Sixwheel 12 Speed Cassette Review

The search for saving grames is not always about pure weight savings, sometimes looks start to play a big role. For reference, the Shimano 11-34t cassette weighs in at 253g. When it comes purely to saving weight on cassettes, there are a few options:

Recon One-Piece Aluminum Cassette - $270 - 133g

The first is to get an aluminum cassette. These are made by a few different companies, but all come out of the same factory from what I understand (Recon cassettes). They are made in a variety of sizes and types, the lightest of which for 12-speed is the aluminum cassette. These are race-day only, so expect them to wear fast and break teeth if you try to put too much torque down. As someone who puts out higher power and rides up very steep hills, probably not ideal. Although let’s wait and see if I end up getting one at the end of this ;)

Recon One-Piece Chromoly Cassette - $250 - 205g

The second option is to get The recon chromoly one-piece cassette. These are heavier than the aluminum ones, but more durable because they’re made of steel. The weight advantage compared to standard Shimano is the lack of material between the cogs. The downside is that the shifting is poor, and reports of early production units were that for some gears the chain would refuse to settle regardless of how well the derailleur was set up. So while this looks good at first, the shifting issues turned me away.

ZTTO Ultralight Cassette - $55 - 231g

The third option is to get a no-name cassette of Aliexpress, which like the second option, has major shifting issues and is likely loud. The gearing options were also quite limited, where I wanted a 34, the highest options available were 30 or 32 (my guess is to bring down the advertised weight).

Sixweel 12 Speed Cassette - $390 - 209g

The final option is to get a high-end Chinese cassette, in this case, the Sixwheel Cassette from Panda Podium. At $390, this is by far the most expensive option but was promised to be perfect. With shifting as good as Shimano’s hyperglide, customizable color options, and the ability to order a 33t cassette, this was the one I went with in the end.

Setting Up

When I got the cassette, I did a drop-in replacement for Shimano’s 11-34t Dura-Ace cassette. The gold color matched the rest of my bike, and the bling level was unparalleled. Riding was a different story though. The shifting was nowhere close to what was advertised, with some slight skipping when shifting in the middle of the cassette, and a flat-out refusal to stay in the 11 and 12t.

Breaking it in

I reached out to Joe and Tom from Panda Podium, and as one of the first purchasers of this cassette, they were keen to know my experience. I relayed the same feedback as above, and they insisted that there was a break-in period on the cassette and to ride it as normal.

Well, three thousand miles later there has been no improvement and the 11t is totally unusable now.

Verdict

Do not recommend, stick with Shimano or try running a SRAM cassette instead