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I suspect Rob English knows how to tension his belt sympathetically and service his Alfine - a feat roughly 0% of users - and let’s face it few shops - can or are willing to do.
Howard-
I have learnt that once the belt tension is correctly set, it does not require further tensioning (and indeed, the Gates CenterTrack belt doesn’t need to be run very tight at all). So the solution I went with on this bike is mainly about allowing entry for the belt, with the chainstay length built correctly for the belt length being used. The end of the chainstay acts as a socket, sliding over a matching stub on the dropout. A 6mm bolt then holds it all together. Should a chainstay length adjustment be required, then it is simple to just add shims inside the socket as needed.
I think that answers at least some of the questions raised above. I'd like to think that his customers are either clued-up or educated at time of delivery.
Lolo
Rob English's personal winter bike (which was the template for all the belt-driven Alfine bikes he's made since) had already been ridden 20000 miles by 2013.
If they were that bad I would have thought he would have found out by now?