WANTED: Shimano di2 rear mech long cage

Bikebox

Hi all

by any chance does anyone have a long cage rear mech shimano di2 11 speed ultegra or dur ace they are willing to part with or rent? Everesting in a few weeks!

thanks Sean

Mr. Cats

It might not be what you need but I just ordered the GS cage parts for an r8050 today. It seems relatively simple to swap out the SS to GS according to the interwebs. Parts are about 25 euro. GS is medium cage - I don’t think there is a long cage Ultegra/DA Di2 but maybe there’s a Di2 GRX long cage?

CantGetNoSleep

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119365449#Comment_119365449

Sorry to thread hijack, would you mind sticking up a link to the parts you need to order? I currently have the RD8050 but bent the cage every so slightly in a crash and while my mechanic bent it back, it has always been on my mind to replace it.

My winter bike is 50-34 / 11-34 and the good bike is 52-36 / 11-30 so wouldn't mind having the option to match the gearing a bit, but never fancied paying 250+ for a new Di2 rear derailleur.

For GRX manual shifting, the medium cage is for 2x, the long cage (GRX 812) is meant to be for 1x only. I am almost certain this is the same for the Di2 models, however I suspect in the OPs case that medium cage is perfectly adequate

Mr. Cats

I ordered from these French guys as it was only place I could find in stock. Never used them before so I can let you know in a week or so how delivery was (& if it arrived!)

I’m doing this for first time so maybe I don’t have it right but I think should be.

https://www.xxcycle.com/shimano-ultegra-di2-rd-r8050-gs-rear-derailleur-inner-cage,,en.php

https://www.xxcycle.com/shimano-ultegra-di2-rd-r8050-gs-rear-derailleur-outer-cage,,en.php

CantGetNoSleep

Thanks - would also be interested to hear if it works with just those two parts!

Mr. Cats

(apols in advance to the OP for the threadjack)

The order took around 5 days over the weekend to arrive using the UPS express option so happy enough with the site.

It’s a fairly simple procedure to do yourself with a couple of sections that you have to pay attention on. Would rate it about 6 out of 10 in terms of difficulty for a novice home mechanic like me (really stretching the term mechanic to be honest).

One thing that did catch me out is that you need a T10 torx screwdriver/ratchet to remove one of the bolts on the derailleur. I didn’t have one of these but got it sorted with a trip to hardware shop. Something to check before you’ve taken everything apart (like me).

I had already changed front chainrings to 50/34 and now have an 11-34 on back. New chain and a little indexing and it all worked out well. I did see mention that for some set-ups you might need a new hanger or hanger extender if there wasn’t enough space physically between derailleur and largest cog in cassette. Wasn’t the case on my job but just something to be aware of. I don’t know how common it is.

The videos I found setting out process were not great but this was about the best of them:

https://youtu.be/ZlvhXn1SCCs

CantGetNoSleep

Great thank you - I've ordered.

Just one last question - how is this recognised in the e-tube app? E.g on my current app it only allows to select a 30 max cog on the rear as it is the short cage derailleur

(again sorry for the hijack but OP can also do the same)

Mr. Cats

I hadn’t noticed that but you are right. As it’s recognised as short cage, 30 is largest option. I’m not sure what are the implications, if any?

Mr. Cats

I asked about the E-TUBE mismatch on bettershifting.com and here was the response from the experts:

So yeah.. E-Tube doesn't know what the installed cassette is, but it doesn't really matter. All that affects is the synchro shift displayed gear ratios.

Also note that while replacing the cage will allow you to indeed fit a larger cassette, it doesn't actually change the derailleur's Total Capacity (https://bettershifting.com/derailleur-specifications-what-do-they-mean/).... but the derailleur will still function even if it's run just outside its limits :)