MintSauce Posted February 2, 2015 Share Last year I was fortunate enough to finally scrape together the funds for a Di2 groupset. Since it was initially launched I've loved the idea of clicking a button to shift, as opposed to the normal long lever throws required. I have to say, I miss a certain part of the tactility of a mechanical system. For example, when climbing under power being able to feel the tension build as you push the lever and the chain starts to shift and being able to ease off the power accordingly to allow it to move to the next gear. However, one of my biggest annoyances while riding a road bike with it's multitude of bar positions, is the need to let go of the bar when needing to shift, when climbing with hands on top of the bar or cruising/descending with your hands low down on the drops. As such, an upgrade to remote buttons was something I looked forward to. Except, the system Shimano offers just seems so badly executed to me. The climbing shifter is an ugly monstrosity that I simply could never attach to my bike. It's just too big. Heaven knows why. Some say it needs a circuit board in the enclosure. That's bollocks. The sprinter buttons on the other hand make more sense, but seeing as I won't ever be engaged in a sprint, didn't really offer a good solution either. I thought of buying them and extending the cables, but the cost of R1700+ seemed like too much. Thus I started doing some research to see if anyone had DIY'd a system. I found a link to a setup that used 2x micro switches http://benmanson.com/review/di2/di2buttons.htmThis involved still acquiring a Shimano cable extension with their unique 4-point plug, at over R1000 for the cable. Again, the cost seemed silly, but at least this proved that the circuit board in the climbing shifter was not needed. Further research on one of the road bike forums revealed that the different looking plugs on the sprint shifters were rumoured to be an attempt by Shimano to make users believe that that was the only solution. However, several users reported that the standard Di2 electrical wire and plugs would work. The idea of using the sprinter ports and having a button either side of the bar/stem also appealed to me more than using the climbing button port. Using the climbing port meant both buttons would be on the same side. Also, I wanted buttons below the drops as well and I felt 2 buttons mounted on one side would be too bulky. I decided to order a 1m cable from CWC and upon receiving it cut it in half, stripped of the ends, plugged it in to the sprinter port and found the system shifted when the 2 wire ends touched. Voila. I then ordered some IP67 rated micro tactile switches from RS Online http://za.rs-online.com/web/p/tactile-switches/7931664/ It was a pretty simple process, even though I'd never soldered anything before in my life. Below a few pics depicting the process: The completed 'wiring loom'. Sorry the pic is out of focus, but I only realised this after completion Soldered button I applied a glob of silicone to the buttons, allowed it to dry and then trimmed it. The buttons are dust and splash proof, but obviously water would still cause a short between the two wires. I taped the wire and button to the bar as you would normal cables and wires Below the drops, I used some double-sided tape to lessen the transition between the bar and the button. Like I said, hack job. I enlarged one of the holes on the bartape to accommodate the buttons. And the finished product NotSoBigBen, TALUS, splat and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shebeen Posted February 2, 2015 Share shimano wire??!!! looks cool. next trick will be to get a phototransistor which will shift when you hover your finger over it. or get Siri to swap gears for you. shaper 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachless Posted February 2, 2015 Share shimano wire??!!! looks cool. next trick will be to get a phototransistor which will shift when you hover your finger over it. or get Siri to swap gears for you. I was thinking that a sensor that measures cadence and then shifts up or down at your preset cadence figures is the next step in these electronic goodies. Who wants to press buttons anyways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CdT85 Posted February 2, 2015 Share I was thinking that a sensor that measures cadence and then shifts up or down at your preset cadence figures is the next step in these electronic goodies. Who wants to press buttons anyways. Will be possible...just get a little Arduino Nano/Micro to read your cadence as an input and use a digital output to tell your shifter to shift up and down... Edited February 2, 2015 by Otero TALUS 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the nerd Posted February 2, 2015 Share Will be possible...just get a little Arduino Nano/Micro to read your cadence as an input and use a digital output to tell your shifter to shift up and down... XTR Di2 does auto shifting... no imagination required... TALUS, Long Wheel Base, Baaisikilist and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amberdrake Posted February 2, 2015 Share I would have used less protruding switches and left them under bar tape. maybe look for some water proof switches (noticed they are ip67). But even tho the application is very "diy" down and dirty if it works great job! For the point where you soldered the two wires get some heat shrink. will insulate them for everything except full submersion. For first time soldering that looks good Edited February 2, 2015 by Amberdrake Skylark 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachless Posted February 2, 2015 Share XTR Di2 does auto shifting... no imagination required... I see there are even some apps already I wonder what it feels like to ride but seem like the future to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rock Posted February 2, 2015 Share how sensitive are they? any accidental shifts? awesome hack by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pista Posted February 2, 2015 Share Looks great???? MintSauce 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MintSauce Posted February 2, 2015 Share I would have used less protruding switches and left them under bar tape. maybe look for some water proof switches (noticed they are ip67). But even tho the application is very "diy" down and dirty if it works great job! For the point where you soldered the two wires get some heat shrink. will insulate them for everything except full submersion. For first time soldering that looks good I considered putting them under the bartape and initially actually bought switches with shorter buttons, but I was worried about (1) being able to locate them and (2) them being activated by tightly wound tape. Those issues were both minor though, I actually decided i wanted them to protrude slightly. I went with silicone simply because I've never used heatshrink and have no means of applying/shrinking it. Also, wasn't sure how it would work around the button. Is it worth maybe going that route? Totally DIY, but it actually looks pretty neat. All the hacks are hidden under the tape :-) Baaisikilist 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MintSauce Posted February 2, 2015 Share how sensitive are they? any accidental shifts? awesome hack by the way. Thanks Nick. Accidental shifts will be highly unlikely. They require a fair amount of force to activate, as in you won't activate a shift by just brushing the switch. There's a definite 'click'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MintSauce Posted February 2, 2015 Share shimano wire??!!! looks cool. next trick will be to get a phototransistor which will shift when you hover your finger over it. or get Siri to swap gears for you.Shimano wire = Di2 wires in differing lengths with plugs on each end, used to connect the various components, junction boxes and battery. You build it and I'll try it, Stevie ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shebeen Posted February 2, 2015 Share Shimano wire = Di2 wires in differing lengths with plugs on each end, used to connect the various components, junction boxes and battery. You build it and I'll try it, Stevie ;-)Ok, makes a bit more sense now, so the connectors are shimano specific to plug them in. to prevent accidental gear shifts, maybe get this nuclear missile type toggle protectors (in carbon, of course) Baaisikilist, Capricorn and Marius 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rock Posted February 2, 2015 Share Thanks Nick. Accidental shifts will be highly unlikely. They require a fair amount of force to activate, as in you won't activate a shift by just brushing the switch. There's a definite 'click'. ok cool, I have refrained completely from toughing any electric group and so have no idea of the feel, way too much of a temptation to even tough that stuff...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amberdrake Posted February 2, 2015 Share I would not do the button in Heat shrink because the end would not close leaving it exposed. But since you have spares maybe solder a wire on button and try it. Heat shrink will shrink with a lighter's heat. You can use any heat source just apply slowly and evenly around the tube. Heat shrink is used as a tube so has to be slid onto wire before soldering and far enough so that soldering the wire doesn't cause shrinking. Play around a bit maybe. Whenever I work with wiring I use heat shrink. Electrical tape is not to be used as glue goes tacky and becomes useless (faster when in hot environment like sun exposure) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velouria Posted February 2, 2015 Share Nice post Minty - and cool Di2 hack. I've read about some rather interesting things people have done with their Di2 systems, and I think you're just getting started And good to see you on The Hub again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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