Need help with S40 Gen 5 brifter

Tuloose

Tuloose

Guru
I want to change the Microshift brifter on my Gen 5 S40 to something better.
I don't like the derailleur housing exiting the left side of the brifter into the knee area, having to reach my index finger up to try to find the little upshift button and the shifting is not crisp.
Will the SRAM Apex brifter that is on the Gen 6 models work on my bike?
Any other suggestions?
 
R

Rolling Along

Well-Known Member
I have a V20c that came with Microshift 11 Arsis brifters. Both have a spring that failed within 2 years. I was able to use the 4 year warranty that Microshift provides to get replacement Centos 11 brifters. (11 speed Arsis are no longer made!) While waiting I had the local bike shop install a Shimano 105 ST-R7000 11 speed brifter. So that is one possibility.

I have to say that my shifting was crisp with the original shifter and again with the R7000. Over time I think the jockey wheels of the Microshift Centos derailleur wore and the crispness went away on the middle range of the 11 gears. In the past week I replaced (2 1/2 years of steady riding) the Centos derailleur with an 11 speed Shimano 105 derailleur and the shifting is crisp again.

By the way, I found a work-around for the broken springs... A simple rubber band. The brifters with the broken springs still functioned. The problem was the shift lever would fall down. By holding it up with a finger I could shift. So for the brifter responsible for shifting the chain rings I put an industrial strength rubber band around the shift lever and brake lever. This works just fine. I have the Shimano brifter for the cassette.
 
Robert Holler

Robert Holler

Administrator
Staff member
Tuloose said:
I want to change the Microshift brifter on my Gen 5 S40 to something better.
I don't like the derailleur housing exiting the left side of the brifter into the knee area, having to reach my index finger up to try to find the little upshift button and the shifting is not crisp.
Will the SRAM Apex brifter that is on the Gen 6 models work on my bike?
Any other suggestions?
Click to expand...
Apex will work great. We had to move to the Microshift style for those S40's as those bikes were made during the covid years when SRAM was literally not available - at all - to smaller OEM's. The SRAM components that are on the current generation 6 S40 were on backorder for nearly 18 months even before the gen 5 S40's were manufactured.
 
RojoRacing

RojoRacing

Donut Powered Wise-guy
I believe I still have the SRAM Rival groupset that came on my v20 originally years ago. I think it's a 10-speed X9 derailer with a 36t cassette. If you're interested in it, and are willing to deal with my slow ability to ship things. I'd be willing to part with it for the cost of shipping. You'll need to pester me with a DM if you want me to go through my stash to find it.

I should have the brifters for rim brakes, the rim brakes, crank with chainrings, no Bottom bracket, rear derailer, cassette, maybe a chain.
 
Tuloose

Tuloose

Guru
RojoRacing said:
I believe I still have the SRAM Rival groupset that came on my v20 originally years ago. I think it's a 10-speed X9 derailer with a 36t cassette. If you're interested in it, and are willing to deal with my slow ability to ship things. I'd be willing to part with it for the cost of shipping. You'll need to pester me with a DM if you want me to go through my stash to find it.

I should have the brifters for rim brakes, the rim brakes, crank with chainrings, no Bottom bracket, rear derailer, cassette, maybe a chain.
Click to expand...
Thanks Rojo, I have the Sram Apex brifter on the bike but now but I need cable adjuster for the derailleur. Microshift had one built into the brifter but the Apex doesn't have one there or on the mech. I cobbled something together by tapping threads into the mircoshift mech and using an mtb brake cable adjuster but it ain't pretty.
What I would want is a SRAM X9 mech if it will work with an 11 spd casette? The X9 on my old V20 has a built in cable tension adjuster and they have that nifty jockey cage lock that makes taking off the wheel so much easier.
I would gladly pay you what you want for the X9 mech if I know it will work with the 11-42, 11 spd cassette on my S40. It looks like the X9 shouldn't have any problem getting up on the 42 t ring since the jockey cage on it is even a bit longer than the Microshift's. I just need to know if it will shift all the was across an 11 spd cassette.

Thanks Jason & everyone for the help. With some research it appears that the X9 mech will not work on the 11 spd cassette I have on the S40. I ordered an Apex 11 spd mech which has cable adjustment and the cage lock. Everything should be hunky dory now.
 
Last edited:
RojoRacing

RojoRacing

Donut Powered Wise-guy
Why not add these inline anywhere on your existing housing?

 
Tuloose

Tuloose

Guru
Just finished a ride with the SRAM Apex brifter and it's like a Swiss watch compared to the original Microsoft brifter.
I'm getting the bike ready for the BRNW ride this June.
 
Tuloose

Tuloose

Guru
RojoRacing said:
Why not add these inline anywhere on your existing housing?

Click to expand...
Thanks Jason, I gave that solution some thought but I had those inline cable adjusters on an Silvio 1.0 I had and they did not work very well.
Woulda saved mucho $ though but the new derailleur will have the cage lock which the MS lacks.
 
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