SRAM's new X0 'family' will include a previously unannounced surprise: the clever XG-1080 'PinDome' cassette that mimics XX's incredibly light and trick X-Dome machined construction but at a far lower pricepoint.
Like XX, the XG-1080 cassette uses a skeletonised dome-like construction but instead of being milled from a single chunk of chromoly steel (a precise but very expensive process), each cog is individually stamped in conventional fashion then pressed together with its adjacent neighbours with a varying number of short high-strength steel pins.
As a result, XG-1080 is still impressively light, with a target weight of just 235g – just 11g more than Shimano XTR, which has one fewer cog and uses lighter but faster-wearing titanium. More critically, though, each cog is supported around its full circumference, reducing flex to virtually nil for faster and more reliable shifting, and virtually eliminating the possibility of bent gears.
Like XX, torque is transferred to the freehub body via an aluminium innermost cog and the smallest cog will remain a separate bit. Planned gear ratios include 11-32T and 11-36T. Consumers won't be able to buy an XG-1080 cassette until August but once they're available, pricing will be a lot lower than XX – US$200 compared to $350. XG-1080's stamped cogs are expected to run more quietly, too.