GX AXS T-Type. Real world thoughts

How it locks you into the SRAM ecosystem (e.g. you need to have the special cassette so it times the shifting with the ramps). Means you will always have to buy SRAM stuff

You don’t need a special cassette. I have a bike with it on & swap wheelsets all the time. One has an ‘old’ 52T SRAM cassette & it shifts fine, and the other wheelset has an XTR cassette, which it also shifts fine with.

The general expense of it, especially vulnerable parts. E.g. if I smash a mech (happens occasionally) I’m used to shelling out maybe £100…not £400!!!!!

They have replaceable parts so if you rip a lower arm off, you can replace it.

– The reliability of it. Wet rides + mud + electrics does not sound like a recipe for ending well.

It’s not been an issue with the last 3 years of AXS across multiple bikes & I ride in all conditions, hose bikes down, etc.

– Whether faffing with batteries regularly is really better than faffing with cables every now and again.

Charging a battery once every few months is not really a faff.

None on Transmission, and if I bought a bike with it on, I'd swap it out for normal GX AXS... Normal AXS is really good.

No need for flat top chains and the cassette to go with them as they cost way more than "normally" priced 12 speed.

And the shifters look shit.  Like really, really shit.

Thanks both.

@HobNob are your comments in relation to the older GX AXS (i.e. uses a normal mech hanger) or the new one using the UDH mount?

The shifter does look shit! Supposed to work better than it looks tho.

Old AXS shifters work with new AXS, if it’s an issue

@HobNob are your comments in relation to the older GX AXS (i.e. uses a normal mech hanger) or the new one using the UDH mount?

Most of the comments are relating to the newer T-Type, in terms of compatibility, spares etc.

Reliability relates to the older one, which I have had for a while, I have no reason to think the new one won’t continue to be so.

The shifter does look sh*t, I’ll agree with that. It works well though.

Thanks all, this helps a lot

It’s great, I have it on my new Capra and love it! The battery really is simple- flip it out, quick charge and good to go again. No cable adjusting and set up, no degrading performance that you get from cables either. I reckon once you’ve tried it you’ll keep it!

Four (pre transmisdion) AXS bikes here, zero issues other than one massive alps crash where I rolled down a cliff and the mech smashed on a rock, lost a battery. Replaced battery, goid as new. they realky are tough.

The shifter does look shit! Supposed to work better than it looks tho.<br /><br />

I’ve got the original axs. Love that I can upshift with my index finger, I think that option has been lost in the new one. 

I’ve original AXS and T type (on different bikes).. i feel the t type is significantly better than original AXS.. so much so I’d love to get a UDH swing arm for my stumpy, to get t type on there.

Seems neater, stronger, and less mech clatter.

Don’t bother swapping it out..just enjoy it..

DrP

So you've bought a new bike and you're going to replace all the new components with others, some used - why did you buy a new bike again?

Frame? Fork? Wheels?

Whole bike was a bargain, and selling Transmission stuff "as new" might make it even more of a bargain?

Interesting to hear about other cassettes being used with the Transmission stuff, I didn't realise that was workable.

i wonder if it's a vitus rapide CRX you've bought...??!!

DrP

So you’ve bought a new bike and you’re going to replace all the new components with others, some used – why did you buy a new bike again?

Not that I have to justify myself to you, but it was really, really (like never ever see this VFM ever again) cheap. And it fills a gap....erm, sort of... In my current set of bikes.
It WILL get used. All my bikes do.

Whole bike was a bargain, and selling Transmission stuff “as new” might make it even more of a bargain?

Yep that's the thought process. And a just bit of general Luddite doubt about the actual benefit of this new fangled AXS stuff.
Given this thread I'll probably just use it as it. At least for a few rides anyway.

i wonder if it’s a vitus rapide CRX you’ve bought…??!!

Not quite. Sommet CRX.

Not that I have to justify myself to you, but it was really, really (like never ever see this VFM ever again) cheap. And it fills a gap….erm, sort of… In my current set of bikes.<br />It WILL get used. All my bikes do.

You don't needs to justify yourself to anyone, that Sommet looks like a huge bargain, even more so than the Epic Evos that a few of us on here bought a while back.

Speaking of the Epics, myself and DrP amongst others bought them and threw loads of bling parts at them, replacing drivetrain, forks, dropper posts, wheels and brakes amongst other things. If that's what you want to do then crack on, whether you do it or not you'll still have a greta bike for a bargain basement price.

Just to add, I've got the T-Type on my Epic and it's fantastic, I love it. I've also got the old X0 AXS on another bike and the T-Type is far better IMO and both sets have been absolutely faultless.

Piggy back question for those who know:-

I have a 3 year old AXS GX derailleur, It seems that the pins in that the battery makes contact with are a known weak spot and eventually fail - mine has started to do this resulting in it intermittently not working, From reading I can see that some people have cannibalised a cheap axs battery charger for the pins and soldered them onto the mech, so I'm going to try this, but if this fails to fix, can I just buy a new T type mech and it'll work fine with my current setup?

Currently I have a garbaruk 12 speed cassette, gx chain, and the original AXS shifter. Will a new t type mech work with that lot? I thought the cassette was a few mm in a different position compared to the derailleur in a full t type setup, meaning that you had to use a t type cassette?

I have a 3 year old AXS GX derailleur, It seems that the pins in that the battery makes contact with are a known weak spot and eventually fail – mine has started to do this resulting in it intermittently not working,

do you know if this affects all the AXS models or just GX?

do you know if this affects all the AXS models or just GX?

I think it affected all the original axs derailleus, not sure if they made a running change after the first couple of years to address it.

I have cable, Gen 1 AXS and Gen 2 AXS (Transmission) on various bikes.

As a direct comparison, Gen 2 AXS is by far the best performing. In a world of marginal changes, I think it is one of those rare step changes in terms of shifting performance (particularly under load going up the cassette). The consumables (cassette, chainring and chain) are identical and no more expensive than the mechanical version, so should not be a concern. The charging regime and vulnerability of the electronic gubbins is now so well tested in the real world as to be inconsequential in your decision making.

Having said that, mechanical is so good now (I am running XT) that if I had never experienced AXS Gen 2, and knew no different, I would be perfectly happy with cable activated shifting. I wouldn't rush to upgrade from mechanical if my mechanical groupset was in good order. But given your position, there is absolutely no way I would downgrade to mechanical if my new bike came fitted with AXS Gen 2.

Given your current dilemma, you will be buying the best with AXS Gen 2, and at the GX level the consumables are both durable and relatively inexpensive. Therefore there is no good reason to swap it out from new. Living with AXS is much easier than cables, and the performance is next level.

Whichever manufacturer you choose, you are (to an extent) locked in. Don't sweat it.

If you change your mind, I will happily take the GX Transmission off your hands or swap it out for my 2 rides old XT!!

The GX Transmission derailleur has the battery in a different position to the rest doesn't it?

I've owned GX AXS and have ridden on GX T-Type a few times.

I sold my GX AXS as I largely didn't see the point of it. It was better when I locked the derailleur pivot in place so the derailleur tension bolt didn't constantly bounce on the derailleur hanger. People complained that the derailleur had a weak clutch causing noise, but it was the heavier derailleur bouncing on the hanger partly due to no cable to hold the derailleur in position.

I think T-Type is great for full power E-bikes as it really does shift under load great, without the loud 'bang' that you'd get with conventional systems. Shifting is pretty slow. Not so noticeable when just changing one gear, but the first time I went to shift around 4 gears at once (low to higher) I thought I'd broken something. It reminds me of driving a car with driver 'aids' that take away from the tactile feeling of doing something and immediately getting feedback.

Speaking of breaking something, I bent the derailleur cage on the first ride. I clipped a rock so arguably a freak occurrence. However I  nerded out and did some measurements.... I can't remember the figures now, but a T-Type derailleur cage sits closer to the ground than AXS, which in turn is closer to the ground than mechanical Sram Eagles derailleurs IIRC. Not such an issue with a 29er rear wheel but with 27.5, the cage is super close to the ground / rocks. When I bent the cage, I found that trying to straighten it was trickier than normal, as like the latest Shimano derailleur cages, they come pre-bent! So you can't just apply force on the cage until it's 90 degrees to the ground. You just have to guess and test ride until the shifting works again.

All that said, I wouldn't swap it out if it came on a bike. I just don't think it's a big deal for anything but a full powered E-bike. I like the tactile feeling and immediate shifting response of X01 mechanical, and I'd rather replace a cable once a year than have to think about more batteries. 

Once... a year? You mean each year? Every year?

[ mental note to self... look after your bike better ]

From reading I can see that some people have cannibalised a cheap axs battery charger for the pins and soldered them onto the mech

So to follow on from this, I just finished repairing my old axs mech by soldering some pins taken from a cheapo copy amazon axs charger, seems to be working fine. A bit fiddly but not too bad seeing as I haven't soldered any electronics for years.

As a follow-on to this, my ~10 month old gx t-type derailleur just died. Some tin foil improvisation confirms it’s the pogo pins. So it doesn’t look like they haven’t fixed it from the earlier mechs.

Anyone had any success getting sram stuff bought from crc warrantied?

I've had zero issues with the batteries and pins across several bikes both axs and transmission as well as 3x axs seatposts. I remove the batteries after every ride and use the red blanks, and take the batteries indoors just avoid them being left in a cold garage. I wouldn't go back to cables, transmission does feel slower but in reality I don't think it is, just a smoother perfect gear change. The pod does get a bit of getting used to, my preference is the paddle shifter with the leap components paddle kit.

Anyone had any success getting sram stuff bought from crc warrantied?

Any shop can do it for you (Assuming they have a Zyro account). You will need a copy of your receipt and expect to pay £15-20 for the privilege.

transmission does feel slower but in reality I don’t think it is

Agreed. I think the difference is that you just push the button very quickly then let it do its thing, rather than having your finger on the trigger a bit longer as the gear change happens... or something to that effect

OTOH, my GX is fine but still not life changing and I probably should've just sold it on when I got the bike

The pod does get a bit of getting used to, my preference is the paddle shifter with the leap components paddle kit.

A very useful tip (possibly from a STW article) is to position the pod much further forward than you would for a normal shifter. Seems very obvious once you try it, as you don't have to setup the shifter to accommodate the throw of a traditional lever. Instead you just set it really close to your thumb to give it a quick push.

Just put some spare cr2032 batteries in your car/ toolbag

nearly had a ride ruined over xmas when a mate showed up with a nonresponsive controller pod, fortunately there was a tesco not far away, but wouldnt have been fun had we been out in the wilds

I’ve had zero issues with the batteries and pins across several bikes both axs and transmission as well as 3x axs seatposts

My AXS post has just stopped working. Its seen plenty of action over the last 3 or 4 years. I think its an electrical fault. Possibly pins, as it wont respond to a battery being fitted. So its currently on ebay being sold for spares/repair. I am sure its an easy fix, but i am going back to a cable dropper. it will be missed!

Otherwise my original XO1 has been faultless for 4 years and be used on multiple bikes. And my GX T-Type has worked well for the last 12 months. I really like the AXS system. But appreciate its not for everyone.

I think I have that post saved in my watch list it has a origional reverb collar rather than the silver axs one.

One of my GX AXS mechs started playing up and it was one of the pogo pins.  bought a billion of them and soldered a new one in and it works fine.

Link from the evil empire of Bezos the Bastard

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07FQF2BRC?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title