I have three drop bar bikes, all with mechanical shifting (one with friction shifting). With my racing bike, I've been frustrated by the amount of maintenance I've been having to do on it. Sometimes, it has been with the barrel adjuster being off. Just as often, it seems like the derailleur hanger bends a lot, even though I always replace them after they bend (this is not an issue with my other bikes). This has made me consider replacing my racing bike with a bike with Di2. IF I get a bike with Di2, I'd prefer Ultegra Di2 with rim brakes. I know people feel strongly about electronic or mechanical one way or another. I'm open-minded, and keeping my maintenance to a minimum is my biggest issue. I have a few questions:
- Would I be performing less maintenance/making less trips to the LBS with electronic shifting? Or, would I just be replacing one problem with another?
- How does Di2 perform with a mildly bent derailleur hanger? Does it also suck? If not, will it just get more bent over time if it isn't straightened?
- Is it possible that the biggest culprit of my shifting issues on my racing bike is the combination of the frame and derailleur hanger? This wasn't nearly as big of an issue with my previous racing bike, and my other two drop bar bikes are both chromoly, so their derailleur hangers are integrated.