Sean T. Randolph takes a close look at the Tout Terrain Outback Xplore II hardtail ($6,279), a rugged gearbox- and belt-drive-equipped bicycle featuring the Pinion C1.12 system. If you’re gearbox-curious (and we know you are), read on to find out if this touring mountain bike from Tout Terrain is the derailleur-killer…

Sean is riding the size Large as a 6′ 0″, 190 lb human

Crush-Worthy

The first time I went on a real bike tour was in the summer of 2008. I had just finished my undergrad degree, split up with my girlfriend, and quit my bike shop job that I had worked at since I was 15 years old. A ton of big life changes, to say the least. I bought a BOB trailer and joined my co-worker John on his cross-country journey from Portland, OR to Portland, ME. I only made it to Fargo, ND.

What does this have to do with the Tout Terrain Outback Xplore II? Well, John always had his finger on the pulse of what was cool when it came to bike stuff. He was one of the first people I knew that had a fixed gear. It was a raw aluminum Cannondale with 650c wheels and a White Industries ENO hub. He also had a Cannondale Scalpel that featured some kind of weird corrugated carbon fiber rear-end type thing. Anyway, John had funky bikes, and I was into it.

One bike I remember in particular was a 2007 Gary Fisher Ferrous in a bright orange color. This was a crush-worthy bike. It had True Temper OX Platinum tubing and an eccentric bottom bracket so it could be run as a single speed. The bike was simple and elegant but also popped in a way that made it look like it was fun to ride. I’m a firm believer that no matter what bike you choose, you have to like the way it looks.

It doesn’t need to have the best components, but it has to look cool and work well and if it looks cool and works well, then you will want to ride it. The Tout Terrain Outback Xplore II is one such bike. This mountain touring rig is only available in a shade of orange very similar to John’s bitchin’ Gary Fisher. Your witchy coven will agree that it’s as cute as a jack-o-lantern on Halloween and because it features the super reliable Pinion Gearbox, you can hop on it without a worry!

What’s Under the Hood?

The Tout Terrain Outback Xplore II’s most noticeable feature is that it uses the Pinion C1.12 Gearbox. The gearbox is driven by a Gates Carbon Belt Drive and shifted by Pinion’s grip shifter. First off, I love grip shifters! This is a pretty unpopular opinion, but my first Rockhopper A1 FS came with grip shifters, and I have been riding them off and on ever since.

“But how do you not accidentally shift while you are riding, Sean?”

The short answer: you do not. It would be a huge safety concern if twist shifters were that easy to shift. If you haven’t ridden a bike with good quality ones, I suggest you try. SRAM even makes grip shifters for 12-speed Eagle, and they rule. Don’t sleep on this tip – grip shifters are gonna come back with a vengeance.

The Pinion grip shifter is no exception. It’s super easy to use and shifts precisely and easily. However, it should be noted that there is a learning curve to when you can shift with this system. Like all other internally geared systems, it cannot be shifted while under load. So to shift, you momentarily let pressure off the pedals, i.e. stop pedaling briefly, before shifting gears.

That being said, you can dump as many gears as you want when shifting because of the nature of this system. I had the most trouble re-learning how to shift when doing technical uphill riding. I would mostly just pick a good gear for climbing and not shift. I did have some issues on my first couple of rides with some popping in the drivetrain, but this was due to an issue of an overtightened cable that was quickly remedied after some troubleshooting with the folks over at Tout Terrain.

The gearbox has an incredible range. I seldom used the easiest gear, as it seemed much lower than the 30t x 52t I have on my MTB, and I never felt spun out on the flats, either. The C1.12 boasts a gear range that is effectively 600% as compared to that of SRAM Eagle at 520%. With a gear range like this, you could scale up the steepest face in the Andes – no problem!

My biggest complaint was how the engagement of the system felt as a whole in conjunction with the flex of the belt drive. Both the Pinion gearbox and the rear wheel can coast. So when you ratchet up the pedals to lay down some heavy wattage with your beautiful ham hocks, you have the engagement of the hub, the engagement of the gearbox (which I found was three clicks on the hub), and the sponginess of the belt drive all working against your usual uphill snap.

This becomes less of a problem if you aren’t mountain biking on the rig and are making less powerful efforts on a longer bikepacking mission. Many folks point out that the belt drive lasts longer than a traditional chain, but I never really thought that a chain didn’t last long enough to begin with. I prefer the feel of a chain as well as its serviceability and universality around the world.

The Tout Terrain came with a relatively high-engagement hub, which seemed odd to me because the engagement of the hub is negated by the engagement of the gearbox. I would prefer to pair the Pinion gearbox with a hub with a silent mechanism, such as the Onyx hub. If we are not concerned with snappiness, let’s favor silence. After all, silence is a virtue. Belt drive proponents may argue that it’s quieter, but in my experience with this bike, a dry belt squeaks just as much as a dry chain.

That being said, I did not test the bike in wet conditions, but that, I imagine, is where it shines. I know Spencer is working on a review where he rides through miles of water with a belt drive and Pinion gearbox – stay tuned for the results of his field test.

Looking Outside the (Gear)box

Much of the allure of this bike is that it features the Pinion Gearbox front and center, but it has so much more to offer. As I mentioned earlier, the frame looks slick as hell. Minimal branding and glossy paint are huge pluses. Tout Terrain avoids the ugly marketing of other brands in favor of small details that really set the bike off. The rear end is particularly clean, with the seatstay junction mirroring the chainstay junction.

The segmented seat stays look like the segmented fork crown of a Yo Eddy! I love that the frame has rack mounts, too. Much to the chagrin of all my friends, I can’t get enough of throwing a rack on the bike for gear hauling and strapping an overstuffed drybag to the top of it. I am all about utility when it comes to bikepacking. The frame also has a built-in “knock block” feature so the bars can’t swing around and whack your top tube or rip out your cables. This came in clutch when loading up the front of the bike and further proves that Tout Terrain is committed to pushing the utility value of their bicycles. I didn’t have any crashes with the bike loaded, but I appreciate this type of detail.

When comparing this bike to others with a traditional drivetrain, it’s important to consider the C1.12 costs about as much as a SRAM XO1 Transmission groupset. This type of cost analysis gets muddy when you start to consider the price of chains and cassettes as they wear out. We are looking at an Electric Vehicle vs. Internal Combustion Engine type situation for you car heads out there.

The bike is mostly equipped with Tout Terrain-branded parts to keep costs down. The bars are nothing special, but they do the job and follow in the minimally-branded aesthetic. Sometimes I wish brands would take more liberties in the handlebar department, much like Adam Sklar did when making his PBJ bar, or Surly making their two-piece BMX-style bar available on stock builds. This is a very dope move.

I did have a problem with the grips that came on the bike initially, as one of the grips delaminated from its lockring. Tout Terrain set me up with a new set of grips which worked well, but if I were to buy this bike, I’d probably swap the grips for a set of foamies for simplicity and comfort. Another small issue with the build was the front hub. The end caps on the front hub have a similar design as some of the older Stan’s hubs where the endcaps wiggle quite a bit when you’re trying to put the wheel on while holding the bike. Not a dealbreaker, but something to consider if you’re someone like me who’s constantly taking the front wheel off to put the bike in the back of your chip-crumbed, heavily unwashed Subaru Impreza.

I really enjoyed the optional Reba fork and PNW dropper. They worked flawlessly and came in clutch as an upgrade for navigating rocky terrain. The Magura brakes were super powerful and easy to adjust. I would probably prefer something that has less plastic construction for fear that it might snap off in a crash, but in general, I think they get the job done. Overall, the parts spec on the bike is clean, inoffensive, and reliable.

Parts Highlights:

• Price: $6279 ($5500 with rigid seatpost and rigid carbon fork)
• Frame welded in Taiwan; painted and bike assembled in Gundelfingen, Germany
• RockShox Reba RL 120mm fork (optional)
• Tout Terrain hubs laced to WTB 29 rims
• Magura MT5 brakes
• Pinion C1.12 Gearbox with Gates Carbon Belt Drive
• Tout Terrain ergo 760 handlebars
• PNW Loam dropper post (optional)
• Vittoria Mezcal 29 x 2.35″ tires

So you want to ride the Tout Terrain Outback Xplore II, but don’t have a dealer nearby? I have a solution for you. I guarantee you have a friend with a Surly Karate Monkey. The Tout Terrain, in many ways, rides very similarly to a Surly Karate Monkey. Both bikes have a 68º head tube angle and ride relatively stiff for a steel frame, which makes them both great for loaded touring. The Tout Terrain feels particularly stiff in the bottom bracket junction because of how the gearbox bolts up to the frame. This bike truly shines when it’s loaded down with gear and would be great for multi-day mixed-terrain journeys.

Pros:

• Steel frame is stiff and sturdy (ideal for fully loaded touring, even with a rear rack!)
• The frame has touring-specific features such as rack mounts and built-in stops to prevent the bars from swinging around
• Pinion gearbox is low maintenance and can shift many gears at once, even while stopped
• Magura MT-5 brakes are powerful and can stop a loaded bike with ease
• Branding on Tout Terrain components is minimal, which adds to the clean aesthetic of the bike overall

Cons:

• Belt drive in conjunction with the engagement of the Pinion gearbox creates a spongy feel when cranking on the pedals
• There’s a bit of a learning curve when relearning to shift an internally geared system such as the Pinion gearbox
• Wider tires and rims would provide more cushion and grip
• Although bars and replacement grips are functional, they are probably best swapped out for something more ergonomic

See more at Tout Terrain.

Have you been converted to the Church of the Holy Gearbox or are you still praying at the altar of the Divine Derailleur? Would you rock a belt-driven bike? Drop into the comments and let us know if a Pinion-equipped bike is in your future…