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Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
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Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby lammy » Fri Oct 04, 2013 10:17 am
I ride 300-400km per week and currently ride Ultegra (wet weather) and Sram Red (upgrading the sram red).
I always like to buy the best (if I afford it) and thats why the 9000 appeals with this kit my dogma would have the ultimate mechanical groupset you can buy, also would go nice with my C50's too, but the ease of use of and price of ultegra Di2 is far too tempting. DuraAce Di2 is ridiculously overpriced.
What are your thoughts? Anybody had the same dilema?

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby doggatas » Fri Oct 04, 2013 10:40 am
In my opinion the shifting quality of properly adjusted mechanical Dura Ace 9000 and Di2 9070 are equal. For me the choice comes down to shifting action at the lever, just as it does when comparing the top end SRAM/Campag/Shimano groups.
In saying that the following are clear benefits of an electrical system
1. Set and forget, never have to adjust shifting due to cable stretch (maybe have to adjust for wheel swap)
2. Auto FD trim
3. Never have to replace shifting cables (unlikely the Di2 cable will fail)
I must admit after shelling our for Di2, some part of me still prefers the action and sound of the mechanical group.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby ball bearing » Fri Oct 04, 2013 10:47 am
One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
If racing I'd say go electric.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby GeoffInBrisbane » Fri Oct 04, 2013 11:49 am
ball bearing wrote:One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
Every single one of the Di2 owners I regularly ride with has had a flat battery mid-ride at some point. I always like to sympathise while reminding them that my fingers have yet to run out of power, nor does it appear to have happened to any of the other mechanical groupset owners...

That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby Dimis » Fri Oct 04, 2013 12:30 pm
I've used Di2 for long enough to know that I don't ever intend on using it again.
Nothing wrong with it per say... but I'd rather have the cables thx.
They just work

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby rebilda » Fri Oct 04, 2013 12:40 pm
GeoffInBrisbane wrote:ball bearing wrote:One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
Every single one of the Di2 owners I regularly ride with has had a flat battery mid-ride at some point. I always like to sympathise while reminding them that my fingers have yet to run out of power, nor does it appear to have happened to any of the other mechanical groupset owners...
That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
Wow! That has never happened to me.
The battery lasts, like, a month or two between charges. I just check that its in the 'green' range (hold a shft lever in for a few seconds and look at the LED)after each ride. If it flashes at all, just put it on the charge for a couple of hrs and done.
Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Do these guys also regularly run out of petrol in their cars and never have enough money in their wallet, at the Pub? (I know guys like that too

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby jasonc » Fri Oct 04, 2013 12:59 pm
GeoffInBrisbane wrote:That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
+1

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby GeoffInBrisbane » Fri Oct 04, 2013 1:27 pm
rebilda wrote:GeoffInBrisbane wrote:ball bearing wrote:One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
Every single one of the Di2 owners I regularly ride with has had a flat battery mid-ride at some point. I always like to sympathise while reminding them that my fingers have yet to run out of power, nor does it appear to have happened to any of the other mechanical groupset owners...
That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
Wow! That has never happened to me.
The battery lasts, like, a month or two between charges. I just check that its in the 'green' range (hold a shft lever in for a few seconds and look at the LED)after each ride. If it flashes at all, just put it on the charge for a couple of hrs and done.
Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Do these guys also regularly run out of petrol in their cars and never have enough money in their wallet, at the Pub? (I know guys like that too)
Don't think so but you don't have to press a fuel button on the car to check.
To be fair, one of the guys in question has original Di2, and had a dodgy charger which wasn't behaving as it should. He ended up small ring only many times, and even ended up single speed on one ride...
In some respects I think if the battery only lasted 2 rides, nobody would ever forget to charge the system, it'd be like your lights and computer. The fact that they last months means they get forgotten about.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby im_no_pro » Fri Oct 04, 2013 1:39 pm
GeoffInBrisbane wrote:rebilda wrote:
Wow! That has never happened to me.
The battery lasts, like, a month or two between charges. I just check that its in the 'green' range (hold a shft lever in for a few seconds and look at the LED)after each ride. If it flashes at all, just put it on the charge for a couple of hrs and done.
Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Do these guys also regularly run out of petrol in their cars and never have enough money in their wallet, at the Pub? (I know guys like that too)
Don't think so but you don't have to press a fuel button on the car to check.
To be fair, one of the guys in question has original Di2, and had a dodgy charger which wasn't behaving as it should. He ended up small ring only many times, and even ended up single speed on one ride...
In some respects I think if the battery only lasted 2 rides, nobody would ever forget to charge the system, it'd be like your lights and computer. The fact that they last months means they get forgotten about.
I have to press a button on my car to see how much fuel I have left.... its called the ignition

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby TDC » Fri Oct 04, 2013 6:30 pm
rebilda wrote:GeoffInBrisbane wrote:ball bearing wrote:One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
Every single one of the Di2 owners I regularly ride with has had a flat battery mid-ride at some point. I always like to sympathise while reminding them that my fingers have yet to run out of power, nor does it appear to have happened to any of the other mechanical groupset owners...
That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
Wow! That has never happened to me.
The battery lasts, like, a month or two between charges. I just check that its in the 'green' range (hold a shft lever in for a few seconds and look at the LED)after each ride. If it flashes at all, just put it on the charge for a couple of hrs and done.
Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Do these guys also regularly run out of petrol in their cars and never have enough money in their wallet, at the Pub? (I know guys like that too)
Sheesh...I suppose you also check if your tyres are pumped up.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby ball bearing » Fri Oct 04, 2013 7:09 pm
GeoffInBrisbane wrote:Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Replacing the battery every season is probably wise maintenance.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby ball bearing » Fri Oct 04, 2013 7:54 pm
http://www.roadgrime.com.au/forum/topic ... ost_109763
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby rebilda » Sat Oct 05, 2013 11:50 am
ball bearing wrote:GeoffInBrisbane wrote:Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Replacing the battery every season is probably wise maintenance.
I reckon the battery is good for a bit more than a year. Mines 3 years old now, and I'm not noticing shorter intervals between charging. Besides, they cost about $100.
In all seriousness, the only issue I've had was a dodgy junction cable, which was a warranty job (I paid a shop $80 for the repair, and was reimbursed by CE) no trouble at all since then. I once had a cable fray up, inside the R/H shifter mech. on my Shimano 105 bike. That cost $50 to have repaired. so there is not a massive premium attached to going electronic - in my eyes, anyway
I am not debating whether Di2 is better or worse than a mechanical set up. For me it was a decision on buying something new & cutting edge technology. I haven't seen any pitfalls in my decision to go Di2, but it is a personal choice, nothing more.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby DTdotcom » Sat Oct 05, 2013 1:06 pm
But yes, I have suffered the flat battery once when I lost track of my kms and it didn't last my fortnightly charge routine.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby Dave R32 » Sat Oct 05, 2013 8:43 pm

Cheers
Dave.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby lammy » Sun Oct 06, 2013 12:59 pm

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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby danny the boy » Sun Oct 06, 2013 4:06 pm
rebilda wrote:GeoffInBrisbane wrote:ball bearing wrote:One the other hand - at the tail end of a long, cold ride I'd hate to have a battery go flat.
Every single one of the Di2 owners I regularly ride with has had a flat battery mid-ride at some point. I always like to sympathise while reminding them that my fingers have yet to run out of power, nor does it appear to have happened to any of the other mechanical groupset owners...
That said, if somebody wants to donate a set of 9070, I'll be willing to risk it...
Wow! That has never happened to me.
The battery lasts, like, a month or two between charges. I just check that its in the 'green' range (hold a shft lever in for a few seconds and look at the LED)after each ride. If it flashes at all, just put it on the charge for a couple of hrs and done.
Di2 still requires some maintenance. But it isnt much, really.
Do these guys also regularly run out of petrol in their cars and never have enough money in their wallet, at the Pub? (I know guys like that too)
Exactly. User error does not equate to a problem with the groupset. 18 months on I still get close to 1000k's from a charge.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby TDC » Sun Oct 06, 2013 4:39 pm
danny the boy wrote:[
Exactly. User error does not equate to a problem with the groupset. 18 months on I still get close to 1000k's from a charge.
Hmmm. unlike those hammers that bend half the nails they hammer in.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby winstonw » Sun Oct 06, 2013 4:54 pm
- leave home at 4am, and drive 100km to the start of a ride, only to realize you didn't get the Di2 battery off the charger.
- dropped chains DO happen, and bend front derailleur cages in the process, which require straightening before you get satisfactory shifting, or replacing.
- compare the price of a new Di2 FD vs mech.
if you don't mind occupying head space with yet another battery to nurse, then Di2 won't be an issue.
But for those with a head full of household and work responsibilities, teach yourself how to fine tune mech, and change gears carefully, and your need for Di2 disappears.
At end of day, a first world problem.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby Mulger bill » Sun Oct 06, 2013 6:25 pm
winstonw wrote:Things that actually happen in the real world with Di2.
- leave home at 4am, and drive 100km to the start of a ride, only to realize you didn't get the Di2 battery off the charger.
This sort of stuff up can occur with anything. To reduce risks of this happening, any of my bikes that isn't in a fit state to ride for whatever reason gets a strip of red cloth tied around the bars.
winstonw wrote:At end of day, a first world problem.
No argument here.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby danny the boy » Sun Oct 06, 2013 7:06 pm
winstonw wrote:Things that actually happen in the real world with Di2.
- leave home at 4am, and drive 100km to the start of a ride, only to realize you didn't get the Di2 battery off the charger.
Same chance of this happening as leaving your helmet at home. 100% fool-proofing has its limitations.
winstonw wrote:- dropped chains DO happen, and bend front derailleur cages in the process, which require straightening before you get satisfactory shifting, or replacing.
- compare the price of a new Di2 FD vs mech.
Cables break as well, this arguement could go on forever.
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby doggatas » Sun Oct 06, 2013 8:22 pm
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby ekes » Mon Dec 23, 2013 11:48 am
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Re: Ultegra Di2 or Dura Ace 9000 Mechanical
Postby jcjordan » Mon Dec 23, 2013 1:41 pm
Plus the added benefit of not having all the problems of battery recharge and easy to fix if you break anything.
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