Bicycle Mechanics - A Wacky Idea

I thought about putting some road handlebars on my hybrid. Interesting idea or hare-brained notion?

Originally posted by Bikes-N-Drums
I thought about putting some road handlebars on my hybrid. Interesting idea or hare-brained notion?
If it will make you happy go for it nobody can tell you what to do.

Not a bad idea at all. People even put drop bars on mountain bikes. If you're switching to STIs be advised that they won't pull enough cable for V-brakes. Also, they probably won't index a front mountain derailleur properly.

Also, you may need to change your stem to something a little shorter and/or higher to be comfortable in the drops. Of course, you'll know after a few rides whether or not it will be necessary.

A Hybrid with drop handlebars would be not unlike a cyclocross bike. Instead of expensive STI shifters, you might consider using barcons...

BTW, I'm a firm believer in the superiority of drop bars over flat bars. I find them much, much more comfortable.

I have seen bar ends that give the feel of drops, may be worth looking into. Quite a bit cheaper then changing over to drops.

The bar ends that feel like drops - Newk ends... no longer in business, i just ordered a pair of their anatomic drop ends from, uhhh... SJS cycles or something in the UK... they said they had four pairs... now they have three (or less)... I like them, I just finished putting together my new handlebars.... finally! handlebars I'm comfortable with! :D

Like they says, I guess whatever you're comfortable with.. I commuted for a while on my road bike (converted fixed) with wide risers.. they were ok.. then tried some drops - wasn't a fan - like to be up high with brakes in traffic and the gauntlet some call the bike path... also tried priest bars (nope)... so now I finally have a black ritchey comp straight (pipe cut down to probably about 53cm) - cork grips, brass-color ritchey levers, and them newk ends capped with Velox plugs... I love it... but i had to go through 3 other bars and a few stems before I decided what i liked.

I'm rambling...

Velocipedio's suggestion about barcons reminded me of a funny thing that happened to me a few weeks ago.

Well, I was riding my 'cross bike which has bar-end shifters on it. Anyway, this triathlete guy and I just kinda hooked up and rode together for awhile. He had aerobars on his bike --- an Aegis or Quintana Roo, I think -- with barcons on them. The funny part was his comment to me about how he had never seen bar-end shifters on the ends of dropped handlebars before! :rolleyes: Not wanting to sound like a bike snob, I didn't tell him that bar-end shifters were used on regular roadbikes waaaay before triathletes ever started using them.

BND,
I did exactly this on my Giant Cypress, and I LOVE it. Makes a great commuter/tourer. A little heavy for a road bike, but very sturdy. I go pretty much as fast on it as I do on my road bikes. I'm not sure if that means the bike is fast or I'm just slow no matter what I'm riding.

The bar-end shifters are a good, inexpensive alternative. You can get a pair for $50-60 and use your existing derailleurs where STI will run over $100 and may well require new ders to work properly. In friction mode the bar end shifters will work with anything from 5 speeds to 9 and 2 or 3 up front. They are almost as convenient as STI in that you still can keep your hands on the bar. You will also need road brake levers which run $30-40. AND, as someone mentioned, the road brake levers don't pull enough cable for regular V-brakes. They do work OK with Avid Shorty cantilevers which will fit on the V-brake studs.

So drop bar is a good idea, but be aware that you will have to spend another $200 or more to make the change.