Am I mental?

rollingscone

Hey all,

I got back on a bike about six months ago and while still classifying myself as a cowardly commuter I upgraded from a hand me down ten year old Raleigh Hybrid to a Giant Escape 2 with 28mm hardcase tyres on it.

This has been more than adequate for my 20km a day but lately I've been going for the occasional 30km + and more and more find myself wishing for a lower profile.

So my stupid question of the day is, would it be viable/sensible to try and put dropped bars on my hybrid?

I can't see myself getting into going for 5hr spins every week so buying a second bike doesn't feel justifiable.

carthoris

rollingscone wrote: »

So my stupid question of the day is, would it be viable/sensible to try and put dropped bars on my hybrid?

It is possible to change the bars to put drops onto the bike but there are a number of problems with it:

• drop bars will put your hands further forward from where they are now meaning that you are more "stretched-out" and this could get uncomfortable. This is because bikes designed for flat handle bars have a longer top tube (between the saddle and the handlebars) than a bike designed for drop handle bars
• you need to replace the brake levers - this is difficult because the brakes on the Escape 2 are very different from the brakes on bikes with drop bars and require different brake levers
• the gear changing mechanism would also need to change - most drop bar bikes use integrate changers (the brake lever and gear change in the same levers) so this would also have to change.

Have you considered replacing the bike with a new bike ?

funkyjebus

You can, but its pricy. The sti shifters are very expensive, for cheap sora ones its probably 100 - 150. Then youll need bars, bar tape, and probably new cables. Everything elsr will probably still work once u stay the same speed. I assume you have caliper brakes?

coolbeans

This is why I never recommend hybrids.

07Lapierre

Sell your Hybrid bike and buy a road bike.

mal1

Buy a second-hand road bike. Take your time and find a good bike at a good price.

blorg

It is not worth it frankly on that bike, and you will not end up with a road bike, which would be lighter and more nimble. I did it with a Specialized Sirrus which was closer (road mechs, cassette & cranks) and it was still very expensive- I needed new bars, STI levers, tape, cables, stem, front derailleur and brakes. The Escape has V-brakes that are not be compatible with STI levers and you may have issues with the front derailleur also.

The only circumstance in which it might be a good idea would be if you were looking for a touring bike- it might do that quite well. You could get bar-end shifters which should work fine with your current derailleurs and special drop-bar brake levers with the right cable pull for V-brakes. This would be a lot cheaper than going STI. You would probably need to get a stem 20cm shorter than you have at present.

But if you want a bike for unloaded day spins then sell it and buy a road bike.

rollingscone

Cheers guys.

Looks like I'll just have to keep an eye out for a bargain 2nd hander.

rollingscone

Bumpety bump.

Now that I have a roadbike I'm actually thinking of doing this as a project. Making the Escape into a quasi-tourer/more wind resistant commuter.

Was looking at components on CRC for a rough idea of prices but I need to figure out which bar end shifters will work with the front (acera) and rear (tourney) mechs and how to track down a v-brake compatible lever as per Blorg's last post.

Any ideas?

CramCycle

rollingscone wrote: »

Bumpety bump.

Now that I have a roadbike I'm actually thinking of doing this as a project. Making the Escape into a quasi-tourer/more wind resistant commuter.

Was looking at components on CRC for a rough idea of prices but I need to figure out which bar end shifters will work with the front (acera) and rear (tourney) mechs and how to track down a v-brake compatible lever as per Blorg's last post.

Any ideas?

I have brake levers, bar end shifters and handlebars on sale in the adverts section. The shifters are friction so should work with any derailleurs, the cables are still connected so it should be relatively simple.

These are the same type as mentioned by Blorg.

smacl

rollingscone wrote: »

Making the Escape into a quasi-tourer/more wind resistant commuter. ... Any ideas?

While not to everyone's taste, you can always stick aero bars on your hybrid as a cheaper and easier option. Check out Keep_her_lit's Wasps mark 1 and 2 for some great examples.

rollingscone

CramCycle wrote: »

I have brake levers, bar end shifters and handlebars on sale in the adverts section. The shifters are friction so should work with any derailleurs, the cables are still connected so it should be relatively simple.

These are the same type as mentioned by Blorg.

Are those sl520 v brake levers?

Definitely interested but I have to figure out if the bars will be an ok size and what stem I'd need to get (i.e. will the stem you're selling fit on my Escape).

The riser bars are 61cm across and the stem is a 105mm.

CramCycle

rollingscone wrote: »

Are those sl520 v brake levers?

Definitely interested but I have to figure out if the bars will be an ok size and what stem I'd need to get (i.e. will the stem you're selling fit on my Escape).

The riser bars are 61cm across and the stem is a 105mm.

If your around Dublin, drop me a pm and we could have a look to see if it would work or not and if you like them

NOt sure what you mean by the v brake levers, I presume there is a worry about the ratios, they are just shimano drop bar brake levers, they will work with any cable pull brake levers, I can set them up if you decide to buy, and see if they suit or not.

ghogie91

Try trade the hybrid into a bike shop with the option of a secondhand road bike... the shops would have the second hand road bike in tip top condition

rollingscone

ghogie91 wrote: »

Try trade the hybrid into a bike shop with the option of a secondhand road bike... the shops would have the second hand road bike in tip top condition

Already have a roadbike.

This is just as a project/outlet for my not being able to afford the replacement I really want (five year plan say. Replace commuter with TCX, then when able to complete Cross races without an interlude in the Cardiac ward, slyly purchase a Surly Pacer for commuting).

Also, I'm getting mightily tired of cycling around in this wind with my nose on the handlebars and my elbows sticking out.

rollingscone

Ahoy,

Nearly finished my little conversion process.

The Tektro RL520 V-brake specific drop bar levers work like a dream and after an initial faux-pas of adjusting the front derailleur limiting screws as if I was going to fit indexed levers I have all 24 gears back on the bar end shifters.

With the original 110mm stem I was nearly horizontal in the drops so I switched to a second hand 90mm and the bike now fits like a glove again.

The only thing left is a small question of aesthetics, before I fit the (black, of course) bar-tape, I'm questioning my decision to save money by re-using the old outer cables, as it prevents me from routing the gear and front brake cable along the bars inside the tape.

As it is the rear brake cable runs along the horizontal groove on the front of the flat of the bar but the front brake cable is only long enough (the outer part anyway) to take the directest route down to the calipers.

Does anyone have any advice/opinions on whether it would be worth the time and money of fitting new outer cables in any or all of these instances (mainly front brake and gears).

njburke

I've just changed my trek 7.5FX from straight bars to a flared drop bar (On one Midge bar) using the same RL520s and Dura Ace bar end shifters.
I use the bike for commuting and wanted more hand positions, the original trek bar is an oddball in that bar end grips can't be attached.

Its very stretched out on the drops so I'm on the lookout for a shorter stem.

CramCycle

rollingscone wrote: »

As it is the rear brake cable runs along the horizontal groove on the front of the flat of the bar but the front brake cable is only long enough (the outer part anyway) to take the directest route down to the calipers.

Any pics?

My worry would be that if it barely stretches at the minute that you run the risk of not being able to turn the handlebar fully, or of it getting caught on something and yanking you off.

rollingscone

CramCycle wrote: »

Any pics?

My worry would be that if it barely stretches at the minute that you run the risk of not being able to turn the handlebar fully, or of it getting caught on something and yanking you off.

Turning radius is fine I can swing the bars till they hit the top tube either way.

The cable is in the same place it was with the risers.

The calipers use a piece of rigid right angled pipe to achieve tension so after some experiments with a longer section of outer failed I decided to leave it as is.

Have road tested this set I so it really was a question of aesthetics.

rollingscone

Icyseanfitz

07Lapierre wrote: »

Sell your Hybrid bike and buy a road bike.

nevermind, you un hybrided it

07Lapierre

Icyseanfitz wrote: »

nevermind, you un hybrided it

I disagree...now its a REAL HYBRID

Icyseanfitz

07Lapierre wrote: »

I disagree...now its a REAL HYBRID

he should add some 26 inch mtb wheels with skinny slick tyres be such a mish mash it would actually be great

rollingscone

Everyone seems to skip the posts where I point out that I have actually had a roadbike (Scott 509) since late last year.

I more or less did this conversion just to learn how to do it, and for the wind profile after cycling diagonally through February.

Now that I actually understand how gear shifting and braking works I'm that much closer to bike maintenance independence.

Also, I prefer to think of her as my "Commu-Tourer" now.

rollingscone

njburke wrote: »

I've just changed my trek 7.5FX from straight bars to a flared drop bar (On one Midge bar) using the same RL520s and Dura Ace bar end shifters.
I use the bike for commuting and wanted more hand positions, the original trek bar is an oddball in that bar end grips can't be attached.

Its very stretched out on the drops so I'm on the lookout for a shorter stem.

Being a skint (mature) student I opted for a 2nd hand stem from Rothair for a tenner.

It's not the most aesthetically pleasing, but thems the breaks.

Icyseanfitz

rollingscone wrote: »

Everyone seems to skip the posts where I point out that I have actually had a roadbike (Scott 509) since late last year.

I more or less did this conversion just to learn how to do it, and for the wind profile after cycling diagonally through February.

Now that I actually understand how gear shifting and braking works I'm that much closer to bike maintenance independence.

Also, I prefer to think of her as my "Commu-Tourer" now.

fair play to you, being able to fix your own bikes is great

rollingscone

Finally got a chance to test the Commu-tourer in battle last night (I don't really think my usual sub 8k commute counts) did 40km round trip with two fully loaded panniers (About 18kg at a guess) and it worked like a dream, apart from being nervous about the width of the rack&Panniers in traffic on the way out.

The MTB gearing had no problems with relatively unchallenging hills (out to Bray and back) and it was a blessing having the drops as my back would have been in tatters on the way home and the descents would have been...less enjoyable to say the least.

Really chuffed with the outcome.