A wireless shifting system that retrofits to almost any bike has taken Kickstarter by storm. Having smashed its initial Kickstarter target of $50,000, the system looks set to go into production in March 2017.
The XSHIFTER will be sold as a conversion kit to provide customisable wireless shifting to bikes with a regular mechanical drivetrain and will offer some of the benefits of dedicated electronic drivetrains, but at a fraction of the cost – early backers can currently purchase the system for $199.
Different versions are set to be available for everything from road bikes to mountain bikes, recumbents and even tandems.
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How does it work?
The system works by swapping out a drivetrain’s mechanical shifters and replacing them with either one or a couple of frame-mounted, wireless motors that imitate their function — pulling a small length of cable to actuate the derailleurs.
Once in place, the system does away with the physical restrictions of a mechanical shifter, meaning faster shifts and customisable shift patterns are now possible.
Should the system be used with two derailleurs for example, the people behind XSHIFTER have also created a semi-automatic mode. Similar to Shimano’s Synchro-Shift technology, it allows the system to follow a pre-programmed shift map; meaning only one shifter is necessary to control both derailleurs — a rider simply has to click up or down like they would do with a 1x system.
System components
XSHIFTER & XSHIFTER DUAL
XREMOTE
Our take on the system
You can read more at BikeRadar.com
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