Which is a better final drive on a motorcycle, chain, belt or shaft?

Question

I am looking to buy a new motorcycle, which final drive should I buy and why. Also what are the costs in time and money to maintain it

Answer 1

Chains have been around forever. A chain drive is quickest to change final drive ration, if you're into racing. BUT, they require the most maintenance. Oil them, they make a mess. Leave them dry, they don't last. Need to adjust them.

Belts are actually older, but they were leather belts back then.
Belts do not need lubrication. After the initial stretching of them, little adjustment is required after that. BUT, you break one, it's a real pain to change, as it is endless, without a master link.

Shaft drives require the least amount of maintenance. Too hard to change final drive ration, if you have a need to (racing). They tend to not deliver as much power to the rear wheel, as there is a lot of friction in the differential unit, but it is probably negligible. Also, some bikes with shaft drives tend to "torque" over to one side if you really crank it quickly.

Hope this info gives you the tools to make a decision.

Answer 2

Riddle me this, why do cars have shaft drive?
Drive line lash, torque and mass. The heavier the vehicle, the more likely it is to have some kind of direct mechanical linkage between the transmission and the final drive. Chains are a very loose mechanical coupling and as such have a LOT of backlash. But in a motorcycle of 300 - 500 lbs and a foot or so of travel it is acceptable.
Why, oh why do racing bikes use them? Weight! They are light.
Shafts and belts are heavier. Belts also have a built in slip, good for passenger vehicle, NOT good for racing bike, when a hundreth of a second is worth a hundred grand.
And before I hear any oh my belt is so light, consider that a belt is not just the belt and pulleys, it's belt, pulleys, tensioner, extra frame width and rear width , thicker axle, belt guard... and so on...

In reliability studies, a shaft has a far greater MTBF than either belt or chain, as therefore is more desireable on bigger road bikes.

COST. Shafts are more expensive. Belts are relatively cheap, but that pales before the 10 gazillion t-50 motorcycle/construction equip, pumps/ lawn mower finals that use that chain size.
Chains are just cheap. They are easy to make, easy to fix, sprockets are dirt cheap, and very reliable within limits.
As to which is better, for a passenger bike? Well I would look simply at the mass of your bike. If it's a big big bike then the shaft is the way to go.
Belt and chain is a wash mechanically. Failure rates depend far more on location and use then on initial design.
Basically any bike you get is going to have a final drive acceptable for design use. Any modern bike is really going to be easy to maintain, and reliable (and by modern I mean 80's)
I personally prefer a shaft drive, but I'm not gonna change my drivetrain to make it happen.

Answer 3

It's all personal preference. I've had them all. I thought I would never ride anything without a chain and then I bought a BMW and an old Yamaha 750 Seca with shaft drive. That was so nice not having to carry chain lube on a trip and having to worry about adjusting the chain. Then I got a belt drive Sportster. This was nice because it cut down the vibration, I didn't have to oil it either but it didn't give me positive feed back on the shifting. One advantage of the chain is that you can change the gear ratio. They are getting longer life on the belts ( as much as 100,000 miles) than they are on chains (about 20,000 miles). And most shaft drives go forever as long as you check the differential oil regularly and change it at least once a year.

Answer 4

Get the bike you like, and only have final drive be a tie braker.

All the answers are good and give different perspectives. It sounds like you are a newer rider, so the absolute top performance of a chain (racers use chain only) isn't required.

Newer Harleys only use belt, so if you are dead set on a H-D, belt it is.

If all things are equal (style, size, price) go with shaft or belt over chain-less maintenance, you will likely need to ride very many miles before major maintenance and the losses of torque, "Shaft jacking" and other drawbacks aren't really that big a deal for normal street riding.

Answer 5

They all have their pluses and minuses. Shaft drive - they have pretty much eliminated the major detractor which is shaft jacking where the rear end rises when you accelerate. It used to be very annoying on some bikes. The other problem with shaft drive is you cannot change gear ratios. Big plus for high mileage riders is that maintenance is virtually zero. You have to change the oil occasionally. Shaft drive is usually very quiet - sometimes a low whine. Belt drive: Virtually no maintenance. You have to change the belt occasionally and that can be expensive as you have to remove the swingarm to do it. Fortunately, that doesn't have to be done all that often. Belt drives are not good for gravel roads or off road as the gravel can get between the belt and the pulleys and destroy either or both. Belt drives are very quiet. Chain drive is most versatile. You can easily and cheaply change gear ratios. Minuses are much more maintenance, cost of frequent chain and sprocket replacements (10K to 20K miles usually), noise is higher. For high mileage riders, I would recommend shaft drive. For on/off road chain drive. For highway riders only, one option is belt drive, but Harley is the only manufacturer who uses that a lot, so you would be stuck with a Harley. Or, do what most of us do and buy the bike you want and deal with the final drive it has.

Answer 6

the belt is better than the chain, but if you can find a shaft drive, it is not only smoother ride, but also no maintenance. The chain is not a smooth drive and susceptible to seizing. The belt when worn out may break, but wont seize up and through you off the bike.

Answer 7

Chains ware out and make noise. Belts last longer but are more expensive to replace and take up more room. cycles with shaft drives cost more

Answer 8

Would you buy a car with a chain drive?
Shaft drive is far superior. No loss of power, no stretching

Answer 9

I like my shaft drive. No oiling, doesn't stretch, doesn't make clanking noises.
The downside is that it doesn't get going as quickly as a chain, and it feels funny when you go over bumps

Answer 10

Belt drive has advanages too, smoother torque (than chain drive) and shaft drives have to be counterweighted to keep them from pulling you to one side. Also, belt drive are much cheaper to fix.