Putting drops on the Breezer...
 

I'm starting to consider swapping out the bars and stem on the Breezer, maybe putting on some drops.

At first I appreciated the "heads up" ride of the stock setup, but I'm starting to get annoyed that this type of posture puts you soundly on your butt. While the super cushy saddle and suspension seatpost help with bumps, I'm finding that I want to be a bit more "forward" on the bike, with less of my weight soundly on my rear. Its fine for my 3-4 mile trips to work, or to run to the stores, but anything longer than that just gets a bit uncomfortable. Don't get me wrong, for those 3-4 mile trips the bike has a very comfortable fit, a lot like riding a caddy (just wish it was a steel frame!). Since my only other "road" bike is our tandem, I'm hoping that this change-up will allow me to do some more comfortable longer distance riding around town on the Breezer (10-20 miles runs).

Is there anything about the Breezer's geometry that would make this type of conversion a bad idea? I don't know much about the minor differences in tube angles or lengths, so I don't know if lowering the bars with a new stem and putting on drops (or possibly moustache bars, bullhorns, ect) would do something horrible to the ride. I'd also probably switch out the saddle and suspension seatpost if I went this route. I think the major difference will come from lowering the stem angle and changing the hand positions to pull me off the saddle.

The only bike I've ridden with drop bars is our Burley Tamburello tandem. I really like the feel, but I would be open to any bars/stem combo that would give me desired results above. I have a pic of the Breezer in another thread, if anyone is looking to see how it's currently setup.

Watch out when buying drop bars, most drop bars are 23.8mm while flat (and most "upright" ) bars are 22.2mm. I think the old drop bars were 22.2 so you may be able to get a garage sale special and use those.

I don't know about geometry (though I doubt there will be a problem), but you may not be able to mount your brake and shifter hardware on the drop bar very well. You could always go for some cheap levers and barcons. I think that would be a pretty sweet set up on that bike.

I was pretty sure I'd have to change up some things, but thats OK with me. If I have to spring on some new or used parts to get what I want, that's OK.

Harris has a nice adapter for mounting the nexus shifter on drop bars.

Thanks for the head's up on bar diameter differences.

Judging from my pictures, is there an opinion that I should change out the stem too? I'm thinking something with a bit less angle and more extension. If I go with moustache bars or something similar I could probably get away with the stock brake levers? Drops would probably require me to change lever sets?

Are you sure you want your hand position lower? The picture looks like the handlebars are far lower (in comparison to the seat hight) than normally set up on a bike of this type. I f it were my bike I'd raise the current handlebars at least 3" or 4", replace nothing and see if it feels comfortable for my use. I suggest you try the same. If replacing anything try a Brooks B66/67 saddle on a bike with the handlebar and seat set at approximately the same height. Not the racer's edge position but is a good one for comfort and reasonable performance on a bike that you presumably bought for its comfort and practiability advantages. If you want to convert the bike to a racing/roadie style bike, consider trading it in for what you really want.

First, I agree with Like-to-Bike and would recommend his suggestions. Get the seat/bars in balance first, then see what else you need to change. I like that Breezer set up and seems like changing to drops is as good as changing to a different bike.

As far as stems, look for Nitto Technomics or Dirt Drops. They have long extensions that you might need to keep the bars up high.

Moustache bars are generally sized for road components. There are some older Nitto m-bars that are mountain bike sized, but they're hard to track down.

I see where you are coming from. I raised the bars as high as they can go (pulled em up to the "min safe" mark). They are still a tad lower than the seat. This is an XL frame, and I'm a tall rider (6'4"). I definitely don't want to convert this into a racing/roadie style bike, just looking for ways to extend it's utilitarian use by giving it an extended range comfort. My thinking is that by getting my butt off the seat a little and spreading my weight over my hands and legs a bit more I could ride longer distances without comfort issues.

The sprung brooks saddle sounds like an interesting option. Would it matter that my bars at max extension are slightly lower than the seat? I'm not too terribly fond of this super plush saddle on the Breezer. It seems to have a lot of "cushion give" and on top of the play in the suspension post it changes my stroke enough for me to notice. I often have to get off the seat to "reset" the post. I've requested a "heavy spring" set from Breezer, and I've put some pre-load on the spring and tightened the bearing ring a bit to combat this for now. Why Breezer includes a spring made for 160-180lb riders on an XL frame is beyond me...

Maybe it's not that I need to get lower, it's just that I need to stretch out and get forward? Would this pull some weight off the seat? Any suggestions for acheiving this? My saddle position seems right, putting my knees in the correct position over the end of the cranks, ect. I still need to get out a string and weight to check this, but it feels right and I don't have any discomfort in my legs or knees.

I'm exploring all options to get to my goal, making the ride a bit less "butt heavy," and gaining a little comfort for longer rides in town. As mentioned above, the bike is very comfortable for short distances, I just get a bit uncomfortable anytime I'm on it longer than 30 mins.

I rode with straight bars for years and then switched to drops (and then low bullhorn bars) and I think your intuition is basically correct.

Wow! The way your bike is currently set up I can't see you having much weight on your rear end at all. I'm 6'3" 210 lbs and was having the opposite problem- too much weight on my hands.
With the saddle adjusted to where I wanted it I couldn't get the stock stem on my Breezer high enough to get more weight on my rear end so swapped it out for a Nitto Dirtdrop from Rivendell. Also, changed the saddle to a Brooks B67 which was a major improvment in comfort over the stock saddle.
If it was my bike, I would swap out the suspension seat post and stock saddle to a sprung Brooks.
Here's a pic of my Breezer-

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y13...f/4250cb2c.jpg

I still get a little tingling in my left hand but I'm going to leave it as is as its otherwise very comfortable and a pleasure to ride.

Charlie's bike setup is what I would recommend the OP try. Changing out the seat post like Charley did would also solve the excess springiness of the original which is causing the OP grief.

Charley also brings up the valid consideration that carrying too much weight on your hands and wrists is not necessarily the comfort route. After all, which is better adapted for sitting, your hands or your butt?

To get the bars up above the seat, even as much as shown in your pic, I'm going to need to get about 3-4 more inches over what the stock stem allows. I also believe that my saddle height may be misleadingly high, as I think I'm compensating for the spring load I experience anytime I get on the saddle. With a fixed seatpost and new saddle it would probably be about 1/2-1" lower than in the current picture.

Do you think I can get the needed 3-4 inches of extra height out of the Nitto Dirtdrop stem? Harris appears to have a Stem Raiser that add several inches to the stock stem. I'm assuming the Nitto Technomic stems won't give the amount of raise that I need, as these stems appear to have zero rise, dispite the longer quill.

I don't know much about seatposts, but should I try to replace the stock suspension post with something that has a little setback? Would certain materials smooth out the ride (steel post vs carbon or alum posts)? The sprung Brooks saddle is attractive, and will be the replacement if I go this route. Is there much difference between the B67 and Champion Flyer?

I really think my major aggravation is with the current seat and suspension post. Fixing this and adding a taller stem may get me to where I need to be. Many thanks for your suggestions, I've really appreciate the valuable input the BF folks have to offer!

For reference purpose: I find this setup very comfortable for commuting and getting around town. I used this specific bike for commuting into Heidelberg 35 km/RT for 3 1/2 years and for around town in Iowa for the last 4 years. The seat is a B66, handlebars are OEM. Tire size is 622 x 47. A very comfortable setup for allweather commuting without any fuss or mus, the same attributes you should get from the Breezer.

Just for info purposes, this Vaterland Bike was bought new for DM400 (approx. $200) from the local Opel automobile dealer in my village south of Heidelberg who also sold and repaired bicycles.

I'm no expert, but maybe you could try moving the bars away from your body more with a longer stem. I did the opposite on my mountain bike--a short stem, and this helped me position myself less forward and not have to bend over so far. So in reverse, a longer stem might put you in a more forward position.

I agree with everyone who is saying that your current setup looks backwards for that type of bike.

But I also question your original assertion - that you have too much weight on your butt. That is exactly where the weight ought to be - you do not want to support yourself with your arms. If your butt is unfcomfortable, I'd suggest trying a different saddle before you go through the heartache of changing your bars. Also, try wearing bike short, mountain bike shorts, or underwear with padding. With spandex bike shorts you can always wear regular shorts over them so you don't look too roadie-like (I'm a roadie "by night" and I do that all the time when using a bike for errands). You'll be amazed what a difference that makes - I have a saddle on my single speed that hurts after a mile in normal shorts, but that I can ride comfortably for 30 in a good pair of bike shorts.

I'm not familiar with the stem raiser however the Nitto Dirtdrop stem if I remember correctly will give you at least an additional 3" of stem to work with. As high as mine is it's still not at the maximum height. However, the clamp diameter is 26.0mm so you will have to shim your stock handlebar.

I did a bit of research here on seatposts and found that the Thomson seatposts were rated quite favorably by many members here. I would recommend one with setback. The one on my bike is a Thomson Elite w/setback that was in used but like new condition I won on eBay at a very reasonable price. While you're at it I would also suggest you replace the POS OEM seat post clamp.
As to your other questions, I'm sure if you do a search here you'll find the answers you are looking for.

Good point! :)

Brooks saddle (Champion Flyer), new seatpost, and the Nitto Dirtdrop stem are all ordered up. I'll give this a go and see where it gets me. I'm pretty sure the current seat and suspension seatpost are the culprits behind my current comfort problem. That seat is just way to cushy and the seatpost has way too much give for my liking. Many thanks to everyone for taking the time to offer up these suggestions.

On my Breezer, I moved my seat back an inch and it helps. Easy to do.

I, too, want to raise my handlebars up more than I can. I probably should have gotten a large frame instead of medium. I sometimes get pain in my right hand--I think it is because the handlebar is too low for the height of my seat. I'd like to try bar ends that tilt forward, but I'm not going to bother for now.

The bike is still comfy to ride and I enjoy it.

That's going to be a slick set up. I'm predicting that you'll be much happier with those components. Of course, be sure to post some pictures.

Finally got all the bits on the Breezer. I'm definitely digging the new ride.

I don't know if it's my tush, or the saddle that's breaking in, but the Brooks Champion Flyer gets more comfortable everyday (if marginally). Got just over 60 miles on it so far. I'm happy with the setback seatpost as well.

The suspension seatpost and that ultra cushy stock saddle were not my cup of tea. I feel so much stronger on the bike now for some reason with the fixed seatpost and harder saddle. I'm giving the Brooks time to break in, but so far it's working out pretty well. Hoping my butt wills stop being sore here in another week or two.

The dirtdrop stem was able to raise the bars to level with the seat. The grips at the end of the bars may be slightly higher than the seat, but we're talking only a cm or two. The new stem also pulled the bars back a little, pushing me a bit more upright. Only had a few miles on with the new stem setup, but it feels great!

Pics to come soon as I locate digital camera from recent vacation non-unpacking.

I didn't own my Breezer Uptown 8 for a week before I changed the saddle. My LBS carries a nice, big, comfy gel-foam type of saddle called a "Cloud 9." It was also pretty cheap, I think it was $20.00. It's a big improvement over the OEM seat Breezer provides, which was causing me to get numbness in my left leg.

Pics!

I wasn't entirely satisfied with the Breezer handlebars either. I have the smallest frame and I still seemed to be reaching. So I swapped out the handlebars for the wide, sweeping, almost-mustache Electra Townie handlebars. Gives it more of a Dutch look, too.

Pics would be nice. I'd like to change the saddle for sure due to my 7" (178mm) sitbone span, and I've been wondering about the handlebars, though I'll wait to see if the saddle change does it. I'm thinking about a B-67 saddle. KnoxBreezer, which seatpost did you go with?

I am using a Thompson Setback seatpost, mostly because I can use all the room I can get. Instead of the B.67, I went with the Champion Flyer, which is basically a B.17 with springs. I have NO complaints, it's a dream to ride now.

Sorry it took so long to get up pics, here ya go:

http://static.flickr.com/80/208156662_d561c17734_o.jpg