Swept Back Bars
 

Thinking of switching my drop bars to flipped over albatross or north road style bars. I like having an aero position, but I've never been comfortable with drops. Anyone made this switch?

Yeah, I've done a couple bikes with flopped North Road bars. They're very comfortable; but the problem is they're only comfortable in two positions. Great for around town, not so much for a century ride.

I went from this...
http://www.mytenspeeds.com/My_TenSpe...ndleBars_1.jpg

To this...
http://www.mytenspeeds.com/My_TenSpe...ndleBars_6.jpg

On my Motobecane Grand Jubilee and found that the swap proved to be much more comfortable, for me.

:thumb:

Keep in mind, the cockpit gets shorter so to keep the same reach you'd need a longer stem. I flipped a set of Northroads on this Sports. Fun around town but too short for any lenght of time in the saddle. Also I notice that when the "fun" is over I find myself riding with both hands slightly crossed ontop of the stem.
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=240833

I don't use drop bars anymore. My favorite bar is the Jitensha which is flat and sweeps back around 45 degrees.
If you switch to the Albatross keep in mind that they sweep back a lot and you may have to get a longer stem. They also rise/drop a fair amount.

Merckx Grand Prix
[IMG]http://i681.photobucket.com/albums/v...ike/Merckx.jpg[/IMG]

AD Vent Noir
[IMG]http://i681.photobucket.com/albums/v...ke/ADangle.jpg[/IMG]

Alan CX
http://i681.photobucket.com/albums/v...ike/AlanCX.jpg

ZOMBikeness!Vent Noir mixte! *swoon*

http://gallery.me.com/bbattle/100187...12148741410002

flipped over North Road bars.

I've got some Nitto Albatross from my parted out Huffeigh if you still need to get bars...they are the heat treated alloy ones, literally used for <20 miles.

+1 on the swoon over the AD mixte, beautiful package, WOW!

I am a little concerned about reach, although my bike is a bit long for me, particularly with its original stem. I'm also a little concerned about thigh strick with albatross or north road bars (can you tell I've never used them). What about the Soma Sparrow bars? They're handsome, but it doesn't look like they offer many hand positions.

I did that with albatross bars.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-W...0/IMG_0498.JPG
I ended up flopping them over and using them the other way. I think I would go with regular mustache bars if I was looking for more reach.

Marc