Thanks for tuning in today we're going to be reviewing the Priority Ace of Spades
single speed belt drive bike.
With the increasing number of boutique bike brands and ever increasing cost of cycling parts and
accessories it's easy to forget that cycling is supposed to be fun and accessible. The bike we're
going to be reviewing today is the Priority Ace of Spades and that's a bike that really captures
the essence of cycling with an affordable price point combined with a low maintenance belt drive system that
allows you just to enjoy riding instead of having to maintain the bike. You can see here packaging is
very well done, everything's in the cardboard box with the accessories and instructions and a little
packet on the inside. Lots of protective wrapping around all the components so you won't have any
scratches or dents on the actual parts even though the box may be mishandled by your shipping company.
Now Priority offers two variations on this bike we have the Ace of Spades which retails for $899
there's also a $599 Ace of Clubs version it's a little more affordable. With either version
you get aluminum frame which helps keep the weight of the bike down and provides some nice dampening.
You get the Gates Carbon Drive so it's a really nice belt drive system that'll
outlast any chain system without having to have grease or worrying about the chain wear.
It's a flip-flop hub as well so you can ride this as a single speed right out of the box
or add a special cog on the rear and then ride it as a fixed gear so very versatile. With the
upgraded Ace of Spades that we have here you get a carbon fiber fork and a carbon fiber seat post
which really helps dampen the ride and again reduces the weight of the Ace of Spades.
As far as assembly very simple you don't need to be a professional mechanic or have even assembled
a bike before you can use the simple allen keys and the wrench included. You have to put
on the front handlebar the front brake and then attach the front wheel. There's no torque spec on
the wheel you just want to make sure it's tight enough that leaves a little bit of an imprint on
your hand when you tighten it. There are no quick release levers here which is something commuters
will probably prefer as its harder to steal so simply put on the front wheel make sure you line up
the front wheel when you're putting on the stem as well and that's the easy one to get a little
out of alignment. We do recommend using some blue loctite which is not included that really helps
parts preventing helps them to not back out or get seized over time. So again use the
wrench included to put on the pedals, these are nice metal platform pedals so great for
commuting. The carbon fiber seat post has a minimum insertion depth so make sure at least the minimum
is inside. If you need something taller you can go after market with a 400 millimeter version.
These are all unbranded parts but you can see they're really well made
and very subtle with all black design. Just tighten down the bolt we do recommend using a
torque wrench though again that's not included but something like a Pro Bike tool torque wrench. You can
make sure you don't over tighten the stem or the seat post which have very low torque rating so it's
easy to overtime accidentally definitely recommend going over the bike make sure everything's tight
or have someone else just confirm it before you go too fast or take it on its first ride. You
also need to adjust the front brake just make sure it's centered which is really easy to do.
Now let's take a look at the fit and finish of the Priority Ace bike. We have the Ace of Spades
here and you can tell that by the white and black color scheme. It's the only color scheme
currently available but we do expect Priority eventually add more colors if there is a demand.
Now before we jump into the individual details of the bike, let's take a look at the geometry.
It's an urban or commuter bike and the distinction there is that the wheelbase is very narrow so you
can see the distance between the center of each wheel is quite narrow compared to a road bike and
it's a very steep head angle so you can see that angle between the fork and the front handlebars
it's very steep so it's about 73 degrees depending on which size you get. That makes it more nimble
handling so it's more upright responds quicker. The seat tube is also very steep so again that
what that does is makes everything very narrow reduces the wheelbase and makes it more upright so
you can see the distance between the top of the seat and the top of the handlebar doesn't
have that much of a drop. Now let's take a look at the front end of the Priority bike. They all
come with the flat handlebars regardless of the trim level, it's nice and comfortable rubber grips
and very easy to nimble to ride with. It is quite wide though so smaller riders may want to swap
it out for a more narrow one. There are a lot of modern components on here so standard stem you can
just swap out the bolts and then put a different handlebar here or swap out the stem very easily.
Now the other nice thing about the Priority is they've used a lot of easily upgradable parts so
you have a dual pivot brake caliper, much better than your v or cantilevered brakes. So you can
see it actually pivots from two locations really easy to adjust so you can loosen it tighten it
adjust the cable tension swap out the brake pads and it's great to see that on here even though
these are all unbranded as you'd expect for a sub thousand dollar bike they all feel high quality
and work really well. With the Priority Ace of Spades you also get the carbon fiber fork and
it doesn't have a exposed carbon fiber weave but it is carbon fiber underneath which reduces the
weight of the bike so in the medium versions about 24 pounds with the xl. We expect to be about 26 pounds
you can see you also have the mounting brackets here so you can put a rack extra water bottle
cage or other gear on here which makes it very versatile. Now in terms of the wheel set it's a
in-house wheel set from Priority, fairly shallow so it's not a deep v or something else you'd see on a
fixed bike. What the difference is between this bike and the lower model one is that you
get sealed bearings on here so you can actually see them exposed here and what's nice about this
is lower maintenance smoother ride so definitely a nice upgrade and if you do want to upgrade the
wheel set separately you can also do that but you'll likely have to go through a custom route.
Both of the trim levels come with the same wtb thickslick tire so they're 700 by 28 pretty
robust. So you can see nice and comfy especially at the 28 width and not much tread on them so
it's more oriented toward urban or commuting if you want to do more trail riding or gravel
you may want to get something a little bit more durable for that. All the priority ace bikes use
an aluminum frame with the exposed weld so you can see the top tube and then the down tube are welded
on here with a little reinforcement plate as well. So compared to a carbon fiber bike you don't have
sleek aerodynamic tubing just all round standard tubing with nothing too fancy. The head tube on
here has the Priority logo which looks pretty good with the Priority written in white. It'd be nice
to see some more colors or more creative fonts on here otherwise it's a very simple bike. Now
coming to the rear of the bike again you see the exposed welds between the top tube the seat stay
and then the seat tube as well. You have this nice Ace of Spades logo on here and that's for
this bike the other one would have the Ace of Clubs which is a nice little detail. Standard
little clamp here for your seat post and with this one you actually get the carbon fiber seat post
so nothing too fancy. It's lighter weight and absorb some of the shock here you can see the
seat that comes with the bike, it is fairly narrow which is one downside to a lot of cheaper bikes
they look better when they're narrow but they're not that comfortable i'd highly recommend checking
your actual width your seat bone with and then get an appropriate size one. In all likelihood
this is probably too narrow for most of the population you want something wider give you more
support. Now we'll take a look at the drive system that's what really makes the Priority so special.
It's not just a more affordable aluminum frame bike but you get the carbon belt drive system
from Gates. It's a very high quality system you don't have to grease your chain very low
maintenance all you do is just rub it down every once in a while if you get dirt or mud on it
and much nicer than a normal metal chain system. This comes with the Gates S300 crankset you can
see no front derailleur, no rear derailleur so no adjustments necessary again. Low maintenance and
just fun to ride you can just jump on it and not worry about it. You get standard flat metal pedals
so this is great for commuting you can swap these out for something like the Bontrager
which have SPD compatibility and flat. If you want something with clips
or you can swap it out for a toe clip model little reflectors on the front and rear all blacks set up.
You have a 55 tooth on the front and then on the rear is 20. With the ace of clubs it's a little bit
easier to ride with as it has a 22 on the rear but this gear ratio is actually better if you're more
more of a performance cyclist and you want to go faster. Now let's go to the rear of the bike and
this is also what makes this bike special it is a flip-flop hub so on this side you can see you
have a standard freewheel with a single sprocket on here it's a 22 you can also swap this out for
different ones. You can see this is a horizontal drop out with a little tension bolt here so you
can adjust the tension on here and as far as the tension on the belt they actually have
an app for that so you can just do that and then the app will actually measure the noise
to determine whether the tension on the belt is correct. You can also buy a fixed gear sprocket
from Priority. Flip this over and then have a fixed gear bike so a two for one special essentially.
As with any single speed or fixed gear bike you want to make sure this ratio works for you though
if you have an environment with a lot of hills you want to make sure this is appropriate
because it is a lot harder than a standard geared bike.
Now take a look at the Ace of Spades on the road. We found the bike to be really fun to ride with
the combination of the narrow wheelbase and the upright position
makes it very nimble so you can get around corners really easily. It is a lightweight
bike even in the XL version we have here it's around 26 pounds which is competitive.
Also the carbon fiber fork and seat post combined with the aluminum frame and 700 by 28 tires
really absorb a lot of the potholes on the road so it is a smooth ride that doesn't tire you out.
The only real downside of this bike is the fact that it is a single speed so you don't
have any gear options. The gear ratio from the factory is really nice for flat roads
you can go up to 30 miles an hour pretty easily and comfortably but for really steep hills it's
not that appropriate. As with any single speed bike you really have to plan your routes accordingly or
be ready to get off the saddle and give it a good effort. As far as what we'd upgrade on the bike
although all the components are really well chosen and the dual pivot brakes and other features are
really nice to see at the sub thousand dollar price point. We'd still probably upgrade the tires
for something less durable but a little more grip and lighter weight. Also the grips on the handlebar
could easily be upgraded to add a little color to the bike and improve the ergonomics as you
can do with the seat as well for something a little bit wider if that's what you need.
Now let's go over the scorecard for the Ace of Spades. We're gonna grade on four different
categories: design, components, handling and value. For design we'd give it an A-, it's a great
low maintenance design that combines the aluminum frame with the belt drive system. We would have
liked to see more color options or some more nice color accents along the bike to brighten it up.
Components we give it an A, there are a lot of modern parts here dual pivot rim brakes. You have the threadless stem
so it's really well built from the factory and easy to upgrade down the road. Handling
is also an a has a nice nimble short wheelbase so really easy to turn and maneuver around town.
Value-wise we would also give it an A it's a really affordable belt bike
and even though it's sub thousand dollars you get a lot of higher end parts that you don't typically
see at this price point. Thanks for watching this review don't forget to like and subscribe.
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