Is anyone here who replaced it for the sake of comfort? Any thoughts?
Overall im happy with shifting performance but really struggling with numbing of palms after 2 hours, tried different handlebars with different reach, so all the same. But with GRX 10speed shifters on my old bike it works perfectly, no numbing etc.
E1 shifters are widely considered to be more comfortable than the D1 shifters….i know they improved my comfort immensely.
in addition, your braking will feel MUCH easier and smoother. Honestly, they are worth it just for the braking improvement as much as the ergonomics.
The E1s are narrower, which may help or may worsen your numbness - nobody here is going to be able to answer that.
Can you try a bike with E1 levers on it? Could be an expensive mistake, so worth trying first if you can.
Have you tried a bike fitter?
Re: comfort, yes, it’s way more comfortable. I’m the angle feels much more natural and the gear blips are a nice convenience when riding on the hoods
Yes, I went to bike fitter and he also mentioned that E1 should be more comfortable than D1, but for now he advised to try handlebars with different reach to kinda compensate it. But I’m curious is it only me or other are also struggling with that one
I’ve also tried some bikes in shop with E1, but not sure about long term cause indeed it’s quite some money
A lot of fitters will have a setup where you can put different shifter types on the bars to try out. If you can, I would try a fit. It may be there are other issues, and some people find the E1 levers change effective reach.
Definitely true. They’re longer by a good 5mm, maybe more.
I replaced my D1 shifters with E1. I still have the D1 on a different bike frame now. I do find the E1 more comfortable than the D1. My hand tends to fit a bit better and doesn’t get jammed up against the upright portion in the web of the hand between the thumb and index finger. That being said, I would not say that I find the D1 uncomfortable. I would see if you can find a friend or someone via your LBS that maybe has a bike you can borrow for a longer ride.
Would hate to spend the $$ just to have the same issues with comfort.
I did last summer exactly what you’re considering- changing the SRAM red levers to the newest E1 model.
Two impressions- they are definitely more comfortable and the braking efficiency is greatly improved. Two finger braking is completely possible.
One issue is that you really do need to change both the levers and brake calipers at the same time. They are designed to work together and, although you probably could get away with changing only the levers, SRAM highly discourages this and my bike mechanic agrees with SRAM- and for me he’s the best mechanic in the city I live in so I value his opinions.
No, you really don’t. I’m running Red E1 levers with D1 Force calipers and they work fantastically.
I didn’t change from Force D1 to Red E1 because of comfort so I can’t really comment on that aspect of it. For me it was worth the switch because of the improved braking performance and the fact that I can actually brake with one finger while on the hood. With the D1 shifters, I could not even do two-finger braking because the brake lever would hit the other two fingers.
I have no issue running the Red E1 shifters with D1 Force calipers as well.
It could be more comfortable BUT the reach is different with the E1 shifters (I think it’s about 5mm longer), so you would also have to change your stem or different reach handlebars.