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Bike Mechanic’s 1st Circle of Hell

4K views 41 replies 8 participants last post by  Lombard 
#1 · (Edited)
Bicycle tire Wood Art Line Tints and shades


This is my first time working with integrated handlebars. It’s a frickin’ nightmare and I haven’t even gotten to the hydraulic lines yet.

I have re-pulled the di2 wires at least 8 times trying to make it work. There’s no way the wireless unit let alone a cable junction is going to fit in the stem or bars. I believe I’m going to need to get longer wires and stuff the wireless unit in the left bar end and the junction A in the right….

CX Wrench and other mechs, I have an even greater appreciation for your skills and knowledge than ever before….
 
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#2 ·
Really not sure what all those wires are for or what you're tying to achieve.
The wireless unit doesn't need to go in the bars. Stick it in the seat tube connected to the battery with the 150mm cable.

You mentioned the Junction A. But that can't go inside. That's where you charge the system. It needs to be external.
But your picture shows a Junction B. That typically goes in the Bottom Bracket or Downtube.
 
#3 ·
Yeah... no thanks bike industry. You're killing cycling one "innovation" at a time nowadays.
 
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#5 ·
It's a single piece cockpit with integrated cabling. Neither is a good idea and makes things more complicated / expensive for no real appreciable gain, plus there are less adjustments possible. I can't fathom how you could consider it less complicated.
 
#10 ·
Haha. TLG, It's not that complicated but it kinda is.

Duriel - the wire sticking out was for the bar end junction that TLG showed.

I opted to move my Di2 11 speed to the new frame. The old Pinarello had the junction A in the downtube. I'm moving it to the the bar end. This frame has the integrated cockpit which is the root of the issue not that the Di2 wiring is in of itself complex. I was trying to make it work with my existing cables and I couldn't find any configuration that didn't involve buying more longer ones. The longest Y cable that Shimano makes is too short to connect both shifters and the junction A in the bar end. I ended up buying both 1m and 700mm cables to get it done - $75 extra I was hoping not to spend.

I wanted to keep the wireless junction in the bars for proximity to the head unit but that isn't happening right now - it's in the downtube. Now for about 5 hours I have been struggling pulling the hydraulic lines and have finally gotten them after removing all the Di2 wires first. Even then it was a struggle and I had to use a hex key to manipulate the lines to bend just enough to pull out the of the bars by the shifters.

A integrated cockpit now ranks in the "hopefully never again" for me. I felt like I needed 4 more hands just to deal with the Di2 wires and brake lines in the notches of the headset compression ring while still keeping the fork in place.
 
#13 ·
Haha. TLG, It's not that complicated but it kinda is.

Duriel - the wire sticking out was for the bar end junction that TLG showed.

I opted to move my Di2 11 speed to the new frame. The old Pinarello had the junction A in the downtube. I'm moving it to the the bar end. This frame has the integrated cockpit which is the root of the issue not that the Di2 wiring is in of itself complex. I was trying to make it work with my existing cables and I couldn't find any configuration that didn't involve buying more longer ones. The longest Y cable that Shimano makes is too short to connect both shifters and the junction A in the bar end. I ended up buying both 1m and 700mm cables to get it done - $75 extra I was hoping not to spend.

I wanted to keep the wireless junction in the bars for proximity to the head unit but that isn't happening right now - it's in the downtube. Now for about 5 hours I have been struggling pulling the hydraulic lines and have finally gotten them after removing all the Di2 wires first. Even then it was a struggle and I had to use a hex key to manipulate the lines to bend just enough to pull out the of the bars by the shifters.

A integrated cockpit now ranks in the "hopefully never again" for me. I felt like I needed 4 more hands just to deal with the Di2 wires and brake lines in the notches of the headset compression ring while still keeping the fork in place.
You really just super over complicated it. You only need two Di2 wires in your bars. (Only one on the other side)
And there's no reason to put the wireless unit in there. It doesn't need to be close to the head unit.

 
#16 ·
I did not know that you could use the shifter as a junction box. Thanks for that tidbit. Classic RTFM failure on my part. I knew there was a second plug but I thought it was just for satellite/remote shifters. I didn't come across an example of wiring that did show that as a possibility. I wish I had known that earlier since I probably could have used the wires I had on hand that way.

I actually managed to rework it with the y-cable and a longer extension cable with the wireless unit. Now it's just a possibility that the wireless unit may not come out of the handle bar as it's wedged a bit in the drop/curve. For clarification, From right to left: I have the Junction A, wire 1 runs through the bar/stem and out to the derailleurs/battery. The wire 2 (y cable) runs to the WU111 wireless unit, then to both shifters.

As CX alluded to, as with most things, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. It definitely was easier this last time as I've gotten used to manipulating the lines and wires internally and externally and using the cable puller tool. Still, it's slow, fiddly, and not "easy".

Major respect for you guys that do this every day.
 
#18 ·
For those of you who like Di2/equivalents--more power to ya. Tinball's frustrations are the main reason I stick with simpler, time-tested components like mechanical shifting and rim brakes on my road bike: cheap to purchase, easy to install/repair, and proven to work for decades upon decades. As with everything, the more complicated/complex something is, the more that can go wrong. Not trying to start any trouble, just an observation.:)
 
#20 ·
Except his frustrations were caused by not knowing what he was doing and shoehorning an improper solution.
There are decades of posts of people doing the exact same thing with mechanical drive trains. (and people STILL doing it)

I have three Di2 bikes. Tens of thousands of miles.
I've never adjusted a derailleur. Not once.
Never had a frayed or broken shift cable.
Never replaced a shift cable.
Never replaced shift housing.
Rarely have to replace bar tape.
Shifting is exactly the same as it was on Day #1

I've gone all Di2 because of... the simplicity. Is it more expensive? Yes. But well worth is for the maintenance savings.
 
#21 ·
I know some people are bad about charging their batteries. (These are the same people who neglect their shift cables and have them fray and break mid ride and are stuck riding home with a single speed)

I've never had mine die on me during a ride.
The battery charges super fast. ~10miles / minute
If you're low, throw it on the charger for 5-10min while you're gearing up before you head out. And you're good for 50-100mi.
 
#28 ·
Once you can't shift the big ring, you got 20-30-/+ shifts. It only happens once if you live in the hills. If you charge it once every 3 months on the version I have, one never has it go down. Like do you keep somewhat track of how often you lube your chain? ... same with the battery. I now keep a log on all vehicle/bike maintenance, easy pezy.
 
#29 ·
Or you can just check the battery indicator. Easy peazy.
 
#31 ·
Well yea, if you ride a ton of miles, my comments do not apply. I ride about 60m/w in mtn country and get by charging every 3 mo's. I would think most don't ride 150m/w in mtns, but some do. I have a guy in the next town over I follow on strava, he can go out for a ride and it's 150+ miles, up/dn 3 mtns.
I don't have a phone app, so I just charge it on a schedule that works for me.
I think 99% of the riders don't log 150 mi per week in mtns.
How many miles do you ride a week?
 
#32 ·
Well yea, if you ride a ton of miles, my comments do not apply. I ride about 60m/w in mtn country and get by charging every 3 mo's. I would think most don't ride 150m/w in mtns, but some do. I have a guy in the next town over I follow on strava, he can go out for a ride and it's 150+ miles, up/dn 3 mtns.
I don't have a phone app, so I just charge it on a schedule that works for me.
I think 99% of the riders don't log 150 mi per week in mtns.
How many miles do you ride a week?
Charging on a schedule is a good idea. But it can be vastly different for everyone.
It really doesn't matter what you think 99% of riders do.
You can't just blanket say 'charge your bike every 3 months'. Contrary to what you believe, a shit ton of riders do more than 60mi/wk.
Me? I don't ride less than 60mi on a Saturday. I'm about 150/wk. More in the summer. I don't consider that a ton.
This is my clubs top 100 riders mileage for last week. And it's winter, so those numbers are down.

Font Pattern Parallel Number Symmetry
 
#34 · (Edited)
Elevation doesn't always mean you shift more, you can't make that blanket statement. They don't have a pie chart for my shifts.
If you ride up a mountain, 2500ft elevation gain, if it's all mostly 7%, you shift 10 times.
So how many times do I get to shift before I need to recharge?
How many riders are there?
 
#40 ·
Since I moved the groupset from my Pinarello Prince, I guess I had to bleed them. I purchased a new line for the rear brake and re-used the old line from the rear brake for the front. Then had to put new fluid and adjust. Not different really from normal service bleeding other than just adding alot of fluid. I have never installed new hydraulic lines so I was a bit apprehensive about it but I was surprised at how easy and straight forward it was.
 
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