Does anyone have any experience with Nextie wheels and hubs? It’s possible to get a NXT60ARX wheelset for under $1100USD if using their Rollingstar II hub. (Looks like shipping is an additional $215USD.). A couple of questions for anyone that’s ridden Nextie wheels.
Are these wheels stable in crosswinds? Years ago I had a set of LightBicycle R55 (rim brake) and they were very twitchy in crosswinds. I’ve ridden Zipp 303S and these seemed very stable.
How does the Nextie Rollingstar II hub compare to DT Swiss 350? Both are ratchet systems and Nextie even offers a 54T upgrade.
If looking for a sawtooth / wavy wheelset, how does the CRX60 compare to other similar wheelsets? Name brands include Zipp 454 NSW and Princeton Carbonworks, but these are definitely premium-priced. LightBicycle and others offer wavy designs but I’ve seen mixed aero testing and am uncertain if it actually helps. Like the Nextie ARX60 above, it seems possible to get CRX60 for under $1100USD.
@MikeMckinney that has to be one of the funniest things i’ve seen on the forum for me in a while! Well played!
@rkoswald the Nextie hubs are built very similar to DT swiss hubs. China is starting to really get ahold of its hub game, despite how some people view him, Hambini reviews Ryet hubs which is (see my air quotes) very “similar” to the Nextie off the shelf hub…
Nextie is also working on the next generation hub for some new carbon spoke release and also a standard 20-spoke drilling. As of right now, I know quite a few people on their hubs but I don’t consider 1-2 seasons long term to tell you if any issues have come up (it hasn’t).
See my thread where I am talking about a set of wheels I have coming
That entire thread is actually rather good about wheels!
In regards to stability - I cant say that Nextie brand rims are any better or worse than any brand in particular. You really need to look at rim profile, companies have moved away from V-shape and mostly use a U-shape and modern rim profiling. This combined with the widths help stabilize the cross wind. Its most likely the same across the brands. Nextie shares some similar rim designs to reserve.
The ARX is a great rim - but if you ask me it is starting to get dated “now” as everyone is moving to 32-35mm tires on the road, this is a great rim if you are shooting for 25mm or 28mm with a ideal rim/tire matchup in regards to aerodynamics etc.
The wave model rims have been a long blown battle/debate. The rims themselves test “slower” when you compare depth to depth (like a 55/60 wave is slower than just a flat out 60mm), they however seem to test a little better than a 55mm but are a little worse in stability, but they are more stable than a 60mm (see where I am going here). Once again though the Nextie wave rim - the rim profile seems a little dated with the modern tires coming out.
Late to the party, just adding a datapoint for posterity’s sake…
I have two sets of Nextie wheels built on Rollingstar 2s with the ceramic upgrade.
For road (hooked):
Front rim: NXT50CGX
Rear rim: NXT60ARX
These are like a poor man’s Reserve 52/63 IMO. The front is actually from their gravel range, rear is road. I also cannot say if these are better/worse in the crosswinds than other brands, but they work great for criteriums. Cost was $1,048.50 shipped and weight is ~1450ish by spec (didn’t actually weigh). Hubs have a nice tight feel; I own other ratchet-based hubs (DT240/350, Scribe, Bontrager) and these seem about the same. Only difference I note is going from a 54T to a 36T ratchet, but that’s expected. Rollingstar hubs appear to have a smaller flange, but the wheels are still stiff AF considering the rim depths.
For gravel (hooked):
Front/Rear: Premium AGX NXT45AGX
These are very similar to 3T 45/40s, but a few hundred grams lighter. Bombproof, super stiff. Have had these for a few seasons and have put them through the ringer. Hubs are still smooth (again Rollingstar 2s with ceramic/54T), use everything from 40m Maxxis Velocitas to 2.25 Thunder Burts. Cost was $1,339 shipped ($299 was shipping, oofta).
So FWIW I’ve had good look and can easily recommend their rims/hubs. At 170lbs they can handle all I can throw at them. If I had to do it over, I’d probably pass on the ceramic bearing upgrade, but I IIRC it was super cheap; luckily they’re common bearing sizes so I’ll replace with a high quality steel set when the time comes.
