kedward777

Going with Shimano is a no brainer, or even SRAM. However, I have had very good results buying 3rd party cassettes from SunRace, Spedao, ZTTO, etc. I actually got the Spedao MTB 11/42 cassette (on sale aliexpress) for the Deore and it is amazingly lightweight and yet performs great.

ethr

Sunrace one has a clutch, probably it was the only significant upgrade to my old one. But I ordered the Deore They were both from reputable sellers, I'm not so sure about their loyalty, though .. because ... I live in Bulgaria And for the same reason, I wouldn't hesitate to buy Shimano groupset from Aliexpress. This time its just not worth it. .. and I know, supporting local bike shops is important. Cheers!

kedward777

Local Bike shops are NOT a charity organization! I feel for Mom-and-Pop business owners, BUT the industry needs to change it's business model. They are still doing things the same way pre-internet. Bike shops are run like new car dealerships, with enormous markups, and these days the quality of post-covid bikes and components is downright pathetic.

Vermilion

Perhaps it depends on competition within a particular area, but my LBS is trustworthy and prices for parts are not much higher than pre-covid, well under inflation for most other products. They are competitive with reputable online sellers. Besides, it's fun to discuss industry trends and neighborhood gossip with people who are knowledgeable. They've been around for decades, sponsor local rides, and give back to the community. I see the same staff members who have helped me for many years. If they "changed their business model," that would probably mean "going out of business."

veganbikes

Correct but unfortunately we cannot purchase things in massive bulk quantities nor are we purchasing fake products from unknown sources. We also have MAP (Minimum Advertised Price) and other dealer agreements to deal with. We cannot just operate anyway we want and sell things for whatever price. Plus we also are just selling bikes and bike parts not everything you can think of and we also have a physical location and staff to contend with.

Buying fake and knockoff components doesn't help anyone but those selling the fakes and knockoffs. Yes they seem cheaper initially and it does feel like "why am I paying Shimano prices when I can get Shimao or Shemano or Shomono or Shameno which looks close and is way cheaper" But with genuine Shimano parts.I get warranty and support from them and I know it is going to work properly. Plus if nobody buys the fakes and knockoffs the Shimano stuff is going to end up cheaper not having to fight copyright and trademark issues all the time.

kedward777

Nothing personal, but your statement of bikes/parts not much higher than pre-covid is crap-o-la. Bikes/parts are higher priced and lower grades. The Bike store industry is driven by the major bike companies, and those bike companies are slowly changing the model to direct sales, with low inventory overhead. Bike stores everywhere are being squeezed. People like you defended the blacksmith when cars were being rolled out. Bike stores are a rip-off, but with a smile.

kedward777

If you compare bike quality from pre-covid to post-covid, there is a gigantic downward trend. When bike companies like "Giant" start selling their bikes with crappy microshift parts, you know the industry is scrapping the bottom. YOU CAN'T GO WRONG replacing crappy Microshift with low priced Shimano parts from aliexpress (THEY ARE GENUINE). But, hey, I can't blame you for trying plug the leak in the dam, but people have had enough of the absurd prices and crappy post-covid bikes being sold in bike shops. YOU KNOW the industry is tanking, and many bike companies are on the verge of bankruptcy.

Vermilion

My comments referred to components, not new bikes. The parts I've needed in modern history for 3x7/3x8 drivetrains (chains, cogsets, shifters, derailleurs) are not significantly more expensive than they were pre-covid. LBSs in my area are competitive with reputable online vendors.

As for microSHIFT, I'm running two pairs of their 3x8 shifters and both are providing excellent service. One pair (R8) is on a recumbent, where I needed flat-bar shifters compatible with road derailleurs. The other pair is a "thumb tap" on an MTB; unlike conventional lever/trigger shifters, they can be operated easily while wearing mittens.

travbikeman

eh....while the MicroShift on the Escape might not exactly be high end components, It appears closer to what Shimano Altus system is like, MicroShift does provide good products.

I installed the Advent X on my prior Scott Hard tail. I beat that thing on purpose to try to break it on trails like Cacapon. The system is solid and took my abuse and frankly felt it to be better than some drivetrains from Shimano and Sram. Yea, talking to you SRAM SX and NX! No more ghost shifting!

Anyhow, sold that bike for a full suspension with Shimano components. While Shimano Deore 12speed is good, it's not a profound improvement. Shifts are smoother since it's 12 speed, but there is still maintenance with the clutch, pulleys and so forth.

Everyone has their reasons for buying what they want. Get what makes you comfortable.

veganbikes

We weren't talking on that issue but I can address it from my perspective as someone in the industry.
Microshift isn't crappy. The crappy components at the bottom end from Shimano, SRAM, and Microshift are crappy but that is everyone. Microshift actually makes plenty of decent products and ones I would recommend and even use. They are one of the really only companies doing proper thumbies and still doing downtube shifters in a wide range of support plus they make a lovely 10 speed clutched mountain bike group that also has drop bar shifters which Shimano and SRAM have sort of done but not quite. Though GRX and XPLR is good stuff but I cannot actually run a super wide range MTB cassette without going electronic. In the end people do like to trash Microshift and I don't think it is fair without mentioning the other bottom end stuff from the S-groups.

There is a downward trend because we had a boom. When you have an explosion and the explosion is over you will have to wait a bit before things get back to normal. They had everything is overdrive mode and then missed the turn and flew off the guard rail and went down the mountain to the lower portion of road they already have driven on a long time ago. If they had made the turn early enough they probably would have been OK but it was a tough call to make and they didn't make it in time. Once everything was bought out initially I would have said ok we need to taper production down and realize people probably won't be buying like they have and it would have been better for some folks to have built less stuff and run out again then over build and we are where we are now with some companies. Not all of them mind you but some.

The industry is not tanking, and these many bike companies are not on the verge of bankruptcy they just went a little overboard and are having to scale back a bit. If you are looking at Kona for instance they are back under original ownership and the buy one get one stuff is gone. They had been bought out by some folks who aren't really bike nuts like the founders of Kona so they didn't really fully understand how things work. Plus Covid was an interesting time nobody knew when it would be semi back to normal and it will take till probably 2025 till things really truly start to even out.

In terms of legit products on Alibaba and his 40 thieves I am sorry to inform you but Shimano does NOT sell on that platform so you are not getting genuine new Shimano product. Now it might be a Shimano product sometimes it happens and it might be unused still in the box but it is not from an authorized seller so it isn't technically new it would be essentially used despite not actually being used. It carries no warranties or support from Shimano so you screw yourself there. Go ahead and call Shimano and ask hey I have this product I bought it from Alibaba and his 40 thieves is it real and you won't like that response.

However in many cases there is a lot of fake products being sold as legit on these platforms sometimes they have good looking packaging that seems like yes it is real that is the point of fakes and knockoffs. If it looks really different it is a pretty poor knockoff and nobody wants that. Goochee won't sell as well as a knockoff product that actually says Gucci for instance.

The Chinese Government unfortunately has very poor IP protections and some of their industry is less scrupulous about protecting it. Those industries are not producing third shifts and products are not going out the back door that are legit. It is a common myth promoted by those not in the know and like many myths and conspiracies it spreads faster and easier than the truth.

When you do buy the fakes and knockoffs you are not winning you lost and big. The people who own the companies that make the fakes and knockoffs profit nicely as do the people selling it but the people who make them don't see any of it and you the consumer get a product with no support and no real quality involved and if you get hurt you are on your own. They could dissolve the company and move on to doing the same thing under a different name. If the product is fully defective you are unlikely to get a recall notice and if you do your local shop probably won't be there to help because they don't sell that stuff and for certain the company that sold it to you online won't help because CSPC Recalls don't really effect them they are based around the world in another country that could give a poop about what goes on here.

I get it, stuff can seem expensive but if you break down the cost of manufacturing but more importantly the R+D and then getting it shipped globally and having to get it distributed and all the interconnected networks that make global commerce possible it is not cheap and the cheaper it gets the lower the quality and the less the people at the bottom get paid which is usually already pretty low. Yes if those who run these big companies take home less money and distribute more of it towards the lower tiers things will change but they aren't going to do that voluntarily.

If you cannot afford the more expensive get something that costs a little less until you can get the more expensive product or just save up your money and wait a little. I have done that to great success and have been happy in the end. Having warranties and support from the company and my local shops is invaluable sometimes. I don't ever want to be left in the cold especially on nicer parts. If a tourney derailleur fails well no biggie it is designed like that but if my XT Brake fails I don't want to have to replace that on my own dime and thankfully when I had a warranty issue for a leaking piston they sent me a new one quickly and with no pain.

kedward777

ANYONE can go on youtube and listen to the first hand reports coming out of the bike industry that many of the major and minor bike companies are on the verge of bankruptcy. Bike quality is going down because they are in debt up to their eyeballs, so they are putting crappy components like microshift onto cheaper frames, while charging even higher prices, just to stay afloat. Notice how QR is making a comeback on frames? Less safe, but cheaper to produce. Bike makers DON'T CARE about our safety or hard earned money, they are corporate robbers, and will shaft us in a heartbeat.

Microshift components are crappy when compared to the shifting of the Shimano equivalent. I couldn't wait to get microshift off my bike and replace with the precise shifting of Deore.

Aliexpress is selling genuine Shimano components, so long as you buy from an Aliexpress reseller with a high order volume. They are selling the components without the product packaging because the components were produced for use on assembled bikes. I notice that many of the components are often older models being sold off, or overstock from the factory. I have used the Aliexpress shimano components without issue, and have confirmed the manufacturer markings, and even the weight is exact down to the gram. The functioning is flawless, the price is sweeeeet. Many thousands of customer reviews for the Aliexpress shimano components are all glowing and also confirm genuine shimano products.

travbikeman

Still believe you are not comparing what had to the equivalent to Shimano. You had as per specs on your Escape bike:

• Shifter: Microshift TS39
  
• Front Derailleur: Microshift R8
  
• Rear Derailleur: Microshift M26L (Long Cage)
  

That is comparable to Shimano Tourney/Altus RD-M310 since the MS M26L is able to be used in both 7 and 8 speed applications. There are plenty of reviews from those whom own the M26L and are quite happy with it. Plus, I have worked on enough Tourney's and Altus systems to state that it's not the quality, but how it's used/abused/maintained that decides these affordable entry to derailleur systems longevity. ***Both the above Shimano and Microshift systems are now being considered legacy systems.


On the off beat chance you are comparing the M26L to the new Cues, well, the Cues should be more compared to the Microshift Advent and Acolyte. Again, both of these systems from Shimano and Microshift will work very well for those riders they are intended for. Which you have made it clear, you are not one of them.


Of course you are going to notice a big difference switching to the Deore system over the M26 Microshift system. You would have had the same experience if you replaced an Shimano Altus system. If you want to compare your 11 speed Deore, compare it to the AdventX. That would be a much more difficult argument to have since both are very good. Although, I have noticed in my experiences, the Deore requires a bit more maintenance for the clutch.

veganbikes

ANYONE CAN MAKE A YOUTUBE VIDEO! I can get an account right now and make a video claiming whatever I want to claim. That doesn't mean it is factual it just means it exists. That is the beauty and the downside of the internet people can share ideas easily but they can also put out completely incorrect information easily and people will believe it. The industry is in a slight downturn because of the boom from COVID which I already talked about.

They are not putting on Microshift because they are going bankrupt they were putting Microshift on bikes before the pandemic went global in 2019 and before that actually. They had TRP brakes and Shifters on Specialized bikes going back 8 years at least. Advent X was released to the public in 2020 but was OEM spec before that. Crappy components are crappy that is always the case. Replacing cheap 8 speed parts with 11 speed parts is always going to be better 8 speed stuff is crap if you are however comparing 11 to 11 in a similar price point I really don't think you will notice such a huge difference between Microshift and Shimano. SRAM yes potentially because of different shifting...

You have a Giant Escape which is unfortunately was not a great bike ever and still isn't and even the nicest version of it is still not great so upgrading from whatever came on it to something better will always be better. That is not a fault of Microshift, when that bike had Shimano it was still bad. It is just the price point of the bike and Giant's own product just not being quite as good especially on the lower end.

Quick releases are NOT unsafe and anyone saying that clearly does not know what the heck they are talking about. Seriously people have been using quick releases since the 1930s (almost 100 years). If you install them incorrectly there is a slight chance of danger but in my years working in a shop I have yet to see anyone get hurt from a quick release. Most companies aren't going back to the quick release they have been using them all along because they do work. Sure a thru-axle is better for disc brakes and bolt on is better for a fixed gear wheel but beyond that QR is fine and has been fine for almost 100 years. Not sure where you get your information but you should stop going to that place and getting it. It seems to be mostly wrong.

Just as an FYI I have at least 4 or 5 quick release bikes and I have had zero issues with the quick releases and on previous bikes also zero issues.

Again you are not getting genuine Shimano parts from AliExpress I don't know why I need to repeat myself but SHIMANO DOES NOT SELL ON ALIEXPRESS! They have policies in place to prevent 3rd party sales and online sales so what you are getting is not genuine Shimano product and you will not get warranty support on it. You can call Shimano and ask them "do you sell on AliExpress?" and they will say NO because they don't so getting a genuine product is not possible without an authorized dealer. Reviews don't mean a damn thing in terms of legitimacy of the product when we know the manufacturer doesn't sell on that platform.

kedward777

QR is not designed for DISC BRAKES and you know it. The torque from the braking forces at the HUB is one of the key reasons THRU AXLES were implemented! OR is it just coincidence QR is cheaper?

I was happy with roll down windows also, until I got my first car with power windows. Anyone riding crappy microshift may not realize what decent shifting is like, UNTIL they upgrade to Shimano Deore or above. Shimano will be a better product at ANY level.

ANYONE can buy buy bulk Shimano parts and then sell the excess wholesale on Aliexpress, WITHOUT Shimano approval.

The Giant Escape frame is a work of art. Lightweight and complaint in the right places. It is like riding a Lexus once you upgrade the crappy components. After the upgrade, my escape came in at 24lbs!!! If I swap out the wheelset, I will save another pound. Compare that to the Trek Verve and Specialized Sirrus selling for many hundreds more! I actually bought the Trek Verve FX and the Sirrus 4.0, and returned both in their 30 day ride window because they were overpriced, overengineered crap. My Giant Escape is amazing with the upgrade and rides better than either of those bikes, for a fraction of the price..

STOP being a bike industry propaganda wonk, they are rip off artists and we HAVE HAD ENOUGH! The bike industry needs to change!.

veganbikes

Correct QR was designed before disc brakes existed for bicycles however disc brakes for bicycles came out in the 1960s in Japan and have been in more common use for mountain bikes and other bikes since the 90s before thru-axles. Thru-axles saw early usage with Downhill bikes in 2000 but probably in the past 10 years or so they have slowly become more common on other bicycles but still loads of QR disc brake bikes. In fact my friend has. Decent Trek mountain bike and has had ZERO ISSUES with quick release riding on singletrack and yes the bike came equipped with 141QR. I am not saying that thru-axles aren't better for bikes in general but QR is not bad it is a terrible myth or user error. If QR was so bad they would have replaced it but considering it has been around for almost 100 years I am not too worried about it and neither should you. External Cam QRs do suck however and those can go away, minimally lighter but a worse QR lever but still not a lot of issues there as they have become pretty ubiquitous and if there were issues they again would replace them.

So you are still propagating the myth of Microshift being bad? It is common especially amongst people who aren't in the know in bike shops but unfortunately it is simply NOT the case. Yes XTR or Dura-Ace is going to be much better than the highest end Microshift but Microshift doesn't really get to those levels however they make some decent stuff at some decent prices that is NOT CRAP. All the bottom end stuff from any manufacturer is going to be bottom end junk that is the case SRAM, Shimano, Microshift...minus Campaganolo I guess but they don't really do bottom end.

So not legitimate Shimano Product again Shimano does not sell on alibaba and his 40 thieves. Legitimate Shimano product is only sold through actual dealers and authorized re-sellers. Maybe someone has bought some bulk Shimano stuff but if they are not authorized resellers or on a platform that Shimano doesn't sell on the product is essentially like a used product. However there is plenty of fake and knockoff products from that website enough to sink a battleship.

The Escape a work of art? I can see you are not an art connoisseur. It is I guess lighterweight than a huffy or something like that and maybe more complaint then one but having sold them for years they are not works of art or lightweight or particularly comfortable. But the comfort part is subjective The Sirrus is over-engineered crap? What illicit drugs are you on. It is a hybrid for cripes sake. If you look at the Giant Escape 3 and the Sirrus 1.0 they are pretty close to each other with some minor differences and at this point the Sirrus is cheaper on sale and a better bike over all because at the very least Specialized has a lifetime warranty on their frames AND forks and better warranty support. Giant's own products aren't that exceptional it is the other stuff they make for other manufacturers.

Industry propaganda wonk? That is a new one. I do work in the industry that is correct hence why I don't play the I DON'T KNOW CARD as you have been doing. It is fine to have an opinion most people do but to have an opinion that has no basis in facts or reality is not ideal. It is fine to say "I don't know" when you actually don't know. I have worked in this industry for over a decade and own my own shop. I know where the industry is people are freaking out because we had a pandemic and now the craziness of it is OVER and people are cutting back so you are seeing the MASSIVE SPIKE return back down to normal levels. I know if you look at a chart from 2020-now it will look bad but if you look at a chart from before 2020-now you will see that massive spike which is an anomaly and those anomalies unfortunately cloud the data.

Oh and if I was an Industry Propaganda Wonk don't you think I would be saying QR is garbage and the only thing is thru-axles now and nothing but electronic shifting (though electronic shifting is nice) and Giant and Trek make the best bikes? I am a pretty bad wonk if I am not wonking that stuff. I like steel and titanium bikes, I still have some 9 speed and single speed/fixed gear stuff, I also have an IGH bike and some vintage stuff as well. I work in the industry but I don't believe all the hype or submit to all the negativity all the time. I think for myself and use the data and knowledge out there and that I have gained to come to the places I come to. They are not some plot and I am not some stooge for anyone (though I do like the Stooges both 3 and Iggy Pop's band and also Stooge cycles is kinda neat). There are certainly products I love and usually they are because I use them or know them well or know credible people who use them often and know them well.

However yes the industry could continue on the path of change, in fact it must constantly change as it has been since the beginning. You will notice we don't ride around on Penny Farthings anymore and bikes have now up to 14 gears at the back and electronic shifting and hydraulic brakes and radically different frame geometries and that all came from the industry changing over time. I know it is hard to fathom but the industry is changing and sometimes not for the better and sometimes for the better but it is not a snap your fingers and it has changed type of situation. That only exists in cartoons and fictional TV and Movies.

Do You Want More?!!!??! or are we at The Tipping Poijnt where Things Fall Apart even more for you? ?(The Roots fans will know)

hokiefyd 

There's a very large body of experience in the cycling world that will attest to how nice some of microSHIFT's stuff really is. Their Advent and Advent X groups are really nice, shift well, and are easy to set up. Many prefer their clutch design over SRAM's and Shimano's. I've got Advent on one of my bikes and it really does work well. Almost everything else in my stable has Shimano (some up to Deore level), and microSHIFT and Shimano have both performed very well for me. Their newer Sword and Sword Black groups look very interesting as well. It's nice that everything in microSHIFT's groups are compatible with each other, so you can mix and match between flat bar Advent (9-speed), drop bar Sword Black (9-speed), flat bar Advent X (10-speed), and flat bar Sword (10-speed), enabling cyclists of all backgrounds and styles to choose components that will work for their bike and their riding conditions.

This is patently untrue. A flat-faced Shimano derailer or even Shimano up through about Altus just does not compare to microSHIFT Advent. I have several groups from Altus, Acera, and Alivio level and the Advent derailer and shifter both are far more solid and precise than Shimano's lower levels. Even Deore up through RD-M591 uses Shimano's typical "light action" spring type which allows the derailer to flop around and negatively impact shifting. Don't get me wrong -- these Shimano parts work fine for me, but I wouldn't at all say they're superior to microSHIFT (and are, in fact, inferior in some respects).

I think it's ironic, but companies like microSHIFT are part of the industry change it seems like you want. Companies not following the lead of Shimano or SRAM, coming up with their own stuff, their own designs, with sales channels that are generally more accessible (except if you go to the Ali, I suppose)...that's what's going to disrupt the industry in ways it sounds like you're advocating for.

hokiefyd 

My post above also doesn't touch on some of microSHIFT's products that just aren't matched by other companies. They have a full range of fully-aluminum bar end and thumb shifters for those who prefer that style of shifter. They're CNC-machined, somewhat spendy (sometimes up to $100 for a pair), and are VERY nice. I have a 9-speed set that you can switch between indexed and friction shifting...came on a Surly fat bike. VERY nice stuff...again, not matched by others in the market.

veganbikes

Yeah those are awesome.

Plus Advent X is a really truly awesome groupset even if it isn't maybe quite as high end as it could be it is pretty revolutionary as it is a true MTB group that can be run as such either with triggers or thumb shifters or run with drop bars without issues. Nobody is doing that realistically. SRAM can do it with AXS and Shimano could do it with Di2 11 speed and hopefully 12 speed will come eventually but a mechanical groupset with a proper clutch and flat and drop bar stuff doesn't exist. GRX is awesome and I love it and certainly it has some of that stuff but it is really just drop bar and still not totally MTB compatible larger cassettes than road but smaller than MTB.

I would even go so far as to say I would potentially build a bike for myself with Advent X and most of my stuff is higher end Shimano or SRAM AXS (because Shimano cannot release a dang DI2 MTB groupset in 12 speed that isn't for their STePS motors). If I end up building my dream-adjacent Full Suspension I might end up keeping my Salsa Timberjack Ti and putting Advent X on it and calling it a day and moving the XT to that.

travbikeman

I fully agree with posts above from Hokiefyd and veganbikes. This reminded me how nice the Microshift AdventX shifters were. Frankly, they felt better and worked smoother than my 12 speed Deore shifters. Shimano has the edge with more gears, where the derailleur shifts smoother. However, the clutch on the AdventX felt better to me and I didn't have to adjust or grease it as often.

Also agree with Shimano products not all being a better product. I myself have had several Alivio M4000 derailleurs, that frankly were not long lasting, needing constant adjustment and the plastic body wore out so quickly rendering it useless. Hence the reason I replaced the Alivio with a SRAM Apex on my SubCross.

Thought I would bring up a few other Shimano products that have in the past not lasted long for it's users:

Primarily mountain bike components:

XT 12 speed shifters - internal spring keeps popping on riders rendering shifter useless, Shimano does warrant it and has recently updated the XT shifter with a stronger spring.

SLX,XT,XTR rear hubs with the silencer. Known for failing catastrophically and require replacement, because, Shimano used plastic internal pieces. New hubs did away with being silent. I have one of these new XT hub and so far it's ok but am wishing I went with an internal bearing system instead from another brand.

Deore,SLX,XT,XTR brakes with floating bite point issue. Not sure if Shimano fully resolved this, but have heard it's due to air contamination in the system.

I and my son have had issues with Shimano MT-200 and SLX dual piston brakes (before he started racing and only on mountain bikes, not our hybrids). Where after so many hard rides, the fluid seeps through the piston and replacement brake is needed. I got him a set of Shimano 520 4 piston brakes and those work really well on his Genius. No floating bite point so far or seeping fluid. He races for a college team in Kentucky, so he is hard on brakes during his enduro races.

hokiefyd 

microSHIFT uses a large ball bearing in most of its Advent-series trigger shifters which makes the shifter feel very smooth and precise. I don't know if Shimano uses a ball bearing in any of its newer shifters -- I know none of their 9-speed and below stuff does.

I had an M3000 on one bike, and I still have it on a different bike from which it originally came, but its shifting has never been very good. Because of its design, the upper jockey wheel does not rotate up as the cage rotates rearward -- the pivot of the cage is coincident with the upper jockey wheel's axle. This results in shifting at the small end of the cassette that's not very precise, especially if you have large low gears that require a lot of B-screw preload. I think Shimano finally fixed this with M4100 and M5100. But the M2000/M3000/M4000 stuff just never worked very well in my opinion.

In comparison, the Advent and Advent X derailers have good upper jockey wheel geometry, where they rise with cage movement. And the entire derailer is aluminum or steel (no plastic), so it's pretty skookum. Really good and sturdy stuff. microSHIFT is not (yet) chasing the trend of more and more sprockets in the back, but I think it addresses very well the heart of the cycling world that Shimano and SRAM often miss, which is the everyday rider who values reliability and simplicity over other factors.

hokiefyd 

This is continuing to stray off topic, but I think Shimano have actually followed microSHIFT's lead with Cues, their new sub-Deore group. Available in 9, 10, and 11 speeds, everything uses the same cable pull ratio and the same cassette spacing. So they're moving away from each line being distinct and not cross-compatible with others to a broader set of components that works well across different speeds. I hope they continue moving in this direction. Maybe they'll eventually do some drop bar stuff compatible with Cues as well. Russ at PathLessPedaled (on YouTube) found the microSHIFT Sword brifter works with the Cues derailer, so there may be an option there.

Anyway...exciting times in the cycling components world!