Why I'm excited about Di2.
imported Cycling · Me
There’s a bunch of stuff online about the Shimano Dura-Ace Di2. And there’s a lot of comment online, people saying that they feel electronic-shift is unnecessary, and over-complicated.
I’m mostly interested in why I might want to ride Di2, and I think there’s a bunch of reasons that I would want to, despite all the negative comments that are flying around! So, the big thing that I see as an advantage in the system is the fact that it adjusts on a per-shift basis, this is really handy for those of us that really just want to ride our bikes! Sure, I don’t mind cleaning, and tuning my bike, but there’s some periods when I just want to be riding it, it’s what I love, it’s why I own the bike - so to me, if I get auto-adjustment that means that every shift that I’m doing is accurate, between the times that I either tune my bike up myself, or get it looked over then this sounds great! Cable-stretch is pretty annoying sometimes, and does mean that I end up having some rides where my gears might feel a bit squidgy, or over-tight. This is a problem that could be solved by tuning my bike more often, of course, but really - I just want to ride.
Someone commenting on WIRED has some different thoughts to me - feeling that the battery, and motors are prone to failure - of course they are, everything is. Gear cables snap now already, and derailleurs get worn, and bent. However, I guess with cable systems, I can bend my derailleur back and adjust the tension myself to ride home - the question here is, will Di2 be this flexible? I can get over it if not, because, how often does this really happen (only once, for me)? The battery life of the system shouldn’t be difficult to get right - it should last for a while, and I don’t mind carrying a spare battery, I carry spare tubes already.
There are limitations, sure - however, there are limitations of everything. But, I quite fancy it. £1600 for a groupset isn’t what I’m going to be spending just yet - but once we’re down a bit to more suitable price, then I’d really like to give it a go. Maybe on a ‘09 Orbea Orca - the shape is just bang on:
