Hybrid Conversion?

Hrun

It says that I can ask daft questions, so here goes:

I have a Raleigh Oakland Hybrid which serves the purpose it was bought for admirably, namely to ride with the missus on a Towpath on a get fit mission. However I do sometimes get out for a blast as cross training for my running hence my question.

Can I fit drops to it in order to create a cyclocross type machine? Specifically is it possible to adapt the existing brakes/gears to a brake/shifter affair?. It currently has Shimano Revoshift gears with 3 rings on the front and 6 on the back.

I would welcome any assistance/suggestions to try and achieve this as cheaply as possible.

Thanks in advance

Giles

redvee

The geometry will the the key here. I did the same on a Trek frame and it felt all wrong.

Hrun

If I can do it cheaply enough I can always switch it back if I don't like it. I reckon the shifters are going to be the hard bit.

tiny_pens

The short answer is no. It is possible to bodge things to make it work but the price of drop bar shifters alone can be a bit pricey. IIRC people who have done it properly in the past have spent well over £100 because often the shifters don't work properly with the dérailleurs (think annoying clicking sounds all the time and jumping gears).

The cheapest way of doing it would be to haunt the local HWRC and look for a donor race bike (there was one at mine today for about £40) but then you might start to think why not just use the new bike and keep the old one as is.

If you just want the aero dynamic position I would suggest inboard mounted bar ends (think superman like position) or you can get drop bar ends from SJS cycles: (http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/product-Origin8-Origin8-Pro-pulsion-Road-Ends--Drop-Bar-Bar-Ends--Black-18606.htm)

If its speed you want, you might find a nicer set of wheels and fast tyres would give you the speed boost you crave?