Flat bar w/ CX levers + aero bar w/ TT levers?

Alek

I am currently riding a hybrid (old steel peugeot with flat bars) that I feel pretty comfortable with even on long rides (200km) - I get no to little hand numbness and I enjoy having brake levers and rapidshifters handy at all times.

I miss slightly more aero position sometimes though.

I am quite reluctant to switch to road bars due to cost (mainly STI shifters - I defo don't like top tube ones and haven't tried the ones on the end of drops) and possibilty that I will simply won't like riding in hoods - as MTB bar ends don't work for me either. Plus I would need to experiment with the stem length a lot.

I am thinking of adding aero bars to the existing setup. As I do not feel safe cycling without the brake lever under my fingers, I would install TT brake levers and change my flat bar levers to CX "repeaters" - i.e. http://www.tektro.com/_english/01_products/01_prodetail.php?pid=58&sortname=Cyclocross&sort=2&fid=3 - and link them together.

I would still mostly use the flat bar and hence these CX levers as my main brake control.

I have never used them - do they have the same feeling as normal levers, or rather feel spongy? Is the power adequate?

Has anybody tried similar setup?

mirrormatrix

Why do you feel you need brakes on the aero bars? As far as I know (I could be way off base) TT bikes still have brakes on the handlebars rather than the aero bars.

You're presumably never going to take a severe corner nor ride in traffic on the aero bars, so what would be the benefit? Would hard braking with your centre of gravity that far forward not also be an issue?

rollingscone

Drops are a godsend, bar end shifters aren't as handy as STi shifters but they are reasonably comfortable to use (I have them on my drop bar converted hybrid).

I was afraid of drops in the beginning but 6 weeks or so of cycling in strong winds every day, first I taught myself to stop and dismount in the drops, it was all gravy from there on in.

After a bit of adjustment riding in the drops became extremely comfortable with a nice solid triangular feel on descents that also helps you shift your centre of gravity rearwards when you want to brake.

Alek

@ mirrormatrix - I simply do not feel safe riding without levers under my fingers. Its about reacting quickly, not braking hard. I'm not after conforming to any TT standards either ;-)

@rollingscone - seems that everybody says this. Maybe I'd change my mind if I could borrow a bike with drops for a day or half? Adding 200e to a 200e bike just to change the steering kinda puts me off so far ;-)

cdaly_

mirrormatrix wrote: »

Why do you feel you need brakes on the aero bars? As far as I know (I could be way off base) TT bikes still have brakes on the handlebars rather than the aero bars.

You're presumably never going to take a severe corner nor ride in traffic on the aero bars, so what would be the benefit? Would hard braking with your centre of gravity that far forward not also be an issue?

I use aero bars when commuting, solo spins and descending. Having brakes on them is really handy. Centre of gravity under braking is addressed by pushing my ass backwards off the saddle; haven't had any braking issues yet.

Alek wrote:

I have never used them - do they have the same feeling as normal levers, or rather feel spongy? Is the power adequate?

I'm using cross levers on the aerobars (can't replace drop bar levers with cross) with a long extra sweep of cable to route into them. The sharp bend of the cable at the front means I have to pull harder on the main levers but the cross levers themselves are fine. I'll be doing a bit more fettling with the setup to address the tight cable bends which should make things better.

For your flat bars setup, things should work better but you'll still have a sweep of cable to feed into the cross lever.

If you're anywhere in north Dublin and want to drop by for a look, feel free...

rollingscone

For my conversion, I paid AFAIR for a second hand set of Drop Bars and bar end shifters from a fellow boardsie, because my hybrid has Vbrakes I had to fork out another €20ish for specific Vbrake compatible brake levers and hoods.

The resulting beast is not a roadbike (by the time I did the conversion I had gotten a proper roadbike) but I've never regretted the conversion, especially not on windy days!

Look at sourcing 2nd hand parts from Rothar, with a cleaning and servicing and new cables you'll probably find that once you've sourced bar end shifters for an ok price you'll be golden with everything else.

What type of brakes and drivetrain (i.e. what speed, road or mountain) do you have on your current bike?

Alek

Brakes are road calipers, drivetrain is shimano 8 speed. I don't mind upgrading to 9 speed but I'll defo need STIs - I adjust gears a lot.

I guess I'd need a ~30mm shorter stem for drop bars?

circular flexing

I have bar end shifters on my drops and definitely prefer them to STIs and I change gears a lot. If it were my choice I'd go for this over aero bars + bar ends.

rollingscone

Bar end shifters are fine for frequent shifting, your barely notice it after a while, you're already ahead with road calipers. All you need are drop bars, levers and a stem, Cramcycle has a set of drop bar brake levers (actually I have them in the bottom of one of my panniers, but they're his), bars start at around €25 on Wiggle or much cheaper second hand or in Rothar, same with stems.

Alek

I guess that every system has its fans, but the need to change your hand position and reach down from hoods to shift does not sound too convincing to me.

As far as I understand you can shift both from hoods and drops with STIs, while having the braking under control. Thanks for your input guys but I'll give this a go first when I decide to go for the drops.

Anyway, I'll try cdaly_'s setup first :-)