Stupid Di2/EPS Question

[hairylegs]

I'm still hung up on electronic shifting, but will be building a non-Di2 ready frame and want internal wiring.

I'd be either going Athena EPS or Ultegra Di2 and I can't figure out why they make the wires so proprietary.

An electronic signal is an electronic signal...is there a reason I can't use similar gauge wire and splice my own cables, etc?

[BdaGhisallo]

If you're really good with wiring and electronics you might be able to do it, but is it really worth the effort and uncertainty about the result? Just buy the cables meant for the respective systems. You'll save yourself a lot of work and potential headache, imo.

[oldpotatoe]

I'm still hung up on electronic shifting, but will be building a non-Di2 ready frame and want internal wiring.

I'd be either going Athena EPS or Ultegra Di2 and I can't figure out why they make the wires so proprietary.

An electronic signal is an electronic signal...is there a reason I can't use similar gauge wire and splice my own cables, etc?

You are really asking why a bicycle part manufacturer is making something proprietary?

Sure you can but do so at your warranty peril. A few have 'hacked' into electronic bike systems with some success...but......

The worse that will happen is you will have to buy another wiring harne$$.

[apeescape]

I've succeeded in splicing both shimano harnesses, but haven't attempted campy yet.

[hairylegs]

Thought so...I mean wires are wires! I'm a studio rat, so I'm very used to splicing as needed. And that sugru stuff could sure make the joints water tight....

Hmmm.

[jpw]

I've succeeded in splicing both shimano harnesses, but haven't attempted campy yet.

what equipment do you use to splice these wires?

have you now tried splicing Campagnolo?

[christian]

Out of curiosity, are there tandem wiring kits for Di2/EPS? Seems like a good application of electronic shifting.

[oldpotatoe]

Out of curiosity, are there tandem wiring kits for Di2/EPS? Seems like a good application of electronic shifting.

Altho the wires on EPS are long, with an extension for the up to interface that I
'think' is applicable to any EPS wire, they don't make a tandem specific wiring harness.

[shovelhd]

You can make your owen harness or modify an OEM one but no way around it, with Di2 you need the vendor's proprietary connectors unless you kluge some pins and sugru and take your chances. I run a modified 7970 setup, using CD-ROM audio cable as generic extenders. The rest is OEM cabling. It is well designed. Good wire, and waterproof connectors with positive engagement.

[ultraman6970]

What I been noticing in electronics in the last few years is that manufacturers started coating the cables with some kind of metallic paint or resin thing and then over that they coat the cables with the usual colored plastic that everybody knows, the main problem with this is that if the cable gets cut like for example in a set of headphones you can't join the stuff back together, the cables are insulated with this paint stuff.

Elaborating a little bit more... back in the day was just piece of cake just cut the cables and put them together again, one cut in the bad part, twist and some tape and ready to go.

With this new type cable insulated coatings is that once the cable gets cut you can strip the outside casing, the problem is that you can't join the cables because have that like paint insulating coating outside the cooper cable, so even if you try to put them together the cables won't work because the coating is insulating the copper threads. If campagnolo is using the same thing I really don't advice you to even try to experiment cutting the cables because probably you will waste a set of wires, maybe potato knows?

My kids wii sensor bar came like that, the cable got stripped, tried to fix it and I noticed the insulating coating around the thin cooper cables, 3 sets of headphones I had, same situation, cable started cracking the audio, cut in the right place and surprise surprise the cables were insulated with that paint thing too. Tried to melt it, sand it and nothing... had to get new stuff.

[jpw]

What I been noticing in electronics in the last few years is that manufacturers started coating the cables with some kind of metallic paint or resin thing and then over that they coat the cables with the usual colored plastic that everybody knows, the main problem with this is that if the cable gets cut like for example in a set of headphones you can't join the stuff back together, the cables are insulated with this paint stuff.

Elaborating a little bit more... back in the day was just piece of cake just cut the cables and put them together again, one cut in the bad part, twist and some tape and ready to go.

With this new type cable insulated coatings is that once the cable gets cut you can strip the outside casing, the problem is that you can't join the cables because have that like paint insulating coating outside the cooper cable, so even if you try to put them together the cables won't work because the coating is insulating the copper threads. If campagnolo is using the same thing I really don't advice you to even try to experiment cutting the cables because probably you will waste a set of wires, maybe potato knows?

My kids wii sensor bar came like that, the cable got stripped, tried to fix it and I noticed the insulating coating around the thin cooper cables, 3 sets of headphones I had, same situation, cable started cracking the audio, cut in the right place and surprise surprise the cables were insulated with that paint thing too. Tried to melt it, sand it and nothing... had to get new stuff.

good to know. i'll research it.

[SPOKE]

Cutting/splicing the Shimano E-Tube wires is really pretty easy.
Since extra wires are available in many different lengths you should easily be able to make any reasonable length or cut a wire to feed the wire into a small dia hole then splice the connector back on.

[jpw]

Cutting/splicing the Shimano E-Tube wires is really pretty easy.
Since extra wires are available in many different lengths you should easily be able to make any reasonable length or cut a wire to feed the wire into a small dia hole then splice the connector back on.

thanks. Splice back together how? soldering, or just taping?

[SPOKE]

thanks. Splice back together how? soldering, or just taping?

Solder & heat shrink tubing on the three individual splices then one larger diameter piece of heat shrink tubing to cover the entire splice area.