Which One is BEST? Motorcycle Chain VS Belt VS Shaft

Motorcycle drivetrains are very underestimated. They are what is responsible for getting that sweet power from the engine, down on the road. Which one is better though, belt drives, chain drives or shaft drives?
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[@LongWayHome]

What's your pick?

[@jobyEN]

I lik'em all!

[@digger8180]

Having had bikes with all three, where I live on the planet the best for my personal experience is the shaft drive. Message ends.

[@TheFlemmo123]

Shaft is my favourite. (Thats what she said)

[@nobodyinparticular709]

Shaft😎

[@someguy9520]

Shaft drive. Change the oil and thats all. At least for long distance bikes the best option IMO. imagine having to carry cleaning tools for a chain and detergents on an already small travel capacity

[@MrAndrew1953]

I am a big fan of shaft drive having owned 3 shaft driven bikes( 1 Honda and 2 BMWs). None of them suffered in the real world from a lack of performance or reliability. I never had to lug chain oil around or get covered in grease and gunk. Just clean,efficient and reliable.

[@maldridge7630]

I have never known a sport bike rider or a sport-touring rider carry an extra chain, thats unheard of

[@MrAndrew1953]

@@maldridge7630 Most people I knew at the time always carried a chain breaker especially with dirt bikes. You didn’t want to be out the back of beyond with a broken chain and no way of fixing it. Out on the R80GS I was asked by some guys who’d broken a chain on a dirt bike , if I had some spare links. I pointed to the shaft drive and told em that I didn’t usually carry them.

[@dimosk7389]

well, losing 20-25% of power on the shaft drive, is considered a "lack of performance" granted, a shaft drive is very reliable and you almost never have to worry about it letting you stranded, but modern chains are nowhere near as faulty as they used to be. and with an extra automatic oiler, you dont even have to worry about lubrication anymore.

[@autumnx3416]

@@dimosk7389 automatic oilers are sooo impractical, you never really want your chain to be wet with oil, you only want a coating. Dripping oil on the chain only splashes it against you and the bike. And it attracts extra dust and dirt due to it always being wet.

[@dimosk7389]

@@autumnx3416 it depends on how people seit it up. If they set it full open, it will be a mess. When you find the proper adjustment, there is no splash, the chain remains clean because dirt doesn't stick to it and you consume very small amount of lubricant. In any case, using transmission oil or hydraulic oil with an oiler, is definitely more practical, cheaper, and does a better job maintaining the chain in good condition compared to spray cans

[@UncleWally3]

In the spirit of Long Way Home: I’ve used a belt, a shaft and a chain and can attest, quite factually, that they’re different.

[@LongWayHome]

Great added value comment :))

[@lukewalker5111]

@@LongWayHome 🤣🤣

[@mbsnyderc]

I've had all three and really didn't notice them being that different nor did i think the shaft felt like it was robbing me of 20% of the bikes power.

[@IngOehman]

Of coarse not, because they have much less losses. I think Dave’s slightly envious not owning a BMW... That’s the reason for the strange manuscript. Non of the systems causes even close to 10% losses. Even including the gearbox you may have losses lower than or close to 10% with shaft drive.

[@ernestt4460]

20-25% of energy loss with Shaft drive is a myth. Just think about physics- where does all the energy go if it is lost - heat. If you lose 20% from 140 horsepower engine to the shaft drive, then you are basically heating your shaft drive with 30 horsepower - that is like 15 electric kettles working simultaneously. The aluminum swing arm would melt within a couple of minutes of riding.

[@ernestt4460]

Punish dave for not doing the research properly

[@chrishart8548]

Well on many bikes a shaft drive requires 2x 90° turns can you name one of these bikes that isn't heavy on fuel. And limited in performance.

[@avitarmageddon1721]

Agreed. I can't see any manufacturer using shaft drive if 20/25% of the engine power is lost over its' rivals using chains even if they like the maintenance free aspect.

[@atvtinker01]

The reason for so much performance loss is all the angle changes to the drive line and the fact that almost all shaft drive have some kind of damper system to eliminate torque shock to the components of the drive line.

[@chrishart8548]

@@atvtinker01 I don't really think there is a choice between shaft or chain. No bike comes in both versions and boxers and guzzi's only come in shaft. Only a handful of bikes come with a belt. (Not sure why)

[@TheFrankClaas]

Theoretically correct. However, I had a Honda in Germany. It was serviced in Hamburg, I picked it up and attempted to ride it back to Frankfurt/Main. Doing about 160 kmh on the Autobahn in the left lane, passing a truck, the chain broke. I slid past the truck, across the right lane onto the shoulder without going down. However, everything behind the engine block was ripped to shreds. The bike was totalled! Since then it has been shaft drive for me. BMW K100RT, BMW R1100RT, and now BMW R1250RT.

[@markmundy3435]

Nice to see Dave's sister washing her bike!

[@tigerick7291]

My wife likes a good shaft, chain and belt!

[@LongWayHome]

You madman! 🤣🤣😂

[@brianq103]

and not necessarily in that order.😉

[@CriticalRider]

I can confirm, she does

[@cristiscutariu]

25% power lost with the shaft drives? Where did you get this info? Dave. Drunk Dave?

[@VolodymyrPavlyuk]

If I use just a third on GS’ power then the shaft drive must dissipate 7 kWt of heat! That will melt the swingarm

[@davidbesant]

@@VolodymyrPavlyuk You're absolutely right. How come tyres get so hot but the shaft just barely warm?

[@burnerjack01]

@@davidbesant One factor is the rubber is constantly flexing, resulting in internal friction, causing heat.

[@jeffreymurillo3131]

4:12 wouldn't shaft drive be the most reliable since it's less maintenance and lowest chance of failure with the longest life?

[@JohnDoe-tu8jt]

I'm an everyday rider, so Shaft Drive is fur me

[@xander2753]

“Most reliable” does not means that you can fix it when it breaks but that it will break less often. So most realiable of those 3 would be the one has lower chance of breaking then other two.

[@terrencegreen9560]

I wish they produced an open shaft drive system on midrange bikes, would look pretty cool.

[@robhart3451]

I have owned bikes with all 3 final drives. Purely from a maintenance point of view belt & shaft are less of a schlep. I've never had any issues with either of those but I did have a chain go on me once, years ago.

[@gdijkema]

If Dave's belt gives out, we might see his shaft 😳

[@0neTwo3]

And that would be...... A chain reaction!

[@LongWayHome]

Brilliant! :)

[@georgefischer1504]

I've got all three types in my collection of bikes. I personally prefer a belt drive, but then again I rider a Cruiser now. Us old guys know better than to repair on the side of the road. Always practiced "preventive maintenence".

[@ababbit7461]

George Fischer, when you say "preventative maintenance" are you referring to my AAA card? At 65, I "don't leave home without it" as Carl Malden said on the commercial.

[@docford3635]

This really is a fantastic channel...keep up the good work. I think there is no Dave, but crazy people make the most fun friends...ride fast and take chances...

[@mar0364]

They all have their place.

[@ccooper8785]

Med & large capacity bikes - Shaft every time Small capacity - Chain so long as it is enclosed (remembering you fondly MZ 250 ETZ)

[@Panos-xo9rc]

MZ 250,a bike for the masses.

[@davereinhart9933]

I moved from the shaft of a 1200GS to a chain on a 850GSA and I have ended up liking cleaning my chain. It keeps me involved in the bike and I feel more invested. It may be odd, but that has been my experience.

[@ababbit7461]

Dave Reinhart, And you will be the one in the group that saw that nail in your tire and fixed it. The other guys, in the group, will bog down the group fixing their flat tire because they did not check their final drive system... Good point Dave.

[@davereinhart9933]

@@ababbit7461 I sure hope so!

[@ababbit7461]

@@davereinhart9933 Your approach to life and future thoughts makes sure it will be right.

[@andyblack5687]

That 1-4% power loss for a chain drive is of course for a new chain that is properly tensioned. After the chain on my DR650 had stretched to the point where the adjusters could no longer tighten it to within spec, I noticed a perceived power loss and a feeling of sluggish acceleration. The top speed was reduced by over 15% too. A new chain brought everything back to normal.

[@paul.vanhout57]

Excellent overview of current drive train options. No real preference but chain probably the most flexible for a wide range of riding scenarios and given ease of repair.

[@sdefiel3719]

Shaft drives are best because I have a shaft. Wanna see? S

[@burnerjack01]

Keep it lubed or you'll have trouble with your rear end.

[@bradleyalexander5821]

Those efficiency #s really surprised me. 👍🏼

[@yorkchris10]

The more bevels in driveline, the less efficient. Longitudinal engine with shaft most efficient. I measured rolling resistance of my Oilhead versus KTM 640 Adv with barely maintained chain and of the two fully loaded bikes, the shaft and radials came out ahead.

[@HaggisPower]

My brother’s BMW 1200 shaft drive failed and the replacement drive was $3000. Apparently the oil should be changed way more often than BMW recommended.

[@brianmacdonald3292]

Yep, they all have their place. I wonder if an enclosed chain drive will reappear hiding a DLC chain. Anyone remember those Bultaco's and Montesa's from the early 70's?

[@stevemoriarity860]

Harley, Yamaha & Honda had enclosed chains at some point, made changing the rear tire a pain and usually leaked.

[@vonSnook]

I'm a tight wad, I like shaft. My RD 400's went thru (1) counter and (2-3) drive sprockets + (2-3) chains per year. In 83 I got a XJ900RK Yamaha. I was never so happy. Last of Yamaha's old school engines. It had "shaft drive" and a gas gage ,was very fast for it's time. ( 132 MPH ,I got the tickets to prove it too). Note: money saved on sprockets and chains helped to pay for the $300 + tickets.

[@olafrotkohl5898]

Although my 2020 Africa Twin has less power and torque than my previous 2011 BMW R1200 GS Adventure, the Honda just feels more powerful, both for low-end torque and total top end. Chain vs. shaft drive explains it, or at least my perception if it. I loved the low maintenance of shaft drive, but chain servicing is pretty simple and I love spending that little extra time with my bike. I’ve also owned Moto Guzzis, and to me, their shaft drive systems are sublime and worth the power transmission lost. In fact, Guzzis are such damned wonderful bikes, I’m still angling to add one to the “fleet” even though my wife will have justifiable cause to murder me in my sleep.

[@royblackburn1163]

When was the last time any car had chain drive? Shaft, belt, chain in that order, carry a spare belt ? A chain is a pain.

[@inspectorclouseau3880]

I asked my girlfriend the same question and she definately prefers a shaft, and she wonders if a belt driven bike snaps can you replace the belt with a pair of pantyhose?

[@marrick3853]

I've had bikes with all three and so far I'm in favor of the belt drive and the shaft drive. The cleaning and greasing of the chain on long rides was always a thing I hated. Also grease flinging off the chain makes a mess of the bike. After 110.000 km the shaft drive on my fathers BMW R1150GS broke and was left at the side of the road during a evening ride. Was that to happen on a holiday, we would have been in bad shape. I now ride a Yamaha Wildstar with a belt drive and I like it very much. But I do think I'll bring a spare belt nex time when I go out for a ride across Europe.

[@marcusgeorge1825]

Chain all the way to and from the long way home! 👍😎🇦🇺

[@kemosabe1]

I'm going to call BS on the shaft drive 20% inefficiency figure. When cruising along a motorway using, say, 50bhp then it'd be producing 10bhp (7.5kw) of heat in the drive which would get ridiculously hot. I have a shaft drive bike (BMW) and this does _not_ happen. Where did this 20-25% figure come from anyway? Dave?

[@AntaresSQ01]

The losses are not in heat but effort to move the mass off the shaft. The shaft systems are by far the heaviest. 20% is probably a bit high but 15% or so is about normal. The place I went to get my bike dynoed a 2015 R1200GS with shaft drive that has claimed 125bhp at crank put 101 on the dyno, and right after that a stock street triple 765 that has 121 at the crank put down 110 on the dyno. It was on the same dyno same day so i'd say that's a pretty fair comparison

[@MrChancebozey]

Great vid. Covered well and to the point on the subject :)

[@hallvardpaulsen]

If there is such an enormous power loss in the shaft drive of your GS, why aren't there a large amount of cooling fins all over the shaft-drive housing?

[@maldridge7630]

I was going to answer that, but then I saw your pic...and realized; no need! 🤣😁🤣😁

[@jimw7916]

I cant see there being ANY loss of power on any of the alternatives!

[@hallvardpaulsen]

@@jimw7916 Not sure I understand what you mean. There will always be some power loss in any transmission. This can usually be felt as heat. A well maintain chain or belt looses very little power (uncertain which is best in this regard) partly helped by the fact that all the shafts are pointing in the same direction. With a shaft drive you change the direction of rotation at least once which does involve a measurable power loss, but not by far as much as the presenter states. If a GS was loosing 15-20% of the power in the shaft drive, it would need at least as much cooling as a 250cc motorcycle engine, and there just isn't that many cooling fins on the shaft.

[@TheFlemmo123]

There are other ways that power can be wasted, think of the v8 in car, revving it will twist the whole car, that is a powerloss. The same happens to a shaftdrivven bike, it will in most cases cause tensioning in the rear swingarm.. if you think about it you will notice the difference between a chain and shaft driven bike.

[@hallvardpaulsen]

@@TheFlemmo123 actually, when you rev the engine, all the power is lost. ;) But tension or twisting is not power loss, just building up potential energy. Like in a spring.

[@nightdipper5178]

Shaft drive = 25% loss of power. WOW! Learn something new everyday.

[@LeoStarrenburg]

Always had bikes with a shaft drive, three BMW's and two Honda's. And with that amount of power-loss imagine the amount of petrol I wasted over the years. Then again I didn't get my hands dirty working on the chain.

[@suzukirider9030]

Chain drive for me. A few minutes to clean and re-lubricate the chain every few hundred miles, and tighten it every few thousand miles - is quality "zen" time for me :-)

[@Panos-xo9rc]

KTM,also known as Kathe Tetarte Mastora("at the mechanic every wednesday" for those of you who don't speak greek).

[@flappingflight8537]

As well : AMG( Mercedes) stands for “All Money Gone“ or FIAT “ Fix It Again Tony “ :)

[@russbilzing5348]

One small point that you have failed to appreciate... Belt drives often have a perpendicular lug and groove drive system, increasing the efficiency , lessening slip and improving drive under wet conditions over a smooth or longitudinal grooved belt. This point is the one you missed; they are light enough and fold small enough to always carry another as a spare.

[@giantslug6969]

My 2020 Triumph Rocket 3--shaft driven--with advertised 165 HP still pulled 151 on the dyno, completely stock. That's ~9% power loss. That's not bad. An ECU remap brought it up to 171, so I guess that should be about ~186 at the crank. Belt efficiency with almost no maintenance required.

[@michaelluce4678]

A while back Harley offered an emergency belt to carry in your tool kit, it was a standard belt with a "V" cut in the top side covering 6 or 7 teeth and each tooth had a hole through it that an allan screw would go in connecting both halfs of the belt.

[@ralphwaters8905]

The Regina chain sounds terrific, and the lack of "stretch" probably reduces sprocket wear, but by how much? I assume chain and sprockets are all replaced as a set, yes?

[@Stefan_trekkie]

Virtually all modern scooters /even the big maxi ones/ use enclosed belt drive. The secrets there is that the belt is a gear box and final drive at the same time and that makes it more efficient do to lack of standard gearbox loses. The clutch is also dry, most bikes have wet one - that is one more inefficiency.. And you can carry spare belt with you. I have toured on maxi scooter and like it more then classic types of bikes.

[@battler544]

Good video, I only ride shaft drive road bikes. I used to ride a Dr 500 Suzuki when I was young. I used to ride a bit off road, (10 %) thus the bike's swing arm needle bearings used to last 10k. One day the bearings developed too much play and the chain came off, now I only ride shaft drive. The r1200 GS bmw is the most popular duel sport bike in south africa, and its shaft drive system is very reliable. I ride an intruder 1400, and an fjr 1300. The intruder has 70 k nothing has needs replacing. The power loss over chains is 11 %

[@stevetop5970]

Shaft drive is the winner. The subject doesn't even need to be discussed.

[@koenmaes118]

I don’t understand why belt drives aren’t more used, even for other bikes than cruisers. I have a f800gt and love the belt: light, cheap, no cleaning, ... only one warning: don’t let ur bmw stealer change the belt... in a bmw garage, the same (Continental) belt costs almost 4x more...

[@khaccanhle1930]

I ride enduro. There us no way I would ever wants belt on my bike. I need every ounce of power from my bike and need to keep it as light as possible. Also, gravel, clay and stones in a belt system can't be good for durability. Chain only losing 9-14 percent of power is a no go for me. Nothing but a chain please.

[@AntaresSQ01]

Well, with the new BMW M Endurance chain really there is not even a contest anymore. Beats belt in terms of durability whilst staying just as clean and beats/equals shaft in maintenance all the while having significantly less losses. It's just superior to both options and it'll be available to all chain driven bikes eventually

[@burnerjack01]

But you still have to replace the sprockets due to wear, don't you?

[@AntaresSQ01]

@@burnerjack01 Yea but even a high quality steel sprocket set is under 50 bucks. 90% of the time when it comes to swapping the chain on regular chains the sprockets are still fine but you wanna swap them as a set to prevent premature wear. With the lack of wet lubrication less dirt will be trapped between the rollers and the sprockets so it's likely sprocket life is massively extended too. I don't wanna say BS but I'm confident enough that I'll get a set of these on my BMW S1000XR as it needs a new chain anyway.

[@robertakerson7186]

Mr. LWH- This was a very nice review of the final drive types! I take issue with one statement however: that shaft drives are designed to last for the life of the motorcycle. The German engineers at BMW contrived to design a shaft drive for their air-cooled R100GS with the paralever suspension which seems to be planned to detonate itself every 30-40,000 miles (35,000 miles for mine. It's a fine bike otherwise, but plan to have a spare driveshaft all packaged and ready to send to whatever roadside you may find yourself).

[@martincvitkovich724]

Shaft drives jack-up the rear end while accelerating.

[@mr.gutwrench]

@Mike Had a shafty '82 750 Sabre that jacked in back , but my '79 kz1000 shaft does not.

[@iamtheoffenderofall]

Highly unlikely...but if a belt breaks..... In the American Southwest, I see dozens of belts snapping a year on the side of the road. Sand is not a friend of rubber. I have owned chain drive and shaft drive. In the desert, shaft is the best way to go for reliability and cleanliness. Chains, you can change your gearing more easily. Belts really offer a quieter drive system and little else more.

[@smitajky]

The chain is so prone to damage from dirt that it is extremely expensive over the life of a bike. Most of my early machines at least had a full chain guard which kept the dirt away from the chain. Some systems such as Bultaco kept the chain in an oil bath and in those conditions wear was largely non existent. Whereas my later bikes had no protection from dirt and a few hundred km along a dusty road left horrible squeaks from the chain but oiling it simply turned the dirt into very effective grinding paste. Yet stopping and trying to clean the chain in the middle of nowhere wasn't viable.

[@orppranator5230]

It’s kinda weird, because belts vs. chains have the opposite pros/cons when talking about bicycling. Belts last longer and are more efficient (only at high loads though) and can take off-road situations much better.

[@Liberty4Ever]

The belt drives are getting better thanks to very durable fibers such as aramids. Electric bikes are at the low end of the power spectrum. They need to be very energy efficient and most of the electric bikes seem to be using belt drive. Chain drive is more efficient but the clean and low maintenance belt drive is more at home on a clean quiet electric bike that is almost maintenance free. No gas, no oil changes, no air filter maintenance, and even the brake pads last a very long time because routine braking is regenerative and the pads are only used for extreme braking. For such a two wheeled transportation appliance, the lower efficiency belt drive is tolerated because it fits the entire design and use philosophy. Electric bike enthusiasts are efficiency geeks, but they'll give up 2% of efficiency for a belt drive because who wants to maintain a messy oily chain on an electric bike? Maybe they'll perfect hub motors. I'd love to see electric dirt bikes and ADV bikes with 2WD using clean and maintenance free hub motors. That would be very cool. Of course, that only works for adventure bikes if the batteries can be swapped (there is an emerging Japanese motorcycle standard) and charged batteries are available at gas stations. We have a long way to go to have that infrastructure. Until then, electric bikes are short range commuter bikes.

[@criley2723]

Shaft drive is far above the other two the most reliable. Just because a chain can be changed on the road doesn't make it reliable, it means it's easy to fix. And mc shaft drives are more efficient than a car, only between 15 to 20 percent loss (and some manufacturers claim even less)

[@WolfBazo-uo9uj]

Since my first shaft driven bike GS650G in the 90s no more chain. For race bikes probably chain best, on street always shaft drive

[@Liberty4Ever]

Great video. I love these informational videos that help us learn how motorcycles work.

[@Davy-munyao]

Chain my favorite 💞

[@davidbesant]

138 hp is around 100kw. A 25% power loss through a shaft equates to 25 one-bar electric fires. Why doesn't the shaft glow red?

[@philmorrow2446]

Fair and honest review!! Was that a GS shaft at the end there???😏 Had both chain and shaft in my biking life. Pays your money you takes your choice. But for touring? It’s gotta be shaft. Very reliable.

[@nicholascrocker4329]

Chain, belt or a shaft? “Decisions, decisions” - that’s what she said.

[@allanapplin250]

You mainly see belt and shaft drives on bikes with bigger engines. Why: 1. Because they have more power than you need anyway so the little bit of power loss is irrelevent on the type of bikes it is used on ( how often on your 1000/1200/1800 CC bike do you ever crack the throttle fully open and are thinking I want to turn it more as there is not enough power ??? ) 2. The bigger bikes are more expensive so the cost of belt drive or shaft drive is easier to incorporate in the price.

[@solentmotorbiketours9545]

When is your next performance as "Despicable Me" with the Minions as you do look and sound like him LMAO 🤣

[@user-tx5dy1fz4g]

20 years ago I chose chain, now Shaft the best for me.

[@guillermojuarez4062]

not have a preference, just wanted to know why there are no small motorcycles with belt or shaft thank you for your info

[@testicularoxide5055]

Dont mind the power loss with the shaft drive, more than makes up for it with ridiculously low maint req... My 80' XS1100 (bored over to nearly 1300) and it eats up CBRR's all day long... 👍🔥

[@IngOehman]

Noooo... You are exaggerating the losses of all systems but the chain. The shaft drive can have losses in the vicinity of 10%, chains and belts have less loss. Absolutely NO belt I’ve examined give 15% losses. More like 5%. And no chain on a motorcycle gives losses as good as 1%. More like 1,5-3%.

[@IngOehman]

25% losses with a shaft is... Madness! 😆 Who told you? Dave? Maybe he’s just very, very envious of your nice Beemer?

[@occasionalmotorcycling]

I have one question regarding efficiency, though Say BMW r1200 gs engine max power output is 100kW to keep numbers at minimum, lets say on the road you use half of that, so 50kW If 20% of that is lost, that is 10kW going to heet. So my qwestion is: wouldn't shaft drive casing melt under such power loads? Or may be 20-25% estimation is somewhat exaggerated?

[@user-cq2lb2gb6f]

For sure, 20% is an impossible numbers. 10kW of heat will destroy that shaft drive in minutes.

[@jameshart9734]

Chains for me but there is a big difference in make and quality my chain on my royal enfield Himalayan started to rust after 600 miles substandard metal components

[@Panos-xo9rc]

You are not the only one with complaints about OEM parts. My Honda CB500F's chain started producing those horrible kinks after 10000 km despite the fact i was meticulus about it's maintenance.

[@phatcyclist]

@@Panos-xo9rc As a person with a CB500F, I have experienced some tighter links, but even at 26k miles/42k kilometers, the original chain is still doing alright and hasn't stretched into the red zone yet. Not much rain and no road salt here though, so it's in fairly ideal conditions.

[@Panos-xo9rc]

@@phatcyclist Mine was a 2013 model,perhaps Honda changed the OEM chain in subsequent models or batches. My mechanic,a honda dealer for decades here(Greece),also thought the chain was sub par in quality btw.

[@TheWanderingGeezer]

There is no “best”, it depends on the application.

[@jimw7916]

there is ALWAYS a "best" !!! don't believe that rubbish they keep on harping about!

[@need100k]

I'm trying to understand how a chain will lose 1-2% of engine power while a belt can lose 12-15%. There are only two reasons I can think of which could cause that, and the first being weight which we know isn't the issue so the only other reason would be that the belt is constantly stretching and contracting like a rubber band, which I also highly doubt is the case. Therefore, I don't see why there's any significant difference in power loss between belt and chain drive.

[@albertol1529]

Back in the 70s, I witnessed 2 catastrophic failures of chains on motorbikes. Both ended in the worst possible way for the rider (the absolute worst). One of them, I was about 15 at the time, and someone opened full throttle after turning a corner. This must have snapped the chain and the bike stopped but the rider didn’t. The poor guy snapped his neck after hitting a safety barrier, right in front of my eyes. The second time, the same thing happened in a different town, around the same age, when a very unfortunate rider was catapulted off his bike into a very big lamppost. Despite seeing these terrible accidents, I kept pestering my parents for a bike, which I never got. It was much later in life, around my 40th that I got my first bike an Aprilia RST1000 Futura. Lovely looking bike but very, very unreliable.

[@nelsong4719]

I heard Honda has been working on a magnetic drive. That should be interesting since it's an old concept. Check out JL Garage for the Owen Magnetic.

[@thealvaco]

Actually, Moto Guzzi had a shaft drive race bike back in the day.

[@Panos-xo9rc]

Chain for me.They are a chore to maintain,sure,but that's it.Belts are OK but can break unpredictably.Shafts are heavy and expensive to repair. Plus the bike behaves differently,i drove a guzzi once and it didn't want to behave properly in the corner,it almost refused to turn.

[@Panos-xo9rc]

@Alfred Wedmore well,i have to admit i didn't know that.

[@Panos-xo9rc]

@Alfred Wedmore Yes,i knew that,and also the problem with torque that late ww2 piston engined fighters had.Contra-rotating props were developed to solve it,but then jet engines turned the likes of griffon engined spitfires obsolete anyway. As i recall the guzzi( a V7)was turning badly either direction,it's been a few years though.

[@plt4415]

Efficiency of chain drive is a gimmick, in perfect condition (which is 5% of life time) they are eating 1~4% of power, otherwise I bet its around ~10%. There is a big chain industry behind that, just calculate how much you are spending for chain, sprockets, cleaning, greasing etc in 50k km... We will not see belt drives in motorcycle sector unfortunately!

[@Vessekx]

Belt drives are all over the place in the motorcycle sector. Based on the fact that you got that claim wrong, I think you’d have to be a be a fool to give credence to your “otherwise I bet it’s around ~10%” claim.

[@plt4415]

@@Vessekx U r right, they are all around, my handlebar and chasis and cam chain are made of belt...

[@Vessekx]

@@plt4415, well, those were *mostly* words.

[@Hogdriver88]

Currently have a belt and a shaft drive. I like the belt for ease of maintenance. I like the shaft drive for sealed power delivery. Have had chains years ago and would not want to go back to that. Any chance you will review the 2021 1250RT?

[@ronhayes6131]

I will have to look at a Regina chain. Nice to know especially when I take my KTM for a long trip. Thanks.

[@bobm4623]

I can understand why off road motorcycles do not have belt drives due to dirt and stones damaging the belt. However, in Asia, many commuter motorcycles - with chain drive - will have a chain cover. So, why can't a belt drive also have a cover to ensure that it is protected from the environment?

[@wrangler10]

LWH : You will not see a dirt bike with a shaft Triumph tiger 1200 22" : Hold my shaft * well not exactly a dirt bike but in the video it can fly on dirt very well

[@racerrr2231]

I like chains more than belts

[@mrcintheuk5596]

The place where getting your news is easier than getting Dave to say the town in Wales called Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, but not by much.

[@nightdipper5178]

Other considerations is cost along with the ability to re-gear the bike. A bike with shaft drive will have the cost baked into the purchase price of the bike. Some have a real need to re-gear. An adventure bike may need to be re-geared during one long mult-day adventure ride mixing highway and off-road technical riding. Dirt bikes may need to be re-geared for the type of tarain ridden. Maybe I want a wheelie happy road bike.

[@JMeyer-qj1pv]

Guess I got lucky. My KTM's been very reliable

[@mikedignum1868]

I miss the BMW belt drive on the 800GT. Why they didn't stick to it on other models i don't know.

[@mrlongschlong4370]

I don't understand why ther is so much power loss with a shaft

[@scotthancock9592]

If the new maintenance free chains are harder wouldn’t that increase sprocket wear?

[@brianq103]

not necessarily. If the hard coating had less friction, the sprockets should wear less. It's the dirt, etc that gets in between them that is cause the friction, which in turn causes the fish hooking that occurs.

[@thewelder9492]

Shaft drive because I’m lazy, love the look, quiet, suits my R1200RT And I’m extremely lazy lol.

[@exlibrex]

I suppose the drive used depends on the orientation of the engine too, so a bmw boxer or moto guzi V better suit a shaft drive which aligns with engine.

[@ccooper8785]

I would happily have paid extra if shaft drive had been an option on my bike. Modern bikes (500cc and up) have more than enough power so the power loss from shafts is not important. Leave chain drive for the boy-racers.

[@dennismacwilliams196]

Thanks

[@ababbit7461]

What about a BMW K1300S or K1200S? They are considered a supersport or if not they should be.... They are shaft drive and they will keep up with a Busa up to 160 mph... In fact, I believe they are faster than a Busa from 0 to 60 mph... So, you can see a shaft drive on a supersport.

[@seth_5394]

Shaft drive is the best because that's what I have

[@user-lj5ri3gp5o]

Long distance hauling on the highway - shaft. Majority of off-road or crappy roads - chain. ex: riding in 3rd world or illinois, New York and Massachusetts - bad example... that was redundant.

[@bobvedder2451]

I ride two shaft driven bikes = A Kawasaki 1600 Nomad with a DMC sidecar, and a Ural patrol.

[@lukewalker5111]

Lol @ the girl with the pressure washer.

[@zafaradeel2107]

What about the Direct drive transmission ????

[@SubhajitDas-bo9ni]

Make a video on octane booster

[@My-Opinion-Doesnt-Matter]

4:50 Yeah, let's make up some efficiency numbers and make a video.

[@clivedarwell5732]

Do manufacturers stated HP and torque values not take into account these power losses? I imagine not. I also notice some people on here dispute the shaft figures.