bikes with mid drives work better with hub gears, Shimano need to bring out a belt drive and make Alfine hubs work with thru axles. This is a missed opportunity for them to do this modification.

[@gary7vn]

Ebike design is STILL stuck in the past.

[@NonLegitNation2]

just installed the Cues U8000 derailleur, LG400 11-45T cassette and XT 11-speed Linkglide shifter a few days ago. Shifting to the lowest gear is just as snappy as my SLX groupset was, shifting to highest gear is a little slow but that may be because I pulled the shift cable a little to tight onto the derailleur. I'm just going to leave it, I figure the cable of the new shifter will eventually stretch and shifting will be perfect. Oh, and I'm using a YBN chain and everything is installed on a regular hardtail mtb, not an e-bike.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comments.

[@jltrack]

Toodlepip to you as well

[@chriswatson2407]

Most interesting channel on Yarkshire Tube.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment, thank you

[@KoyotBravo]

I'm using 11s linkglide on my xc/commuter bike (non-e). It's brilliant, never fails. So far. Bit heavy, but I don't give a fuck about it.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comment

[@TrzCinA122]

I'm thinking about getting it for touring bike, do you think it's worth it ?

[@islandaerial3414]

I get 5000 km out of SLX and XT cassettes. Can you ask this owner to get back to us when, he puts 15.000 km on this LinkGlide system. Thanks! I had one tech tell me just use a Deore cassette because it is heavier and has better shift ramps than the SLX and XT

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@gary7vn]

Belt drives and internal gearing are the future. No amount of tinkering is going to drag a century old design, made for puny humans, into the 120Nm future.

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment.

[@josh573a]

I'm running the 10s version on my e gravel bike (700-900w out put) very happy with the results. Also the 10s version cost ever so slightly less than hyperglide 10s new

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Thanks for sharing

[@soundwave6769]

i got 12spd sram with axs full multi shift turned on with a dongle and shift under load and not a problem and good chain wear so far bike is 10 years old and only on 2nd cassette and get 1500-2000 miles per chain and change at 0.5

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@ianmangham4570]

Been Sowerby Bridge 80s ,paradise ❤🇬🇧🙏💯💯🤟

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@UliKonopka]

Thanks for your statement. I will think about it. Indeed interesting. BR, Uli

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@SpicyMushroom469]

anyone know what connecting pin i need to buy for the cn-lg500 chain? i cant find anything online

[@NonLegitNation2]

just a regular 11-speed missing link. There's nothing really linkglide specific about that chain, just in name. The profile is the same as any other 11-speed chain, it's just a bit more durable. I'm currently using a YBN chain with my linkglide groupset and it works perfect.

[@ChrisB7797]

hi from NZ, i have a trek rail 7, and i am considering getting one of these whyte e 160"s, hoe do you think they compare to the rail, form a mechanics point of view ?

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, thanks for watching and your comments. The whyte is quite different to work on. The motor if needed to come out is removed from the side, quite tricky, the battery is tight in the tube and is removed from the bottom, cables etc are routed internally in the battery compartment and are tricky to replace. all in all a great bike but time consuming to work on

[@ChrisB7797]

@@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic thanks for the reply Dave, do you think the trek rail 7 is a good bike ?

[@onionfx]

We want to see you ride!

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment. Riding , wot me, no

[@ianmangham4570]

Beautiful machine, work of art ,thst wrap is so fantastic 👏 🤟💯🇬🇧🙏

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment

[@ApfelSgt]

Haha that’s how different taste is! 😅 I find it absolutely ugly! 🤣 the colour is beautiful and the swing on the top tube is beautiful! But the top tube is to thin in comparison to the battery tube and the bent on the thick battery tube to the much to thick Bosch CX motor unit and then it has an even thicker motor cover! That’s what make it extremely ugly… It’s like a fat Clump on the middle of the bike 💀🤣 But that’s only my personal opinion like you find it beautiful! 🤷🏽‍♂️😅

[@ianmangham4570]

​@ApfelSgt Were you breastfed ?

[@ApfelSgt]

@@ianmangham4570 i don’t know what that has to do with the different taste of bikes? 🤨🤦🏽‍♂️ You think it’s beautiful, i think it looks ugly! 🤷🏽‍♂️ So where is the problem?! 🤣

[@ianmangham4570]

@@ApfelSgt I knew it 🤣

[@adamsmythe4723]

I have the 11 speed linkglide on my fulgur 1300 miles on my cassette I changed my chain at 700 miles measuring at 0.5 E-bikes don’t need 12 speed the new linkglide has the same sort of range as the a 12 speed It’s a better system not once,have I had to adjust the cable tension or adjust my gears

[@TheYorkshireBikeMechanic]

Hi, Thanks for watching and your comment