First Ride: Classified's Electronic Two-Speed Powershift Hub
Remember when we ditched front derailleurs for wide-range 11-speed cassettes? For some riders and brands, that 10-42-tooth range wasn’t enough, so along came a 10-50 version, and then one by one, we reached a massive 520% range with SRAM’s Eagle. Wireless shifting was added to the mix, but there was no replacing the quick drop in gear reduction that you’d get from actuating a front derailleur.
Luckily, those have virtually disappeared in modern mountain bike times, although a brand from the Belgium has cleverly found a way to incorporate all of those benefits, like a massive 530% gear range, instantaneous shifting under load (up to 1000W), and a wireless actuator, into a nearly invisible system hidden inside a hub. Although there are some unique components on the wheel, a standard Shimano or SRAM 12-speed chain, derailleur, and front chainrings work with Classified’s cassette.
PowerShift 148 Hub Details
• 0.7 gear reduction
• 530% gear range
• Shifts under load
• 150-millisecond shift time
• Bluetooth wireless, remote ring shifter
• Proprietary 12-speed, 11-40-tooth cassette
• 28 straight pull or 32 J-bend spoke count
• 148mm Boost hub spacing
• Hub or wheelset options
• Weight: 858g - PowerShift hub, hub shell, cassette, 2127g- complete wheelset
• Price: €1,449 - 2,699
• classified-cycling.cc
• 0.7 gear reduction
• 530% gear range
• Shifts under load
• 150-millisecond shift time
• Bluetooth wireless, remote ring shifter
• Proprietary 12-speed, 11-40-tooth cassette
• 28 straight pull or 32 J-bend spoke count
• 148mm Boost hub spacing
• Hub or wheelset options
• Weight: 858g - PowerShift hub, hub shell, cassette, 2127g- complete wheelset
• Price: €1,449 - 2,699
• classified-cycling.cc
The major gains of the PowerShift hub are that you can shift while pedalling under full power sprints, but also, and possibly more important for mountain biking, without turning the cranks - no more getting stuck in high gear suddenly at the bottom of an abrupt climb.
The system was first introduced to the road and gravel market, so the concept isn’t brand new, but this is the first time we’ve ridden it, and the first debut of the PowerShift in a 148 Boost hub spacing.
How Does it Work?
Classified’s PowerShift hub hides a planetary gear system inside the hub shell to provide a 0.7 reduction ratio. The components consist of five main parts: a proprietary 11-40-tooth, one-piece steel cassette and hub shell, the actuator body, a Smart Thru axle, and the wireless ring shifter.
The sensor at the Smart Thru axle picks up the Bluetooth wireless signal from the two-way ring shifter to the actuator located inside the hub shell. Classified wouldn’t reveal what’s inside the actuator, but presumably, a small servo moves the planetary gears in and out of engagement to change the main ratio. A traditional pawl spring design is used for the freehub which engages in under 10-degrees.
Due to the size of the actuator body, Classified’s own one-piece cassette comes into the equation and quickly slides onto the actuator. That’s held in place by a standard cassette lock ring, hence why the smallest cog is limited to eleven teeth.
The actuator body can be quickly removed via a Centerlock rotor nut and placed into another hub shell without removing the cassette. The actuator and cassette are modular, making it possible to transfer to Classified’s 142mm road hub shell too.
The discrete ring shifter can be placed on either side of the bar, in any orientation, and both that and the axle sensor are rechargeable.
Specs
Hold your breath because there are a lot of numbers to digest when talking about the Classified PowerShift hub. We mentioned the 11-40-tooth cassette and 0.7 gear reduction which give a 530% range - 10% more than SRAM’s 10-52-tooth Eagle cassette, but what about the weight?
The actuator body is the heftiest component at 485 grams, but the rotating mass is kept close to the 29g Smart Thru axle. That one-piece steel cassette weighs 248 grams, nearly half the weight of a Shimano XT 10-51-tooth option. On the handlebars, the ring shifter weighs an insignificant 24g.
Two hub and rims options exist in either a 28-hole, straight pull, Centerlock build, or a 32-hole J-bend, 6-bolt option. Classified’s own M25/30mm width carbon rims are 680/685g.
Given the increased range and highly beneficial shifting bonus, it’s important to look at the system as a whole, because it’s quite impressive. The full package is only 73g heavier than a Shimano XT drivetrain on DT Swiss XRC1501 wheels, or 2127g with the M25 rims.
Pricing
There are three ways to purchase the PowerShift Hub system. Classified’s own M25 or M30 carbon wheelset, with either spoke type and count will retail for €2,699. A hub shell and shifting component combo lets you start your own wheel build for €1,549. Then, there’s the option of buying just the actuator body, in case you decide to go for another brand of hub.
It’s clear that the PowerShift system is not a gimmick. Large brands, such as Atomik Carbon, Nobl Wheels, and Reynolds, see the value in the concept. They’ll be building their own rims and hubs for the PowerShift actuator to slot into.
All warranties will be taken care of by Classified, should something go awry.
Ride Impressions
Classified’s PowerShift hub is one of those special products that brings a new experience to the way you think about shifting. Everything from the overall packaging, to the instantaneous shifts, to the undetectable friction of the rotating gears is impressive.
Riding the PowerShift hub is like being transported back in time when we regularly used front derailleurs, except there’s no racket coming from the front chainring, dropped chains, sketchy shifts, or cables. It’s almost eerie how stealthy the operation is. There’s no noise, other than the sound of a solid hub engagement when you do shift and the clutch, which is very similar to the feel of a DT Swiss 36-tooth Star Ratchet.
The ability to jump back and forth between the two ratios with the blip of a button is a profound experience. This really helps you out of a jam when you botch a climb or want to grab a handful of gears for a sprint - it all happens seamlessly and you can pedal right through the change. I can really see this taking off, not only for XC and enduro racing, but simply everyday riding for the average consumer.
Personally, I could do with larger jumps with fewer gears because there is so much more, and easier, shifting going on in the hub. That of course would require their own derailleur and shifter though. I found myself using the PowerShift hub as the main source of gear changes first, and then adapting the rear derailleur, particularly when bouncing around undulating trails. On climbs, you can really fine tune the cadence you’re looking for. If you do happen to mis-calculate when to make a PowerShift move, you can simply keep pedalling and revert the change without missing a beat.
On the road and gravel side, there have been armchair engineers who have scoffed about the efficiency loss in the reduced ratio, which is claimed to be less than 1%. Classified has battled critics with their extensive testing. Honestly, I found it tough to notice any drag and would be surprised if any rider blindly hopped on the system and complained.
As for the proprietary cassette, the shifting is very adequate, but not quite up to the same performance as SRAM Eagle or Shimano Hyperglide+ standards. Our test bike was equipped with a SRAM GX AXS derailleur and further fine tuning could possibly have tuned out what we were missing. Overall, it wasn’t a concern, just a note that the two drivetrain giants still battle it out for the best shifting cassettes. The long-term durability of the electronics through regular mud and washing has yet to be thoroughly tested either.
The last concern, which goes for any component that dangles off the bike in a dangerous zone, is the Smart Thru axle wireless pickup. That may be susceptible to damage if you were to take a digger. Like the rest of the components in the PowerShift, this could be swapped quickly.
Classified’s PowerShift reincarnates the benefits of a front derailleur in a neatly packaged wireless system. The practicality of this system is evident for all types of riding and we look forward to putting more miles on the PowerShift hub in a long term test.
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"Price aside..." or "...the shifting is very adequate."
No Goat Link or any hanger modification needed. Tried and approved.
I hope that "proprietary" cassette standard takes off as a new standard. Please downvote me right now. But I always thought it was daft to have cylindrical cassette bodies with a lot of heavily loaded finicky mechanics inside and then build a big spider to transfer the huge torque from that body to the big cassette sprockets. The cone shape makes much more sense. Sure, a big cone limits how small the biggest sprockets can be. But especially in case of the Shimano Microspline, it was pretty much only introduced to be used with huge cassettes that (yet had to be small only for that single 10t sprocket).
If you dislike this post, please don't forget to downvote!
Besides if you really want mt bike cred, fixy baby.
I'd be really interested to hear from someone who has ridden a full suspension ss. It would seem that a bb pivot wouldn't provide enough anti squat for the torque you produce while climbing. But maybe these are more park focused bikes anyway.
A standard shimano splined version is on its way
global-uploads.webflow.com/62c40b4caed47f5c484af01b/643d505f9a03d44916b29c90_classified_powershift_hub_LQ3_en.pdf
Classified's 530% range is less than a 2% increase in over a SRAM 10-52: (530-520)/520 --> 10/520 --> .019
A 10% range increase would be 572% (520*1.1).
Basically like having a 10-53t cassette that adds, (quick estimate) 1/2lb, requires charging, re-introduces redundant ratios, and reduces efficiency in half the available gears.
Sold.
- With DT 350s coming in around 240g and an XT cassette at 470 you're adding ~150g or 1/3lb of unsprung weight.
Maybe there's a clearer way to state the difference between %s but I don't think Matt was technically wrong.
All joking aside, its a better idea than this. Electronics can be optional. Theres more room in the spindle & cranks than in a hub. No additional unsprung mass (less if you can downsize the cassette & derailleur). An overdrive is going to be more efficient than an underdrive. It can be cheaper, stronger, lighter (not that the Hammerschmidt was light but it was a gen1 product)
The article/release neglected to mention that this new system needs some way to get a reference torque, same as the Hammerschmidt needed the ISCG mount. On the road and gravel systems the torque bar uses part of the flat-mount disc caliper mount. What's this one using? Why is the demo bike a seemingly custom frame?
As much as I loved the Hammerschmidt, I'm not sure anyone outside of a 1st row XC racer needs more than about 450% range. My trails are all winch up drop down, where a wide range is the most beneficial. The Hammy gave a 1.6 overdrive, so a normal road cassette + hammy gives you roughly that. I'm not sure the reduced unsprung weight of a road group is worth having a non-standard drivetrain plus the extra cost & weight of a crank mounted overdrive.
But it was also a gen1 product; I want to know what it would be like if they iterated on it for a while.
This is also a 1st gen product, but so many are ready to discount it right away, strange. Like it doesn't immediately fill every single conceivable wish and desire so we just complain about all the potential issues it might have, much like Srams t-type stuff
And yeah, Hammerschmidt was draggy as frig, and hopless to maintain, but like you said 1st gen stuff
This adds unsprung weight, and requires electronics. Both deal breakers for me.
Effigear has a true 11 speed gearbox, but again all gears mesh at all times, and they all move. This is a bigger source of drag than most people realize. The Effigear also requires one extra stage or fixed gear to flip the rotation back to the direction needed by the wheel so you don't have to pedal backwards. If something like Effigear could have two gear selectors, one on each array of gears, then only the powered gears would spin and efficiency could be improved. RIght now only one side has free spinning gears with a selector using pawls on the inside, and the other gear set is one solid piece. The added complexity and reliability makes having two almost impossible to do tho, since they both have to select at precisely the same time.
I’m sure the quick shift under load is a benefit for some people but that is a lot of drawbacks for that one benefit
oh yep, my bad for reading over it quick, thanks for pointing that out
My point still stands though, huge extra cost, extra complication and extra weight for not much benefit
I will say it’s a cool system though, maybe as a bailout gear on a singlespeed bike though?
Really cool idea. If replacement parts were are reasonably cheap it would be a great option on full build bikes. (Not something I would ‘upgrade’ to due to the hassle).
With a .7 reduction you're never really going to see that work out- there would be loads of ratio overlap (and very little range) or mahoosive steps between each cog.
this, coupled with an AXS style der, with only one single shifter. the system would be automated, so you could run essentially a "High" and a "Low" in the hub, with a 6-7 speed cassette. the jumps on the cassette would be the equivalent of two gears on a regular cassette.
So when you are in 1st gear, its the largest cog, and Low on the hub, 2nd gear is largest cog on the cassette and High on the hub. 3rd gear is 2nd cog Low in the hub, and so on. could be integrated with a Sram AXS so the brain does the work of deciding which combination to use, so it could be seamless.
This is where I believe Sram purchasing Classified would go, add in that ring shifter, and a Switchgrade integrated into a Reverb post, and youre off to the races. Add Flight Attendant, and the opportunities are endless for some really interesting integration.
In this setup there's one gap of 12% and one of 20% but the rest are 15-16%.
Shifts perfect every time and you can use a normal 11-40 XT cassette.
2x also stops chain line issues with wear and noise, something this does nothing to address.
They'd have been much better of making a lighter, more efficient electronic version of Hammerschmidt.
Willing to bet SRAM has that wrapped up.
The hassles of having a bike with ISCG? Versus a custom hub, a custom cassette, and a maybe a custom frame?
The custom cassette is the weirdest thing. If they needed a special hub already, why not put everything in the hub and not try to compete with SRAM and Shimano on the cassette front? Classified wants to talk about being better than a front derailleur, but if the rear shifting doesn't match up with the best of breed currently, _and_ requires a bunch of special incompatible parts, then it's one step forward and two steps back.
The second weirdest thing, is that the "torque bar" is not mentioned at all in this article. On the road and gravel systems, it mounts to an existing flat-mount disc caliper location. There _is_ something extra on this bike, you can just barely see it in the pics in the article, but it's even more obvious on Classified's site. Is this thing even compatible with all frames?
global-uploads.webflow.com/62c40b4caed47f5c484af01b/642335e034044b851965f0e0_mtb-hiw-2.webp
Under the dropout, below the axle-handle/bluetooth-bits.
Cheaper, simpler and you get the training effect as well
I wonder how easy it would be to make some sort of mount that fits the proprietary Classified cassette system and adds a section of Shimano freehub splines just big enough for a single speed cog?
global-uploads.webflow.com/62c40b4caed47f5c484af01b/643d505f9a03d44916b29c90_classified_powershift_hub_LQ3_en.pdf
I'll wait by the phone. Call me.
420% range 9 speed gearbox that shifts under load with electric buttons please.
I have just got a Rohloff, and the shifting is the only thing I'm having to get used to -- I don't notice the weight and barely notice the drag (not at all in the higher gears). Damn useful to be able to dump a load of gears without pedalling though
Pinion can definitely shift under more load than the rohloff; though shifting force is proportional to drive load.
Regarding 2X--I've never had any issues either. I was running 3X on my hardtail until 2018, then I gave in and converted to 1X the following year. Still running 2X on my gravel and road bike, and probably will not change that for the sake of "simplicity".
Sure, I think the best application for it in the MTB world is XC riders or those who tour who want to be able to have close ratio gears and a wide gear range at the same time, but that doesn't make it an invalid product. IF I could justify the money, I'd run it on my bike.
Close ratio gears are underrated IMO.
For those with enduro bikes, they generally want a super easy gear (as one such person), because the trails are often winch-plummet. I used to live in the PNW, and that was the norm.
Then again given the downsides to this hub, what's wrong with a "regular" 12 speed drivetrain?
- bad chainline
- long cages
- big jumps on heavy gears where it matters the most
- not as robust as 11sp
and wow the price ... yeah, super cool, I could see it's benefits for unicycling, otherwise nope.
if I've done my math correct its like 68g heavier than the new SRAM drive and 272g heavier than an old XO1 using a 10s sram mech
Front ring clearance may actually be one of the bigger problems with this setup.
I think I'll just keep going with my 10 speed Shimano/AdventX hybrid setups.
Kick it in only when you need that bailout gear.
- no weird proprietary hub
- smaller cassette
- shorter mech cage
- less weight on the hub
- added weight is around the bb.
All that said I’m not the target market for this thing. I’d rather harden up a little and keep my cheap drivetrain.
I think I still disagree about weight. I've run 1000 gram tires and 1400 gram tires and like you, I prefer the 1400 gram tire because of grip and support etc. Rotational mass isn't even bad, the extra momentum can be useful. BUT, i still hard disagree about pure unsprung when it's that many grams. I think if you put a 1lb weight on your rear, you would absolutely be annoyed by it.
Of course, none of this matters if you don't ride, and it won't make a difference if you don't have the ability to use much of your bikes capabilities.
@4thflowkage: I guess you’re just proving my point. You added 400g in tire weight and it’s a better ride. That’s about 1lb. I wouldn’t count something as bad purely based on weight, you’ve got to try it and judge the weight vs the performance. This lil gizmo could be worth it for the short cage der advantages. Sure less unsprung mass is theoretically better, but to me the gains are irrelevant/not perceptible in the real world.
I just swapped a 1400g tire for a 800g tire on my stumpy a couple months ago and a notice a grip and rim protection difference, not a suspension performance difference. I’ve also ridden aluminum and Carbon wheels back to back and can’t feel a real difference in that weight savings or even really in ride feel. Just for reference I ride about 5x a week averaging about 10 miles 1500 vertical feet a ride. I’ve had 8 bikes in the last two years from Carbon hardtails to full DH bikes. There a plenty of people out there who ride way harder longer better than me, but I do have a little experience.
DH cassettes are small bc you don’t need to pedal uphill and a shorter cage der does better when smashing laps and gets hung up less. That’s exactly the same issue this doodad solves. Just by your logic everyone should run super light wheels and tires bc the sus performance would be so insane. I just don’t buy that at all. 500g is negligible.
a 24 speed drivetrain?
To me, that sounds like way too much shifting for mtb.
I already went down to 10spd because I found myself shifting up or down a thumb-full of my 12 gears every time the trail changed pitch.
Super neat though.
I mean this is nifty and all but expensive, more complex heavier and pricy. Not a new idea either. When I was a kid some local had a European bike with a I think 4 speed freewheel and either a 3 speed or 5 speed hub. That was late 60s IIRC.
patch.com/new-york/syosset/how-it-works-3-speed-sturmey-archer-aw-bicycle-gears
Its a wireless Sturmey archer, shimano Alfine is a geared hub and the posh version is Rohloff speedhub
www.sheldonbrown.com/sturmey-archer_tech.html?utm_content=cmp-true
Claimed at 485g for the Powershift Boost MTB internal gear hub, 72g for the Smart axle, 125g for the 28-hole straight-pull centerlock disc brake hub shell OR 165g for the 32h j-bend 6-bolt disc shell, 24g for the Bluetooth Ringshifter, and 248g for the 12-speed 11-40T cassette.
So total is: 485 + 72 + 125 + 24 + 248 = 954
Shimano XT + DT 350 = 0 + 43 + 293 + 0 + 469 = 805
Shimano XTR + DT 240 = 0 + 43 + 209 + 0 + 367 = 619
So, more than 300 grams when used with a drivetrain that still costs half.
Having the gears for high speed is nice for a folding bike e.g. to avoid huge chain rings.
My dual speed mtb is running a schlumpf speed drive. 27chainring up front, 22 in rear, good for uphill.
Do you notice the drag when you are in low speed on your Mountain Drive? Some people won't use a gearbox of any kind because of the lower efficiency of gears.
Some say they never notice the drag. As I wrote above, for two-speed cranks with direct drive for one speed and geared drive for the other, I think it is better to use the gears for low speed. The drag would be less noticeable. Comparing the geared crank to one with two chain rings, the reduction in average efficiency would be less.
Some say the higher weight of a geared drive is trivial. I have never tried one. It is all I can do to own a standard 3x8. It works fine for me. I am too old to be doing any mountain biking, and anyway, doctors and dentists are expensive. But I am interested in gearboxes and would like to know what you think.
For mountainbiking i put much more power during climbing compared to transfers.
With the high gear I can reach 25kmh, bit more with fast spinning. So thats more on the easy side… and no issue with any drag
I also have a bike with effigear gearbox, however the drag there is noticeable, not huge though to be fair.
But f*ck all those unsprung weight improvements from having a gearbox.
I don't doubt the efficiency losses would be undetectable for lil old me, but unless you can make me forget they're present, I'm not sure why I'd pay MORE for them!
cyclists gonna cycle...
That would be sick
My friend has a "tringlespeed" - SS with a triple crank, and 3 rear cogs sized to use about the same chain length. Shifting gears only takes like a minute or two! So it's like this, but way worse
can we just fast forward to Neurolink-enabled CVT already?