Battery Contact Issues

The SRAM AXS derailleur battery contacts are known for connection issues. Here are some helpful notes:

Symptoms

  • Powers off during a ride
  • Will not power on
  • Intermittent power

Prevention

  • Do not wash the derailleur with pressurized water, whether or not there is a battery installed. Instead, use methods that will not allow the water pressure to force water and grit into the contact area. A rag and brush are a good alternative, and the battery (or small red cover) should be installed when you clean the derailleur.
  • Do not transport the bike on a vehicle rack without the red battery contact cover installed in the derailleur, to keep water, grit, and dust out. The cover should form a seal on the small rectangular seal around the battery contacts. Some covers do not form a seal, and should not be used for this. Also, if you transport the bike with the battery installed, it will keep the derailleur awake, and drain the battery, but you could do this if you have a spare or way to charge.
  • Brush grit off with a clean toothbrush whenever it is in the area under the battery.

Diagnosis

  • Visually check to see if one pin is lower than the other. Grit inside can prevent it from fully returning to the contact position. Both can also be too low.
  • Use a tweezers or small pliers, pull the low pin(s) back out. You can install the battery to see if it powers up, but it will likely only work once, since the pin can get stuck down again.
  • Try gently wiggling the battery while it is installed. Sometimes the motion will break contact with a pin that tends to be stuck.

Recovery

  • Use a degreaser such as a citrus based degreaser or WD-40. With a clean toothbrush, brush the degreaser into the battery contacts. Try to get the degreaser inside the tiny gold housing where the parts are moving, so it will clean and hopefully wash out grit and corrosion. Move the pins in and out repetitively to help get grit out, then repeat brushing in new degreaser.
  • Immediately after the degreasing steps, repeat them again using isopropyl alcohol. This is important to clean the degreaser out and prevent it from attracting more grit. Isopropyl alcohol is safe on most electronic materials.
  • Dielectric grease is probably not a good idea, since it will attract grit, and the high viscosity can prevent the contacts from moving freely.

 

If the tips above do not help, Madrone offers battery contact replacement as part of our Professional Mail In Service.