Hey! I had a minor crash the other day. Luckily I was unhurt, but unfortunately my “brifter” (new word for me) took the entirety of the hit.

Over the past year I’ve been learning about bike maintenance, and now have a decent understanding in some areas but not shifters/brake levers and associated cabling. So… the silver linings is that now I get to fill that gap!

I’ve tried to research how to resolve my current brifter-less situation. I have a Kona Rove DL 2021, 1x11 gearing and SRAM Rival 1 group set. I have the following questions:

  1. Where can I find a replacement SRAM Rival 1 brifter!? I’m in Finland, and can only seem to find the SRAM Rival 22 or SRAM Apex 1. I don’t believe the SRAM Rival 22 is the same product, but all my searching directs me to it and it seems to look identical.
  2. If I cannot find a replacement SRAM Rival 1 brifter, what are compatible (/best) alternatives (<200€)?

Then, once I have a replacement brifter, is my understanding of the easiest replacement process accurate?

  1. Disconnect both the derailleur cable and brake cable
  2. Unwrap handlebar tape
  3. Remove derailleur cable and brake cable via broken brifter
  4. Remove broken brifter

Reverse process with new brifter and cables. And does anyone have any “gotchas” or tips for me to bear in mind?

Thanks for any advice!

  • plactagonic@sopuli.xyz
    1·
    3 months ago

    I was horrified after my crash- everything was crooked, spun and in places where it shouldn’t be.

    When I told it to my friend he just told me that if it would stay in place I would have to replace most of the parts.

    I had heavy bags on (last day of trip) and bent my rack, so yeah I think he’s right.