DI2 Front Derailleur connection problem

paulieb2006

Have just spent the day tring to get my Ultegra DI2 FD working but the cable wont stay in the cable port. Wont click in, nothing in the way as it is completely empty of dirt and grime. I have tried a fresh cable but no good. I also tried another FD from a mate but his is the same. It will work but pressure must be kept on the cable to beep the connection.
Has anyone heard of anything like this or is there any fix?
Do Shimano have a Service Centre where parts can be sent for repair?
Otherwise the Deraileur is working perfect, seems a shame that it would be useless cause of the connection!

Any assistance would be appreciated/
Paul

gavbarron

Are you trying to push the cable in by hand or using the shimano tool? Seems odd that both yours and your friends would have the same issue

CiB

Had the exact same issue a couple of years ago, where the cable wouldn't latch into the FD. Ended up having the FD replaced under warranty.

Be careful not to make any implied or explicit criticism of Di2 no matter how brilliant it might be and actually is, or some self important guardian of the electronica will get all upset and call you names.

paulieb2006

Using the Shimano Too alright.
Would never "make any implied or explicit criticism of Di2" I love the Fu*king stuff.
Have it for almost 3 years so i think thw Warrenty is well up!

CiB

You might be stuffed then. We (me, LBS) tried all permutations to show that it was the FD was at fault. In my case the FD cable latched into any other port, but no other cables would latch into the FD.

Re criticism, I won't hear a word against it either but suggested a place for the odd issues that obviously people actually never have had and never could happen, to be collated in one place. Got slaughtered for it. see Di2 electro-mechanical issues, currently on page 3 of this index. Enjoy.

meanredspider

FWIW, I thought it was a good thread idea (choice of title was a bit iffy but hey ho).

Looking over it again, I see, CiB, that you'd recommended regularly unplugging and cleaning connections. I'm not sure it was ever intended for this to happen. My oldest system has been through all sorts of crap without issue and I've never once disconnected anything. Is it possible that this contributed to the clipping issue on the FD?

CiB

Thx mrs. Fwiw I don't think regular unplugging is a good idea, but if you do have cause to unplug anything it's worth making sure it's properly clean before reconnecting it. The latching issue on mine happened when the battery died on a morning ride that started in bright clear winter sun and ended in a downpour, and the FD connector looked to be full of wet silty mud & water by the time I got to the office. Despite rinsing it all out before disconnecting and blowing it out with various camera cleaning tools, it wouldn't reconnect, just as our OP has described.

I'm sure I read that Shimano see the connectors as multi-use (as opposed to single shot) but it might be that your approach is more pragmatic, and that it's best to leave them in place unless necessary.

meanredspider

CiB wrote:

Thx mrs. Fwiw I don't think regular unplugging is a good idea, but if you do have cause to unplug anything it's worth making sure it's properly clean before reconnecting it. The latching issue on mine happened when the battery died on a morning ride that started in bright clear winter sun and ended in a downpour, and the FD connector looked to be full of wet silty mud & water by the time I got to the office. Despite rinsing it all out before disconnecting and blowing it out with various camera cleaning tools, it wouldn't reconnect, just as our OP has described.

I can see how it happened - there's a bit of a trap around the connector for dirt to get into especially with the slight incline. I wasn't ever planning on unplugging mine but I'll be doubly sure not to try unless I absolutely have to. Do you know why your battery died? Both of mine have been submerged at various points and I don't think twice about taking my bikes out in whatever weather (except ice).

CiB

Corroded connector, we think, but as a couple of other things were swapped at the same time it's hard to be certain. It's resolved though.

meanredspider

Fingers crossed it stays that way. With zero preconceptions about what to expect from Di2 reliability, I'm deeply impressed by how good it has been (especially as I work in consumer electronics and know that it isn't easy to achieve)

CiB

Paulieb - the Shimano UK importers are a company called Madison, based I think in Milton Keynes. It might be worth your while getting in touch with them to see what they know, altho as you say 3 years is probably pushing it.

New replacements are about £130 give or take, so it's not the end of the world.

964cup

I've had this with an external junction-B. They're cheap, so I replaced it, but would be interested to know if there's any other fix than replacement.

Brailsford Bad

CiB wrote:

You might be stuffed then. We (me, LBS) tried all permutations to show that it was the FD was at fault. In my case the FD cable latched into any other port, but no other cables would latch into the FD.

Re criticism, I won't hear a word against it either but suggested a place for the odd issues that obviously people actually never have had and never could happen, to be collated in one place. Got slaughtered for it. see Di2 electro-mechanical issues, currently on page 3 of this index. Enjoy.

Thats because you acted like a complete c0ck and started slating anyone who said they didn't have problems with it. What was it you called me? Brailsford Braindead or something....

What did you expect?

As usual CiB, you only tell half the story, and of course you would have trouble with the FD connector, I wouldn't expect anything less from you. Im guessing you probably have issues with anything Di2 related...even the colour of the cables.

:roll:

Brailsford Bad

paulieb2006 wrote:

Have just spent the day tring to get my Ultegra DI2 FD working but the cable wont stay in the cable port. Wont click in, nothing in the way as it is completely empty of dirt and grime. I have tried a fresh cable but no good. I also tried another FD from a mate but his is the same. It will work but pressure must be kept on the cable to beep the connection.
Has anyone heard of anything like this or is there any fix?
Do Shimano have a Service Centre where parts can be sent for repair?
Otherwise the Deraileur is working perfect, seems a shame that it would be useless cause of the connection!

Any assistance would be appreciated/
Paul

The connectors can be very hard to push in sometimes, almost to the point you feel you might break it. Never use anything but the special tool for the job.
Have you tried cleaning the hole with a cotton bud with a bit of WD40 on it? I use this all the time on mine and never had a problem.
If you can't get it to work without keeping it pushed in and the FD is past its warranty period then i would just push it in and shove Superglue or some such down the hole and hold it there, see how long it lasts before having to buy a new one. You won't be able to take the cable out but worth a punt if its looking like a new FD is the only option in the end. Nothing to lose at that point.

But be careful! there are people on these forums who have nothing but problems with their Di2, even though 99.9% of us don't and they are just trying to slate it on a constant basis

CiB

Brailsford Bad wrote:

Thats because you acted like a complete c0ck and started slating anyone who said they didn't have problems with it. What was it you called me? Brailsford Braindead or something....

What did you expect?

As usual CiB, you only tell half the story, and of course you would have trouble with the FD connector, I wouldn't expect anything less from you. Im guessing you probably have issues with anything Di2 related...even the colour of the cables.

:roll:

Other way round mate. There are occasions when these things don't work. You decided that as you (and your imaginary 12 friends in your office) had never encountered problems it could only be me making things up to have a pop at Di2, and you've now extended that petty and childish argument with your latest little outburst. Keep it coming. Only one of us looks stupid here, and it ain't me shouting no these things never go wrong and me and my 12 made-up friends think you're a 'c0ck'.

Yh i called you braindead, but anyone who throws his toys out of his pram with such venom as you did as soon as anyone even suggests that his expensive toys may not be 100% perfect for all time deserves a prod.

Mine are working fine now thanks, after a long period when they weren't and when the suppliers couldn't resolve it despite numerous lengthy investigations. Despite that the next bike will have Di2 fitted too. That's how much I 'dislike' them, and how much of a 'problem' I see them as.

Chin up mate. It's not your fault that you are how you are.

bernithebiker

I was quite surprised at how difficult it was to get the cables connected properly, and I had the SHimano tool. (A plastic prong basically).

At times I thought it was definitely in, but it wasn't so had to push really quite hard to get it to connect.

I would imagine the slightest bit of dirt or grit could pose problems.

If disconnecting, I would thoroughly clean the whole area first, and flush with WD40, then remove cable. Then flush both ends with WD or similar before reconnecting.

Pokerface

bernithebiker wrote:

I was quite surprised at how difficult it was to get the cables connected properly, and I had the SHimano tool. (A plastic prong basically).

At times I thought it was definitely in, but it wasn't so had to push really quite hard to get it to connect.

I would imagine the slightest bit of dirt or grit could pose problems.

If disconnecting, I would thoroughly clean the whole area first, and flush with WD40, then remove cable. Then flush both ends with WD or similar before reconnecting.

It's worth noting that the 'plastic prong' is for removing the connections. The 'tube-like bit' on the other end is for putting the connectors in. You feed the end of the cable into the tube and then push it into the component.

veronese68

Rather than WD40 try to get some specific contact cleaner and contact protector. Something like this. They also do a contact protector. Although this won't help with plugging it back in it may help with any future connection issues.
I only clicked on this thread to see if the protectors of Di2 were having a pop at the huge fans of Di2, I wasn't disappointed but happy to be able to contribute something that may be useful in the future. Not that I'm implying there is any possibility of there ever being any issues of course.

paulieb2006

Got onto Madison and they said that neither they or Shimano have a service/repairs dept for the Front Mech!
Got onto Wiggle and had 2 quick emails and sent them a video of the problem at their request but have not heard back from them since Tuesday at lunchtime.
Took my own back from the LBS this evening and cleaned it with some contact cleaner and still no good.
Then i checked the amount of cable which sits into the one I got as a temp replacement from the LBS and it wasnt sitting the same way as mine, in a bit further it was. So I cliped off the end of the outer cover of the cable so the connection is further towards the end and tried it! Clicked in stright away, worked stright away. even had to use the tool to get the cable back out!
Happy Days!!!!!!!!
By the way to all the Di2 haters out there, it F**king ROCKS............

Bar Shaker

Result Paul :-D

Brailsford Bad

CiB wrote:

Brailsford Bad wrote:

Thats because you acted like a complete c0ck and started slating anyone who said they didn't have problems with it. What was it you called me? Brailsford Braindead or something....

What did you expect?

As usual CiB, you only tell half the story, and of course you would have trouble with the FD connector, I wouldn't expect anything less from you. Im guessing you probably have issues with anything Di2 related...even the colour of the cables.

:roll:

Other way round mate. There are occasions when these things don't work. You decided that as you (and your imaginary 12 friends in your office) had never encountered problems it could only be me making things up to have a pop at Di2, and you've now extended that petty and childish argument with your latest little outburst. Keep it coming. Only one of us looks stupid here, and it ain't me shouting no these things never go wrong and me and my 12 made-up friends think you're a 'c0ck'.

Yh i called you braindead, but anyone who throws his toys out of his pram with such venom as you did as soon as anyone even suggests that his expensive toys may not be 100% perfect for all time deserves a prod.

Mine are working fine now thanks, after a long period when they weren't and when the suppliers couldn't resolve it despite numerous lengthy investigations. Despite that the next bike will have Di2 fitted too. That's how much I 'dislike' them, and how much of a 'problem' I see them as.

Chin up mate. It's not your fault that you are how you are.

How i am is 6ft 4, ex Royal Marine Commando and now work in training recruits. My mates in the office thought you saying that about them was funny, which is better than annoying them from your point of view seeing as they are all trained killers.
Love the profile pic..big ring around yourself..'look at me...i can ride a bike'

Nice one. :roll: