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SRAM Kicks Back with 3 Speeds for WBR, and a Hub that can Shuck Corn

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SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (3)

Amongst all of the high zoot show bikes of NAHBS, SRAM had something new that was decidedly not as sexy, but still very important. Bolted onto the back end of a World Bicycle Relief Buffalo bike, SRAM was showing prototypes of their new 3 speed kick back hub. Simplicity and durability are important, especially when you’re talking about a bike that will reside in remote villages in Africa without a modern bike shop close by. So to offer more speeds without the need for a shifter or cables, SRAM has upped their sealed kick back hub to 3 speeds. Offering a 186% gear range, shifts are carried out by back pedaling slightly which clicks up to two, then three. As soon as you brake on the coaster brake, the system resets to first gear.

The hubs will make their way onto bicycles for regular consumers as well, but for the Africa bikes, the hub includes a special feature…

SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (5)

SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (6)

SRAM had various hubs on display including the coaster brake, a hub for rim brakes, and a potential disc brake version in the works. When you look at the shifting mechanism on the axle, it looks pretty simple but according to SRAM’s engineer for the project it was a fairly complex problem to solve. Parts of the shifting mechanism are made of plastic, but they are pieces that simply slide horizontally to engage the shifter. Since no torque is applied to these pieces, SRAM says they should outlast the hub. The first version offered will be the coaster brake version…

SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (1)

Which will be installed on the new World Bike Relief Buffalo bikes. These are the bikes provided to rural Africans through purchases, work-to-own & study-to-own programs. In addition to the three speed kick back mechanism, the Africa Bike hub has another trick up its sleeve.

SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (2)

SRAM World Bike Relief Power Take off 3 speed kick back hub (4)

That’s right. Can your bike shuck corn? Equipped with a PTO cog on the non-drive side and a rear wheel stand to lift the back off the ground, all of a sudden the bike is a different kind of machine. Obviously equipped with a corn shucker here, but as you can imagine the possibilities are huge. Water pump? Grain mill? Sharpening stone? If you can hook a chain to it and make it run, there is potential. This may seem like an odd addition to a bike, but when it’s your main transportation and equipment, maybe for an entire village, it could change lives. SRAM hopes to have the new coaster hubs shipping by the end of the year – to both World Bicycle Relief and consumers.

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Urb Anwriter
Urb Anwriter
9 years ago

Good show. I hope it lasts longer than the 9 speed, both in-service and in-market, and when the local distributor can get one I’ll try it out. The coaster first, and I hate (dislike) coasters, and then I’ll hold out for the PTO version.

And, look, a real stand for the bike! Can I get it in carbon?

MikeC
MikeC
9 years ago

SRAM, please make the PTO version available to the public. Thanks.

Finally
Finally
9 years ago

Hey, look at that. Africa’s finally getting technology that Europe had in the 1700s!

MaxV
MaxV
9 years ago

SRAM should be careful. I think Gilligan or the Professor have patents on that…

Greg
Greg
9 years ago

I have a grease incrusted kick back on a Schwinn Racer, never serviced and it never fails.

Padrote
Padrote
9 years ago

Three speed kickback with a disc brake?? I need that in my life.

How about an automatic version too!

bsimon
bsimon
9 years ago

blender?

Mindless
Mindless
9 years ago

And it is different fro Sturmey Archer 3 speed how?

tom
tom
9 years ago

@Mindless- No shifter. All shifting is controlled through the pedals.

I like how it automatically resets to low gear when you brake. Thats an awesome feature. Thats the annoying part about riding a Bendix two speed. Always puts you in the opposite gear unless you shift before braking.

Sram- I want a PTO version too.

christinayo
christinayo
9 years ago

if Sram and Buffalo are interested, there is plenty of PUBLIC interest for the PTO version throughout the world!!!!!!

tynityres
tynityres
9 years ago

Nothing wrong with plastic as an engineering material, but I don’t see any front brake on that bike which means that all that potential energy from descending the slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro with the owner, his/her family, plus all the stuff they are transporting to market is going to end up as heat in that rear hub. Can the plastic parts really withstand that temperature. Maybe some big honkin’ heat sinks and liquid coolin’ might do the trick. Otherwise really neat stuff.

Richard
Richard
8 years ago

Still waiting…

Tommy
Tommy
8 years ago

i want the PTO version to make margarit…oops fruit smoothies

David Skipper
7 years ago

I love this and hope it becomes available. The three speed is a great selling point but love that they are working on add ones. I am all for helping others in third world areas but I can see a market for anyone who likes to live as green as possible

Shane Campbell
6 years ago

So did this ever get made???

Ben
Ben
5 years ago

I wrote SRAM back in 2015 (where they still did not have a release date) and in 2017 (where they had scrapped the project).
They have the hub in their archives – who knows what would happen if more people wrote and asked about it – the world needs this hub;)

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