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rbent Forum
https://rbentonline.org/YaBB.pl General Category >> Technical >> Archer Components Electronic Shifter https://rbentonline.org/YaBB.pl?num=1560104686 Message started by jayg on Jun 9th, 2019, 1:24pm |
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Title: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jun 9th, 2019, 1:24pm Have been testing an Archer Components 2nd generation D1x Trail shifter, since I installed it on my Aero trike at the beginning of May, this year. The system consists of a water-resistant shifter unit that contains two li-ion 3.7 v rechargeable batteries, electronics, and a linear actuator. The shifter unit is mounted on a trike or bike's rear stay with two plastic straps, and is connected to the derailleur by short sections of shifter housing and cable. The shifter will operate up to 12-speed derailleurs. It's compatible with all makes of derailleurs. Just pull a serviceable one out of your spare parts box, and you're good to go. The Archer iPhone and Android apps allow each cog on a cassette to be dialed in separately, and stored in memory, for precise shifts every time. The pushbutton, wireless remote consists of a waterproof housing, two pushbuttons, electronics, and a single 3.7 li-ion battery. It is designed to mount on a 22.3 mm O.D. tube. Both the shifter and remote have single LED lights that indicate operating and battery status (coded red and green blinks). The shifter powers down after about 30 minutes of inactivity. The remote follows suit, after signal is lost from shifter. Shifting is almost instantaneous, except when downshifting with chain in tension (e.g. during hill climbing). In that case it's slightly delayed, but still precise. Just before its batteries' charges are depleted, the shifter will shift the derailleur to a pre-programmed "get me home" cog on the cassette. I rode 103 miles (8.62 hours moving time and 1,597 ft. of climbing), before I had to recharge the shifter batteries the first time. I had to recharge the remote's battery, after about 123 miles. I have a close-ratio, 10-speed cassette on the Aero, and do a lot of shifting to compensate for my moderate power output capability. Have put 187 miles on the Aero since installing the shifter. So far, it's operating just fine. Really like the precise shifts, compared to the imprecise ones I experience on my Catrike Speed trike. Bar-end shifters are a pain when they get a little wear on them. The batteries are installed in the shifter by removing a screw-on door on the opposite end from where the shifting cable enters the shifter. Creates a dilemma, because there is no way to get the batteries out, once they are inserted. I solved the problem by stacking seven, 8 mm dia. Harbor Freight ceramic magnets on a long nail. Pulls them right out. Was concerned about possibly destroying a memory chip in the shifter by inserting strong magnets in it, but that didn't happen. The Archer D1x w/standard remote is $389. With micro-adjust remote it's $419. I ordered the micro-adjust remote, which permits "on-the-fly" adjustments. Haven't had to use this feature, as the settings I initially programmed into the shifter are working just fine. I also ordered a set of spare batteries. The shifter comes with a set of batteries and a charger. The Archer site is here: https://www.archercomponents.com/shop/ http://i.imgur.com/3kmsioK.jpg (https://imgur.com/3kmsioK) http://i.imgur.com/dPhzNVn.jpg (https://imgur.com/dPhzNVn) Shifter mounted on upper rear stay with furnished plastic straps Two-button remote mounted at top of right steering lever http://i.imgur.com/BXEUBP4.jpg (https://imgur.com/BXEUBP4) Top: Spare battery case, pushbutton remote, installation and programming instructions Middle: Hardware pack, shifter, and mounting straps and shifter cable housing Bottom: Remote mount and shifter cable Charger not shown |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by Phantom Rider on Jun 9th, 2019, 2:03pm Jay Thanks for posting this, I’ve been anxiously waiting on it since you first told me about the product. Sounds very promising and significantly less expensive than the SRAM and Shimano products. I have to wonder if there was any sharing of data between Archer and X-shifter as the tech and design is very similar. I still hope that one day my kickstarter funds will be used to ship my X-shifter product to me. Please update this thread with any developments as they occur for those of us who are hooked on electronic shifting. |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jun 10th, 2019, 9:41am Phantom Rider wrote:
You're welcome Joe. I'm wondering how long the shifter will last. I'm sure they must have put it through a lot of cycles, under load, during the development phase. I'll post any future developments. I forgot to mention that Archer is responsive to E-mail inquiries and answers their phone. They even altered their Android app to accommodate the Android 6.0 operating system on my 3-year old pad computer. The app previously accommodated Android 7.0 and up. It now accommodates 5.0 and up. |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jun 16th, 2019, 11:12am Just installed an Archer shifter on Craig B's VTX. http://i.imgur.com/g8ZvS7J.jpg (https://imgur.com/g8ZvS7J) |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by Phantom Rider on Jun 16th, 2019, 1:06pm jayg wrote:
And you do this after I buy a VTX and have E-Tap Installed. |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jun 16th, 2019, 9:30pm Phantom Rider wrote:
And you do this after I buy a VTX and have E-Tap Installed. [/quote] I'll install an Archer on your velomobile (You know you're going to get one eventually) :D |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jul 7th, 2019, 12:39pm jayg wrote:
At first, Craig's Archer shifter did not shift as well as the Archer shifter I installed on my Aero. On his second ride with the shifter installed, it slipped loose on his VTX's rear stay, and stopped shifting. I strapped it back on with some zip ties, and he made it back to Sunset Bay. Afterwards, the motor in the shifter ceased operating. Archer sent me a replacement shifter and I installed it on the VTX's rear stay, using some mounts I fabricated from sheetmetal. The VTX's hydroformed, upper rear stay is not suitable for solidly mounting a shifter, using just the straps provided with the shifter, because its cross section is asymmetrical. After I installed the replacement shifter, the shifting was not completely satisfactory. Replaced the trike's mid-cage SRAM rear derailleur with a long-cage Microshift derailleur. Shifting was still not completely satisfactory. Finally, discovered the problem was a worn cassette. Installed a new cassette - problem solved. Shifts great, now. http://i.imgur.com/pjzJxgc.jpg (https://imgur.com/pjzJxgc) http://i.imgur.com/IBFBFwo.jpg (https://imgur.com/IBFBFwo) Sheetmetal brackets support shifter and keep it from rotating. Zip ties hold shifter in brackets. Projections on back of shifter interlock with brackets to prevent shifter from moving forward or backward. |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Jul 7th, 2019, 12:48pm Got 294.6 miles and 23 hours of riding out of my second set of charged batteries. Replaced batteries, after status light starting indicating 30 to 15% full charge. So, could have ridden somewhat further, if I hadn't changed them out. |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by MrWizard on Aug 8th, 2019, 10:16pm Just had our first death of one of these .. The jack screw in it will only go part-way . Archer won't replace it so we took it apart and found the plastic mount had fractured inside and a bit had wedged in the threads of the screw. took that out, built another bridge with epoxy and a couple of fender washers which were cut down to allow the case to reseal. jayg wrote:
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by jayg on Aug 9th, 2019, 9:08am MrWizard wrote:
[/quote] Have over 1,400, trouble-free, miles on my Aero's Archer shifter. Have become so used to it, prefer to ride the Aero over any of my 4 recumbents with mechanical shifters. Archer immediately replaced Craig's dead shifter. What was their reason for not replacing your shifter? |
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Title: Re: Archer Components Electronic Shifter Post by JimFPU on Jul 2nd, 2020, 4:57pm jayg wrote:
And you do this after I buy a VTX and have E-Tap Installed. [/quote] I'll install an Archer on your velomobile (You know you're going to get one eventually) :D[/quote] I've just put one in mine for testing and video production of the install and test rides. Stay tuned for the video. https://www.youtube.com/c/CatrikeTheFlamingEyeball BTW, if you are going to install it in a velo, get a longer cable and put the box in the cockpit where you can get to it easily. Then you have to get someone to pedal for you while you set it up, or at least I did. |
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