I had a feeling this would be the case, but it is great to here these results from first hand experience of someone knowledgeable in motorized bikes . Now I'm even more anxious about getting started on this project. I build and repair these machines up here in Prescott Az.. It seems like all I ever work on is someone else's bikes. That's probably a good thing though.
During the almost 2 and a half months my bike sat being "fixed," I ended up spending more time fixing other people's bikes than my own. It's hard to resist fixing a problem I know all too well how to fix, especially when I see them becoming frustrated with the issue. It also kept my mind off my bike which caused me so much headaches I eventually curbstomped it and was ready to light the spilling fuel on fire. Let the garbage man pick it up come Wednesday...
I was looking at attempting at a shifting chainring, the nuvinci doesn't have room for 2 sprockets, but I think perhaps the shift kit chainring freewheel dothingybob could be made to shift between at least 2 sprockets, like how a 21 speed as 7 in the back and 3 on the front. A chain tensioner would be required, but doing that will let my drivetrain cover a much larger gear ratio.
I would be careful about the 360 in only one single aspect, the company who manufacturered it seems to of discontinued it entirely, the Web page and all related info and media were apparently deleted or removed. I tried contacting them on this issue but never got a reply. I know they come with some kinda warranty, but I can't even find the page to register my product so I could be covered.
They have I think 2 or 3 versions of the 360,get the 2015 or 2014 version, whichever is the actual latest edition, can't remember the year but anyways it has a slightly different mechanism for the shifting on the hub, which includes an insert in the manual that describes the slightly different installation.
From what I heard a few people had some issues with the earliest versions, namely the transmission fluid leaked from the hub, which of course can't be refilled, and that leads to failure of it.
I will also note that the cam arms that make up the freewheel internals, you know the part that let's it run only one direction, and freewheels if spun in reverse, have like next to no grease, at least in my opinion, I opened it and slabbed in a nice blob of red automotive bearing grease, synthetic type. That just helped me feel happy that it wouldn't fail and need replacement for a part at this point might not even be replaceable.
That's my feel of it, it's a really good idea and I still can't get over how buttery smooth shifting actually is. Rode a shift kit bike a little while ago that had a derailleur, felt almost like i was in the stone ages with that clunky feel, and the need to ease up to the gear to not over strain it. Oh yeah there's none of that weird issue where you need to ease your way onto the gear when you up shift, like hitting the gas too hard and getting a jolt sent through the entire drivetrain, I can shift up and hit the gas as hard as I like and it seems to just flow to the setting instead of hitting it like a rock. It's probably because as you spin the sprocket faster the semifluid becomes stiffer as the bearings transfer more energy to the outer hub. So at a lower speed the freewheel is doing its thing untill it catches up, then the energy transfer builds up smoothly, even if it's in a small fraction of a second, and that just cushions the entire action that would otherwise be a heavy jolt on a standard bike derailleur. Amazing really, if it's not even a design feature but simply a side effect of the technology. Sorta like sitting at a stop light in a car, let off the brake and you just ease into the idle speed, or hitting the gas hard will throw the rpms off the meter untill the speed catches up to where the transmission should change gears in an automatic.
Sorry for the novel, but now you and everyone else who plans on using the nuvinci is well informed and knows what to expect out of the box.