Hey guys, I'm pretty new to roadbiking (haven't ridden in about 12 year)and recently purchased a cheap motebecane fixie record from bikes direct.

It comes with drop handlebars and I've noticed that it's a slightly too hard for me to reach the levers when in the drops. My question is are these the type of levers that can be adjusted closer to the bars or do I need new brakes?

The levers from their website are XL-95 ALLOY BLACK LEVER W/ALLOY CLAMP, F&R if that means anything to anyone.

2nd Q: Thinking of switching from the drops to bullhorn handlebars because I find the drops uncomfortable..actually i find the entire bar uncomfortable together. I think my reach is not long enough or i'm might not be comfortable enough since I just started riding, and never had drop bars before. Do you guys think bullhorns would help with my situation or should I just stick it out with the drops until I become more comfortable?

I'm afraid I don't know those brakes, you might find that there is a screw fitting up around the pivot area that allows you to adjust the reach to the brakes.

Regarding the bullhorns, it looks like those brakes already give you the "hoods" position which is a lot like a bullhorn position anyway. When you are on the hoods, you should be able to reach the lever with a couple of fingers and brake from there:



If you don't have confidence in that (I know that I don't!), you can get some "cross" levers that either run in-line with your existing brakes or replace them. The cross levers are small straight levers that fit on the centre section of the bar:



You don't actually need the bullhorn bars to get the same positions/braking, but obviously they have a certain "look" to them which you might prefer.

maybe now you can use some walk in service help from a bike shop?

I distrust those interrupter brake levers as used on ends of cables, rather than as shown/\

there are reverse levers made to go in the end of bull horn bars, the company cost cut by not using those..

Drop bar levers are made to go on the outside apex of a 180 deg bend.
Putting them on bullhorns creates a considerable risk of them bottoming out against the bar before giving good braking.

Try adjusting the brakes so the lever needs more movement before they bite. I typically have mine set so that a decent grab of the lever brings it nearly back to the bars. Although not changing where the lever sits at rest, you may find them easier to use this way.

As for bullhorns, they are largely a cosmetic thing because road brake levers give you the same affect. If you find you're having to reach too far, a shorter neck is probably a better idea.

Thanks for the responses.

I'll continue to get comfortable with the bike and possibly ask a bike shop for further recommendations.

Some Shimano brifters can be fitted with reach adjustment wedges. Don't know if any lever-only has that feature.

How about a picture of your bike? Here's a couple of things to consider:

1. Consider the position of your brake levers on the handlebar. Moving it up or down an inch or so will affect the distance between the lever and the handlebar. The standard is to position it so that the tip of the lever will just touch a straight edge extended from the bottom straight part of the drop.
2. Too close is too close. If you adjust your lever so that it is too close to the bar, you may run out of travel before you achieve full braking power.

Good luck.

Looking at a photo of the Motobecane Fixie Record, the drop bars and brakes look pretty conventional.

There might be a reach adjustment screw to adjust the finger reach distance while in the drops. Peel back the rubber hood and look. My old road bike has this adjustment screw but I can't find my smallest Allen wrench so I've left it alone for now.

A compromise way to adjust the *felt* reach is to adjust the angle of the entire drop bar. Trying tipping the bar slightly forward. This will increase the reach to the hoods but should also make the brakes more accessible from the drops.

When I got my '89 Centurion Ironman in early June my neck wasn't in good enough shape to use the drops at all, or to comfortably ride the hoods with the drops oriented horizontally, parallel with the ground. So I tipped the bar back toward me. This placed the hoods in a more comfortable position and I could reach the brakes easily. But it made the brakes from the drops even less accessible.

Over the past couple of months I worked on my neck and back conditioning. Last week I tipped the bar slightly forward -- not quite to traditional position with the drops parallel with the ground, but closer. I can handle it okay. I'll ride for another few weeks and try tipping it back to the original stock position.

If I never used the drops it wouldn't be a factor. I've seen plenty of folks tip their bars back to make the hoods more comfortable, even if the brake levers are at an odd angle. And this also puts the hoods in a better position for our hand grip in emergency braking.

But I do ride the drops in heavy head winds and on downhill runs. I want ready access to the brakes. So I need to adapt to the bike.

Keep in mind that the safest position for emergency braking is the drops, especially with wet hands from sweat or rain. Slippery hands can go right over the hoods, especially if we hit a jolt. It's rare, but it's a risk. With the drops our hands are secured by our strongest thumb joint, and our arms are naturally in the strongest position to reinforce the grip, upper arms braced against the torso, rather than relying on shoulder strength alone.

Regarding bullhorns, some friends ride those. I can't see any advantage. They're like drops with the drops cut off. Might as well get a flat bar with bar ends. Flat bar brakes also ensure our hands are in the strongest position for emergency braking with wet hands on rough roads. The bar ends are available for comfort and a change of position when it's safe to do so.

An exception might be hoods with plenty of hook to retain our hands. That's one advantage to tipping the bar back -- it elevates the hoods for more effective bracing against the thumb joint. But that advantage is diminished with the drops oriented more parallel to the ground, and brake levers vertically oriented.

It's a compromise.

To me, those handlebars look to have a very long reach maybe 110,120mm. Which is typical of bars on these cheap fixie type bikes. They are reject bars that nobody wants/buys. Their shape is also very odd. The drop looks kinda large maybe 135,140mm.

Try a shorter reach bar (compact bar), with a smaller drop. and more conventional curved shape. These will help with reaching the brake levers in the drops and the hoods.

Modern handlebars have a reach measurement of 70,85,90,100mmm and a drop of 125,130mm

If you change the bars be sure to get the correct size for your stem clamp. They will be either 26.0mm or 31.8mm