Cyclocross - Bar top/interrupter/cross levers - for and against??

Experiences? Do they make the main levers less responsive?

Depends on what you are doing. I would use them on a non race bike, they are useful and don't effect performance of the main levers. I don't like for racing personally. I'm working on not using the brakes while racing so I don't need additional access to levers.

The main problem I've had with them is that they can make the cable routing difficult. If you flub the cable routing, your braking performance will definitely be impacted. This is probably less of an issue if you use a fork mounted cable hanger. With a stem mounted hanger, there's not a lot of room to get the cable going in the right direction.

Once you get the cable routing perfect, I don't think these levers hurt main braking performance, and my experience is that the cross levers themselves offer a bit more leverage than the main levers.

Bartops rule.

Andy_K is right about the cable routing. Basically, build in a bit more cable housing than you normally would, because when you brake with the bartops you are not pulling cable but pushing housing. If your run to the front cable stop is tight, try running it up and over the bar and stem before going to the cable stop.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/711176-Pros-and-In-Line-Brakes?p=12324570&viewfull=1#post12324570

This is probably less of an issue if you use a fork mounted cable hanger.Or V-brakes! And if you are running Di2, even less cable mess:
http://cdn2.media.cyclingnews.futurecdn.net/2010/11/16/2/adam_craig_tcx_bars_600.jpg
(Shouldn't he have shifters on the bartops, too?)

Do they make bar top levers for V brakes? I thought only Pauls made them, and they were too pricey for me.

I've got bar tops on my Cross Check with a V-brake (Avid SD7) and Travel Agent. The bar tops "pull" a different amount of cable than normal levers, but it seems to work well with the Travel Agent. Without a Travel Agent, you're looking at mini V's anyway.

Thanks. I won't be racing - the doc is very definite that my trick ankles make the running-up-a-hill-with-a-bike part would probably be a disaster. (I'm now stuck with boots that weigh almost as much as my bike for just *walking* on rough ground! It's like having an exoskeleton...) And I will be running cantis - with a fork mounted hanger, of course.

Do they make bar top levers for V brakes? I thought only Pauls made them, and they were too pricey for me.

Tektro used to make the RL 740, which was V-Brake compatible, but they don't seem to be on the site anymore.

I had interrupters for a while and was not a fan, but I rarely ride the tops and felt like they used up a lot of real estate (or forced computer & hrm & light to use up too much real estate), but there's no functional reason against them.

I've had no problems with them and cantis, and like them for urban riding, esp through parking lots. I don't see the need for them for most road riding though.

I just installed a set on my bike. I would like them better if I had wider bars (running 44's) but they work well and are useful. They didn't negatively effect the braking power at all. I mostly installed them to give my back a break from riding in the drops on trails. It's really nice to have a third braking position. I will eventually get wider bars to make them even more useful..