Not flats, not drops - what else?

sarajoy
sarajoy Posts: 1,675
edited July 2010 in Commuting chat
Given the current forum conversation on Flats vs. Drops, I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with things that come in between?

I'm starting to wonder what this Soma Sparrow might feel like:

IMG_4382_bb.JPG
More info: http://store.somafab.com/sosp490bar.html
(though I'm not sure about where this rider has put his brakes)

Then you have those trekking 'butterfly' bars, moustache bars, swept-back risers, etc...

...does anyone have experience of things that aren't just one or the other? I like the idea of making my bike look a little more unusual while still being comfortable!
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Comments

  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    I don't see how you'd reach the brakes from where the grips are... I also think having your hands turned out on a roadie-geometry bike is a bad idea! It's fine on a shopper where almost all your weight is on your bum.

    I've considered bullhorns on my fixie... but I don't know if I'd really still get my preferred hoods riding position.
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Aye, I'd have the brakes more towards the grips.

    I dunno, I'm wondering if the position ends up being halfway down to drops sort of thing - wrists neither horizontal nor vertical but somewhere in between (and a good comprimise seeing as I've decided my bike is somewhere between a shopper and a roadie)!

    Not much space for lights etc, mind, should you want to move your hands around...
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  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    I do think they're pretty. I'd be interested to try them, but I just look at them and think 'that would be really uncomfortable on my wrists'

    Not sure!
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • Aidy
    Aidy Posts: 2,015
    Jones H-bar? :)
  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    I've tried, and failed, to get on with "normal" drops for years, but On-One's Midges are just about the most comfortable bars I've had - they do look a bit funny though.

    http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/HBOOMI/on-o ... -handlebar

    If you want pretty, they do different colours. And mine are wrapped in a lovely pink tape to boot!
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Midges look fun! Wouldn't take my MTB style shifters though, no doubt..
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  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    they're MTB diameter, so the shifters would physically fit on - although how you'd get them comfortable to use I don't know.

    I keep meaning to get some bar-end shifters to try with them, but I also keep ending up with single-speed bikes, which kinda trumps the problem of which shifters to use.
  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    I'd looked at those before actually, and had the same problem as I say above about the 'I bet my wrists would hurt'!

    I also don't think I'd ride in the drops all the time. They're very wide in the drops.
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    I ride in the drops nearly all the time, it's the most comfortable position on them - wrists don't hurt at all. Riding on the brake hoods feels a bit weird and turned-out though.

    They /are/ very wide, but, like I said, I've never got on with normal drops - too narrow and cramped for me.
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Again, I've remembered my main problem - my stem has an outsize clamp, making my current bars outsize in the middle. Rather narrows down my options unless I spend more money. BAH!
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  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    midges come in 31.8mm clamp diameter too...

    (not that I'm trying to sell you on these - I just like 'em a lot myself. Friends and family have left me in no doubt that my taste in bikes is not matched by the general population - YMMV)
  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    Stem's aren't what you call pricey, in fact the on-one ones are £15 and at the right end of the weight scale (around 150g) (guess what I have on mine)

    I love the look of the on-one mungo http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/HBOOMU/on-o ... -handlebar but again, can't figure how on earth I'd get useable shifters and brakes on there, unless I fitted MTB stuff just facing down, no option to use either from the 'hood' part though.....either way be a lot heavier than my current carbon-fibre flats.

    Simon
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    although, on the subject of stems, I do run my bars pretty high, with an adjustable stem pointed straight up to get them comfy. Maybe the Midge shape wouldn't work as well without being able to fiddle the height a lot, which is harder on modern cockpit setups - they might need a new stem after all.
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    Hi,
    (you knew you wouldn't have to wait long before Buns pitched in, didn't you? :-) )

    I think the Soma bars in the pic are "moustache bars". They should be used with drop-bar levers which would follow the curve of the bar instead of spiralling off onto the aether!!

    Alternatives to drops or flats:

    Moustache bars- give you a choice of hand positions, without the full-tuck option.

    North road- Like moustache but less bendy and more upright. Use flat-bar levers.

    (I think Moustaches tend to curve down & north-roads up... I may be oversimplifying!)

    Bullhorns- either proper ones or flipped & chopped drops, give you a limited choice of positions but a narrow profile (aero, traffic-gaps) and a secure grip for sprinting.

    Butterflies- Like Mark Beaumont uses- bit OTT for most riding but popular on expedition bikes- lots of hand positions, work well with mountain-bike geometry.

    Also cowhorns (bit like a Chopper), tri-bars etc.. more specialist.

    Worth bearing in mind, too, that "drops" covers a range of styles, from deep-drop track bars through standard "maes" pattern to curvy "Randonneur" bars, as well as the modern variations with straight grip sections, flared "midge" bars, shallow drops etc.

    LiT- bullhorns are good on an urban fixie, cos they are narrow, aero, good for cranking really hard (using upper body) and look cool... If you set them up properly you should be able to get the same body position as you would "on the hoods" but with handlebar to grip instead of brake-hood and the levers at your fingertips.
    You don't get the versatility of drops, but you get the simplicity & efficacy of a tightly focussed setup... bit like riding fixed, really!!!

    Cheers,
    W.
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    Hrm, so not so much option for someone who just wants to have a bit of fun and make her bike look different - without shelling out on a new stem and shifters/brakes. Boo.

    It goes from £15 odd on a new handlebar, to about £50-odd very fast, and just for a whim it can't really be justified. Shame!
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  • robni.s
    robni.s Posts: 12
    yeah, that's what happened to me. I wasn't quite happy with my (only) bike, and 4 years later I've got 3 bikes, a garagefull of spare parts and an increasingly unimpressed significant other ;)
  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    WGWarburton wrote:

    LiT- bullhorns are good on an urban fixie, cos they are narrow, aero, good for cranking really hard (using upper body) and look cool... If you set them up properly you should be able to get the same body position as you would "on the hoods" but with handlebar to grip instead of brake-hood and the levers at your fingertips.
    You don't get the versatility of drops, but you get the simplicity & efficacy of a tightly focussed setup... bit like riding fixed, really!!!

    Cheers,
    W.

    Oooh thanks Buns!

    What would you use in the way of brake levers?
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    WGWarburton wrote:

    LiT- bullhorns are good on an urban fixie, cos they are narrow, aero, good for cranking really hard (using upper body) and look cool... If you set them up properly you should be able to get the same body position as you would "on the hoods" but with handlebar to grip instead of brake-hood and the levers at your fingertips.
    You don't get the versatility of drops, but you get the simplicity & efficacy of a tightly focussed setup... bit like riding fixed, really!!!

    Cheers,
    W.

    Oooh thanks Buns!

    What would you use in the way of brake levers?

    Personally, I use old 1970s Weinmanns (or similar) from the local bike recycler, 'cos they are cheap as chips and work with all the junk in my parts bins....

    Essentially, any non-STI drop bar levers that match your brakes- you won't be using the hoods, so you don't need to worry about the comfort, there, and that leaves cable routing as the major factor.

    I don't mind having top-exit brake cables, but there's no denying they don't make for clean lines. For a minimalist look you want cable runs along the bars, I presume that's possible with "aero" levers but I havn't used any... sorry!

    Check which bars you'll use. I think some bullhorns have a straight grip at the end, so they would use a TT lever, whereas others (like my flipped & chopped drops) have a curve (obviously... 'cos it's the same bar upside down!), so a drop-bar lever is used to follow it.

    Cheers,
    W.
  • shouldbeinbed
    shouldbeinbed Posts: 2,660
    my bars are moustache style and are far comfier on the wrists and hands that straight or longhorn MTB style. I've got enough room for furtniture on my bars but you don't have to mount lights particularly there
  • Oddjob62
    Oddjob62 Posts: 1,056
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    Oooh thanks Buns!

    What would you use in the way of brake levers?

    My FG had bullhorns till recently, only changed to get used to track drops

    Obviously I'm cool so I went brakeless.....

    j/k: had Dia Compe Dirty Harry.
    As yet unnamed (Dolan Seta)
    Joelle (Focus Expert SRAM)
  • night_porter
    night_porter Posts: 888
    WGWarburton wrote:
    Butterflies- Like Mark Beaumont uses- bit OTT for most riding but popular on expedition bikes- lots of hand positions, work well with mountain-bike geometry.
    .

    I don't understand why you think these are OTT? They provide different hand positions just like drops do.

    But maybe for people who only use the hoods drops are OTT after all why have that piece of tubing that you never use? :wink:

    I have a bike with Butterflies on and it gives a nice ride and a change from my bike with drops or my bike with flat bars and bar ends. Silly me I like riding all 3, in different situations (and a tandem with riser bars)

    Now after reading this thread it looks like I need more bikes to cover off the handlebars I currently don't have :lol:
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    night_porter wrote:
    WGWarburton wrote:
    Butterflies- Like Mark Beaumont uses- bit OTT for most riding but popular on expedition bikes- lots of hand positions, work well with mountain-bike geometry.
    .

    I don't understand why you think these are OTT? They provide different hand positions just like drops do.

    Yeah, sure.. very sensible alternative to drops on that type of bike. I guess they just seem a bit... ostentatious?... on a commuting bike. No reason why they should, really, it's just a perception thing.... bit like driving a Landy kitted out with expedition gear in the middle of Birmingham....
    But maybe for people who only use the hoods drops are OTT after all why have that piece of tubing that you never use? :wink:

    I have a bike with Butterflies on and it gives a nice ride and a change from my bike with drops or my bike with flat bars and bar ends. Silly me I like riding all 3, in different situations (and a tandem with riser bars)

    You know, apart from some light-hearted ribbing, I don't think anyone on this thread has argued that drops are always the best choice on every bike. I might be putting my own interpretation on it but I would say the thrust has been "don't assume you want flats on a street bike- drops have big advantages"
    Now after reading this thread it looks like I need more bikes to cover off the handlebars I currently don't have :lol:

    Aha! That sounds like the N+1 effect kicking in! :-)

    Cheers,
    W.
  • night_porter
    night_porter Posts: 888
    Me Austin Tatious..... are you confusing me for a spy! :wink:

    Although I did once have a Landy with a full Safari roof rack and drove it around London (good job it wasn't Birmingham I guess). :roll:

    I was a mobile engineer and had to carry some serious hardware up top (I think I once met a lady who also......oops me bad) :oops:
  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    I can get the 490mm Soma Sparrows for £28 delivered. Oh, how itchy my fingers are... very tempting..
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  • sarajoy
    sarajoy Posts: 1,675
    But then after a stem (or shim but that's probably not a good idea) and some bar tape for the curvy bits - we're edging £50. Dang!
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  • lost_in_thought
    lost_in_thought Posts: 10,563
    I'm quite tempted to try bullhorms... I have used my drops all of twice ever on my fixie. And I need new bar tape anyway. Oh and a new fork, new chain, new sprocket...

    Maybe I should just buy a new fixie.
    FCN 7/1
    Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
  • Oddjob62
    Oddjob62 Posts: 1,056
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    I'm quite tempted to try bullhorms
    Do it!!
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    Maybe I should just buy a new fixie.
    DO IT!!!!!!!
    As yet unnamed (Dolan Seta)
    Joelle (Focus Expert SRAM)
  • wgwarburton
    wgwarburton Posts: 1,863
    lost_in_thought wrote:
    I'm quite tempted to try bullhorms... I have used my drops all of twice ever on my fixie. And I need new bar tape anyway. Oh and a new fork, new chain, new sprocket...

    TBH, the main reason I did so was that the handlebars I had were bent, it was annoying & slightly awkward! Cutting much of the drop section off reduced the effect of the bend.
    Maybe I should just buy a new fixie.

    Then you can rebuild the current one as a winter hack, come October, and keep the shiny new one for summer duties... put lights, mudguards and a lower gear (1/8" drivetrain) on for cold/wet conditions but set the "summer" one up to be as lightweight and minimal as possible... that means NO Pannier Rack, OK? :-)

    Cheers,
    W.
  • JAKECANE
    JAKECANE Posts: 1
    I have the Soma Sparrows and I've been experimenting. It seems like there are a lot of possibilities with these bars. Aside from the options for posiitons of the brake levers, the use and position of gribs vs tape play a pretty major role.

    I've had them in the drop position for almost two months and I haven't been particularly in love with them. I don't feel like I'm reaching far-enough forward to be as aggressive as I would like. Also , after a longer ride my wrists ache. I just fipped them to the traditional/cruiser position and I'm not really satisfied.

    I've had some pretty basic grips that I pulled off a mountain bike, and BMX brake levers, on mine and I'm feeling lilmits with my hand positioning, contributing that lack of feeling aggressive.

    I'm thinking about going for something like the way these Albatross bars are setup:
    http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3122/2374072443_f1d5fbae2b_m.jpg

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