Another handlebar question

[RA1]

Hello everyone

According to the stats at the top of the page I have spent days reading the entries on this forum lurking around – so about time I came out of the closet!

I own a Thorn Raven Tour (bought in 2009) but have yet to use it for touring! Ah well, the best laid plans…

During that time I have tried Comfort Bars, Modolo Yuma butterfly bars and narrow straight bars. All have something to commend them, all have their drawbacks. I have not tried drop handlebars because the frame is recommended for use only with straight bars. I had decided against drops because I thought I would not get on with the controls mounted on an accessory bar (my other bikes have drops). However while riding with the Yuma bars it has occurred to me that I have often been moving my hand to the twist grip just as much as if it had been mounted on another bar.

So is the frame rule cast in stone? Has anyone else used an L frame with drop handlebars and been happy with it? My frame is 561L and my favoured stem for the narrow bars is 100mm. I’d appreciate any thoughts and suggestions

Thanks in advance

Rob

[SPARSONS]

Rob,

I used drop bars on a 595L XTC, with a 80mm stem; it worked fine.

Conversely at present I'm riding a Raven Tour 586S version with a straight bar and a 120mm stem for a fairly upright relaxed position, again it works.

Regards,
Steve

[Danneaux]

Hi Rob!

A formal welcome to the Forum after so many years of looking-on (I did the same, retaining my guest status for over three years before registering). Nice to have you here with us.

I managed drops nicely on my 590M Nomad...but it is an "M" frame. I did so by employing a 60mm stem and compact drops, as shown in the link here: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4523.msg35201#msg35201

You can fit drops to your bike with no problem; the question is whether they will fit *you* in your preferred position. Without a photo of you on the bike or some idea of how upright you ride, I would suggest a short stem and handlebars that are compact in reach and shallow in drop to make up for the longer top tube. I'm not sure it will be enough to give you a comfortable position on your frame. You would gain back 2cm with the stem, and lose about 11cm, having you reach about 9cm further forward at the brake hoods midpoint in rough measurement if you went with my setup I have on your bike (remember, drops extend forward of the stem).

If you currently sit pretty upright and don't mind inclining forward a bit, it could work fine. I'd have to know more before I could make a better prediction.

If you need any measurements, give a shout and I'll be happy to provide them. A lot of the details are covered in my gallery entry if you're curious: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=4523.0

Best -- and welcome!

Dan.

[sdg_77]

Rob - I have been 'full circle' on my old Claud Butler tourer which I have had for around 28 years.  It started off with drops,  and as been through flats, risers, straight with bar ends, butterfly and now back to drops.  Only the frame is left from the original bike,  but that is another story ;-)

I put the drops on to decide if I liked bar end shifters before ordering my Sherpa and:
a) liked them and ordered the Sherpa with drops,
b) kept the drops on Claud as of all the options I prefer them.

With a few changes of stem I didn't find it too difficult to get each set of bars in a comfortable place,  so I would suggest you try drops on your Raven and experiment with stems to find what suits you.  It is not difficult to pick up stems from eBay so this need not be an expensive exercise.

Edit - I did try an adjustable stem at one point,  good for experimenting, and only one item to buy/fit,  but it creaked and groaned for much of the time so not something I would want on the bike long term.

Similarly, the Vee brake compatible levers are not too expensive, and the Dia Compe Bar End Shifter work fine.

hope that helps
sdg.

[RA1]

Hello again - and thanks for the replies!

Steve, SDG it's good to know that others  have successfully managed to accommodate drops. I have also beeen through the different combinations looking for the most comfortables set up. on our tandem the Comfort bars are just right - but we stop frequently and ride in a very leisurely manner!

Dan - Out this morning with the butterfly bars and consciously thinking about my position - occasionally looking at reflections in shop windows through Duffield and Belper! I would say that I definitely prefer the relaxed but leaning forward position that using the hoods gives. This is how most of my riding is done on my Mercian. The butterfly bars allow this - but they are wide and that does throw the wrist out more than traditional bars would.They're fine for the short commute I do every day but my wrists begins to let meknow about it after a longer ride.

Changing the bars is one of the relatively easy things to mess about with and I will keep trying alternatives. I already have Dia Compe levers for use with V brakes from a previous bike and (far too many  stems to experiment with. I will need to get the accessory bar, but at least that would then allow me to mount the handlebar bag on it if I decide to go back to the narrow bars! (I did look at the Ergon GP5 grips but have got to draw the line somewhere...)

It's probably a job that will wait for a while as everything has to be done in the yard and garden and just at the moment it's snowing again!

Once again thanks for the replies

Rob