As per title really, after 20+ years of MTB riding I’ve bought my first road bike.

I bumped my knees a couple of times on the drops when out of the saddle before realising that I can / should probably swivel them a little further forward than the current position.

Is there a rule-of-thumb that I should consider? They’re pretty comfortable in position other than that.

**genuinely no-clue**

pics of set up would be good, but road bike set up can take quite a bit more work than mtb – mainly as you tend to sit in one position more, and I find nuances in set up affect handling very noticeably.

I generally aim for the ‘hoods’ (the flatish bit where your palm rests) to be ever so slightly pointing up.

But then position of the shifter on the bar (i.e. how far round the curve) has a big effect too.

Sooo..

I aim for the bottom of the bars (where the bar plug goes) to be pointing horizontally backwards as a starting point, and push the levers round the bars until you get the hood slightly pointing up.

But that’s how I like them.. other folk prefer them in other positions.

Ok thanks. They had been flat / slightly negative and I’ve now rotated to be about 15/20 degree raised.
I’ll give that a go and then refine I guess.

As above. It has seriously taken me ages of constant fettling to get the road bike set up. Have even got wider bars as they felt so narrow when climbing.
You tube is handy plus lots of test rides with with the multi tool.

I was amazed how much more comfortable I felt after pointing the nose of the saddle down quite a bit.

1) Set saddle position. If you have no idea, then 0.883 x inseam will give a good idea of saddle height. The fore and aft position is determined by thigh length – a lot of people swear by kneecap over pedal spindle when pedals horizontal. Basically saddle should be in a position that the weight is taken through the legs. Ideally saddle should be level (unless a TT bike)

2) Once saddle is in the right position, then set bars. Saddle to bar drop is personal, I like 8 cm and am not fantastically flexible., spacers will raise the bar and bring it closer, reducing reach. Also shifter types can have a 1cm difference in hand position. Reach, is ultimately determined by body and arm length. Basically, put your arms on the hoods, lean over as into the wind, you want an elbow angle of about 90-100 degrees. So when resting on the hoods, you will have a little elbow bend to help with shocks and control. Stem length may need a change to get the correct reach.

3) Position of hoods. I normally loosen the bars and have people rest on the drops and pedal with their eyes closed (on a trainer). Lock bars at a comfortable angle – normally drops not parallel to the ground. Then I loosen and move the shifters for comfort and reach of the brake levers from the drops.

Common mistake is to adjust the saddle to adjust “fit”, get the saddle position dialled in first, and only then set the bars.

Aim for a flat transition from the bars to the lever hoods since you’ll probably spend most of your time there. I also like to put an extra strip of bar tape in that area running from the bar to under the hood then tape over it.

I think people get too caught up in stem length with road bikes.
As was just said ^ shifters can ad a cm and the reach of the bars can vary greatly. That’s potentially 5cm of reach without touching the stem.

Which bit of the bar did you hit your knee with? Sounds like the bike is either too small or your stem is too short

As was just said ^ shifters can ad a cm and the reach of the bars can vary greatly. That’s potentially 5cm of reach without touching the stem.

Sure, but if, as I did, you buy a used bike based on “well, it feels about right”, swapping a stem for £20 is way easier and cheaper than swapping bars or shifters! I put a 20mm longer stem on mine and the bike became far more comfy instantly!

rOcKeTdOg – Member
Sounds like the bike is either too small or your stem is too short

A) what this chap said.

B) try to keep your knees ‘in’, or a least ‘not out’…

Hi rocketdog, bumped my knee on the bar-end / plug of the drop. I’m less worried about that now as the end has pivoted away from me by about an inch as a result of the new angle of the bar as a whole.

I don’t believe the bike is too small but I do think my bars were potentially sub-optimal.