Wighing only 130g and constructed from aluminium, scandium and titanium sprockets, we couldn't help thinking that KCNC's cassette wouldn't last.

Indeed, it appeared to show signs or wear after just two short circuit races. Inevitably, the gold anodising on the aluminium and scandium alloy sprockets gets eroded by the chain, giving the impression of rapid wear, but after an initial ‘settling in' period it didn't get worse.

Most importantly, the tooth profile was not showing signs of deteriorating. Now it has clocked up around 2,000 miles and the quality of the shifting, all along, has been faultless, used with a variety of SRAM, Shimano and KMC chains. There's some visible wear now, but it's certainly no worse than you'd expect for this amount of use.

It's cheaper now than SRAM, Shimano and Campagnolo's top-end cassettes, and it trumps them all for weight too, saving between 30g and 90g.

Verdict

£165 is still a big outlay, and there's currently no Campag 11 option, but we have been very impressed, and made to eat our words regarding its longevity.

Reviewer: Stu Bowers