Wheeltop EDS GeX

[repoman]

Interesting that this is max 51t cassette, whereas the mtb version is 52t.

Looking forward to reviews and pricing.  I've seen Sram mullet mini groupsets for $750... however this Wheeltop would allow the keeping and using of 11sp cassettes, chains and freehub bodies, which is additional cost saving initially, but with options to uprade to more gears later.

Update, Wheeltop website is around $675, so not a big difference from Sram..... Sram comes with the comfort of local support (I'm in the process of replacing an chinese power meter crank on warranty, local support would've been easier and quicker, even though the manufacturer was very helpful)

 

roughly $700 for this group with sketchy warranty vs another $250 for grey market Force AXS with sketchy warranty...I think most people shopping for stuff like this would just fork out the extra $250. 

Curious about weights on this group/parts.

[eeney]

 
roughly $700 for this group with sketchy warranty vs another..........

Interestingly here in OZ you can get a SRAM mullet upgrade kit (Force shifters, Eagle derailleur and Force brakes) for the same price as the Wheeltop.  Yes the Sram requires XD hub and Cassette to get the 10-52t.  However, it enables a bigger spread of gearing, bought locally with Sram quality and support.

Makes for a tough choice.

Someone mentioned the wheeltop ability to tune individual gears/sprockets.  I see the benefit of this, but I can imagine that once you start you never stop tinkering until it drives you made, whereas the Sram should 'just work' out of the box.

I'm interested in the Wheeltop, very interested, but I would have expected 33% cheaper than Sram electronic.  I have an Xcadey power meter and top end Chinese wheels, both are great, the companies are great, but when things go wrong it still takes 2-4 weeks to xchange info and actually get any new parts from the time I raise an issue..... not necessarily the fault of the company but the geographical and communication logistics. I'm not complaining here because the products were somewhat cheaper than local mainstream alternatives...... and this is without talking about going into a local bike shop for help, and the look they will give you when they realise you have an unknown groupset for which nobody has been trained or carries parts.

All food for thought, I was super excited for the Wheeltop groupset, but the price has put a damper on that excitement.

[kanuto]

I heard from one of shop reselling this groupset that there will be a price drop this November. Hopefully this will be around 400~ range to make it really competitive with shi/sram

[eeney]

I heard from one of shop reselling this groupset that there will be a price drop this November. Hopefully this will be around 400~ range to make it really competitive with shi/sram

Since my last post, with help from a Chinese work colleague, we found the groupset components on Tmall but at a slightly lower price..... and the first 11 days of november are the 11.11 annual sales, so I'll be watching for discounts.

[trcycling]

First a disclaimer: I don't own one of these (yet?) but am doing some research and it seems to be evolving in interesting ways, at least for the US market.

1) You can now buy via a US store https://wheeltop.us/products/wheeltop-eds-gex?variant=49584537895227. The price isn't quite as low as I saw on AliExpress a month ago but it is with warranty, a return option and free shipping. (Sorry to readers outside the US

2) Since the early videos and other reviews, they are now offering a double configuration of cage length and lever material. So you can get 51t compatible or not and/or CF levers or not. Cage doesn't change pricing but levers do at $40 (not bad if you have to have CF levers  )

3) There appears to be growing confirmation that the battery pack CAN be changed out. Not field swapped but replaced if there is an issue. Still haven't seen the part, but the fact that the mount is there and the latest instructions refer to doing so is encouraging. (I don't care how good it is, batteries fail and/or wear out and not being able to replace in any way was a dealbreaker for me)

4) The most important thing to ME is that it supports an 11s configuration in addition to 12s (and more). This adds a lot of flexibility for retrofit. SRAM and Shimano electronic systems demand 12s setups. Since I'm putting it on a bike that has two wheelsets, each with 11s 50t cassettes, that's a huge extra cost (two expensive cassettes and one wheelset doesn't support a 12s freehub so...) to go even a Rival AXS setup.  FWIW, I'm not finding a Rival shifter, GX MTB RD AXS setup for less than $800 just for those parts.

For some context,

I have 12s 2x Force D1 on a road bike and like it a lot. (And I stole the full groupset for $1k a year ago as a closeout) If I were building from scratch and didn't have to deal with 11s legacy, I'd be happy to build with that or the new Rival. I'm assuming the MTB RD works well given the experience they have. So no complaints other than price

I've also been running LTWOO eGR this season on the gravel bike. Same ability to support 11s and at the time was half the price of Wheeltop's current price so worth a punt.  The good: Setup is fairly simple in general. BUT the calipers don't mount quite the same as Shimano and require an adapter plate that wouldn't fit on my frame. Some Shimano calipers fit instead though and work well with the LTWOO levers. Also, because LTWOO uses a Di2 power model (battery in the frame), and the frame I'm installing it on is not set up that way, I've had to frankenbike the setup.  Battery status is a pain to monitor because the integration to the head unit is faulty (always at 'critical') and it is easy to fail to charge due to weak magnets and strange indicator lights. If you're interested, I've written more here https://trbike.blogspot.com/2024/05/ltwoo-egr-results-writeup.html

I'd love to read from someone who's actually installed the Wheeltop.

[trcycling]

Oh, and I see that they bought Rotor. Interesting for long term viability and completeness of groupset eventually. I've heard that it gives them US and EU distribution as well.

[gloscherrybomb]

Tempted by the 2025 model deals currently on AliExpress, but no carbon lever option. Need to convince myself that is not necessary, or maybe I am better to wait for holiday deals?

Edit. Reached out to the store and they said it's the carbon levers option, which with the full packaging and using up some coins came to £420, which I think is a great deal.

[eeney]

I was in the same position but on Taobao.  I went with the aluminium levers which were part of the package.  When I looked into it the difference was something tiny like 20g total..... although 'carbon levers' does sound good.  I got mine for exactly the same price, lets hope it works out OK.

[coffeebreak]

I heard from one of shop reselling this groupset that there will be a price drop this November. Hopefully this will be around 400~ range to make it really competitive with shi/sram

If you don't want their disc brake calipers (which are ugly anyway) this comes out to be US$387 all inclusive (after coins, coupons)

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807839605011.html

[SillyMochi]

You really sure you wanna risk it with that seller?

[coffeebreak]

Just linking to the price that previous poster mentioned bro. Its up to you whether you want to do it or not.
Its Aliexpress. Stores with near 100% positive feedback also doesn't guarantee you much.

Here is one with exact same price and 100% positive feedback if you are worried:

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807839528218.html

[courdacier]

Interestingly here in OZ you can get a SRAM mullet upgrade kit (Force shifters, Eagle derailleur and Force brakes) for the same price as the Wheeltop.  Yes the Sram requires XD hub and Cassette to get the 10-52t.  However, it enables a bigger spread of gearing, bought locally with Sram quality and support.

That's cool! does it require xd though, i mean will it explode if you run it with a generic AE 11-50 12-sp?

[eeney]

That's cool! does it require xd though, i mean will it explode if you run it with a generic AE 11-50 12-sp?

No, you can use it with HG hub bodies, my friend has just fit it with a SRAM 12 speed HG cassette.  The benefit of going XD hubs is that you can run a smaller sprocket (10t) to get wider gearing.