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Today Jan 2019

Also, I really, really dislike Shimano's STI levers: I don't like the idea of a brake lever that does double duty, first of all, shifting while braking takes some finesse that you don't always have (e. g. in the winter when you are wearing gloves). The lever throw for upshifts is huge so that shifting up two, three, four gears takes much longer than necessary. And whoever designed them seems to not do any riding in the winter, especially. Because I have short, stubby fingers, the last bits of my gloves keep on brushing on the brake/shift lever just enough so as to annulling all shifts (if you push both levers inwards, this will result in no shift).

Di2 brake levers are fixed, but distinguishing between the two buttons with gloved hands is quite hard. Of course, you can re-program them at will, but Shimano's defaults matter much more.

Last year, I had the opportunity to test two bikes equipped with SRAM Force 1 — shift lever heaven. I immediately "got" their double tap and loved the very positive click. You can go up gears very quickly as the lever throw for up shifts is very small. And going down several gears was equally easy. The brake levers just had one job to do (as IMHO it should be). I haven't tried eTap yet, but I reckon I wouldn't have any trouble with that either. If I could get my choice of group set, it'd be SRAM. Or, if I were really rich, I would get Rotor's 1x13 groupset. Oh, and I like that SRAM pushes the envelope more: they have been very vocal about cross chaining not being a problem (it is officially supported, they just say that while you lose some percentage points in efficiency, we know that everybody including pros do it, so we design our products right). And they have been pushing for 1x, which I am also a fan of. Once they go 12 speed, I'd really like to make the switch, I got the gearing all figured out already!
 
That seems like an odd solution. I have good winter gloves and carry latex gloves in my saddle bag, and that has worked for me so far even then the temperature dipped below 0 degrees. Plus, I use them off the bike, too.

I tried some latex gloves from a home center but they turned out to be much too tight for my (large-ish) hands. I like solutions that work and don't cost much and the plastic bag bar mitts fit that ticket, just as your plastic bags in the shoes ;)

The plastic bag bar mitts won't win any style contests, but one advantage is that I can quickly add and remove them as needed, another is that if they let me ride with fingerless gloves instead of full gloves I can also operate a touchscreen with them, which is not possible with most gloves.
 
why does Shimano gear cost more here than abroad?

Just to play the devil's advocate, Japan is a relatively expensive country for retail sales. Space is at a premium here, which is reflected in rents for shops. Also, local expectations regarding customer service are fairly high. That means wholesaler and dealers have to have enough margin to pay for the extra staff or product returns in case of minor blemishes. You, the consumer will ultimately have to pay for that.

Wondered myself how it is possible to send a product half-way around the world then ship it back again and sell if for less than what it goes for from local retailers.

Actually, a lot of Shimano's production is outside Japan. So what you buy in Shinjuku or Shibuya may also come from overseas (mostly China, Malaysia or Singapore). That partly evens out the comparison.

Having said that, I'm sure Shimano's profit margins will be higher in some markets than in others. The same is true for example in the car industry. When exchange rates move, prices are not immediately or fully adjusted to compensate.
 
But isn't that what the retailers see the markup, i. e. the difference between wholesale and retail price. Also note that in the EU sales tax hs to be included in the prices, which is much, much higher (easily twice as much). I think prices in Japan are higher, because in the past Japanese customers could be charged more? Something that gets more difficult in this interconnected world. And Shimano charging higher prices in this way hurts Japanese retailers.

Edit: Just to be clear, I think your comparison with the car industry is spot on: when the EU lifted the de facto ban on cross border car sales, German car manufacturers and German car dealers moaned about that in the same way. Customers not only could see plain as day that the exact same car is cheaper in Belgium than Germany, but now customers could do something about that.
 
Also note that in the EU sales tax hs to be included in the prices, which is much, much higher (easily twice as much).

Yes, EU retailers include VAT in quoted prices, but only for sales inside the EU. The general VAT rate varies by country, ranging from 19% to 27%, considerably higher than the 8% consumption tax in Japan, but it does not apply to orders from outside the EU. As a customer in Japan, you will only pay 100 / 121 of the standard retail price at a German shop (21% VAT). You may be charged consumption tax when the goods get imported into Japan, but this will generally not be charged on smaller amounts and if it is, it is normally only on 60% of the total value of goods including shipping and insurance costs (i.e. 4.8% effective rate).

I think your comparison with the car industry is spot on: when the EU lifted the de facto ban on cross border car sales, German car manufacturers and German car dealers moaned about that in the same way. Customers not only could see plain as day that the exact same car is cheaper in Belgium than Germany, but now customers could do something about that.

German manufacturers used to sell cars at lower pre-tax prices in cars with higher tax rates such as Denmark as otherwise their market would have been quite limited there. So a German customer could buy a car in Denmark without the high Danish tax and get a good deal. Some of that may be at play with bicycle parts too.
 
Yes, EU retailers include VAT in quoted prices, but only for sales inside the EU. The general VAT rate varies by country, ranging from 19% to 27%, considerably higher than the 8% consumption tax in Japan, but it does not apply to orders from outside the EU.
I know this, but prices inside Japan still tend to be significantly higher even when the VAT is included. (That is because I peruse a lot of European sites for prices, which do include VAT.) My new winter jacket would have cost me 240 € as opposed to 34,000 ¥ ≈275 €; both prices include VAT, if you factor out taxes, then the difference is 194 € vs. 253 €. The same goes for bikes, these are easily ~20 % more expensive even if you include VAT.
German manufacturers used to sell cars at lower pre-tax prices in cars with higher tax rates such as Denmark as otherwise their market would have been quite limited there. So a German customer could buy a car in Denmark without the high Danish tax and get a good deal. Some of that may be at play with bicycle parts too.
I don't think the European bicycle market would be smaller. Speaking of the German market, the average German bicycle is much, much nicer than the mama charis, which dominate in Japan. Rather, Shimano is charging more in Japan, because they can. Just as Mercedes and VW were charging more for cars in Germany, because they could.

Overall, I don't think we disagree. It is just that I have very little sympathy for Shimano here. The fact that customers can now reap the benefits of globalization means there is some behavior that is no longer feasible or acceptable. Like staggered movie launches in the past, the movie industry adapted.
 
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my feet and toes feel like they're gonna fall off any second after about 40-50 minutes of pre-dawn riding
If the size is right (29.2 cm) these shoes in classifieds are what I use and they're wonderful.
 
Thanks! I have already offered to buy them if they're still available. Can't believe the perfect timing!
Yes! My ultimate winter combo is a pair of Shimano winter shoes (I have three pairs, of varying vintages, some held together with Mastik and prayers), DeFeet wool socks, and wrap-around kairo heating pads. These pads go stone cold quickly if exposed to too much air, so when I take my shoes off to have a shower I wrap the socks up around the pads. This prevents them from 'burning out', so they're fine all day until I get back home.

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Sportful Roubaix Thermal Booties FTW.
They are a 10 second fix for cold feet. You use a normal shoe and socks and after1o minutes your feet are body temp. Have good tabs at the back to pull on and god solid zips. image too big? sorry.
Sportful_Roubaix_Thermal_Booties_yellow_fluo[1920x1920].jpg
 
Thanks @Half-Fast Mike and @kiwisimon
This is what I normally wear on each foot, but am frozen after about 40 minutes or so, even though the rest of me is usually covered in sweat.
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I hope to get the winter boots being sold and that they'll be the solution. I want to try the kairo, too, which my wife keeps insisting I use but I avoid through a combination of pride and lack of faith in her judgment skills based on her choice of men.
The thermal boots look nice, too, and they're delightfully gaudy, which makes them even more appealing.
Thanks, fellars!
 
Thanks @Half-Fast Mike and @kiwisimon
This is what I normally wear on each foot, but am frozen after about 40 minutes or so, even though the rest of me is usually covered in sweat.
View attachment 17208
I hope to get the winter boots being sold and that they'll be the solution. I want to try the kairo, too, which my wife keeps insisting I use but I avoid through a combination of pride and lack of faith in her judgment skills based on her choice of men.
The thermal boots look nice, too, and they're delightfully gaudy, which makes them even more appealing.
Thanks, fellars!

Do you commute by bike? If yes, where and how long?
 
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