Archer is the brand of Archer Components, a company founded by Devin Carlson and Brandon Rodgers, based in Scotts Valley, California, USA. Scotts Valley is a stone's throw from Santa Cruz, not that anyone in that part of California would be uncool enough to throw a stone. Disturbingly for European mountaineers, Scotts Valley is roughly half way, as the crow flies, between Interlaken and Ben Lomond. Perhaps the merry mountain bikers of Scotts Valley enjoy a wee dram with their fondue.

In 2018 Archer Components launched the Archer D1x Trail - a wirelessly controlled electronic box that pulled a Bowden cable - allowing you to add wireless electronic shifting to any mechanical derailleur. The Archer D1x Trail could be set up to fit any number of gears, any cable pull ratio and any freewheel sprocket spacings. This allowed the maniacs amongst us to index, say, a 9-speed Campagnolo derailleur with a SunRace 8-speed freewheel and have the whole rig fitted on a recumbent. Actually, I haven't tried this so please don't quote me!

The Archer D1x Trail went through a number of, gradually improving, versions (strangely all named D1x, not E1x, D2x or D1y) before the company gave up on the whole idea, possibly in 2024.

I appreciate that the Archer D1x Trail is not genuinely a rear derailleur, but I consider it, and products like it, interesting enough to include on this web site.