Schindelhauer FRIEDA XI / alu pur L (58cm) | alu pur | 11-Gang / braune Reifenseitenwand

Schindelhauer FRIEDA XI – aluminium city bike with 11-speed hub gearing, carbon belt drive and dynamo lighting

The FRIEDA XI is a classically urban everyday bicycle that brings comfort and a reduced design language together with complete consistency. Its frame is built from the lightweight AL6061-T6 aluminium alloy, whose triple-butted Aero-Shape tube set concentrates stiffness exactly where it is needed and saves material everywhere it would remain invisible. A forged dropout with a sliding belt tensioner, an integrated seatpost clamp, fully internal cable routing and smoothed welds complete the construction – a build designed to look unchanged after many years of use.

Power comes from a Shimano Alfine 11-speed hub gear. Eleven ratios spread the range between a 46-tooth front and 24-tooth rear ring finely enough to handle dense traffic phases and longer gradients with luggage quietly and smoothly – and without the drivetrain jolting or getting dirty when you change gear. The ratios sit entirely inside the rear wheel, while the belt handles the drive: no derailleur shifts, no readjustments, just a quick glance at the gear indicator on the handlebar.

The drivetrain itself is a Gates Carbon Drive CDX with a 115-tooth belt and CenterTrack teeth. Carbon fibres embedded in plastic deliver an efficiency that surpasses a conventional chain, a service life several times longer, and roughly a fifth less weight. Because oil – and with it the chain grease on your trousers – is no longer part of the equation, the unlacquered aluminium frame in alu pur stays immaculate for good, a considerable advantage on a bike that hangs on the wall or stands in a kickstand every single morning. The belt port integrated into the frame and the sliding tensioner allow the tension to be readjusted without any disassembly.

Light comes from a Supernova Pure3 on the Shutter Precision PD-8X front hub dynamo, with a Supernova E3 handling the rear. Both lamps are integrated into the wheel silhouette so the bike's appearance stays calm. The illumination is not powered by a battery that needs charging, and remains reliably available in heavy rain or on long night rides – a combination that carries particular weight on belt-driven bikes with hub gearing, because two entries have already dropped away there: the chain that wants greasing and the traction battery.

For tours and light bikepacking setups, the FRIEDA XI is well prepared: a custom Tubus Fly rear carrier takes panniers, Curana D-Light mudguards keep water off legs and bags in wet conditions, and the 35-622 Continental GP Urban tyres offer enough comfort on asphalt, cobbles and hard forest paths without becoming sluggish. The wheelbase has been stretched deliberately so the kickstand plate stands stably and there is clearance between heel and rear panniers. A mount for a bottle cage or a lock is provided, and a kickstand can be added. A weight of 13,2 kg combined with the Brooks B17 S Lady saddle, Schindelhauer Ergo leather grips and a curved aluminium fork with 15 mm thru-axle produce a fully equipped bicycle that still moves easily. The geometry, with its longer fork, lower bottom bracket and Noirette handlebar modelled on the traditional Stuttgarter bar, creates an upright, always clearly visible riding position – a difference you feel in city traffic immediately.

How the designation FRIEDA XI came about

The first part of the name is a creation of the Berlin manufacturer, which assigns its urban models to deliberately chosen pairs: the FRIEDA forms the feminine half of such a pairing, and the manufacturer himself subtitles her “the comfortable one”. No official account of where the first name itself originates is given – the name is deliberately not a technical code but a character description. It stands for the bike's attitude: upright rather than sporting, calm rather than quick, well-kept rather than smeared. The male part of the pair carries the corresponding name and the same technical foundation.

The second part, XI, is a Roman numeral and at the same time the technical identifier: the eleven stands for the eleven gears of the Shimano Alfine hub gear. Within the model family the gear count is consistently spelled out in Roman numerals – the sister model with eight Alfine gears accordingly carries the VIII. Anyone who reads only the number at the end of the name already knows the gear range the bike offers. Added to this is the colour designation alu pur, which describes the surface: deliberately unlacquered aluminium that keeps its metallic contour free of dirt and lets you experience the frame as visible material instead of concealing it.

How the XI differs from the VIII in its own series

Within the Frieda family the gap between the two versions is refreshingly clear: everything that shapes frame, drive and character is identical. Both versions run the Gates Carbon Drive CDX, both use the same AL6061-T6 frame, both rely on the Shutter Precision hub dynamo, Supernova lighting, Tubus Fly carrier, Curana mudguards and the Brooks B17 S Lady saddle. The decisive difference lies in the transmission – eleven gears against eight – and therefore in how finely the ratio range between 46 teeth at the front and 24 at the rear is divided.

That finer division becomes noticeable where other models reach their limits. Eight gears are sufficient for flat urban riding and short distances; where a gradient loaded with shopping, a longer Sunday route into the surrounding countryside or a trip with luggage comes into play, the additional steps ensure you stay in the right gear instead of shifting and losing power in the process. For anyone who plans on longer distances and intends to use the bicycle accordingly, the XI is therefore the more consistent choice – while those riding on the flat and seeking the least possible maintenance find the same comfort in the VIII with a smaller gear range.

The Limited Edition colourways of the XI, such as pearl blue or petrol, do not change this configuration either: they are colour statements and limited editions of 150 individually engraved examples each, technically identical in equipment to the bike shown here in alu pur.

What this FRIEDA XI is designed for

This FRIEDA XI is built for the commute from home to work, for shopping rides through town and for any tour that can be started spontaneously on a free afternoon or at the weekend, without elaborate luggage. The belt drive and hub gear concept is not an end in itself but the answer to precisely this everyday life: it works equally well in rain, dust and months without any maintenance effort, and it keeps weight low even though mudguards, carrier and dynamo lighting are part of the standard specification. Radfieber therefore lists the bicycle consistently in the Urban category, in frame sizes from 50 to 58 centimetres in diamond form.

The family sets itself apart within the manufacturer's portfolio by committing to belt drive and a conventional hub gear instead of a derailleur or a gear hub on the bottom bracket. Other series from the same manufacturer pursue different technical priorities – from city bikes with a gear hub through sporty track and singlespeed concepts to models with electrically assisted mid-drive. The Frieda family is the version that sits upright, shifts gears and is designed around longevity and quiet running.

A direct counterpart also exists: the matching Friedrich carries the second name from the same pair and presents the same technical idea in a men's version. Anyone comparing the two is therefore looking at two equally valid interpretations of the same philosophy of comfort – along with the choice between eight and eleven gears.