Probably the most impressive part of SRAM’s new XX groupset is the cassette which is hewn from a solid block of steel. Which is lovely, but what if you want to run 9 speed rather than 10?
SRAM are happy to fulfill your desires…
The revolutionary machined design of the XG999 cassette uses the same grueling manufacturing techniques that produced the XX as well as the PowerDome road cassette.
With this XG999 cassette, seven of the cogs are CNC-machined together out of a single block of billet steel, creating an incredibly lightweight, precise, and strong cassette.
The open design aids in mud clearance, giving you cleaner shifting performance and longer component life.
Features:
Weight 175 grams
Technologies X-Glide, X-Dome design
Speeds 9 speed
Materials CNC’d 4140 chromoly steel
Large cog material AL-7075-T6
Lock-ring material AL-7075-T6
Gear 11-32 (11-12-14-16-18-21-24-28-32)
MSRP $300
Available Mid March
175g! Shimano’s XTR cassette is a claimed 224g for comparison.
Comments (24)
Comments Closed
Oooh and only £200 too!
on a serious note, Am I right in assuming that all the torque seems to go through a very narrow set of splines, only one or two cogs in width (the largest and smallest ones)?
If so, what are these XX cassettes going to do to alloy freehubs, a la Hope Pro2? Even the small amount of torque that we manage to put through the smallest cogs (11,12,13,14t etc) on cassettes with siders creates large gouges. What is it going to be like transfering the torque from a 32t cog though a single cog’s worth of splines. On an XT/XTR/990 cassette the large cogs (and hence greatest torque) goes through a wide spider, spreading the load, hence only the small cogs gouge the freehub.
I know this is terribly PC, but I really hate the idea of spending hours machining away at big block of steel that took a lot of energy and carbon emissions to produce, then presumaby using loads more to melt down the waste for reprocessing. It has to be a really environmentally poor way to produce a cassette.
(I’m also with you on the freehub damage point markyd)
I bent my last SRAM cassette by standing on the pedals. So I’ll pass for £200.
I have to agree with all of the points. So much for cycling being “green”. Though of course it can be argued that at $300£200 the number sold is likely to be small. Maybe to at leat mitigate some of the energy/material waste compnies like SRAM and Shimano should be looking at recycling used chains, rings and cassettes. Could offer a nominal trade in to make it attractive and could offer them savings on material. If they are already recycling manufacturing material waste they already have most of the system there to recycle used parts.
N’est pas?
Theres nothing “green” about recreational cycling when youre driving the length of the country for a weekend or flying to the Alps.
Using a bike to commute instead of a car however…
I cant see these cassettes lasting too long.
The chain recomended to use 1090 and 1090R didnt last 5 minutes on my road bike and Im about 10.5st.
So apart from the few grams in weight, what is the benefit of this over the current 9spd blocks they produce?
I don’t get… with XX it was all about the weight and the fact it was 10spd.
This just doesn’t make sense to me, on a personal level. There are a ridiculous number of other places I can shed more weight from the bike, for cheaper and not have to replace as regularly as a cassette…
It’s not really aimed at the recreational riders though is it, it’s for the folk who do want to save weight, in which case 50g isn’t to be snubbed.
The cassettes disipate the force over quite a large area, much wider than any of the individual sprockets on a standard cassette. Thus far my XX one’s not left a mark on my freehub body.
It’s just a shame it’s the wrong size… XX’s big advantage rear-end-wise looks to be the 36T cassette, why launch this at boring 11-32? I want a wider range block to go with my dual front rings.
But then I guess such a product would compete directly with XX.
PJ-I rarely use my car to transport my bike for recreational cycling. I ride 95% of the time from my front door. I also use it for shopping. So I feel that my cycling is reasonably green. And to be honest even if I did drive all over the country and fly to the alps, that is still no reason for me to embrace extra non-ecological services/consumables.
Not trying to be holier than thou, just not keen on “our” continued adoption of technologies that seem to consume more and more while all the time everyone is declaring how “green” they are.
Too much window dressing and too little action.
@njee20 – but then surely those same weight weenie folks are gonna go the whole hog and lose the further weight associated with a whole XX crankset too? or am I missing something? That’s why I don’t get it!
njee20 – Are the splines on some sort of sleeve? It is really hard to tell in the photos? I thought when I saw it last year it was as I described above
Not convinced at that price.
And – as my hubs are mainly hope pro 2’s the freehub body will be dead within minutes of the bottom of the first steep hill. so…. £200 to purchase + new hub, spokes and lacing oh may as well change the rim too!
No thanks.
OK for the sponsored lads and serious racers.
Looks like the rest of us reamin somewhere between Deore and XT, subject to how close to payday we are.
Gorgeous bit of engineering!
Doubt it’s any less green than the competitor’s sprockets. It seems an odd point to raise as competitive cycling (like any other competitive sport) isn’t about being green, it’s about being faster than everyone else.
I don’t see many people complaining that hub gears for commuting being far less green than fixed gears – an area of cycling that does have a valid green agenda.
yeah I’d say the green agenda for most recreational biking ain’t actually that solid.
lovely bit of engineering, and I like the idea of Shimano/SRAM etal taking the lead in recycling their consumables.
TBH though, a 175g cassetteisn’t going to make me faster. but I’m not at the top. (or even the middle)
Producing steel is less energy intenesive than either Al or Ti. I would expect this cassette to be far more green than an XTR which has Ti sprockets on an Al carrier. The swarf is probably all recycled anyway.
Jesus! It’s a nice Cassette that is all- I think it’s odd that Sram are being complained at because other peoples freehubs are made of soft cheese.
My KCNC is lighter, stronger, far more pimp, and cheaper. So what if it’s only 9 speed.
I dont think the “open design” will aid mud clearance. The large sprocket is not as open as an XT cassette. It looks to me that muck coming in from the outside/chain area may well get trapped inside.
…get over it guys..it’s pimpy, different and pushing the boundaries weight wise for 9speed. Sram should be given credit for this..it’s not like Shimano has had any decent competition before they came along.
As for price merlin are already knocking a third off XX..so may become available at a more sensible price soon