And now that I know it's not just a weird quirk of yours, I'm really glad you started this thread!

This thread is awesome.

Thanks Tom for posting this. I've had the Nashbar trekking bars for several months now and really like them. I'm planning to put bullhorns on my new bike when I get it in a few months since I am still certain that riding in the drops for ANY length of time will place too much stress on the implant in my wrist. Nice to know there are so many other options out there [edit: than flat bars].

Didn't you mean to say these are the O.D.s of the main bar sections, not the clamp areas?

I misused the term "clamp areas" I was thinking of the clamps on the bar accessories, like the shifters, when I wrote that post. I believe that's what the person asking a question was asking about.

Yes indeed, the "clamp areas" (where the stem clamps to the handlebar) on the bars themselves are different, and can vary. Most road bikes are 26.0mm and many mountain bike/flat bars are 25.4mm, but 31.8mm is common too.

As mentioned in another thread, another bar end option that many find to be very comfortable is the "Cane Creek Ergo Control II." These fit right into the palm of your hand and allow you to rotate your hand position by roughly 90 degrees. Not sure they would work as well if you have bars with a lot of sweep or if your handlebars are very wide.

http://www.canecreek.com/ergo-control-ii-bar-ends.html

http://http://www.route66bicycles.co...er%20front.JPG

Oh! Good! I was just about to order some of the Nashbar touring bars. But... if you're happy with them, why are you going to switch to bullhorns?

This is a very timely thread. My wife had neck surgery a while back (two vertabrae are now fused together), and so she has to have the bars higher than her saddle. I've currently got her old Trek mountain bike setup with a high angle stem and mountain bike bars that raise up a few inches, and after some tweaking, we've got the geometry where she likes it. We do road biking exclusively. So, now I'm thinking of making her a present of a custom road bike built to those dimensions.

The quandry is the handlebars. She'll never use the drops on a road bike, so the end result is that braking is harder for her. Mountain bike bars, as stated earlier, have no opportunity for hand location variations. Without going into drops or extending reach very much, what would the best alternatives be?

Hmmm .... Smorgasbord42 ... you may be looking in the wrong thread. Sounds like you are looking for alternatives to road bike drop bars, like moustache bars. Something that will accept road bike brakes and shifters that would in turn be compatible with road bike brakes and derailleurs. I haven't addressed those options here.

If you are looking at putting together a "flat bar road bike" or equivalent, using brakes and derailleurs that are compatible with mountain bike bar components, then this thread is relevant.

I'm planning on going custom with the frame, and expecting to mix and match components as appropriate - for instance 700x25 tires with wide gearing (needs low for uphills and moderately high for downhills). The issue is that I don't think any kind of handlebar drop would be appropriate for my wife, so this thread certainly seems relevant.

Her bike today kind of looks like this:
http://content.answers.com/main/cont...ill_stem_2.JPG
That is, adjustable stem with "flat bars" which aren't very flat. The setup works well for short rides, but after 20 miles or so she gets some fatigue which we believe is due to not having alternative hand positions.

My Trek hybrid is set up much like that picture. I installed long L-shaped bar ends, which provide two alternative hand positions. I have my bar ends leaning "forward" a bit and put foam grips on them so that they were comfy. This has worked out very well for me on rides of 40+ miles.

Found a pair of bar ends that I had to add to this thread. They are "bar drops" which add a drop bar onto a flat handlebar. Made by Origin.

For those who own a flat bar bike and would like a drop option.

any idea where to buy the origin product?

thanks

Origin-8 is the house brand of J&B Importers, one of the largest bicycle parts distributors. Just ask your LBS to get them for you. They should have a J&B catalog.

Yep, try local. If no luck, then Niagara Cycle Works has them:
http://www.niagaracycle.com/product_...ducts_id=15300

At present I'm using a common type of "flat bar," a Bontrager crowbar which has a 25mm rise and about 6-7 degrees of sweep. Used in combination with an adjustable stem which raised the bar at least another 1.5" from it's original position.

I wanted to share pics of my comfy grips and bar-ends. I have inexpensive knockoffs of Ergon grips and Cane Creek bar ends. The grips are $10 Avenir (Raleigh) comfort grips, which are softer and contoured somewhat different than the Ergons. They fit perfectly into my hands and the extension in the palm area allows me to rest my palms directly onto the grips and take pressure off of my troublesome thumb joints.

The bar ends are from "Tranz-X" and are sold under other brand names. Paid $20. They are synthentic rubber (Kraton) coated carbon-fiber. Lightweight at 148 grams. Nicely contoured and also fit right into my hands.

The combination gives me three primary hand positions, one on the grips, one with my hands moved partially over the bar ends (resting the outside of my palms on the flat area of the bar ends) and partially over the grips, and then with my hands turned with the bar ends fitted into my palms. All three are very comfortable.

Does anyone recognize these? I can't remember where I got them...nashbar I think, about 16-17 years ago. I haven't found any exactly like them, but the concept is like the butterfly essentially.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...r/bikes006.jpg

Although i just ordered Soma Sparrow bars (where is that UPS guy anyway..expected them today) in my long and agonizing decision process which included the H bars and Mary bars, I found these at Velo Orange

http://www.velo-orange.com/milanbar.html

Relatively cheap, but I decided to try the Sparrow's first. Velo Orange is local to me, although I've never been there...someday i'll pay a visit and see what follows me home

Pete

Hi,

I ended up with the Soma Sparrow bars on my Milano. No photos yet but will post some soon.

Hi Cleave. Still waiting for mine to show up. I got the black ones in 520mm width ( just cuz the 490s were not available...a decision made for me..i like that!). I will post some pics maybe this weekend (if they come by then!)

Pete

The On One Mary is great for comfort on my townie.

http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g6...e/IMG_0752.jpg

Yep, the On One Mary is nice. Your pic looks a lot like the one I posted in message #23 in this thread. Nice simple setup.

Picked up the Origin-8 version of the Mary bar at a shop the other day for $15. Hope to play around with it soon. They had the Soma Sparrow bars there for $28. I looked them over but decided they were a bit too narrow for me.

I sure wish the derailleur and brake cables on my Fuji had come a couple of inches longer. I may have to re-cable all 4 cables just to make them 2" longer. That irritates me. I can't quite get them to fit a couple of the handlebars I want to test.

Hi,

Finally took some pictures of my Milano with the new handlebars:

http://www.pbase.com/cleavel/image/1...1/original.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/cleavel/image/1...5/original.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/cleavel/image/1...5/original.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/cleavel/image/1...0/original.jpg

The last two photos illustrate a problem that I discovered during this conversion. The shift control on the right side actually required a 60 cm grip instead of a 90 cm grip that came with the bike. The left side takes a 120 cm grip. I discovered this because the control barely fits the flat section of the bar and when I started measuring things I figured out the problem.

Anyway, I rode this bike during my club's annual Christmas ride (30 miles) and the bars worked great for that distance.

Sleek looking bike. Wish I could ride something like that, but I suspect I would need those handlebars placed at least 4" higher.