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Onyx hubs

jonKranked

Detective Dookie
Nov 10, 2005
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much shiny. what's the weigh savings over a regular hub?
dunno about regular hubs, but claimed 156g against the last iteration of the onyx hub.

The long anticipated Onyx Vesper has landed. The signature Onyx Racing Products sprag clutch hub is now available in a lighter and more easily adaptable format. The Vesper inherits the performance focused DNA of its predecessor without compromise. Significant revisions and tweaks on both the front and rear hubs result in a weight saving of around 156g depending on the configuration.

https://noblwheels.com/the-all-new-onyx-vesper/
 

Sandwich

Pig my fish!
Staff member
May 23, 2002
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A smaller set of grouped sprags interface with a narrower steel contact patch on the drive axle.

The freehub itself no longer rests on a steel axle, but utilizes a keyed interface. Once again, less steel means more weight savings.


Gonna take a wait and see on reduced sprags and narrower contact patch.

The rear hub represents only a 65g weight savings. Not insignificant, but the front represents 49g. You could probably find a different front hub that's even lighter. I wouldn't go sellin yer hubs for 65g. In total it's 114g for the 32h 6b boost weights claimed.
 

6thElement

Schrodinger's Immigrant
Jul 29, 2008
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Anyone else got comments on the Onyx hubs? Originals are still pretty chunky and concerns about potential slip with the lighter weight Vespers.

I'm waiting to hear back from I9 if they have any old Torch hub shells sitting on a shelf after breaking the drive side flange, otherwise I need a new rear hub...
 

Nick

My name is Nick
Sep 21, 2001
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14,442
where the trails are
Anyone else got comments on the Onyx hubs? Originals are still pretty chunky and concerns about potential slip with the lighter weight Vespers.

I'm waiting to hear back from I9 if they have any old Torch hub shells sitting on a shelf after breaking the drive side flange, otherwise I need a new rear hub...
Potential slips under massive loads? Or potential slips under normal use?
If I wasn't such a king fan I'd try those vespers in a minute.
 

6thElement

Schrodinger's Immigrant
Jul 29, 2008
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Potential slips under massive loads? Or potential slips under normal use?
If I wasn't such a king fan I'd try those vespers in a minute.
Some users have reported under very high torque I think from the little on emptybeer.
 

jstuhlman

bagpipe wanker
Dec 3, 2009
16,624
12,916
Cackalacka du Nord
Anyone else got comments on the Onyx hubs? Originals are still pretty chunky and concerns about potential slip with the lighter weight Vespers.

I'm waiting to hear back from I9 if they have any old Torch hub shells sitting on a shelf after breaking the drive side flange, otherwise I need a new rear hub...
hope it nao
 

Jm_

sled dog's bollocks
Jan 14, 2002
18,852
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AK
A friend I ride here breaks everything and got a classic Onyx hub. He broke that too (drive mech).
 

6thElement

Schrodinger's Immigrant
Jul 29, 2008
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Looks like I'll be sticking with Torch for a while, I9 have a hub shell I can rebuild with.
 

jonKranked

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Nov 10, 2005
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Potential slips under massive loads? Or potential slips under normal use?
If I wasn't such a king fan I'd try those vespers in a minute.
i've known one guy who torqued through a king drive. granted he was a big dude (north of 220, probably about 6'4" at least) and was using it for trials. certainly not most common circumstances.
 

Sandwich

Pig my fish!
Staff member
May 23, 2002
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borcester rhymes
Anyone else got comments on the Onyx hubs? Originals are still pretty chunky and concerns about potential slip with the lighter weight Vespers.

I'm waiting to hear back from I9 if they have any old Torch hub shells sitting on a shelf after breaking the drive side flange, otherwise I need a new rear hub...
I have a set that have been trouble free, but my mileage on them is low. Just swapped to an XD driver and cassette to drop some weight- it was an easy process and I managed not to fuck anything up.

Brief review- they are not light, especially with the steel shimano freehub, but it's not rotational weight and they truly do seem to spin very fast when coasting. The feeling of cruising through the woods on a silent bike is pretty amazing, hearing only the slap of the derailleur and the crush of twigs/small children...tho you may hear other annoying noises, like pivot creak and hose rattling so much clearer. Engagement is indeed very quick, but on my bike there has always been a minuscule amount of lash...as the system winds up from power. I can't really say whether I would prefer a lash-free high engagement style hub, or an instant engagement hub with some flex due to lash, but the silence of the onyx is worth it IMO.

I'm a pretty renowned cheapskate (@jonKranked ) but these were one of the few items I paid full price for on my bike build.
 

sunringlerider

Turbo Monkey
Oct 30, 2006
3,573
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Corn Fields of Indiana
I’m late to this party but I’ve been on OG Onyx for 5-6 years and a set of vespers for 2 years now. I have 2-3,00 miles on my original set. And love them. The softer bite point isn’t noticeable to me at all. Debating a set for my bmx at the moment.
 

jonKranked

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Nov 10, 2005
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I’m late to this party but I’ve been on OG Onyx for 5-6 years and a set of vespers for 2 years now. I have 2-3,00 miles on my original set. And love them. The softer bite point isn’t noticeable to me at all. Debating a set for my bmx at the moment.
How much do you weigh? I heard the vespers aren't as well suited for larger riders
 

sunringlerider

Turbo Monkey
Oct 30, 2006
3,573
6,267
Corn Fields of Indiana
How much do you weigh? I heard the vespers aren't as well suited for larger riders
6’4” 215lbs of pure power. . . or pure donuts one of the two.
I have the vespers on my sentinel with sees fewer miles than my stumpy(it has the originals). No issues on them so far. Although they have under 1000 miles and many of those miles are snowshoe lift days.
 

6thElement

Schrodinger's Immigrant
Jul 29, 2008
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Yup, only two rides in, but my experience pretty much mirrors @Sandwich 's. I thought my EDC was rattling around in steerer before I got my new wheels, after getting the onyx hubs it pretty much confirmed it (I have to figure out a way to get rid of the rattle, kinda defeats the purpose of the EDC if it's in my pocket).
Vespers or OG?
 

mykel

closer to Periwinkle
Apr 19, 2013
5,070
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sw ontario canada
Got my OG's in 2019 and love them.
The only problem is without a loud buzz, you hear, and chase down every creak.
Quiet bikes are great for catching wildlife unawares.
 

4xBoy

Turbo Monkey
Jun 20, 2006
7,014
2,847
Minneapolis
Got my OG's in 2019 and love them.
The only problem is without a loud buzz, you hear, and chase down every creak.
Quiet bikes are great for catching wildlife unawares.
When you pdal and hear how bad your chain is and it goes silent when you coast.

The vesper runs cheaper bearings.
 

jonKranked

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Nov 10, 2005
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OG, Fanatik recommended the OG over the Vesper since I mentioned I'm a big dude.
did they give you an idea of how big constitutes big? i'm ~220 these days, and onyx hubs are probably gonna go in my new wheels given that the box stealth mtb hubs seem to be vaporware still. the onyx website recommends the classics for heavier duty applications with bigger riders, but I would be putting them on a downcountry bike so i'm trying to be mindful of weight where feasible.
 

Sandwich

Pig my fish!
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May 23, 2002
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Onyx was super friendly when I called them on the phone. They might be honest and easy with you if you call.

The new alloy freehub saved a bunch of weight over the steel. I think I saved a half a pound going from steel + XT to alloy and XD
 

captainspauldin

intrigued by a pole
May 14, 2007
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Jersey Shore
did they give you an idea of how big constitutes big? i'm ~220 these days, and onyx hubs are probably gonna go in my new wheels given that the box stealth mtb hubs seem to be vaporware still. the onyx website recommends the classics for heavier duty applications with bigger riders, but I would be putting them on a downcountry bike so i'm trying to be mindful of weight where feasible.
Onyx was super friendly when I called them on the phone. They might be honest and easy with you if you call.

The new alloy freehub saved a bunch of weight over the steel. I think I saved a half a pound going from steel + XT to alloy and XD

Yeah, Sandwich nailed it. Give them a call(Onyx) they were super helpful when I called to see where the fuck my hubs were. There was a thread somewhere (maybe empty beer) discussing the flex and resulting slippage bigger dudes were experiencing on the vespers, that's honestly why I asked Fanatik their recommendation.
 

Sandwich

Pig my fish!
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May 23, 2002
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Interesting, had not heard about flex. I guess that makes me happy I got the old(strong) version. Although my bike is such a goofy piece of shit that a little extra flex would probably not go noticed
 

captainspauldin

intrigued by a pole
May 14, 2007
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Jersey Shore
Interesting, had not heard about flex. I guess that makes me happy I got the old(strong) version. Although my bike is such a goofy piece of shit that a little extra flex would probably not go noticed
I think it's just flex on the (hub) axle because there aren't as many bearings in the Vesper to keep the axle straight/stiff. So yeah, you wouldn't feel the flex, but you would feel the sprag clutch slipping due to the flex.