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Taipei First Look: Microshift Shifts into 11 Speed with new Centos Road Drivetrain

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Microshift 11 speed Centos road group

Love everything about 11 speed but the price? It looks like Microshift will soon have an answer with a surprisingly well designed shifter. Called the Centos 11 group, the drivetrain is Microshift’s first step into the world of 11 speed and is a redesign of the current 10 speed Centos line. Bumping the shifters up to 11 speed is definitely a big feature, but perhaps more interesting is the new shift paddle design which is sort of a hybrid between SRAM and Campy.

Find another gear after the break.

Taipei First Look: Microshift Shifts into 11 Speed with new Centos Road Drivetrain

Thanks to the uniquely shaped down shift paddle, riders can easily shift down from the hood or from the drops. It’s not exactly pretty, but the ergonomics are solid. In either position the lever is right where your thumb rests providing easy shifting without reaching.

Taipei First Look: Microshift Shifts into 11 Speed with new Centos Road Drivetrain

The paddle for the upshift is very SRAMesque with a large pressure area and a nicely shaped brake lever. The overall shape of the hood is much improved over previous Microshift designs as well.

Microshift 11 speed Centus road group

Microshift 11 speed Centus road group

Details were pretty slim, but we do know that it will be a full drivetrain with front and rear derailleurs that are deigned for the shifters. Microshift says the Centos 11 speed group will be available by the end of the year.

taispons taipei bike show coverage 2014

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Jonny
Jonny
10 years ago

This is amazing. The big 3 need some competition to keep prices down.

Will
Will
10 years ago

It aint purty, but I sure am glad to see these guys surviving and continuing to develop products. I would give it chance for my city bike, for sure.

Neil
Neil
10 years ago

The thumb shifter is waiting for my dremel. I like Microshift but and glad to see the new design but that thumb shifter looks uncom

ve
ve
10 years ago

If they removed the mech campy ear and rounded it off to the EPS style ear, it would look better and be just as functional. The mech campy ear is because ultra shift has to have the pivot on the same axis as the other lever, and it has to move far enough to shift multiple clicks. For a single click escapement they could reduce the shape and size closer to EPS style. Either way looking forward to running 52/36 11-23 11 speed. Should be functional. Hope the weight is competitive with Athena. Always liked the campy shifters but don’t always have a campy budget

ve
ve
10 years ago

Also wondering the cable pulls. Front looks traditional Shimano road, not 9000 or 6800. RD looks new and I wonder if it is traditional Shimano actuation or 9000 6800 actuation.

Pmurf
Pmurf
10 years ago

I don’t know how they’re not violating campy patents, but this is awesome! I was always a fan of the previous centos group but the awkward outboard downshift and the external shift housing routing were big caveats. Properly set up, the performance was 90% as good as the big three at 50% of the cost. Here’s hoping this group is the same.

fleche1454
fleche1454
10 years ago

looks pretty good over all. For a shifter system outside of the big three I think it is clearly the best out there right now, and yes definitely better than FSA’s metron system.

Honestly I think Microshift’s biggest problem isn’t how well their stuff shifts, because I does work very well, but that they don’t really have any bling factor or just plain lightness. Im pretty sure that they have the resources to do something wild and i think it would benifit them if they did.

Champs
Champs
10 years ago

Not that it would stop me if the price and the features were right, but “hideous” is right.

Colin
Colin
10 years ago

Is it just me or does the cog that the chain is on, in the last photo, look really rusty?

greg
greg
10 years ago

that’s a special iron-oxide ceramic coating, only available on the fourth cog.

Demetri
10 years ago

Would love to know if it’s compatible with Shimano/Sram & or campy cassettes?

bielas
bielas
10 years ago

Looking good actually, so much better than previous shifters and derailleurs from Microshift, which in all honesty work really well for the price. I guess shifter rubber hood is not final, looks unfinished and bumpy

Type 100
Type 100
10 years ago

Not pretty, but I can see the logic in the downshift lever design. Campy ErgoPower would require you to downshift from the hoods; these are a better evolution functionally.

I want to see these guys do well. More gruppo choice can’t hurt.

MitchL
MitchL
10 years ago

It will be Shimano compatible as Micro aligns itself with Shimano/SRAM cassettes today.

velonista
velonista
10 years ago

03/07/14 – 11:28pm, Pmurf wrote:

> I don’t know how they’re not violating campy patents…
========

They’re not violating anybody’s patents because they have their own patent for their own “[i]Shift Control Device for Bicycle[/i]”!

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/20070245847.pdf

…filed under “United States Application # US 2007 0245847 A1” by AD-II Engineering Inc. (a.k.a. microSHIFT)

http://www.taipeicycle.com.tw/en_US/exh/info.html?id=4CEF438B2D5E54F7D0636733C6861689

bertfivesix
bertfivesix
10 years ago

I spoke with the Microshift reps at the show. Centos is entering production “soon”. An Arsis version is in the works as well, moving to a carbon brake lever and higher quality internals. Shifting on the pre-production Centos was actually quite good. Very snappy and precise on the downshifts, with little slop, but the upshifts were less defined in terms of lever feel (you can upshift 4 cogs in one sweep, though) Ergonomics wise, I wish the thumb lever was pushed forward a bit, as they felt too far back while on the hoods, but at least their ungainly appearance can be excused in favor of their ease of use from the drops. Triple downshift in one movement from the drops? Yes.

anonymous
anonymous
10 years ago

@Demetri
All 11 speed cassettes are compatible as long as you have the right freehub for the cassette.

@Type 100
Spoken like a true clueless Sora user. I’m pretty convinced the only reason Shimano decided to invent thumb lever shifters was to make people like you.

@bertfivesix
Does it actually downshift and upshift multiple cogs in one sweep? That would be a departure from the escapement mechanism every company except Campy uses, and

velonista
velonista
10 years ago

on 03/09/14 – 7:26am, Demetri wrote

>Would love to know if it’s compatible with Shimano/Sram & or campy cassettes?
=================================

microSHIFT announced in 2013 that they are planning on introducing their own line of cassettes this year:

http://www.taipeicycle.com.tw/en_US/product/info.html?id=9365F0D4C222B86C1AC550A25DB8485E

There’s also an electronic drive train in the offing:

http://www.bicycleretailer.com/product-tech/2013/11/06/microshift’s-role-shimano-replacement-not-without-pressure

Peter Lourenço
Peter Lourenço
9 years ago

I don’t see any external cables. Is this internal cabling?

Jefferson
Jefferson
7 years ago

Yes they are, that’s why Microshift is better now compare before. I’m a Microshift user, and this new design Arsis 11 speed Microshift is legit! It feels like sram on hood, campy on shifters and shimano on shifting.

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