rwa.basson Posted April 19, 2011 Share Long-time tech nuts will recall a spectacular hydraulic mountain bike shifting system created by Christophe Muthers and shown at the Eurobike trade show in 2006. Originally marketed under the "5 Rot" label, Muthers was unfortunately never able to fully ramp up production and the promising system disappeared. German component company Acros recently hired Muthers, though, and the system has been reborn and revamped – and most importantly, it'll actually be available in quantity, starting in mid-May. The system is now called A-GE but the fundamental design and overall appearance has changed little from when we first laid eyes on it over four years ago. A tiny master cylinder is housed in each paddle shifter body, which is then connected to the detented slave cylinder in the derailleur via two miniscule hydraulic lines apiece. A pivoting thumb paddle dictates which way the derailleur moves when the lever is pushed and the rear shifter can move the chain up to three cogs at a time in either direction. Just as before, shift action is silky smooth and utterly linear throughout the travel range. The system is also fully sealed so, at least in theory, once it's set up it'll stay that way with virtually no bleeding or other maintenance required aside from cleaning. Also carrying over from the original design is the slant parallelogram body for both the front and rear derailleurs. However, more advanced shifter mounts now afford more adjustability than before – and options include an integrated setup for use with popular brakes – and optional detent rods allow compatibility with eight-, nine- and 10-speed transmissions. Acros say there are a total of 248 separate parts per complete system (including nearly 30 thrust ball bearings) but even so, the system is remarkably light, with elaborate CNC-machined aluminum construction used throughout and hydraulic line and fluid being lighter than steel cable and housing. Claimed weight for the rear derailleur is just 159g, the front derailleur supposedly weighs only 79g, and a pair of shifters hits the scales at a wispy 65g. All told (with lines, hardware, etc.), Acros say A-GE undercuts SRAM XX by 150g and Shimano XTR by 175g. Not surprisingly, such attention to detail, intricate workmanship and high level of performance comes at a high price – and in this case, it's very high. Retail price for European customers is €1,599. US pricing is still to be finalized but will supposedly be "less than US$2,000." Edited April 19, 2011 by rwa.basson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koukie Posted April 19, 2011 Share Imagine 10years from now we will say, "do you remember in the old days we used to shift with cables, that was so oldschool...." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreZA Posted April 19, 2011 Share Imagine 10years from now we will say, "do you remember in the old days we used to shift with cables, that was so oldschool...." Well, quite a few years ago Shimano had a system that worked on air. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2119/2038980300_dc4abefec5.jpg Imagine some shops that can not set a cable system properly, how they gonna work on hydraulics. No roadside repairs with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koukie Posted April 19, 2011 Share Now they must just change the chain to a drive shaft, chains are getting old now, chains are there from almost the begining of the bicycle. Edited April 19, 2011 by koukie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Keep Pedaling Posted April 19, 2011 Share Costs more than a bike. How much does it weigh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaLoCo Posted April 19, 2011 Share Well, quite a few years ago Shimano had a system that worked on air. http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2119/2038980300_dc4abefec5.jpg Imagine some shops that can not set a cable system properly, how they gonna work on hydraulics. No roadside repairs with this. Wonder if you can use Stan's in it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Keep Pedaling Posted April 19, 2011 Share They could run a driveshaft inside the frame. That would be cool. No cranks - no rear derailler - no chain. Probably weigh a fair bit more but would make cleaning the bike a dream. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HowellingWulf Posted April 19, 2011 Share Looks like the old Suntour derrailluer I had on my Goldhill 5 speed in the early 90's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndreZA Posted April 19, 2011 Share They could run a driveshaft inside the frame. That would be cool. No cranks - no rear derailler - no chain. Probably weigh a fair bit more but would make cleaning the bike a dream. Was done 112 year ago. http://www.coopertechnica.com/_image/1899-Columbia-Model-59-Shaft-Drive-Bicycle-3.jpghttp://www.coopertechnica.com/_image/1899-Columbia-Model-59-Shaft-Drive-Bicycle-1.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Keep Pedaling Posted April 19, 2011 Share Nice one Mampara. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeTurbo Posted April 19, 2011 Share Was done 112 year ago. http://www.coopertechnica.com/_image/1899-Columbia-Model-59-Shaft-Drive-Bicycle-3.jpghttp://www.coopertechnica.com/_image/1899-Columbia-Model-59-Shaft-Drive-Bicycle-1.jpg How brilliantly elegant!That's awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eldron Posted April 19, 2011 Share I do love solutions to problems that don't exist - hydraulic sounds great but I have yet to have an issue with my "old faithful" cable gears. It seems like an unecessary complication to me... Perhaps I am a luddite after all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Drongo Posted April 19, 2011 Share Hmmm, very smart - nice price! Methinks you should add something to the title there: Acros bring hydraulic shifting to market - something for the 29er crowd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaLoCo Posted April 19, 2011 Share Hmmm, very smart - nice price! Methinks you should add something to the title there: Acros bring hydraulic shifting to market - something for the 29er crowd. Yeah...the 29'er crowd tend to fall for anything Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbo_SA Posted April 19, 2011 Share Lol, between the 9'ers wanting all the bling and tech and the SS'ers wanting the simplest options us 26'ers dont stand a chance, :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissVan Posted April 19, 2011 Share 2 Thoughts come to mind while thinking about this... WHY? KISS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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