Steel di2 build?

pedalbasher

I have a spare Ultegra 6770 di2 groupset, which I'd like to set up on a posh steel winter bike.

Is this possible? Are there any steel frame sets that will accommodate di2 and internal cable routing? I particularly like the Genesis Equilibrium, having hired one recently, but can't see that they would accept elec gearing.

Basically I'm looking to build a "posh winter" bike, comfortable and slightly more relaxed than my lightweight carbon summer bike, but as I have a spare di2 groupset I thought I should put it to good use.

Any suggestions?

Thanks

majormantra

You could always drill some holes...

majormantra

(Although you might have trouble getting the junction box in, in any case.)

pedalbasher

Thanks. Not sure how happy I'd be drilling a beautiful new frame. I'll speak to bike shop tomorrow.

Are there any non-carbon framesets specifically made to accommodate di2?

And am I mad putting di2 on a winter bike? External battery...

majormantra

In ways Di2 makes a lot of sense for a winter bike since you don't have to worry about gear cables gumming up or corroding. On the other hand the Di2 buttons are quite hard to differentiate in thick gloves.

What's your budget? You could go custom: http://www.chickensframeemporium.co.uk/frames/

(Although that's a lot more than something like an Equilibrium.)

There are also various Ti options that are Di2 compatible, although most won't take guards. You could, of course, do the direct-from-China custom Ti, in which case you get anything you want, quite cheaply. I believe it's quite an undertaking though as you have to spec every detail.

bmxboy10

Caad10?

rickeverett

double post.

rickeverett

Think the CADD10 has Di2 support along with Canyons AL Frameset and Rose XEON RS Framesets. All pretty highly regarded Alu's

pedalbasher

Thanks. I would love to go down the custom build route but I also need to take advantage of the Bike 2 Work scheme, so I think I'll be limited to the fairly mainstream outlets unfortunately.

Rick, appreciate those are solid options but (1) I am having issues dealing with Canyon over my summer bike, and (2) I really want to go for steel, having recently hired a Genesis steel bike and loved it's mega compliant ride.

Is it madness to try to find e.g. an Equilibrium frame and get someone to drill it and fix di2? I wouldn't have a clue what I was doing to be honest, so I'm reliant on others here. I guess before I go making too many specific enquiries into the precise frame set I'm after, I need to know whether buying a steel frame and taking it to the bike shop for drilling / fitting with di2 is feasible.

Thanks again

pedalbasher

Budget is flexible up to £1k... like I say, I have the group set and I also have wheels (Mavic Ksyrium Equipes or Elites, depending on what I do with my other bike...) but I don't want to spend more than that in total, including frame set, build costs, accessories.

gozzy

I don't know where you are but you could try somewhere like Woodrups of Leeds, who afaik do c2w but are also frame builders...

pedalbasher

Thanks Gozzy. I'm not familiar with Woodrup and I live in London, but this is exactly the type of place I need to find.

Does anyone else know any cycle shops that offer frame building or might otherwise be able to accept Cycle 2 Work scheme vouchers for a custom build (or towards a custom build)?

I don't think I am going to go down the route of drilling an existing frame for fear of causing structural weaknesses and also corrosion issues if I don't get the cable entry points right, so it will have to be a custom build frame with di2 accommodated from the outset.

Grateful for any more suggestions so I can make a few enquiries tomorrow.