Bar end gear levers .....

[ozboz]

They have got to go !!!
I am always banging my knees on them whilst going into sharpish corners an manouvre ing in tight spaces, the front d'lr is not indexed so always seem to be trimming ,
A right royal pain !
So upgrade time for the Surley ,
Straight bars , new trigger gear and brake levers , plus cassette , Racks for back and front , then I will be ready for the
'Giro d Northumberland !!
I do not fancy drop bars with a largish back pack on , plus I want to be teady for any gradient, goat track or what ever them Geordies can challenge me with whilst exploring the castles and quest to see the Northern Lights !!

 

[mcshroom]

How about sawing off a length of drop bar form your drops (or buying shorter drops) to see if that helps with your knee strike.

Or maybe some flared bars like these - http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/HBOOMI/on-one-midge-handlebar

As for luggage, the cross check has mounts for front and rear racks. Unless it's a cost issue, I'd far rather have the luggage on the bike than on my back.

 

[cyberknight]

AS above you can trim the bars , i get on fine with my bar end shifters on my bastich mtb thingy .

 

[User32269]

I'm just about to convert an old Pioneer to drops and bar ends. Will use compact slightly flared drops, as I have with a few other bikes, and have never had any problems. I really like friction bar ends, suppose it's a case of different strokes for different folks!

 

[ozboz]

I know about the mounts , and its got flared bars , I am happy with my big ruck sack , its very comfortable ,and the wieght does not bother me at all , but for touring Id rather have the sit up position , much like the set up my MTB's , i dont mind riding head down arse up on my road bike but touring I want to take it all in ,

 

[Smokin Joe]

How about sawing off a length of drop bar form your drops (or buying shorter drops) to see if that helps with your knee strike.

That used to be common practice when using bar ends.

 

[mjr]

I've never tried bar ends but I'm surprised at anyone deliberately fitting trigger shifters, except for Sturmey Archer triggers. They seem like the worst of both worlds: all the disadvantages of separate levers with all the disadvantages of ratchets.

 

[ozboz]

I got on well with the lever systems on my MTB's and a hybrid I once had , precise shifting and I can position them to suit I'll get some XT type , m

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

I am always banging my knees on them whilst going into sharpish corners an manouvre ing in tight spaces

Yep - very silly place for shifters IMHO. Not least because in an "off" there's those pointy things aimed at some soft (or boney) bits.

 

[KneesUp]

Yep - very silly place for shifters IMHO. Not least because in an "off" there's those pointy things aimed at some soft (or boney) bits.

But the pointy bits move, so unless you hit them dead on, they will bend out of the way. The standard end of a drop bar does not have that function.

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

But the pointy bits move, so unless you hit them dead on, they will bend out of the way. The standard end of a drop bar does not have that function.

True but depends on impact speed and friction settings. I'd prefer to take my chances with a large area of bar end (with appropriate stoppers in place) than the pointy things. Bonkers if.no stoppers in place too. Trepanning anyone?

 

[Nigeyy]

Seconded. I've always thought bar end shifters were magnificently stupid. I know, I know, it's horses for courses but are they really in a natural easy to reach position? Away from the brake levers and at the bottom of the drops? I for one spend far more time on the hoods or the tops, and I like to be able to shift easily without having to move my hands down and take them off the bars to do so. And that's not even considering knee knocking either -surely suggestions of cutting bars to help alleviate this problem is just emblematic of the problem is that they are in a bad place?

I definitely have the thought that if they hadn't been invented yet and someone did invent them today.... they'd be the subject of much ridicule and wouldn't last in the market for five minutes. They just seem like they are a holdover from a time when they were a limp attempt to get shifters closer to the actual hand positions on a bar, and before comfy hoods had been invented.....

But, whatever floats your boat!

Yep - very silly place for shifters IMHO. Not least because in an "off" there's those pointy things aimed at some soft (or boney) bits.

 

[mjr]

before comfy hoods had been invented

Some would say they still haven't. Modern ones are better than the ones on my vintage road bike, but they still basically suck if your hand is too far away from average size.

 

[cyberknight]

i prefer my bar end shifters for winter , damn sight cheaper to replace if your fall off and destroy them compared to sti units .

 

[Smokin Joe]

i prefer my bar end shifters for winter , damn sight cheaper to replace if your fall off and destroy them compared to sti units .

That was one of the "Why I'd never have them" statements when brifters first came out. Has anyone ever known of one destroyed in a crash? I should think you have more chance of breaking your fork x 10.