Industry Nine won the traditional hub engagement wars long ago with their Hydra design that delivers 690 points of engagement within 0.52° of rotation. Now, it seems the Asheville-based brand is going thermonuclear with the Hydra2, a hub that boasts 870 points of engagement (0.41°), a 26% increase.
For those keeping track, previous Hydra hubs utilized a phased, six-pawl design with a 115-tooth drive ring. To reduce the chance of flex and improve efficiency, Industry Nine kept the pawl count at six and upped the drive ring tooth count to 145. The brand says that the axle is 65% thicker, presumably in part to accommodate a larger, stronger drive ring.
It’s not (just) about engagement
As we learned in our deep dive on hub engagement last year, engagement is just one important measure of several when it comes to hub performance. Drag is a real concern with any hub system, and though the experts I spoke with are split over whether pawl designs are inherently draggier than ratchets, it’s clear that seals and bearings play a key role. The Industry Nine Hydra2 hub features larger bearings this time around and a new “full-contact radial lip seal” for 60% less coasting drag than Hydra.
Jacob McGahey, Executive Vice President at Industry Nine, told me over email that another drag-reducing change is the “FH dust shield, which keeps contaminants away from the seal lip versus the outer diameter (OD) Hydra seal, where the sealing lip was more exposed to the elements.”
Not only that, “shallower teeth on the driving and pawls reduce the amount that pawls need to articulate to engage,” he said.
Preload for the win
Industry Nine has also updated the bearing preload design, which reduces drag caused by an over-tightened thru axle. The bearings are preloaded at the factory during assembly, so riders don’t need to worry about making any adjustments. This bodes well for use with SRAM Eagle Transmission drivetrains, which require increasingly high rear axle torque values.
Not only is the Hydra2 designed to be more durable overall, it’s also designed with electric mountain bikes in mind. eMTBs produce additional torque over purely human-powered systems and, therefore, need stronger materials to ensure reliability over time.
According to Industry Nine, a Hydra2 hubset (front and rear hub) weighs 449g for the 6-bolt version. That appears to be in line with the weight of the original Hydra within just a couple of grams. Pricing for the pair is $700 — a bit higher than Hydra but not by much, depending on options.
For cross-country and gravel riders, Industry Nine Solix hubs will remain a top choice thanks to lighter weights and a slightly less engaging five-pawl design.
Hydra2 hubs are available in a dozen colors and can be purchased alone or as a part of an Industry Nine wheelset with aluminum or carbon rims designed for trail, enduro, DH, or DJ riding. See the Industry Nine website for complete details.
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