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Show Your Vintage MTB Drop Bar Conversions

Old 03-04-13, 12:24 PM
  #1151  
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re: cable hanger chat. Cool way to do it. Hard to find short ones though.
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Old 03-04-13, 12:32 PM
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Originally Posted by tombc
re: cable hanger chat. Cool way to do it. Hard to find short ones though.
I picked up a frame for $10 the other day with a stem like that. Not a short one, though. Have no use for the frame (a decent mixte style cross frame) but there were certainly more that $10 of decent parts including the stem
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Old 03-04-13, 12:34 PM
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probably I am the only one clueless enough to try one of these but just in case: it didnt fit on my high sierra, ie was too thick and didnt leave enough threads for the headset nutz
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Old 03-04-13, 12:48 PM
  #1154  
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Subscribing. A project like this is calling my name.
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Old 03-04-13, 12:55 PM
  #1155  
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Originally Posted by Chris Chicago

probably I am the only one clueless enough to try one of these but just in case: it didnt fit on my high sierra, ie was too thick and didnt leave enough threads for the headset nutz
THat one is normally for threadless headsets. You can tighten it down so that it holds the preload on the bearings if you decide to loosen the stem to adjust or replace it. I have the same one on my Motobecane Fantom corss bike. I wonder if it would work fine on a threaded headset without damaging anything?
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Old 03-04-13, 12:59 PM
  #1156  
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Originally Posted by bobotech
THat one is normally for threadless headsets. You can tighten it down so that it holds the preload on the bearings if you decide to loosen the stem to adjust or replace it. I have the same one on my Motobecane Fantom corss bike. I wonder if it would work fine on a threaded headset without damaging anything?
Problem solvers also offers a shim to fit that hanger on a quill stem. That was originally the direction I had considered, but the headset washer version works just as well.
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Old 03-04-13, 01:34 PM
  #1157  
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Originally Posted by bobotech
THat one is normally for threadless headsets. You can tighten it down so that it holds the preload on the bearings if you decide to loosen the stem to adjust or replace it. I have the same one on my Motobecane Fantom corss bike. I wonder if it would work fine on a threaded headset without damaging anything?
Correct. And with a shim, it can be attached directly to a quill stem and tightened down. It's not intended to be part of the stack on a threaded stem.
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Old 03-04-13, 01:35 PM
  #1158  
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The problem with routing through the quill is that you lose the ability to make simple changes in quill height.
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Old 03-04-13, 01:40 PM
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Originally Posted by RFC
The problem with routing through the quill is that you lose the ability to make simple changes in quill height.
yep.. the stem on my univega has a removable roller cable guide, so i removed it and switched to a fork mounted hanger. that way i could adjust the height easily, which is important when first setting up a drop bar conversion
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Old 03-04-13, 01:42 PM
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Originally Posted by bobotech
THat one is normally for threadless headsets. You can tighten it down so that it holds the preload on the bearings if you decide to loosen the stem to adjust or replace it. I have the same one on my Motobecane Fantom corss bike. I wonder if it would work fine on a threaded headset without damaging anything?
well that explains it. I saw they offered them in 1in and 1 1/8, just figured the 1in was for me and it looked cooler than the sunlite item. live and learn
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Old 03-04-13, 06:43 PM
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Originally Posted by frantik
^ that front caliper looks scary thin
Isn't that a sidepull U-brake? I would think it to be a specialty item for gyro equipped BMX bikes...
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Old 03-05-13, 10:11 AM
  #1162  
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My first post on BF is a long long time. I found this thread after picking up a 1983 Specialized Stumpjumer on CL. It is not the Sport, but the top notch model (not sure what it's called) has Shimano drop outs and Tange fork ends. Bunch on lugged goodness. Considering taking the Nitto Noodles from my Surly and putting them on it. The top tube and seat tube and almost exactly the same size as my 56cm Cross-Check, which makes it a pretty big MTB frame. I have a dirt drop stem I could use. I am concerned about fitment because the the angles etc are so different. Might just give it a try and see how it turns out. I also have a set of Albatross bars I can use on it. Trying to decide what to go with.
A few bikes (not mine) I may model this build after:


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Old 03-05-13, 10:18 AM
  #1163  
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Oh god those are beautiful.
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Old 03-05-13, 10:40 AM
  #1164  
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+1 sounds like a great project to me. Have fun with it!!
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Old 03-05-13, 11:06 AM
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Nice score SeanBonham, early Stumpjumpers make great dirt drop bikes! If I was in your situation, I'd go with the dirt drop stem and flip the Albatross bars. I'm running a similar set up with flipped Albatross bars and a Nitto Technomic stem. I went with the Technomic to push the bars a bit more forward, I could get the same height needed but the dirt drop stem wasn't quite long enough. The Noodle bar is nice but the Albatross bar will give you just as many hand positions but at different heights (which is a big bonus to me).



Really cool build, I'm looking forward to see how it evolves, keep us posted with progress pictures!

Thanks!

-D-
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Old 03-05-13, 11:11 AM
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Good idea! Had not thought about that!
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Old 03-05-13, 11:12 AM
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Originally Posted by neo_pop_71
Nice score SeanBonham, early Stumpjumpers make great dirt drop bikes! If I was in your situation, I'd go with the dirt drop stem and flip the Albatross bars. I'm running a similar set up with flipped Albatross bars and a Nitto Technomic stem. I went with the Technomic to push the bars a bit more forward, I could get the same height needed but the dirt drop stem wasn't quite long enough. The Noodle bar is nice but the Albatross bar will give you just as many hand positions but at different heights (which is a big bonus to me).



Really cool build, I'm looking forward to see how it evolves, keep us posted with progress pictures!

Thanks!

-D-
How's the handling with with those bars sweeping back like that? What is your hand placement for scenarios, i.e. climbing, hauling down hill, cruising, standing to accelerate, etc...?
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Old 03-05-13, 01:21 PM
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Originally Posted by Taxi Rob
Isn't that a sidepull U-brake?
no a ubrake would have posts on the fork
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Old 03-05-13, 01:30 PM
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Originally Posted by jdefran
How's the handling with with those bars sweeping back like that? What is your hand placement for scenarios, i.e. climbing, hauling down hill, cruising, standing to accelerate, etc...?
I've run Northroad/Albatross bars for years, they're pretty competent in just about any scenario. You'll just do what comes natural to you. For the Northroads (the ones I've used the most), I usually chop about an inch off the ends. Descending, I tend to ride butt off the saddle over the back wheel, finger tips on the brake lever ends. Climbing I'm usually either holding on the ends (no brakes necessary), on the hoods or perched in the center of the bar by the stem. Cruising along, you have any number of positions to choose from, I've found there is about 4-5 total positions to choose from.
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Old 03-05-13, 07:59 PM
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Update - over the last few weeks I've slowly serviced all the components on the Ross Mt. Ranier, and decided to revert to the original Suntour bear traps with the Christophe half-clips I put on 'em when it was new - I had been running a pair of well-worn Campy black road pedals. I figure that for a local errand bike it'd be easier to jump on without changing shoes. Here's how it sat before a brief trip to Trader Joe's:


Blackburn rack and Mt. Zefal. The saddle is a pleather-topped plastique Regal with fake copper rivets and rails that is certain to be swapped out - next candidate is my old Brooks Team Pro, but I suspect I'll be fiddling with saddle options for a while.



The 1.5" Kenda 809 skinwalls look great and rode nicely. Here's the front end for all you rollercam fans:


I'm going to re-cable the brakes, I made the housings too short. I may decide to switch from black eventually, would like to know what y'all think of the blue bar tape and black housing. For me, the housing works well against the black saddle, hoods and pump.


Payload retrieved and delivered.

So overall impression is, the bike handles differently in a good way than I recall from the straight bar days, which was a surprise to me. It feels solid but not heavy and has a noticeable but not overly strong self-centering balance. Rides no-hands easily and likes to swoop through turns. I'm pretty happy. Over time the saddle will change and I'll be figuring what I want to do about racks, bags, fenders etc. In a few years I hope to be living in Manhattan, and this guy should be getting around town a lot.
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Old 03-05-13, 08:06 PM
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Originally Posted by neo_pop_71
If I was in your situation, I'd go with the dirt drop stem and flip the Albatross bars. I'm running a similar set up with flipped Albatross bars and a Nitto Technomic stem. I went with the Technomic to push the bars a bit more forward, I could get the same height needed but the dirt drop stem wasn't quite long enough. The Noodle bar is nice but the Albatross bar will give you just as many hand positions but at different heights (which is a big bonus to me).

Just curious, what's the benefit of using a tall stem and then flipping the bars down vs using a regular stem with the bars right-side up and just tilting them down a bit? Do you get more hand positions than just where the grips are?
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Old 03-05-13, 08:20 PM
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That Ross is very well done. At first glance, it looks like a road bike with chunky 700's. ONly when you look closer do you see the roller cams, and the rims that are less than the seem to be. I LOVE it!!,,,,BD
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Old 03-05-13, 08:26 PM
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This! So cool I cannot find words for it. If I had my Stumpy I've wanted for so long, it would look like this! If I could bear to remove the BEAUTIFUL bullmoose bars that is!,,,,BD

Originally Posted by SeanBonham
A few bikes (not mine) I may model this build after:
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Old 03-05-13, 08:40 PM
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I started to think about how to explain it but an image off Google is easier to illustrate than to explain.



If you ran the Albatross bars flipped up, you'd be limited to keeping the ends of the bar parallel to the ground. You'd be somewhat locked into a "Townie" bike set up too. No way I would ever go with that set up! How I have them positioned in the above picture keeps the thumb shifters above my hands when I'm on the grips. Also, I have a few hand holds higher than the gripped ends and a max height in the center on both sides of the stem. That center position is really comfortable for cruising and long distance riding. Once I finish the build and get everything dial'd in, I'm going to install some black leather Brooks wrap from the shifters to the center.
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Old 03-05-13, 08:45 PM
  #1175  
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Originally Posted by jdefran
How's the handling with with those bars sweeping back like that? What is your hand placement for scenarios, i.e. climbing, hauling down hill, cruising, standing to accelerate, etc...?
Seely pretty much nailed my explanation...

I've run Northroad/Albatross bars for years, they're pretty competent in just about any scenario. You'll just do what comes natural to you. For the Northroads (the ones I've used the most), I usually chop about an inch off the ends. Descending, I tend to ride butt off the saddle over the back wheel, finger tips on the brake lever ends. Climbing I'm usually either holding on the ends (no brakes necessary), on the hoods or perched in the center of the bar by the stem. Cruising along, you have any number of positions to choose from, I've found there is about 4-5 total positions to choose from.

Ditto, thanks Seely!
-D-
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