New DT Swiss 350 hubs get lighter, faster performance, still with Star Ratchets

DT Swiss has updated their workhorse 350 mountain bike hubs with a number of upgrades and more precise machining that make them better than ever. Keeping classic, proven Star Ratchet internals vs. the newer Ratchet EXP of their more premium 180 & 240 hubs, the new 350s still manage to shed weight while delivering faster engagement at a price level that makes them a solid option for either alloy or carbon wheel builds…

New DT Swiss 350 hubs deliver light, affordable performance

DT Swiss 350 hubs have been at the center of reliable, high-performance mountain bike wheels for more than a decade, and now get machining upgrades befitting more expensive hubs while sticking with a lighter, faster version of DT’s signature Star Ratchet inside. We actually got a sneak peek at the upgrades last summer when DT Swiss revealed their own 1700-level alloy wheelset built around the newly upgraded hubs.

Proven power transfer, plus lighter overall construction and all the options a mountain biker could hope for, the new 350 is maybe an even easier choice for anyone looking to build up a new MTB wheelset.

The new 350 hubs feature the same easy tool-free swaps from one freehub body to the next as the rest of DT’s premium hubs. That makes swapping two different cassette ranges for the same drivetrain easy without tools, or the same thing when swapping for example from Shimano to SRAM cassettes when moving one wheelset from bike-to-bike, again without tools.

What’s new?

For the most part, the new 350 hub isn’t all-new, but rather a much more refined evolution of the proven affordable series. What we do notice is that it’s starting to look a lot more like the high-end 240s, getting more precise and more angular machining to shed grams while maintaining strength & durability.

DT doesn’t explicitly say it, but it looks like the new 350 shares most of the new 240 EXP refinements, simply minus the EXP insides. In fact, now complete Classic MTB 350 hub sets seem to have lower claimed weights than the pre-EXP 240 did (380g vs. 401g.)

But there are some worthwhile upgrades. From the outside, we also spotted the new end caps. It’s a tiny detail, but the notched style first debuted on the top 180, then 240 hubs makes it surprisingly much easier to pop the caps off tool-free when you need to maintain your hubs or swap freehubs or axle standards.

Inside, an upgrade to 36T SL lightweight but standard Star Ratchet pairs (from 18T standard on the previous generation 350) means twice as quick engagement, down to 10°. And you can still always swap out different sets of Ratchet rings (for ~$50-120 / 40-95€) to get the engagement angle that’s right for you, your bike, and your style of riding. DT has their own pretty good breakdown of why the unending hunt for faster engagement isn’t always the perfect solution. But they offer 6.7-20° engagement options so you can decide.

With all that extra machining & lighter ratchets, the Classic MTB hubs start from 137g front & 243g rear, while the Straightpull MTB hubs are even a bit lighter from 130g front, 212g rear.

DT Swiss 350 MTB hubs – Options, pricing & availability

The new DT 350 mountain bike hubs still come in tons of disc brake MTB options (but no road disc 12mm front hubs). Pick from Classic MTB hubs for classic j-bend spokes or Straightpull MTB for straight pull spokes. Classic gives the most options with all standard, Boost & fat bike axle options (15/100, 15/110, 20/110, 15/150mm front; 12/142, 12/148, 12/150, 12/157, 12/197mm rear) and 28 or 32 hole drilling. Straightpull limits to standard or Boost mountain bike hub spacing and28 hole drilling with the idea of lighter weight wheel builds.

Either Classic or Straightpull lets you pick 6-bolt or Centerlock, and Shimano standard, Micro Spline, or SRAM XD bodies.

All new 350 hubs are available through regular DT Swiss retailers and wheel builders now, with front hub pricing from $102 / 69€ and rear hub prices from $273 / 185€.

DTSwiss.com