After the rides I did earlier in the year on the Fargo, the drop bars were really hurting me. I decided to take a risk and make some changes.
I bought Jones H-Bar handlebars, Silver Shifters, and Paul Thumbies, some new brake levers, and a new rear derailleur. This gives me a more upright riding position. The derailleur is just because I’m trying to sell the old shifter/brake levers/derailleur together as a set.
Bar tape and grips finished up the bars. The upright riding position didn’t work well with the stock saddle, so I moved the black Brooks saddle and seatpost over from the single-speed (there’s another story there too).
The bike as you see above was how it was ridden last weekend. I still want to change out the rest of the drivetrain. Shifting 10-speed stuff with friction can be problematic sometimes. I’ll replace the cassette with an 8-speed, which means a new chain also. I’d like to replace the crankset with a triple. This bike will be for gravel adventure, winter commuting, and some touring.
This is a picture (stolen from Tim) from last weekend’s ride. Yes, it’s a very upright position.
Those bars look great. I’ve had a sort of fascination with them since I first saw them. So have you been able to determine if they are a definite improvement over drop bars? and a long term solution?
Pondero,
They do make for a very upright position. It works well for my neck, but introduces more saddle issues. Switching to the Brooks saddle helped, but I think I need one of the wider sprung Brooks saddles for this position.
Long-term? It works. It’s allowing me to keep this bike.