Modern drivetrains - observations from today's ride

[Spdntrxi]

Originally Posted by MikeD

Button batteries in the shifters? They're not chargeable. Two people recently had dead batteries, zero mechanical shift cable problems. Both bailed on the ride.

you can buy rechargeable 2032 now.. I know Shimano uses different size. However they are **** when I tried them for power in my quarq. I carry 2032 and 1632 in my flat kit as I ride SRAM and Shimano

[Dave]

Anyone riding SRAM AXS without a spare 2032 and a spare derailleur battery isn't very sharp. Over 4 years on AXS with no problems. Be sure that you have a proper tool to open the cover and the cover isn't overlapped with bar tape. Best to practice at home. It's not as easy as it would seem. The cover has to be aligned properly to allow a fractional turn to lock it in.

[hokoman]

I had one bike with the first version of etap. It was ok, but I don't ride my bikes enough to make sure everything is topped off! I still like cables.

[type2sam]

We camped at the D2R2 next to a guy with a super modern electric shifting gravel rig. Beautiful, capable and super light. Evidently his battery had discharged and he couldn’t find anyone to help him recharge it.

He just broke camp and drove home.

[MikeD]

Originally Posted by Dave

Anyone riding SRAM AXS without a spare 2032 and a spare derailleur battery isn't very sharp. Over 4 years on AXS with no problems. Be sure that you have a proper tool to open the cover and the cover isn't overlapped with bar tape. Best to practice at home. It's not as easy as it would seem. The cover has to be aligned properly to allow a fractional turn to lock it in.

I don't have SRAM AXS, but a youtube video I just watched says there's LEDs in the shifters that tell you the status of the button batteries and similarly, there are LEDs in the derailleurs as well, so it would seem to be operator error if you don't regularly check these batteries and get caught out with a dead battery.

Similarly, a savvy rider with a mechanical system would know that when the shifting starts to act up, that's the start of a cable starting to fray and should be inspected/changed soon to prevent a broken cable.

[ridethecliche]

Originally Posted by type2sam

We camped at the D2R2 next to a guy with a super modern electric shifting gravel rig. Beautiful, capable and super light. Evidently his battery had discharged and he couldn’t find anyone to help him recharge it.

He just broke camp and drove home.

Thatttt suckkkkkssss!

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by Spdntrxi

you can buy rechargeable 2032 now.. I know Shimano uses different size. However they are **** when I tried them for power in my quarq. I carry 2032 and 1632 in my flat kit as I ride SRAM and Shimano

It is not surprising that you had poor performance with rechargeable 2032 coin cells. About the only thing that rechargeable LIR2032 coin have in common with non-rechargeable CR2032 coin cells is that they are both the same size. The first thing to consider is that they have different nomiinal voltages - LIR2032 cells are 3.7V, while CR2032 cells are 3.0V. This means that the higher voltage of LIR2032 cells may damage devices designed for CR2032 cells. LIR2032 cells also have higher cut-off voltages - LIR2032 cells cut-off at 3V, while CR2032 cells cutoff at 2V. Which means that assuming your device can tolerate the higher nominal voltage of LIR2032 cells, it is likely the device will give no low-battery warning before the cell cuts-off. Which might be especially inconvenient, since LIR2032 cells have only about 1/5 the capacity of CR2032 cells. Which means the LIR2032 may last only 1/5 as long as a CR2032, and give no warning before they are dead.

There are definitely uses for rechargeable LIR2032 cells, but they can be poor substitute for devices intended to work with CR2032 cells.

[bthomas515]

Originally Posted by fa63

So I counted, and out of the 22, just two people were Of the other 20, eight were on SRAM AXS and twelve on Shimano Di2.

I don’t ride in Atlanta but do ride with a bunch of Atlanta people. Their bikes are ALWAYS nicer than normal people!

[Philster]

There just aren’t many new higher end mechanical bikes for sale at this point, so electronic is what you’re going to see more and more on the road. I like new tech, but I think reasonably priced electronic bikes today are kind of likely to be pigs. Heavy with cheap wheels chosen to hit a price point.

[nmrt]

Could not agree more.

Originally Posted by Philster

There just aren’t many new higher end mechanical bikes for sale at this point, so electronic is what you’re going to see more and more on the road. I like new tech, but I think reasonably priced electronic bikes today are kind of likely to be pigs. Heavy with cheap wheels chosen to hit a price point.

[mass_biker]

Originally Posted by type2sam

We camped at the D2R2 next to a guy with a super modern electric shifting gravel rig. Beautiful, capable and super light. Evidently his battery had discharged and he couldn’t find anyone to help him recharge it.

He just broke camp and drove home.

***

Got it. Whenever I travel (i.e. ship or fly with bikes), I always go mechanical, rim or canti brakes. And now that I think about it, even when I drive with bikes on the hitch rack, I’m bringing a mechanical rig. It’s just one more - or less - thing to go worry about/charge etc. I guess it comes down to the travel/trip/experience and navigating all the other things that need to fall into place!
MB

[bigbill]

Originally Posted by MikeD

I don't have SRAM AXS, but a youtube video I just watched says there's LEDs in the shifters that tell you the status of the button batteries and similarly, there are LEDs in the derailleurs as well, so it would seem to be operator error if you don't regularly check these batteries and get caught out with a dead battery.

Similarly, a savvy rider with a mechanical system would know that when the shifting starts to act up, that's the start of a cable starting to fray and should be inspected/changed soon to prevent a broken cable.

I have AXS and the app on my phone. I can shift over and back with the RD and check the state off all my batteries including the powermeter and shifters. I charge my AXS FD and RD batteries every two weeks plus my bike computer tells me if they are low. I don't carry spare batteries on my rides, just as I don't carry any spare cables on my mechanical bikes. For AXS, I periodically check the chain for stretch and look at the brake pads every few months.

All this stuff comes down to how well you maintain your bike. When I was in NE Texas and riding 200+ miles a week in the heat and humidity, primarily on one bike, I would replace my cables annually. If I break a shifter or break cable, that's totally on me, and not due to any design issue. I still have full cable sets for campy and shimano in my parts box.

[vespasianus]

Originally Posted by MikeD

I see more people that have battery problems with their e shifting than people with cable problems on mechanical shifting systems.

I think people are buying electronic bikes that only ride 1-2 times a week. These people should be using mechanical but buy electronic because it is at the price point they are looking to spend - and often SRAM. The problem I see a lot is getting their phone to link to the unit, and showing up to a ride when their battery is dead. People tend to forget that if you travel a distance, remove the battery from your RD, otherwise the bouncing of the bike on a rack will drain your battery.

I have an AXS system along with mechanical systems and honestly, the shifting is the same. Even in the muck, the shifting is the same. AXS shifts slow but otherwise works well. I spend the same amount of time looking at the app and making sure things are OK as I do doing RD adjustments on the mechanical systems.

The cynic in me says that the move to integrated cables and such is there to offset any bike shop revenue from "tune" ups and such.

If I would say anything, is that I can't believe how many people have their shops replace their chains and cassette cogs once a year.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by vespasianus

The cynic in me says that the move to integrated cables and such is there to offset any bike shop revenue from "tune" ups and such.

Would that increase new bike sales?

[mcteague]

Originally Posted by MikeD

Button batteries in the shifters? They're not chargeable. Two people recently had dead batteries, zero mechanical shift cable problems. Both bailed on the ride.

I keep a spare 2032 in the seat bag and replace the ones in the shifters each year or 2. With SRAM, the rechargeable batteries are really compact and light so carrying a spare is also not a big deal. If people can't keep up with the charging needs maybe electronic shifting is not for them.

Tim