Electronic shifting on a budget - Archer Components D1x Trail Gen1 Wireless Shifter w/ Paddle Review
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- čas přidán 9. 07. 2024
- Wireless electronic shifting offers a variety of advantages over mechanical shifters including micro adjustments, faster shifting and cleaner installations. The added technology doesn’t come cheap though, as SRAM and Shimano electronic shifters require specific derailleur and shifter combinations as well as proprietary batteries and chargers. Archer Components is seeking to change that with their affordable electronic shifter kits that can be installed on nearly any mechanical drivetrain setup. The Archer Components D1x Trail Shifter w/ Paddle Remote that we have in this review is one of their latest versions and retails for $429 with standard batteries of $449 with Sprint batteries. One of the main selling points is the new ergonomic paddle remote which offers haptic feedback and on-the-fly micro-adjustments. The Sprint Li-ion batteries offer the fastest shifting setup (50% faster than standard batteries) and a 25 hour claimed runtime.
Designed as a retro-fit kit, the Archer Components D1x Trail can be quickly installed onto existing rear derailleurs without the need for any special tools or skills. The entire process can easily be done in under thirty minutes with as little as an Allen key and wire cutter. The first step is to find an appropriate position for the D1x Shifter which requires about 6” of space and should have sufficient space to not interfere with your pedal strokes or come into contact any spokes. Once you’ve located a spot you can measure the distance to the shifter and cut down the shifter housing. Next you’ll want to remove the existing shifter and route a new cable from the derailleur to the shifter (i.e. remove the maintenance cover on the rear of the shifter to attach it). After that you can secure the shifter to the bike using the provided cables and tune the shifting using the provided app. Then you can install the remote shifter onto the handlebars and adjust the position as you see fit. Finally, using the app you can install the remote shifter and pair them together. Note, Archer Components offers an optional bottle cage mount for the shifter which looks a little cleaner.
Archer Components motto is to “keep derailleurs stupid” which is why they strive to separate the electronics from the derailleur. This hybrid approach lets you use more affordable mechanical rear derailleurs and allows the D1x to be installed on nearly any bike drivetrain setup. It’s perfect for new bike builds or retro-fits, as you don’t have to go through a costly full drivetrain swap to get the benefits of electronic shifting. Instead, the D1x replaces your rear derailleur shifter with the paddle remote and reroutes the shifter cable into the D1x shifter / batter box. This non-integrated design means the Archer Components D1x Trail can be installed on 8 speed budget bikes or the high-end 12-speed setups equally easy. The setup consists of two components: the paddle remote and the shifter which houses the batteries and the linear actuator to shift the derailleur.
... Read the full review @ thesweetcyclists.com/archer-c...
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00:00 Intro
00:12 Unboxing + Specs
03:39 Fit + Finish
07:02 Installation
07:55 Riding Impressions
10:27 Archer App
12:21 The Final Score
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Note, Archer has released an updated D1x that addresses many of the usability issues. See more details about that version on Archer's channel - czcams.com/video/kC-CsalVUCY/video.html.
I had an Archer electronic shifter (with the old styled remote) on my bike for about a year and ended up taking it off when I went from a flat bar setup to drop bars.
Here's my take on this kit:
-fairly easy to set up, unless you hand an iPhone. For some reason the app doesn't like pairing the unit with an iPhone and it took me many, many tries to get a connection and adjusting the derailleur to the unit too a long, long time.
-After I got everything set properly the unit worked as promised, with a one unexplainable issue. After turning the main unit on it took the remote shifter at least 30 seconds to connect to the main unit. Why it didn't happen within seconds on my unit is a mystery.
-My biggest beef with this kit, and it was mentioned in your video, is that the unit has to be manually turned on before the start of the ride. I almost always forgot to turn the unit on (don't have to do this on my 3 other bikes) and would enviably have to stop right after I tried shifting gear, to turn the main unit on.
Also, the on/off button is VERY delicate and can be broken with even moderate force. Ask me how I know......I broke mine within the first month and had to send the unit back to Archer.
Thankfully, Archer replaced the button (or sent me a new unit) under warranty and I was back in business.
I do like this product and sometime down the road I plan on installing it on one of my future bikes. I'd like to replace the original remote shifter with the new paddle shifter, but the price for the new paddle shifter is way, way too expensive, for what it is.
Thanks for sharing! I was lucky enough Devin himself from Archer Components and he's well aware of the little usability issues with the power button / manually powering it on. It's a pretty tricky balance between cost / complexity but I hope to see a auto-on feature on the upcoming versions.
If you could, please update that this is a Gen1 unit and not a Gen2 which just came out and is vastly improved.
Good point, the new D1x addresses many of the usability issues I've noted in this video. I can add a sticky and link to Archer's new model. I don't think Archer markets them as "gen1" or "gen2" so it can be confusing.
@@TheSweetCyclists they do explicitly say (Gen 2) on their website for the new version.
@@Emolokz Good catch. I'll update the video title as well then.
And now for Rohloff please...
Thanks, have you heard of the Wheeltop EDS wireless deraillure? it doesn't even need a cable and battery lasts a month for about the same price.
One of the advantages of the Archer setup is that you can use any mechanical derailleur with it instead of an all-in-one wireless derailleur (like the Wheeltop or SRAM / Shimano electronic setups). This means you can use more affordable derailleurs or repair / replace them without worrying about electronic components. The downside of this approach is that it does require more force to actuate the cable compared to directly rotating a derailleur.
Possible to install on a tt bike?
Yes, you can install this on any bike. Archer even has bottle cage mounts for the battery for a cleaner look as well.
Would this work with a Rohloff hub?
From my understanding, the only limitation of the Archer setup is the amount of cable extension. I believe only a few Shimano internal hubs exceed the limits of D1x, but I'd recommend reaching out to Archer to confirm before buying anything.
Electronic Tourney ))
Amazingly, the app doesn't work with newer versions of Android. My Galaxy S21+ cannot run the app making the system useless to me or anyone else running newer versions of Android. I will be sending the system back for a refund.
Sorry to hear about the issues. You might want to reach out to Archer Components directly to see if they have an app update in the works before returning it. OS updates are a big issue with any app especially if companies don't keep up with the changes and ensure it remains functional.
@@TheSweetCyclists I have already sent them an email. I am currently pretty pissed because I just received the unit today and wanted to test it out this weekend. I will wait to see what their reply is before over-reacting out of anger. :)
Regardless, my original message should serve as a warning to check with Archer directly to make sure their app will work on their phone before purchasing.