I like the weight and speed of a roadbike but I like the handling of a hybrid w/ flatbar. Has anybody converted their roadbike to flatbar (requiring new shifters, breaks, stem, and cables)?? I am wondering if it will feel like a hybrid with the flatbar or if it will feel just awkward because of road bike style geometry. what's your experience?

Is this a good idea in your opinion? Thanks!

if you have no bike at all right now, no it is not a good idea.

there are some flatbar roadbikes. cannondale, giant, specialized and others have them. they are not like MTBs or hybrid bikes, because they have road drivetrain and light, low-spoke wheels.

if you already have a road bike, this can be done and it's easiest on older 9spd Shimano because the cable pull ratios are compatible with shimano's MTB levers. sram-equipped road bikes are even easier as there are apex flatbar shifters.


this is a bad idea in general. drop bars handle fine, you probably are just unfamiliar with them. if you ride enough to become acclimated, you will soon see the advantages of having many hand and body positions, compared to one with flatbars.

Did it to a couple of bikes for my wife and daughter. No problems. I can't think of why you'd notice much difference in handling--your hands will be in about the same place asif you were riding on the brake hoods with drops.
You could get much the same effect more cheaply by raising the drop bars to about the level of the saddle. In the quill stem days it would have taken 10 seconds, but now you'll need a stem. And you don't need new brakes, just new levers. In fact, there are bars around that will let you use road components. Check Rivendell and Velo Orange.

Alright this is some good advice thanks! I don't have a bike right now but I'm thinking of buying one to commute to work. It's 14miles round trip so it's not bad at all. I tried a hybrid and it was fun to ride at low speeds but I'm thinking I'll be going pretty fast most of the time getting places so a road bike seems more practical. I like the versitility of a flat bar bike but I also like the efficiency of a road bike. It's hard to choose!!

Actually about the same place as if you had your hands on the tops, unless you swap stem for a longer one.

all my bikes have flat bars. two MTBs and four road bikes. if you buy friction thumbie type shifters they should work with just about any derailleur, i think. i use BMX brake levers with both single pivot calipers and cantis. a stem that is three to four centimeters longer than normal puts me in about the same position.

i also run with an inch or two more drop, which puts me about half way between my "on the tops" position and my "in the drops" position.

It is a tough choice really as I ride both and like both and in fact am glad I have each for a bit of a change. Biggest turn off to road bikes for the average guy?...and why most if not many seek more of a mtb position for general riding? Drop bar is too low. A low drop bar is fine for fast group rides if you have the flexibility but uncomfortable for the average guy who just wants to get out and ride. This is why flatbar mountain bikes, hybrids, and different genres of cruiser..including high bar hybrid are popular. No they don't look as cool as a road bike.
Converting a road bike to a flat bar bike isn't a very good idea as a rule. It can be done of course and some do...but road bikes have a shortish top tube because drop bars extend well infront of the stem clamp and flat bars have pull back behind the stem clamp. Most hybrids have a longer top tube to compensate....as well as mountain bikes. For example a std. size Large mountain bike will have a top tube of 625mm or so...and a size Large road bike in the 570-580mm range...due to the different shape of the handlebars.

OK...so what do you do? Many options really. Drop bars are comfortable if the bar is up high enough. A racer will want a low bar but not the average guy.
There is a slew of roadbikes on the market with a higher handlebar. They are coined comfort or endurance type of road bikes...with longer head tube. If you put a slight riser stem on one of those you can get the handlebar above saddle height for more of a cruiser position...but with the benefit of the multi positions for you hands which makes drop bars popular for touring and without the hand pressure of a lower bar.

There is newer generation of mtb called a 29er...which have road bike diameter wheels. I have such a bike as well. I run mine with 1 x 9 gearing, flatbar and 28c tires. I call it my hotrod townie because if I ride a bit aggressively I can keep up with the average roadie. It is not as fast as a road bike however but fast enough for enjoyable riding. I have the handlebar bar height on both my road bike...a Roubaix and 29er set up almost the same..close to saddle height.

Anyway...an overview of choices...choose carefully as riding position changes everything on a bicycle...but both handlebar choices can be very comfortable if you choose carefully.

Flat bars give you one hand position, road bars offer multiple positions. You don't need to #flipitandslamit if you don't want to.

Another myth. Flatbars if set up accordingly have 3 positions. In some ways, my flat bar bike is more comfortable than my drop bar bike. With Ergon grips and Cane Creek bar ends...two very comfortable positons...and the third which I use all the time is near the center of the bar next to the stem to stretch out a bit more. Flatbar bikes have a strong following for good reason. As with a drop bar bike, its all in the set up and rider position.

I think it's a really bad idea. First you're giving up hand positions, and will limit the utility of the bike for longer rides. Second, the conversion will waste money. Third, you can accomplish the same thing simply by riding the road bike on the "tops".

If you want this setup however, there are "road bikes" built with flat bars which you can buy, and avoid the cost of converting it. See e.g. https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/...id/9015/48857/

All that said, a better option would be to get a conventional road bike, spec a bit wider handlebars, and put interruptor brake levers on it, which allow braking from the top of the bars. That set up will give you the same result as the flat bars when you're riding on the tops, and still preserve the option of riding on the hoods or in the drops.

Could always try bullhorn bars, and maybe figure out shifting. I did this on an older road bike to try it out. Used the bullhorns with dual brake levers and MTB shifters.

Reality was that bike was too large for me, and once I got a bike that fit properly, the drop bars were no longer an issue.

? you have a longer reach to the grips than stem, so I don't get how you are stretching out more. at any rate, that's a very marginal postion with dicey control of the bar and you're not even close to the brakes or shifters.

you have one position where you can shift or brake.

on drop bars, you have two. plus you can actually control the bike from at least two additional positions.

Have you actually owned/ridden a roadbike with drop bars for a long period of time or are you making assumptions based on limited experience?

Stick with your drop bars Colin. I will continue to ride and enjoy both which I do extensively. High mileage touring bikes with flat bars outsell drop bar touring bikes by 2 to 1. Most have bar ends. I ride for countless miles with my hands forward near the stem. Its a great position. Most flat bars have upsweep in addition to back sweep. That is why the position near the stem is more stretched out...it is lower. The reason why flatbars are favored off road is because they are wider and therefore offer more stability. Plus...if you load your bike up for travel a flatbar is better for leverage...a much better handlebar for riding in icy condtions as well for the same reason. One of the best attributes of a flat bar? Climbing out of the saddle..with bar ends in particular. It isn't even close. A flatbar with bar ends provides a rider with much greater leverage to rock the bike up a steep hill out of the saddle. Flatbar bikes are great. They generally are a bit more upright and you see a bit more of the landscape...good for in town riding and with better control when jumping off curbs etc.

I have. Both handlebar shapes are excellent. There are also other shape bars that are great as well...including a townie shape bar...or English racer dutch 3 speed bar...or Albatross bar which you can stretch out on or ride more upright. So one isn't better than another. Also, there are guys that do A group rides on flatbar bikes....guys that can average 20mph solo on them. So it isn't a speed thing either. I prefer a drop bar for fast riding personally but for general riding including commuting and some off road...or rough road riding, a flatbar is hard to beat.

Bad assumption... I have both.

I would never choose flatbars for a ride of greater than 1-2 hours. I don't have bar ends because they get hooked on trees on singletrack. I do get elbow, wrist and hand fatigue from flat bars after an hour which doesn't happen with drop bars because I have more positions.

I can also get a lot lower on drop bars, despite having a XC position on my flatbars. (Same reach to center of bars on both bikes.) This helps a lot in Kansas wind.

I ride both flat bar and drop bar road bikes. I prefer the flat bar riding position (more upright) when I am tooling around the city or the bike paths, it is more comfortable to keep my head up. I regularly ride my flat bar bikes on 40-50 miles rides and I've done centuries on both of the flat bar bikes, no problems. If you like the riding position of a flat bar, Specialized, Cannondale and Giant all make great flat bar road bikes. My brother has a Trek FX 7.6 and it seems to lean more towards mtb geometry and gearing imho. My Quick 1 has a 10 spd Ultegra with a compact crank and it flies.

Biggest negative I've found riding the flat bars is difficulty keeping up in a group ride when they are really hammering and there is a stiff headwind (15+ mph).

Before purchasing my first drop bar road bike I also considered converting one to a flat bar. REALLY glad I didn't do that, I love riding my Madone and CAAD. Had no problems getting used to the drop bars and more aggressive riding position. Now I just have to remember how to shift....SRAM on the Madone, Dura Ace on the CAAD.

Just my 2 cents.

Thanks for the helpful discussion! I will need to test out some more road bikes and get a better feel for the drop bar positions. In general I think I'm leaning toward a flatbar for the type of riding I'll be doing (commuting, varying terrains, shorter distances). But I won't rule out a road bike until I test one out longer. Thanks again!

I start getting really annoyed with flat bars about 2 miles into an average road ride. Barends are crucial for me on a road-riding flat bar machine. Bummer is I like to be in the barends position 75% of the time and there are no controls there. So this is my favorite road flat bar setup, great for mellow trails too. On the barends most of the time. Use the flatbar for long seated climbs and for just sitting up, etc. It doesn't look pretty but the utility is off the charts! Someday I'll find some good MTB bullhorns that work or maybe get/make some barends that have less of a bend to them, that would be nice.


Controls on the barends by Lester Of Puppets, on Flickr

Hilarious. 1-2 hours? I guess you aren't up for touring the country on them then...many do.
As to your comment about riding a flat bar near the stem...it is no different than how most ride a dropbar...one of my favorite positions on either. Below is a pic of the great man who demonstrates how to ride areo why holding on to the handlebar near the stem. Also, most flatbar bikes have a longer wheel base than a roadbike with longer rake and more trail and they are more secure to ride in this position...though I have never been bothered on either and one of my favorite positions tucking down.

PS: as a side note, whenever I look at old pictures of Eddy, I am reminded how ordinary his body looks...looks like a lot of guys who don't even ride and yet, he is one of the greats of all time. Can't judge a book.

If you ACTUALLY hook trees with barends then that means you're bashing trees with your brake levers and knuckes when you're not running barends. That can't be pleasant. Might be time for:

Why not just install inboard brake levers like on a cyclocross bike? They are cheap and you can use your brakes on the flats of your roadbar. All you need to do is get a new set of brake cables/housing.. and even dura-ace ones are cheap.

Imagine how much fewer trees would be smacked with a 42cm road bar instead of a 58cm+ flat bar.

Id say to the OP just buy a road bike. Having drops is definitely an advantage. Although I do have a friend who races cross with flat bars. He never wins but I know he prefers flat bars. Its not an extremely difficult conversion to do.

OH and with the pic of Eddy Merx, Look at the drop between the seat and the stem... not that much.

but holding my hands near the stem and tucking in is also a favorite position of mine. But no way would I try to corner hard like that or cut through traffic like that either.

You can accomplish the exact same thing riding the tops of a road bike with drop bars. Only possible difference would be access to brakes, but interruptor brakes used on the tops (which actually work unlike the old suicide brakes) addresses this issue.


Drop bar addresses this issue. Thus road bike, with a reasonable set up gives you an upright position on the hoods, aero position on the drops. There's a reason that road bikes have evolved the way they have. Best of both worlds, and one bike does all of what you need.