Stranded by Electric?

[madcow]

Wouldn't really say electronic makes you more likely to being stranded. It's really not that different from a mechanical system failure such as a cable breaking or a shifter failing to engage the ratchet, both of which can and do happen.

Go with what you like, but don't assume one is more reliable than the other. With proper care either one can be pretty trouble free, though the occasional problem still may happen to either.

[Calnago]

Well, I still say it really is quite different. I've talked about the cable argument... if it does happen then you weren't paying attention long before since cables fray strand by strand over time and you can generally feel or see something wrong well before failure. The exception may be with Shimano 9000-1 shifters that still like to eat cables every few months, just cuz they get hungry and that 90 degree bend out of the shifter doesn't help things.

And when you do have a "mechanical" with a mechanical system, it is very rare that is not at least fixable without too much trouble and expense, and often you can still even shift to get home albeit not as well as if it were perfect. With electric it's kind of an on/off thing. When something dies, it dies. You're going to have a tough time fixing the dead circuit on the road.

So, I still maintain that the likelihood of being "stranded" is greater with electric than mechanical.

[glepore]

see the "dead di2" thread-I had a complete and unexpected battery failure that left me in 52/11-got home, but fun times.

[spartan]

i had a complete failure. battery died. luck i was in a reasonalble gear. 52x16...

shimano replaced the battery under warranty. the battery would not charge and blink red.

sh*** happends. always have a second bike

[eaglejackson]

Never stranded. But. One time after changing a flat, 90 miles and 8500 feet into a 100 mile, 9000 feet of climbing ride, the front derailleur wouldn't shift from the big ring to the little. I had a feeling the connection at the shifter was the problem but didn't debug it at that point. I was tired and the ride was almost over, so I just rode it out in the big ring. And yes, that's what the problem was - the connector wasn't seated fully in. That happened to me one other time right after I got the bike. I had adjusted the placement of the brake lever and didn't leave enough slack in the rear derailleur wire, causing it to disconnect. I wasn't stranded then either, though.

[superdx]

Never stranded due to the battery. 3 years ago I fell while trying to learn clipless and the RD + cage got bent when I hit the road. Was still rideable but I had to stay in either the largest cogs + middle cogs or the chain would skip. Managed to get home fairly ok. Trip to my LBS fixed it in 5 minutes the next day. I would say the bigger problem was my bleeding knee which got blood all over my shoes & cleats, still got dried blood on my shoes to this day.

As for the battery, my Garmin Edge + lights need charging every 1-2 rides so that's not much of an issue. I just charge the Di2 battery up every month or so. It lasts FOREVER.

[Butcher]

Three years on Campy EPS. Never stranded. Battery charges last for months.

I did have an early production V1 power unit go bad on me.

I had the same experience, but I got two EPS bikes. Only one failed v1 Power Unit.

[Zigmeister]

2yrs on 9070 Di2, never had 1 issue with it. Charge battery for fun every 3 months, internal one I use. Otherwise, it just works.

[bearsdidit]

Many years ago I was having intermittent shifting issues with first gen Ultegra Di2 and couldn't figure it out to save my life. I was about to hit Angeles Crest stuck in my big ring when I finally pulled over. Initially, I thought it was my battery but I eventually figured out that the cable going into the left shifter was not firmly seated. If you do not route the cable properly, it is possible to have it disconnect. I've seen that problem a few times on other bicycles and it's usually a quick fix.

[cdtf]

I totally understand guys with a "nothing electronic on my bike" mentality. Actually, I was one of them before I tried Di2.

But don't get tricked into thinking that a mechanical groupset will never let you down, while an electronic one may fail upon you. Both can ruin a ride, and even with a mechanical group, chances are high that you won't be able to fix a snapped cable on the side on the road...

Actually, e-groupsets are probably more reliable. But I love the idea that I can power everything on my bike all by myself, without the help of an external force.

[eaglejackson]

... I eventually figured out that the cable going into the left shifter was not firmly seated. If you do not route the cable properly, it is possible to have it disconnect. I've seen that problem a few times on other bicycles and it's usually a quick fix.

Yep, that's what happened to me, too -- cable going into shifters not firmly seated.

[eaglejackson]

I totally understand guys with a "nothing electronic on my bike" mentality. Actually, I was one of them before I tried Di2.

Same here. I was firmly in the "complicated solution to a non problem" camp regarding electronic shifting. And then, two years ago when I went to demo a Parlee Z5 SLi bike, it had Di2 on it. I almost didn't ride it because of that, I was firmly committed to mechanical. But the ride was a revelation in how well it shifted. I bought the bike with Di2 and I've loved riding it since.

I used to ride rim brakes on my mountain bike and initially resisted hydraulic disc brakes. I knew how to adjust and repair my V-brakes and didn't want to have to learn something as "mysterious" as discs. But I switched and would never consider a mountain bike without discs now. Can you even buy a mountain bike without discs these days?

Similarly, I think eShifting will be the standard in a few years. Sure, there are some downsides but the positives for me way outrank the negatives.

That said, I only have experience with Shimano Di2. My local shop sells a lot of Campy on the high end bikes. But they say they've had very bad luck with EPS reliability and steer people away from it. I was coming from Campy Record 11s mechanical and my default was EPS for the new bike, but they strongly urged me that if I wanted electronic, to go with Shimano. I'm sure others have different experience. In the end, I've been thrilled with my Di2.

[nismosr]

i had a complete failure. battery died. luck i was in a reasonalble gear. 52x16...

shimano replaced the battery under warranty. the battery would not charge and blink red.

sh*** happends. always have a second bike

if you have the EPS - it will automatically go to small ring front and middle in the rear. it happen to my athena eps

[Calnago]

Curious... how does it automatically go to small ring front and middle rear if there's no juice (zero) to move it there, as in the case where there's a sudden powercut as a result of an electrical malfunction? Versus the battery just getting low enough that the system says, 'ok... i'm going bye bye now but before I do I will do you one last favor and shift to a reasonable gear for you to use the rest of the way home".

[Marin]

Friend of mine had to ride 120km in the small ring this Monday, his Di2 battery he had charged a week ago died.