Have you ever actually had to access the B junction? There aren't any electronics in it, right, it's just a passive hub?

Once. I pulled the seat post to perform my yearly carbon paste maintenance and it fell from where I had perched it, saddle and all. This loosened the battery wire just enough to require pulling the B junction to reseat it. So as long as you are not a dumbass like me, no it does not require access.

which one? i once had 3 of them in my bike ;)

in all seriousness though, not really. The only time was to swap an external for an internal battery.

yes, though it is rare.

had my bike in a friend's car while racing in CO--small car with 2 bikes, wheels, etc jammed in it. something must have crimped a wire just a bit that the signal could cut out. i raced just fine but replaced the wire when i got home.

had another time on my CruX where i wanted to add a FD for a gravel race (and change to 50/34 from a 42t 1x); i needed to pull the b-junction to add the FD, then later remove it when i returned it to cx race config.

like shovel said, infrequent--so you have to weigh against some hassle at the front end vs hassle on the back-end. (or no hassle at all if you just use longer wires.)

out of curiosity, why not go with longer wires? it will make installation faster and easier, and if you ever have to access the junction, that will be trivial, too. if you ever have to get to the b junction, you're more likely to be in a rush to access it than you are now. worth thinking about.

i just weighed a couple wires as i was curious (was preparing a bunch of things for sale on ebay and they were sitting on my desk). 500mm = 5g, 700 = 7g, 1000 = 9g. DT+ RD wires will be a little longer, but the battery wire is a bit shorter...so maybe 10g difference?

(i figured it is just passive, but years ago a friend had his di2 fail on a trip. we were in the middle of nowhere in the pyrenees. bike shops -- ones that are actually open -- are shockingly rare. anyway, we happen to find one, and they figured out that the junction failed. how this is possible i don't know--and due to the circumstance i didn't have the time or means to do any testing. i'm still puzzled by it.)

I probably will. It ends up being about 800mm of extra wire, if every wire is long enough to exit the top of the seat tube. As you say, the battery wire can be the minimum length, and the marginal weight is meaningless.

800mm total?

the FD is probably a wash.

i have a few extra di2 wires if you need them. i was going to list on ebay. i know 2 are 1200s if that is helpful, and i have a 150 (the longer ones -- and that short one -- have been a little harder to source, sometimes).

Thanks for the offer. I'll check in if I have any trouble finding the lengths I need.

[MENTION=99188]tetonrider[/MENTION], or anyone else, do you know if the venge has the same closed BB shell as the Tarmac? The "classic" venge, not the VIAS one.

all of the specialized bikes that i have seen recently have the closed BB shell. i can't recall a single bb30 model in ~10 years of dealing with them that had one that was open--but i didn't want to say anything authoritatively as someone will think of a counter example.

unlike some of the tarmacs which have had threaded BBs, i don't think the venge ever had one (you used adapters). i'd be very surprised if it was open.

Thanks. I ask because I can get an absurd deal on a 2016 non vias venge frameset. It's tempting to just do that and retire my broken tarmac. Maybe this is the last year for the old venges or whatever, but for a few hundred bucks, jeez.

This is what December is for, right? Mercurially chasing after every new-bike whim? Remind me not to break my bike at the end of next season so I can pay attention to my kids and stuff.

a couple hundred $$ for an old venge? 100% do it.

when i got offered a ViAS in july, i was on a long drive with a buddy who was also thinking about one. we had expected a venge 2.0 -- more aero and lighter. i expected to replace my venge and he expected to get the new one, but...well, the ViAS happened; there are lots of reasons for and against it.

for his needs we ultimately decided he would be best replacing his 2010 Tarmac with a 2015 venge. he hopped on a good deal (we thought they might be phased out), but your deal is incredible.

the venge did not suddenly become a terrible bike. i planned to sell mine, but i'm 95% sure i'll keep it along with my tarmac and ViAS. there are numerous scenarios where i'd choose to race it.

it doesn't handle as well as the tarmac (or the ViAS)--it's subtle but noticeable. it is notably faster than the tarmac, esp when accelerating from 25 to 30mph. although some people complain about lack of comfort, it's nothing that dropping a couple psi in one's tires can't tune out--and i say this after many thousand miles with each....including racing the roubaix, tarmac, venge, and ViAS for at least one day each where i had 9h, continuous, in the saddle.

the venge is only ~150g or so heavier than a comparable tarmac...nothing.

you might notice some differences in handling (incl. a bit of understeer on the tarmac on high-speed descents). some people i know hate it, but that honestly baffles me.

i say go for it, if they have a color you like. after spending a bunch of time with the ViAS, i'm not sure the venge will be phased out. the ViAS isn't a drop-in replacement. unless some major things change with the ViAS, i bet specialized keeps the venge around a bit longer. i think eliminating it would push more people to the tarmac than to the new ViAS.

Bruh, do it.

For reals! Hell, I'd buy a second one for that. I dig my Venge so much the New Tarmac frameset is still in the box somewhere in my garage.

Screw the kids. Get the Venge.

Son has Venge - will be riding Tarmac this year.

yeah, but he's a rower now

I did this with a systemsix. I used sugru for the "grommets" and drilled out one of the cable stop rivets to run the harness.

https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8898/1...3c5cb2af_z.jpg
https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8801/1...861f4bd3_z.jpg

What will I do with this stuff?
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=492039

Are any of those 58's? If so I have a pretty good idea what you can do with all that useless junk.

I'll use the Shiv for the time being.

The pile (frames) on the floor I do not own. Those on the wall I do. 56 except for the tt bikes. At this point junior is learning to ride what he's given.
Anyway this was in response to which bike between the Tarmac and Venge. They are different - size/fit about the same while the ride is different. Daniel said for a Crit - Venge. For a RR Tarmac.

About 6 months ago I was commenting on the hardened steel dropout plates on the Venge (which I removed and adjusted the angle). They are not there on the Tarmac and the Shiv is alloy. Seems the dropout angle is different too. I'll know for sure later.

2 shivs? interesting. a buddy is on a fully sponsored u23 team, and they don't even give them 2 shivs. (and prior to that he was on a team sponsored by specialized.)

one for training and one for racing?

i have the opposite feeling as your son: i'd ride the tarmac in a crit sooner and a venge in a RR instead of the reverse (though i do have that option and always choose to race the venge).

sweet jesus

Why does the Venge say "Finally The Small Pinkies" on the seat stay?

( perhaps I am misreading it :) )