Sometimes parts can feel impossible to find – especially when the manufacturer stops making them.
Take, for example, bracket covers (aka rubber hoods) for Shimano road shifters of a few generations ago. These covers are perishable and a high-wear item, and while replacement should in theory should be cheap and easy, the sheer number of options makes it a difficult one.
And indeed there are many variants. The previous Dura-Ace R9100 or Ultegra R8000 11-speed groupsets each offered four different shifter models that covered the assortment of mechanical shift, Di2 shift, cable/rim brake, and hydraulic brake. Within a single generation of Dura-Ace or Ultegra, there are four different versions of bracket covers, each proprietary to the respective shifter and often with zero cross-compatibility. Expand this out over multiple brands, model generations, and shifter types, and we begin to have quite the problem.
I recently needed some covers for a Shimano Dura-Ace ST-9001 11-speed shifter set and was surprised to find how impossibly rare they have become. Shimano has seemingly discontinued making many of its covers for this era of shifter and those before it – and so while the fine mechanical components of these shifters were still clicking, the covers to hold them from had long perished.
Inspired by something I first shared on Instagram, this article exists for anyone who has scrolled the depths of the internet looking for hood covers to keep an aging – but not old – shifter going.
Search and find
My search for these rubber hood covers led me to all the usual suspects, including sites that historically carry new old stock (NOS) of Shimano service parts, such as SJS Cycles in the UK. Time was spent on forums, and hoping the Google algorithm would bring me some rubber gold. Of course I tried eBay, Amazon, and a variety of international sellers. Heck, I even got desperate to see if AliExpress had some copies to try (sold out).
Not all that long ago there was the Hudz brand that specialised in making such covers in a variety of colours, but sadly that brand was acquired by grip specialist ODI and soon fizzled into the history books. I was getting desperate and I was about to start calling around the country to dozens of bike shops to find one that may still be sitting on stock. Thankfully such an investment of time wasn’t needed.
A problem like this can sometimes bring out the positives of the modern digital world. I posed the question about such hood covers on Instagram, and mechanic Pedro Dias came to the rescue, pointing me toward the Taiwanese company Far and Near. Far and Near is a small component manufacturer with a widespread product range that occasionally appears in random corners of the internet. Famed USA-based bicycle boutique Fairwheel Bicycles has some limited stock remaining, and a search for the brand brings up other resellers, too.
Far and Near predominately works as a B2B contract manufacturer and seller, and they encourage you to make such purchases through its store on the Taiwan trade portal. Still, as I found, it’s possible to purchase pieces direct. An online contact form and a PayPal invoice later, I had some covers on the way for the not-so-small price of approximately AU$50 a pair (approx US$30).
Within a week, I’d received my covers. Far and Near’s bracket covers aren’t genuine Shimano but rather a good quality and grippy silicone version that offers a snug and accurate fit. There’s a good range of models covered (more on that next) and an even wider range of colours. No doubt they had me reminiscing the days of green Hudz covers on the original build of my Salsa Chilli Con Crosso.
The moulded silicone material offers a grippy feel that feels a little less slick than a fresh set of stock Shimano hoods. In visual contrast to Shimano’s hoods, the Far and Near have clear moulded joining lines in the centre and no branding.
Options to consider
I think there’s merit in sticking with the original equipment version of such hood covers where possible – even if it’s just because it’s often the simplest choice. Kudos to SRAM here, as I can still purchase covers to suit its first-generation DoubleTap 10-speed road shifters. Meanwhile Shimano and Campagnolo still produce and sell a staggering range of hood covers for most shifters sold within the past decade. And at least for Shimano, these original covers remain truly affordable, typically around AUD$30 or US$20.
When those original options aren’t available, or you’re seeking an extra splash of colour, then it’s worth looking to the aftermarket alternatives. While there may be other brands, my research primarily led me to brands KOTM and, of course, Far and Near.
KOTM is a specialist seller of aftermarket hood covers for Shimano shifters and brake levers of 10-speed or earlier generations. Also made of silicone, and in a choice of black or white, KOTM’s range is a bit more limited than Far and Near’s, but also goes back further in groupset age. Currently KOTM offers hood covers to match Shimano ST-7700, ST-7400, BL-1055, ST-4500 and 4600, ST-5500 and 6500, ST-5600-6600, ST6400, BL-7400, and BL-7402. They’re keeping the dream alive on what are now some truly retro parts.
Meanwhile, Far and Near has covers to suit more recent generations of shifters, including Shimano Dura-Ace ST-R9100, ST-7800, ST-7900, ST-9000, and ST-9001 (what I needed). There are also covers for Shimano Ultegra ST-R8000, 6800, 6700, 6770, 6600, plus 5700 and 5800. SRAM users will find covers for older 10- and 11-speed mechanical shifters, and Campagnolo users have options in the form of 10- and 11-speed mechanical covers, plus some for original 11-speed EPS. That’s a lot of options, but also consider that each one is available in approximately nine colours and you can soon understand why there aren’t too many stockists for these.
Finding the model you need and installation
How can you tell what model of shifter you have, and therefore what hood cover you need? For SRAM and Campagnolo it’s often simply a matter of matching the model and the number of gears at the back – you can also consult the respective small parts catalogues (available online) to find specific part numbers. The same applies for Shimano, but the easiest method is to check the model number that should be moulded into the shifter body, beneath the hood cover.
Given the cost and perhaps more delicate construction of the aftermarket options, I do recommend following Far and Near’s guidance to only install these covers from the backside of the lever body (lever off the bar and cables/hoses disconnected). This is to avoid potential damage from any sharp edges of the shifter and to prevent unwanted stretching. Add a little hand sanitiser gel or isopropyl alcohol and they’ll slide on smoothly.
While that’s perhaps less commonly done than just stretching them over the front, Shimano also officially recommends the same process.
A wider spread problem
For me, my brief stumble in not being able to find hood covers for a 10-year-old pair of premium and still wonderfully functional shifters is an example of a far bigger problem plaguing the bicycle industry at this time. We’re seeing a faster rate of product development than ever before, and while there are positives from that, I worry that we’re becoming a little too comfortable with designed obsolescence and a general lack of backward compatibility in service parts.
To be clear, I’m not suggesting that the likes of Shimano should keep an old shifter and all its components in production forever, but rather that high-wear, disposable, and wholly proprietary service parts such as hood covers should remain in production for at least a decade, and ideally, even longer. Afterall, it’s a crying shame for a product as nice (and expensive) as a Dura-Ace mechanical shifter to meet its demise over a rubber grip.
Thankfully, some alternatives exist to help solve this problem, and arguably, the door is wide open for a few enterprising individuals to fill some much-needed gaps in keeping quality parts going when a brand decides its time to move on.
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