Show Your Vintage MTB Drop Bar Conversions
12-24-12, 11:56 AM
#501
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1989 Rockhopper Comp. Converted from stock, added "On One" midge drop bars, bar end shifters, Vittoria Randonneur 26 x 1.5 tires, front and rear rack, and adjustable stem. Bought the stock bike a few months ago on Craig's List from the original owner, was never ridden and in near pristine condition. I'm going to use it as an Adventure and Camp bike, rides grea
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12-24-12, 12:36 PM
#503
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Just posted this one in another thread (https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...o-MTB)...seems like it was born to be a drop bar conversion!
12-24-12, 09:34 PM
#504
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Don't convert that Colnago! That is one of the coolest MTB's I've ever seen, and to convert it would be like putting Pinto wheels on a Ferrari. Or Ferrari wheels on a Pinto, not quite sure which. What I'm saying is to keep it pure. Interesting stem. Post more pics of that bicycle, please!
12-24-12, 10:52 PM
#505
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One of the nice things about bicycle ownership: There's not much you can take off that you can't put back on.
12-24-12, 10:56 PM
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Don't convert that Colnago! That is one of the coolest MTB's I've ever seen, and to convert it would be like putting Pinto wheels on a Ferrari. Or Ferrari wheels on a Pinto, not quite sure which. What I'm saying is to keep it pure. Interesting stem. Post more pics of that bicycle, please!
12-25-12, 12:06 PM
#507
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Remarkable timing as I just finished up a complete rebuild of an old Univega MTB on Tuesday
& took it out for a long maiden voyage of 5 hours early yesterday.
I also just used parts I had on hand and since I had no preferred barend shifters I went with
the stem shifters in my parts box and they actually did very well shifting the 3 x 6 gear set up.
The cush of those fat tires and road bars has me hooked.
I will be updating my cockpit on this one soon with better brake levers as well as inline / cross levers & perhaps barend shifters.
I had no fresh bar tape so just recycled some used tape since I will be changing cockpit later.
One frustration on this old Univega besides being a heavy tank with only main frame of db tubing is that it takes a 21.1 stem & I want a taller stem. I have this one maxed out. I could not find any 21.1 stems on line that have a 26 clamp for a road bar.
I just happened to have this one I was able to use from an old 77 or so Nishiki road bike.
I did find a bmx stem adaptor online in a 21.1 so I could go with that and perhaps a Velo Orange removable faceplate stem.
Those Shimano Exage levers sucked at taking advantage of the Shimano AT-50 canti's.
I measured those tires at 51mm. Inflated them to 50lbs and cush time on the hot roads around Dallas.
My first real experience at trying this but I did not think those fat tires slowed me down that much
with the slower speeds I mostly ride.
Fun stuff.
& took it out for a long maiden voyage of 5 hours early yesterday.
I also just used parts I had on hand and since I had no preferred barend shifters I went with
the stem shifters in my parts box and they actually did very well shifting the 3 x 6 gear set up.
The cush of those fat tires and road bars has me hooked.
I will be updating my cockpit on this one soon with better brake levers as well as inline / cross levers & perhaps barend shifters.
I had no fresh bar tape so just recycled some used tape since I will be changing cockpit later.
One frustration on this old Univega besides being a heavy tank with only main frame of db tubing is that it takes a 21.1 stem & I want a taller stem. I have this one maxed out. I could not find any 21.1 stems on line that have a 26 clamp for a road bar.
I just happened to have this one I was able to use from an old 77 or so Nishiki road bike.
I did find a bmx stem adaptor online in a 21.1 so I could go with that and perhaps a Velo Orange removable faceplate stem.
Those Shimano Exage levers sucked at taking advantage of the Shimano AT-50 canti's.
I measured those tires at 51mm. Inflated them to 50lbs and cush time on the hot roads around Dallas.
My first real experience at trying this but I did not think those fat tires slowed me down that much
with the slower speeds I mostly ride.
Fun stuff.
12-25-12, 01:49 PM
#510
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12-25-12, 01:57 PM
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Then this thread is a success! Part of my purpose was to show some love for conversions, and encourage others to give it a try. The old rigid frame mtbs continue to be great values IMHO, and while not racing bikes, they can be turned into nice commuters, recreational rides, whatever.
12-25-12, 06:54 PM
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I have a set of these that I was thinking of using. How do they perform? I pulled them of an old Summit ladies MTB.
What is the difference between the AT-50 and MC-70?
Robert
Last edited by Rob65; 12-25-12 at 07:01 PM.
12-25-12, 07:18 PM
#513
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I have those brakes on my 88 Cannondale M1000. Good stopping power, and modulate very well. A FAR cry from the all or nothing feeling of V brakes. With salmon Koolstop pads, they work even better.,,,,BD
Just checked and mine are M730's. VERY similar design though!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
Just checked and mine are M730's. VERY similar design though!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
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Last edited by Bikedued; 12-25-12 at 07:22 PM.
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12-25-12, 07:49 PM
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I have those brakes on my 88 Cannondale M1000. Good stopping power, and modulate very well. A FAR cry from the all or nothing feeling of V brakes. With salmon Koolstop pads, they work even better.,,,,BD
Just checked and mine are M730's. VERY similar design though!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
Just checked and mine are M730's. VERY similar design though!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
Robert
12-27-12, 04:04 AM
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Here is the front Mathauser hydraulic road brake from the early '80's... I got lazy and only dug out one but I do have the complete set... insane stopping power and way ahead of the times!
12-27-12, 04:09 AM
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I just love the look of fillet brazing... so pretty!!!
Worked on getting the paint off my Cimarron drop bar conversion, it's coming along, fairly slow going but I'm pleased with the results. I also played around with an old Nitto stem and a wide moustache drop bar instead of the fillet brazed Bullmoose bar pictured above... I'm liking it thus far!
Last edited by neo_pop_71; 12-27-12 at 07:34 AM. Reason: long day... brain fart
12-27-12, 04:25 AM
#519
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Just checked and mine are M730's. VERY similar design though!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/strongl...n/photostream/
They are my favorite cantis.. easy to set up and excellent stopping power. Combined with SLR levers they are even nicer. I had considered using vbrakes on my drop bar conversion but once i used these, i lost interest
Looking at pictures of BR-MC70, they look like they are more finely crafted than BR-M730.. *feels desire stirring*
Last edited by frantik; 12-27-12 at 04:31 AM.
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12-27-12, 08:51 PM
#521
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Some of the early Mongoose MTBs were really nice. I've got a chrome Hilltopper with everything stuck laying around here somewhere (dug it out of the weeds at a garage sale).
FWIW just one datapoint on sizing, I typically ride an 18 inch MTB and a 22 inch racing bike. I recently converted my 21 inch (center to top) Cimmaron and am pleased with the fit. I do have just about zero standover, similar to my road bikes, as I have really short legs, and a long torso.
I never would have attempted the conversion with a 21 inch MTB, but since I had it, why not..
You can see my 18 inch Univega on the first posting on this thread, lots of seat tube showing, while my Cimmaron appears later. I'll put the two pics side by side. In both cases, I used the stock stem.
18 inch Univega, with lots of seat post!
21 inch Cimmaron, with just a handful of post:
bill
FWIW just one datapoint on sizing, I typically ride an 18 inch MTB and a 22 inch racing bike. I recently converted my 21 inch (center to top) Cimmaron and am pleased with the fit. I do have just about zero standover, similar to my road bikes, as I have really short legs, and a long torso.
I never would have attempted the conversion with a 21 inch MTB, but since I had it, why not..
You can see my 18 inch Univega on the first posting on this thread, lots of seat tube showing, while my Cimmaron appears later. I'll put the two pics side by side. In both cases, I used the stock stem.
18 inch Univega, with lots of seat post!
21 inch Cimmaron, with just a handful of post:
bill
Last edited by wrk101; 12-27-12 at 09:06 PM.
12-27-12, 09:42 PM
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on the univega it looks like your seat is slammed all the way back on the post, so the 18" might be a touch small for you? (as far as TT length)
12-27-12, 09:44 PM
#524
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One reason I keep pounding the drum for MTB conversions is that you get a lot of value for the $$. For buyers on a very limited budget, older rigid frame mtbs are out there, at attractive (low) prices. Put a little sweat equity into it, and you have a nice riding bike. Most of the people I see riding bikes are what I would call recreational riders, just looking for something decent to ride for exercise. A second group are those riding around campus or commuting. For both of those groups, the weight and speed penalty of a MTB is no big deal. And the ease of adding racks, fenders, wider tires, etc., are all real pluses. Instead, I see a lot of these buyers buy some POS road bike instead, with craptastic components, no faster, and no lighter in weight (often a lot heavier).
Last edited by wrk101; 12-28-12 at 08:01 AM.
12-28-12, 06:31 PM
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Life got busy again, I had to shelve the project for a day. Today before I started sanding I played around with the handlebars again, plenty of options with pros and cons. I think I've addressed all my picky wants and the winner is... SOMA Sparrow. I like the fact that the Sparrow has a shallow drop, isn't too wide (I opted for the 52 instead of the 56), and has a tight center grip area for commuting into the wind. I also dig having the option of going from a drop bar to a "Townie" set up just by flipping the bar over. Unlike a number of very nice conversions in this thread, I'm running thumb shifters instead of Barcons. I've never been a fan of bar end shifters, I've tried them on a couple different builds but they just don't do it for me. I've had a set of XT thumb shifters sitting around for a couple years so it's nice to finally get to put them to use. I went with an old faithful when it came to the brake levers, it's hard to beat Dia-Compe "Batwing" levers. These levers are unique in the fact that they can be adjusted for reach, cable stretch, and spring tension... plus their bizarre look is cool!
