[Closed] Drop bars on a mountain bike, any experience?

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Get hold of Tree Magnet, he does...

Oh, and IIRC so does Druidh..

Damn, I forgot to add.

"Please, no photos of Johnny T".

Works fine but you'll want a v short stem. Avid road discs are good.

I'd have thought the two uses you want the bike for will require very different gears?

There was a guy on MTBR.com who was very into this. IIRC he had drop bars on a Kona Coiler with quite a high gnarl-rating. Shiggy, perhaps?

I used drops on a singlespeed (old speccy rockhopper) for ages as a ss commuter. It was fine but looked a bit wrong as you have to use a horrible super short high rise stem to get the bars in the right place (ie. not massively far forward and dropped)

Also brake wise you are limited to rim brakes or cable discs.

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Very nice.

I'd have thought the two uses you want the bike for will require very different gears?

Not really. I push quite a high ratio on my Dialled Bikes Holeshot which I currently use a damn sight more than any of my geared bikes at Sherwood and I'm not looking for supersonic commuting speed, just something comfortable. If need be though its easy enough to change a sprocket and fit a different chain for the occasional weekend trip out with the family.

[url= http://mtbtires.com/features/bikes/why_dropbars.html ]Shiggy's drop bars[/url]

Roger

I know someone who has done it - he uses his old Explosif for commuting duties. He does, however, have a set of STIs on it as he runs it geared.

There's no real reason why this could't be done, though as people have pointed out, the TT length on an MTB means that you'll need a short stem.

You will also probably find that, like most people who ride drop bars, you're not actually in the drops that much, instead riding with your hands on the hoods or on the tops. However, the option to change hand position is excellent, and a great reason to use them.

For a bit of compromise, look at wider drops (Rivendell, One-one Mary) and also cross drops, which sometime flare in the drop. On the road, I favour a shallow drop bar - you get the efficiency of drops without having to remove a rib like the old Belgian deep drops require. Have a look at the FSA Omega compact when available again.

Otherwise, you need to think about gearing. Off road will need something low-ish (though I note you're planning on using the bike for family rides). On road, something bigger will be necessary - say 68-72", depending on how hilly your commute is.

Also, think about wheels - if you're only ever running reasonably skinny tyres, then maybe a 700c wheel would be a better choice. You could have the rear built up on a MTB hub. If there's enough clearance in the frame (you may need a 29er fork), then you could probably swap between CX and regular road (say 25c) tyres.

Just a few thoughts....

As well as Shiggy's stuff, have a look at Matt Chester's articles on 63xc.com

Someone (is it Ritchey?) is doing a lot of work on "compact" drops which are very shallow for the road.

Don't the kids these days call it 'cyclocross'? 😛

this is an old Trek frame with MTB gearing - i fitted 29C wheels but i've since ridden with a mate who had very narrow 26" slicks and couln't really tell the difference
i wanted this bike so could ride into headwind and thrash along the trans pennine trail - this an old frame with a geometry probably closer to a hybrid or tourer than an MTB frame designed for suspension
big consideration is brake pull - if you use STI's then without adaptors you can't use Vees i believe - similar for mechanical discs i would guess
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If your actually going to ride in the drops then fair enough, but if not a set of narrow flat bars & some Ergon's will be just as good.
I cant ride in the drops on my commuter...my stomach gets in the way. 🙂

Don't the kids these days call it 'cyclocross'

*ok i accept the three peaks as an exception

The frame (Dialled Bikes Love/Hate) is disc only so I will probably be using Avid road-specific disc with the appropriate brake levers.

Thanks for the responses so far folks. I've heard a lot of good things about the On-One Mary bars but I've also seen [url= http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/HB298B01-Wtb+Mountain+Road+Bar.aspx?sc=FRGL ]these[/url] advertised and they seem quite well rated. As I'm off to the states soon perhaps it'll be worth waiting to buy some over there.

I cant ride in the drops on my commuter...my stomach gets in the way

me on midge bars 😉
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oh and avid cable discs are great and the stem doesnt normally need to be mega short but a higher rise . which in turn makes it shorter lol ie my stem was 90mm 15 deg rise so it lifted the bars slightly and the effective length of stem ended up about 70mm. enjoy 😉

[url= http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2330/2506826634_75c9474b80.jp g" target="_blank">http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2330/2506826634_75c9474b80.jp g"/> [/img][/url]

where's the bucket?!

Don't bother.
Waste of time and money to try and convert a MTB to run with drops.

Looks wrong.
Rides crap.
Compromised for just about everything.
Shiggy should not be listened to.
Matt Chester builds bikes specifically for use with drops so has some sense.
Tomac was a legend. Are you?
It will give you next to no benefit on the road (your riding a MTB afterall) and give you issues offroad.

Sell it and buy a cross bike as that sounds like what you actually need/want.

[i]Rides crap.
Compromised for just about everything.
It will give you next to no benefit on the road (your riding a MTB afterall) and give you issues offroad.[/i]

what a load of cockwash 😉

Funnily enough your riding a bike designed for drop bars.

actually im not the swift was never actually designed around drops the one after it is tho 😉

what a load of cockwash

And he didn't even read my initial post properly, otherwise he wouldn't have posted that.

For the less diligent amongst us,

Ps, "Buy a proper road frame/bike" is not useful BTW, I want to make use of what I've got. If I buy another bike my wife may cut bits of me off while I sleep.

I have most of the parts to build up the Love/Hate. All I lack is handlebars, stem and brakes suitable for a drop bar set-up.

another vote for a proper cyclocross bike/frame. As you have described it this what you actually need! I have a SS crosser on a 42 x 16 ratio with drops. Works really well for commuting and light off road duties.

If you want to keep this frame then the midge or mary bars seem like an ideal compromise. Onw word of warning on your SS ratio though. If you go for a 32 x 16 for off road then although you say you are taking it easy it so frustrating on road. You will be spinning for England and getting know where!

32 x 16 for off-road on a singlespeed! Thats the gear ration of choice for little girls.

36 x 16 thankyouverymuch.

The classic and best were WTB Dirt Drops: I believe recently re-introduced, but with changes (anatomic? over-size?). Nearest copies I've found of originals are Origin 8 Gary Bars (only from USofA I think). On Ones the next best.

dj6061 - [url= http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/HB298B01-Wtb+Mountain+Road+Bar.aspx?sc=FRGL ]These[/url] ones?

I ran a 1997 or 98 specialized rockhopper with rigid forks with drops for years, did not change stem - did not have any problems. Ran it with sora 8 speed stis and avid shorty cantilevers. My only problem came with chainstay clearance when I put a road crankset on. Used a rack and panniers to carry stuff.

I once put BMX handlebars on my mountain bike when I was about 12/13, and that looked just as crap.

[i]I have most of the parts to build up the Love/Hate. All I lack is handlebars, stem and brakes suitable for a drop bar set-up.[/i]

Sell the lot and buy a cross bike. Sorted.

[i]And he didn't even read my initial post properly, otherwise he wouldn't have posted that.[/i]

I did which is why I posted the original stuff.
You pretty much asked for experience and my final statement about buying a cross bike is what you'll end up doing one day and wishing you had all along. Loads of lovely 1 speed versions around for not a lot of money.

My Gryphon.

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My El Mariachi.

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And Karate Monkey (now sold)

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When I was commuting on road I used inboard mounted bar ends which offered some benefit on long runs into headwinds. I personally prefer flats when riding in traffic as well.

i had drops on my voodoo, proper size wheels though, and an incarnation with cx wheels and tyres, you will need V's or avid discs though

I toyed with the idea of drops when I built up my old Kona Explosif for commuting but never did, just put wide flat Salsa's on, wished I'd not seen these pics as am now thinking about it again, that Gryphons lovely

Singlespeedstu - Clent Hills and the Wyre Forest I presume? 🙂

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Thats nice RD, just the sort of inspiration I'm after. What length forks is that frame designed for (44.5?) and what size is it?

Rocketdogs Voodoo looks nice but the stretch to the drops or hoods looks massive - very aero but perhaps a bit extreme?

Jim29.

Clent, Penmachno, FoD and Kinver. 8)

Rocketdogs Voodoo looks nice but the stretch to the drops or hoods looks massive - very aero but perhaps a bit extreme?

never ridden a road bike then? looks perfectly normal to me?

never ridden a road bike then? looks perfectly normal to me?

'cept for the weird seat angle and hoods pointing skywards.... (otherwise, RD, I like it, and it's clearly comfortable for you!)

hello, it's a standard voodoo wanga designed around 80-100mm forks so i used kona P2 CX forks on it with bonty select cx wheels, seemed to work nicely, used standard mtb P2's first and the cx fitted ok but the head andle seemed a bit steep with cx tyres on, oh and frame is 19"
still have cx forks in the garage unused if you are interested

p.s. strech might look a bit odd as the bars are salsa bell laps and the flare does give an odd perspective in some pics

Where I'm coming from is that most mountain bike frames have longer top tubes than the equivalent sized road frame as the normal position for the bars is defined by a flat bar rather than the position of the hoods/drops (as demonstrated by Cotic selling two styles of RoadRat, a short for drops and a regular for mtb bars). Certainly when I fitted drops to my rockhopper the hoods where about 60mm too far forward with a normal (100mm) stem.

no dissing implied!

I have never understood the point of drop bars anyway unless you are some super wind cheating racing whippet. Tourers are always banging on about having different hand positions but I have toured on trad tourers and mtbs with bar ends and its the mtb that gets the vote every time.
If it wasn't for the *rse I would convert my road bike to flats as I think I could count on one hand the number of times I have used the drops
[mind you I do suffer from the belly/knee/cross bar interface someone mentioned earlier!]

I use the drops lots on my road bike - fast downhill sections are much scarier on the hoods!

Seems so stupid havingdrops on MTB geometry. You are hardly going to use the drops even on mild XC trails. I never once thought oh I best ride the drops on my old CX bike. I had Salsa shallow drops too and very high stem and pleanty of spacers under it. Riding the hoods its ok on mild trails. Bar ends and flat bars I used on my other CX bike were much more practical and the bar ends did get used a lot.

Its a niche too far in true typical Singletrack style!

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can you even reach the brake levers while riding the drops on that thing?

😕

I notice fewer and fewer people are reading the initial post I made before commenting.

I'm not building it up for singletrack riding with other MTBers.

I want to build it up for commuting and the occasional fireroad/Tissington Trail type ride with my wife and daughter.

I don't want to buy another bike (CX bike or otherwise) nor swap/sell this frame and get another to replace it.

I going to build up my Dialled Bikes Love/Hate and want to know whether fitting drops will be ok for the specific purposes I've mentioned.

That is it. Not singletrack and for gnarly hucking type stuff.

Thank you for the helpful advice so far.

S&J, email me if you want any more info

RD's Voodoo has a 600mm toptube so a bit shorter than most mtb's (for a 19"), meaning it probably works ok for someone his height with the shorter stem.

sootyandjim - i think youve misunderstood, no-one is posting in response to your question, they are busy having an argument :0)

Well the effective TT of my Love/Hate is about 602mm (23.7").

Sooty, it'll be fine.

I ran a KHS mountain bike as a commuter for a couple of years - probably '98 and '99 - doing 22 mile days. It did the job perfectly once I'd got the fit dialled - much easier with a quill stem. I had cyclocross bars, levers and bar end shifters, and used XTR cantis. It looked rather weird and was super stiff (I was using Conti's tiny 1" slicks - not a wise choice on relatively small 26" wheels) but worked. I put on a higher rise, shorter stem than I had with my flat bars.

Basically, go for it.

I occasionally put knobblies on mine to muck about in the woods, and while it was pretty, er, exciting, it wasn't something I'd choose to do full time. Proper CX bikes or stuff like the singulars probably behave much better. But since you're not doing that, I can tell you you'll probably have a good laugh.

One word of advice; it's fine to use an MTB stem you have lying around to get the reach and rise worked out, but definitely worth buying a 'proper' road stem once you've got the position sorted - there is a slight difference in clamp diameters on the old skool clamps and bars. Not sure about the new oversize stuff, but I'm sure a good bike shop can advise.

sootyandjim - I reckon you'll be fine with drops and a short stem.

As I mentioned way back before the bickering started, have a look at "compact" drops, which ought to work quite well with MTB geometry - not to much forward reach to the brake hoods, and not too much vertical drop. But, in both cases, enough to get the benefit of using drops.

I'm on the lookout for some FSA Omega compact drops (they're evidently awaitied by the importer) for my road bike. Something like that ought to do it.

And don't listen to the kids who think that drop bars can't be ridden off road (even on a Tissington Trail type surface). The can very effectively.

Stick with your plan and post up pics when done!

I'm wanting to do something similar but i actually want to go from a flat bar road bike. Want to put drops on it and see how i like it (or not). my problem is that the gear i have a SRAM SX5 rear mech and X5 shifters. also the brakes are tektro mechanical discs. I have seen a brake cable adjuster for using road brake levers with cable discs but what about the gear shifting? will i be able to get shifters/brake levers for drop bars that will work for these SRAM gears? Is the actuation of the road shifters the same as the MTB ones? i.e. 1:1?

will i be able to get shifters/brake levers for drop bars that will work for these SRAM gears? Is the actuation of the road shifters the same as the MTB ones? i.e. 1:1?

a. There arnt any road shifters that work with sram MTB mechs.
b. sram road shifter/mechs work on the 1:1 idea but they pull a different amount of cable compared to MTB sram.

Sooty, you've changed 🙁

Dango - You're just jealous.

Still hanging around Leith Hill tower with a very clean bike, wearing too much armour and carrying a few pounds of assisted gravity?

😛

One word of advice - there is a slight difference in clamp diameters on the old skool clamps and bars. Not sure about the new oversize stuff, but I'm sure a good bike shop can advise.

MTB = 25.4mm
Road = 26.0mm
Oversive (road and MTB) = 31.8mm

In short, you'll need a road stem with road bars.

You can get plenty of 25.4 road stuff these days.

Sooty, you aint that far off the mark 8)

Since everyone is shouting about sizes ill point out Mary + Midge bars are 25.4mm if you decide to go for one of them, so MTB stem required.

I've been using 25.4 stems with 26.0 bars for a while and am still alive.

for a good while, i ran normal risers (what came on the bike) and put inward curved bar ends inboard of the shifters/brakes/grips.

i had two hand positions, normal mtb wide bars, and a kind of TT narrow grip thing.

worked well for commuting

looked ridiculous

plently of road stuff is 31.8 now too. And as for riding off road on the drops i use them rather than the hoods its much safer. As for the initial post go for it nowt to lose and its great 🙂

I never once thought oh I best ride the drops on my old CX bike

You were doing it wrong then.

Much safer in the drops on a descent.

DW. Yes with ease.

I sometimes wonder whether [url= http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Origin8-Origin8-Pro-pulsion-Road-Ends--Drop-Bar-Bar-Ends--Black-18606.htm ]these[/url] would be a good addition. Thinking a normal bar, normal MTB gear levers on the bar and give yourself the drops. You could either leave the mtb brake levers where they are and just use the drops for a tuck position, or fit road brake levers for the hood position and have the control from there or from the drops.

I sometimes wonder whether these would be a good addition.

Presumably in your less lucid moments, chap. What are you thinking? No, no and thrice no.

Sooty - don't listen to the man. He's clearly crazy.

🙂

(Though you could use them the other way round and make some extreme bullhorn risers....)

STATO - Member

will i be able to get shifters/brake levers for drop bars that will work for these SRAM gears? Is the actuation of the road shifters the same as the MTB ones? i.e. 1:1?

a. There arnt any road shifters that work with sram MTB mechs.
b. sram road shifter/mechs work on the 1:1 idea but they pull a different amount of cable compared to MTB sram.

OK, fair point, so what are the guys running drops using as shifters/brake levers?

singlespeedstu If I was doing it correctly then I would have flat bars off road. Not bars which are narrow as hell, bent and made for riding on tarmac.

Not bars which are narrow as hell, bent and made for riding on tarmac.

The Midge bars in my pics are none of the above. 😉

They also feel a lot nicer in the hooks than on the hoods. 8)

It's odd this. Out on the road I see a lot of people who don't ever really use the drops. I'm not saying "people who don't have drops on their mtbs don't know what they're doing", but a huge number of casual roadies who have drops on their bikes don't know what to do with them. In particular you see a lot of overbraking downhill and a lot of teetering in sharp bends because people are on the hoods. I use my drops a lot on the road, and think the Karate Monkey in stu's pic in particular looks like it'd suit me very well indeed. 🙂

Drop bars are great on he road I have to say. But no one can honestly say they are better off road. trying to hook a front wheel off the floor to get over minor rocks, roots or ruts is a nightmare with even the widest drop bars. The simple reason being they were never made for it. They can be used for riding placid CX, but any form or technical riding is a ball ache I found.

I've done technical riding in the drops on my Solitude.

I've done technical riding in the drops

Me too Mike. 😀

Seth.

You not being able to do it doesn't mean it can't be done.

You should see some of the stuff that one of our local bike club girls is capable of riding on a crossbike. Never mind a big fat tyred dropbar 29er. 😀

*Any excuse to post this pic again* 😉 😆

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