Drop handlebars - what is the point of them?

[gentlegreen]

also, imagine how much extra handlebar real estate that would buy you

I would have to invent new things to have switches for.

 

[gentlegreen]

I only found the aerobars when I was on long runs hurtling down wide roads with little traffic. I wouldn't recommend them for round-town cycling.

I get annoyed when I see people riding with those on the local railway path - just the place where you need the brakes covered.
Mind you there's one bloke who rides for miles with no hands and on the phone... (albeit not fast)

 

[gentlegreen]

humperts

Do they end up having slack in the joints ?

 

[Ted Striker]

Decathlon provide a much cheaper way of finding out aero bars are, well, a massive waste of money for most people. http://www.decathlon.co.uk/curved-aero-bars-id_8084773.html

I couldn't use them as they greatly compromise the ability to balance as you put everything in the middle. I thought they'd be an awesome idea before hand though!

I've got the above in my parts box you're welcome to.

 

[girasol]

what bike do you ride and what's your usual attire? if you aren't in full lycra i don't think the bars will make a great deal of difference and if it's not a half decent road bike set up you'll look like a bloody idiot.

When it was so windy on thursday I assumed a position which you would on a aerobars it made a noticeable difference. I don't care whether I look like an 'bloody idiot' with aerobars to be frank, but if the positioning is wrong or dangerous then I do care... My seat is about 10cm lower that handlebars... Maybe it is a stupid idea hence me asking here.

Don't want to buy a new bike, just wanted to make this one a bit easier to ride against the wind!

Thanks for all the advice!!!! Food for thought.

 

[girasol]

Why not try butterfly bars ?
I keep threatening to try something of that sort - it was one reason for dumping the grip-shifters ..

You have now introduced a whole new layer of possibilities to my cake of proscratination

edit: mind you, I wouldn't want to change the whole handlebar - hence the aerobars...

 

[Lemon Eddy]

Don't want to buy a new bike, just wanted to make this one a bit easier to ride against the wind!

What you've got there is a perfectly reasonable hybrid for pootling around town in a comfy, upright, easily spotted by cars manner. However it is what it is. It's a heavyweight device, it's got squishy commuter forks for soaking up cobbles, and a near vertical sitting position for comfort. You'd have to change pretty much everything to make it much faster, and frankly you'd be a lot cheaper to find a second hand road bike and give that a go. Then you'd also have the benefit of a shlompy bike for dawdling/shopping, whatever, and a fast bike if you're in a hurry or it's windy as hell.

 

[gentlegreen]

Your existing bars look rather high in relation to your saddle.

I ride an MTB. I had to fit a handlebar riser to get comfortable, but the riding position is still slightly sporty.




That said, the recent wind has been pretty strong...

 

[girasol]

What you've got there is a perfectly reasonable hybrid for pootling around town in a comfy, upright, easily spotted by cars manner. However it is what it is. It's a heavyweight device, it's got squishy commuter forks for soaking up cobbles, and a near vertical sitting position for comfort. You'd have to change pretty much everything to make it much faster, and frankly you'd be a lot cheaper to find a second hand road bike and give that a go. Then you'd also have the benefit of a shlompy bike for dawdling/shopping, whatever, and a fast bike if you're in a hurry or it's windy as hell.

I actually do have a sort of road bike (got it here on freecycle). Only been on it a few times, but only for short journeys. Needs better brakes and some work (the gears are far from responsive ), I can't see myself commuting on it though.

 

[Lemon Eddy]

I actually do have a sort of road bike (got it here on freecycle).

And what you've there is a perfectly reasonable faster/lighter bike well suited to longer journeys, cycling into headwinds or anytime you want to nip around. The picture's a bit low-res, and I'm bloody useless at spotting bike problems compared to the likes of Sigmund Fraud, Boycey or weepiper but I think you'd be a sight better off sorting out that bike for brakes and gears rather than trying to transmogrify your hybrid.

 

[Boycey]

I think you'd be a sight better off sorting out that bike for brakes and gears rather than trying to transmogrify your hybrid.

27" wheels, steel rims, cheap frame say otherwise. not bad for a runaround but it's pretty much the same type of bicycle as the other one- cheap steel drop handlebar road bikes were the entry level hybrids of their day.

the cost of turning either bike into a faster machine would be far far better spent on a whole new machine unless there were a huge sentimental attachment.

 

[Dogsauce]

I actually do have a sort of road bike (got it here on freecycle). Only been on it a few times, but only for short journeys. Needs better brakes and some work (the gears are far from responsive ), I can't see myself commuting on it though.

That's more of a tourer - that's like what I use for my commute as the roads up here are terrible - I reckon they're the best sort for small-medium commutes, rugged and still quite fast (I do 8.8 miles in 30-35mins on mine, cross town with hills). I have wide bars on mine rather than drops as that's what it came with, but am thinking of shortening them as they're a pain to get through the sustrans gate on the track sections. Yours is a bit more handsome, but then I see a lot of merit in having a shitty old brown Falcon frame that nobody would consider stealing. If it's a tougher ride then that's just a way of getting fitter.

You've got the right tyres on - Marathons will keep the puncture fairy away. Did you add those yourself?

 

[Crispy]

You've got the right tyres on - Marathons will keep the puncture fairy away. Did you add those yourself?

IIRC, those came from me

 

[Balham]

Don't think I have used anything other than drop handlebars since years. From when I joined a club and started racing.

Never had a problem using the brakes whether riding hands on top of the brakes or hands on a lower part of the handlebar.

 

[8115]

I can't use drop handlebars, true fact. My hands are too close together and I just fall off, comedy style.

 

[girasol]

IIRC, those came from me

The Marathon's are on the red bike and they came with those... Well spotted Dogsauce, I had to zoom in on the original size photo to see the make! Crispy, You gave me the Armadillos on the Carrera blue bike.

 

[Dogsauce]

The Marathon's are on the red bike and they came with those... Well spotted Dogsauce, I had to zoom in on the original size photo to see the make! Crispy, You gave me the Armadillos on the Carrera blue bike.

I bet they're just Marathons and not Marathon Plus - they don't do the pluses for non-metric wheels, my Falcon has 27" and I had to get the regular versions. One puncture (a Hawthorne thorn bizarrely) in two years and over 5000 miles is a fairly good testimony. I think it was possibly a thread on here that recommended them, read before I'd even signed up.

 

[Boycey]

Don't think I have used anything other than drop handlebars since years. From when I joined a club and started racing.

Never had a problem using the brakes whether riding hands on top of the brakes or hands on a lower part of the handlebar.

that's fine with a nice set of ergolevers or similar but girasol's setup will only have effective braking in the 4th picture.

 

[Lemon Eddy]

that's fine with a nice set of ergolevers or similar but girasol's setup will only have effective braking in the 4th picture.

I know chickenlevers aren't great, but girasol would get reasonable breaking out of them in 1 & 2 as well.

 

[bi0boy]

Drops aren't much use if you really want the best riding position to reduce wind resistance:

http://instagram.com/p/exOGkwPMdW/#

 

[white rabbit]

Only kidding. I've never understood the desire for ergonomic efficiency. It's exercise. Using energy is part of the point.

 

[rubbershoes]

if you want aerodynamic this is the way to go

wouldn't fancy commuting on it though

 

[Part 2]

I was in London this week. Noticed a lot of cyclists riding in the drops. Don't think it's something I see much up here.

 

[gentlegreen]

It depends what y

if you want aerodynamic this is the way to go

wouldn't fancy commuting on it though

Sadly Obree seems to have fallen foul of the wind.

http://www.wisil.recumbents.com/wisil/whpsc2013/results.htm

 

[Geri]

When I was a teenager, in the days before mountain bikes were invented, I used to have a racing bike with drop handlebars. It was a dream to ride, really light and I could go up and down hills without having to hold onto the handlebars. I think I would find them very strange now.

 

[Dogsauce]

I'd not ridden with drops for six years (other than a few short goes on friend's bikes) but recently restored my road bike to almost operational order and have been finding it a bit weird, I sort of like the balance I get from the wide bars on my other bike, especially on bends where I can lean out a bit more. My Pashley freighter has these nice swept-back bars that are really nice to use, makes you sit a bit more upright, like riding an armchair (only a bit heavier ).

The solution to not knowing which is best for whatever situation you need is to own more bikes.

 

[T & P]

I can't use drop handlebars, true fact. My hands are too close together and I just fall off, comedy style.

I've tried to get used to drop handlebars and never could. When I owned a bike with them, it wasn't long before I decided to turn them up, so it looked as if the bike had horns

 

[pissflaps]

i have a lovely pair of vintage cinelli crits for sells... 30 dorrah.

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

too much.unless they are the fabled 44cm width ones.

 

[KeeperofDragons]

but shifting all the weight to the rear wheel affects handling more than high a centre of gravity- if you're riding all day with the same weight (touring) then a rack makes sense just to save your back, if you're just nipping around town (couriering) then it's all about a HUGE bag.

Particularly if it's windy