Bullhorn and Dropbar Options
- Thread starter BentBierz
- Start date
mzweili
Guru
DEDA HANDLE BAR
Ivan,
I thinks it's more the angle of view that makes you see it differently.
I followed Bob's instructions when cutting the handle bar. Once the ''horn'' of the bull is gone, there is not much straight tube remaining.
I'm still going to play with the angle of this set-up before putting the tape on it.
Ivan,
I thinks it's more the angle of view that makes you see it differently.
I followed Bob's instructions when cutting the handle bar. Once the ''horn'' of the bull is gone, there is not much straight tube remaining.
I'm still going to play with the angle of this set-up before putting the tape on it.
ratz
Wielder of the Rubber Mallet
Yep there's an insert
Ivan's right. I mounted ours about 2cm-2.5cm further forward so that the brifter's plastic housing is hanging off the end. Since brifters are made to go on a curved bar it works and is stable. (Did chin-ups hanging from them to test). I did that to get just a bit more reach and leg room. Optimal custom bars would be about 5-8cm longer on the horn with cut down lines.
Then I made a PVC tubing insert to go into the end of the horn's aluminum bar. The insert has was cut and so that the very end of the bar is vertical. The sole purpose of the insert was to make wrapping the bar smoother. I didn't take photos because it was a putzy struggle, and the first attempt was quite the extraordinary hack. I was surprised that the result was good enough and that I didn't need to redo it. Orginal plan was to make better parts and photo those.
I need to make the video of how I wrapped the tape. I will do that on Saturday. I will get photos of the current hack in all it's glory. I still plan to do the ghetto parts better but they do work for now.
Ivan's right. I mounted ours about 2cm-2.5cm further forward so that the brifter's plastic housing is hanging off the end. Since brifters are made to go on a curved bar it works and is stable. (Did chin-ups hanging from them to test). I did that to get just a bit more reach and leg room. Optimal custom bars would be about 5-8cm longer on the horn with cut down lines.
Then I made a PVC tubing insert to go into the end of the horn's aluminum bar. The insert has was cut and so that the very end of the bar is vertical. The sole purpose of the insert was to make wrapping the bar smoother. I didn't take photos because it was a putzy struggle, and the first attempt was quite the extraordinary hack. I was surprised that the result was good enough and that I didn't need to redo it. Orginal plan was to make better parts and photo those.
I need to make the video of how I wrapped the tape. I will do that on Saturday. I will get photos of the current hack in all it's glory. I still plan to do the ghetto parts better but they do work for now.
bladderhead
Zen MBB Master
My bars. I think I might
My bars. I think I might have them cut.
/root/sites/default/files/image1_0.jpg
My bars. I think I might have them cut.
/root/sites/default/files/image1_0.jpg
custom bars for Silvio 1.5
I have been following ratz's handle bar thread with a great deal of interest. I would like a dropped bullbar with brifters to fit a Silvio 1.5.
I think that Nitto B602AA promenade bars would be easy to customise as they only require the final bar end bend to be added, which could be simply done with a pipe bender. These bars are 48 cm wide center to center , 25.4mm at the stem and have a drop of 62mm.
I have been following ratz's handle bar thread with a great deal of interest. I would like a dropped bullbar with brifters to fit a Silvio 1.5.
I think that Nitto B602AA promenade bars would be easy to customise as they only require the final bar end bend to be added, which could be simply done with a pipe bender. These bars are 48 cm wide center to center , 25.4mm at the stem and have a drop of 62mm.
Ivan
Guru
Marc, that bar setup you
Marc, that bar setup you showed in the other thread is LOOKING GOOD! Kudos to Ratz to figuring this out. I am more and more tempted to try this out.
Matt, do those Nitto B602AA promenade bars come in correct clamp width or have to use a shim? Can brifter clamps fit these cos mountain bars and road bars are different diameter in the hand grip sections right? The geometry is interesting and certainly would provide sufficient reach!
Marc, that bar setup you showed in the other thread is LOOKING GOOD! Kudos to Ratz to figuring this out. I am more and more tempted to try this out.
Matt, do those Nitto B602AA promenade bars come in correct clamp width or have to use a shim? Can brifter clamps fit these cos mountain bars and road bars are different diameter in the hand grip sections right? The geometry is interesting and certainly would provide sufficient reach!
custom bars for Silvio 1.5
Ivan, the Nitto bars are the correct clamp width for a Silvio 1.5 , but not for a Silvio 2.
I have just looked at these bars online so am unsure whether they will accept brifters , but I think that they have a lot of potential to customise into a very good handle bar setup.
Ivan, the Nitto bars are the correct clamp width for a Silvio 1.5 , but not for a Silvio 2.
I have just looked at these bars online so am unsure whether they will accept brifters , but I think that they have a lot of potential to customise into a very good handle bar setup.
Ivan
Guru
Bladderhead: Why are you
Bladderhead: Why are you putting a flat handlebar on Silvio 2? Is it to run grip shifters? Both drops (original and otherwise) and bullhorns have proven themselves with a key raison d'être being that they extend the reach, allowing much sought-after straighter arms. Having a flat bar appears to run counter to this.
Bladderhead: Why are you putting a flat handlebar on Silvio 2? Is it to run grip shifters? Both drops (original and otherwise) and bullhorns have proven themselves with a key raison d'être being that they extend the reach, allowing much sought-after straighter arms. Having a flat bar appears to run counter to this.
ratz
Wielder of the Rubber Mallet
Clever
Marc,
Very clever; I didn't mount them that way, but I did hold them up like that and look at it. I did conclude they were close enough that CB could probably bend/manufacturing a version of what we have be exploring if it turn out good.
I will be curious to see what you find when you ride it.
I figured there would be two problems, (1) seemed like the reach would be even shorter than the deda's which was just enough as it was. (2) I wasn't sure I would have enough leg clearance left and right from the narrow spacing of the elbow drop turn. The still have a lot of flare. Can you take a photo straight on from the Nose of the bike?
Might be something Ivan could test for zero investment too. Btw Ivan, I finally got the packaging materials to get that care package on it's way to you on Thursday.
Now that I have almost 200 miles in now I have a feeling I probably could ride that configuration. Looking forward to hearing how that works out for you.
I did have the pleasure this past Saturday to ride into a 22 mph head wind. With a bit of effort I chased down a pace line of 3 roadies from the local bike shop team. It was rather fun to point out to them that it was far too windy to be riding solo that day; and then I just road away from them. So I'm pretty happy with the wind performance so far. But man it was COLD; and they are saying snow tonight. (and no I don't think I'd have caught them on a non-windy day..... not yet)
Marc,
Very clever; I didn't mount them that way, but I did hold them up like that and look at it. I did conclude they were close enough that CB could probably bend/manufacturing a version of what we have be exploring if it turn out good.
I will be curious to see what you find when you ride it.
I figured there would be two problems, (1) seemed like the reach would be even shorter than the deda's which was just enough as it was. (2) I wasn't sure I would have enough leg clearance left and right from the narrow spacing of the elbow drop turn. The still have a lot of flare. Can you take a photo straight on from the Nose of the bike?
Might be something Ivan could test for zero investment too. Btw Ivan, I finally got the packaging materials to get that care package on it's way to you on Thursday.
Now that I have almost 200 miles in now I have a feeling I probably could ride that configuration. Looking forward to hearing how that works out for you.
I did have the pleasure this past Saturday to ride into a 22 mph head wind. With a bit of effort I chased down a pace line of 3 roadies from the local bike shop team. It was rather fun to point out to them that it was far too windy to be riding solo that day; and then I just road away from them. So I'm pretty happy with the wind performance so far. But man it was COLD; and they are saying snow tonight. (and no I don't think I'd have caught them on a non-windy day..... not yet)
mzweili
Guru
BULLHORNS (suite)
I gave the reversed stock handle bar (bullhorn position) a try on the road. I didn't spend much time to adjust them properly, the bars were too close, thus my arms too much bent, but I think its a viable solution to get the feel of a bullhorn handle bar at no cost.
For me these bars are too wide and not esthetically pleasing.
In the mean time I got my DEDA low rider modified. I removed the bend of the horns and got the short straight section (35mm) welded onto the end. This modified DEDA Lowrider bar is works fine with the Silvio standard set-up.
But as soon as I'm more used to my Silvio, I plan to install a chainstay extension. Then the handlebar comes lower, and the DEDA Lowrider will certainly cause leg interference. I think I'll get a straight DEDA Chrononero Team for this upcoming modification.
I gave the reversed stock handle bar (bullhorn position) a try on the road. I didn't spend much time to adjust them properly, the bars were too close, thus my arms too much bent, but I think its a viable solution to get the feel of a bullhorn handle bar at no cost.
For me these bars are too wide and not esthetically pleasing.
In the mean time I got my DEDA low rider modified. I removed the bend of the horns and got the short straight section (35mm) welded onto the end. This modified DEDA Lowrider bar is works fine with the Silvio standard set-up.
But as soon as I'm more used to my Silvio, I plan to install a chainstay extension. Then the handlebar comes lower, and the DEDA Lowrider will certainly cause leg interference. I think I'll get a straight DEDA Chrononero Team for this upcoming modification.
Eric Winn
Zen MBB Master
Cruzbike Bullhorns vs Deda Drop Bullhorns
Since my right shifter got out of whack from my crash during this year's N24HC I needed to disassemble my bullhorn setup on my Vendetta in order to fix the shifter problem. And since I was taking the bars off anyway .... I figured I would play with a Deda drop bullhorn handlebar that happened to come my way.
First, the Deda finish coating is much coarser than the Cruzbike bar and the cable routing holes that come with it are toothed and jagged on the inside - as if they use a punch instead of drilling the holes. Additionally the finish coating also ending up covering part of the jagged edges and made them sharper, almost like they were a bunch of black pointed teeth.
The Cruzbike finish is more of a satiny, velvet feel with none of the coarseness or roughness of the Deda. The Cruzbike bar also feels lighter even though it is longer and has a thinner tube wall thickness than the Deda.
The drop in the Deda does indeed lower your overall arm and hand position a bit but the straight bit of tube on the ends where the bar-end shifters go is approximately half the length of this same section on the Cruzbike bars.
![](https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5515/14389340439_1b7f606a90_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
![](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3888/14389562489_6a2161fdcd_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
![](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3880/14576170915_8d855d1c27_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
If I move the brake lever further down past the curve on the Deda, I can't reach the lever without stretching. Note my palm is further away from the bar in this photo because I am rotating my hand to try and reach the brake lever.
![](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3860/14389495097_76bb6bd58f_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
And if I flip the brake lever around like Bob has his, I get interference with the shifter unless I rotate the shifter to work the other way or offset the brake lever. I don't like rotating the shifter as I prefer the point forward fast, pull back and up for slow and the orientation with it going forward also fits better in my hand. Offsetting the brake lever clears the shifter but it is still more difficult to operate this way.
![](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3897/14389307689_472d2266de_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
![](https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2939/14389245640_768569d165_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
John's reversed brake lever works to get basic braking but it has flaws. Brake feel is not great because you are pushing the brake cable housing into a curve to effect a cable pull so-to-speak. As you can see, this also results in the plastic cable housing splitting at the pivot base where the angle tends to get fairly acute. In this photo the exposed cable housing originally had a much larger radius in it when the brake lever is released but it tended to make the split difficult to notice so I pushed more of the cable into the bar to reduce the curve or radius to make the split more visible. There is a metal ferrule on the end of the housing and the plastic sheath has split at the lower edge of the ferrule.
![](https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3879/14575955335_71ea2e35aa_n.jpg title="Click for larger image)
On the Cruzbike bullhorns the position and reach for the lever is fine, even with small hands like mine but the cable housing "push" rather than a straight cable "pull" really needs a better solution.
The Tektro FL540 looks like about right but they don't seem to be readily available anymore and I suspect the one-piece clamp body won't slide into the curve where I need it. Additionally, the clamp spec is for 22.2mm ID handlebars. The RL720 levers I have spec the clamp for 24mm OD handlebars and those fit fine. I don't have a measuring caliper but using a metric tape measure the ID of the Cruzbike is about 21mm and the Deda is 20mm with both having an OD of about 23.5mm. The wall is thinner on the Cruzbike bar. Strange ways these manufacturers spec their measurements...
![](http://www.tektro.com/upfiles/propic01370225803.jpg title="Click for vendor reference page)
If I find something that works, I'll post an update.
-Eric
Since my right shifter got out of whack from my crash during this year's N24HC I needed to disassemble my bullhorn setup on my Vendetta in order to fix the shifter problem. And since I was taking the bars off anyway .... I figured I would play with a Deda drop bullhorn handlebar that happened to come my way.
First, the Deda finish coating is much coarser than the Cruzbike bar and the cable routing holes that come with it are toothed and jagged on the inside - as if they use a punch instead of drilling the holes. Additionally the finish coating also ending up covering part of the jagged edges and made them sharper, almost like they were a bunch of black pointed teeth.
The Cruzbike finish is more of a satiny, velvet feel with none of the coarseness or roughness of the Deda. The Cruzbike bar also feels lighter even though it is longer and has a thinner tube wall thickness than the Deda.
The drop in the Deda does indeed lower your overall arm and hand position a bit but the straight bit of tube on the ends where the bar-end shifters go is approximately half the length of this same section on the Cruzbike bars.
If I move the brake lever further down past the curve on the Deda, I can't reach the lever without stretching. Note my palm is further away from the bar in this photo because I am rotating my hand to try and reach the brake lever.
And if I flip the brake lever around like Bob has his, I get interference with the shifter unless I rotate the shifter to work the other way or offset the brake lever. I don't like rotating the shifter as I prefer the point forward fast, pull back and up for slow and the orientation with it going forward also fits better in my hand. Offsetting the brake lever clears the shifter but it is still more difficult to operate this way.
John's reversed brake lever works to get basic braking but it has flaws. Brake feel is not great because you are pushing the brake cable housing into a curve to effect a cable pull so-to-speak. As you can see, this also results in the plastic cable housing splitting at the pivot base where the angle tends to get fairly acute. In this photo the exposed cable housing originally had a much larger radius in it when the brake lever is released but it tended to make the split difficult to notice so I pushed more of the cable into the bar to reduce the curve or radius to make the split more visible. There is a metal ferrule on the end of the housing and the plastic sheath has split at the lower edge of the ferrule.
On the Cruzbike bullhorns the position and reach for the lever is fine, even with small hands like mine but the cable housing "push" rather than a straight cable "pull" really needs a better solution.
The Tektro FL540 looks like about right but they don't seem to be readily available anymore and I suspect the one-piece clamp body won't slide into the curve where I need it. Additionally, the clamp spec is for 22.2mm ID handlebars. The RL720 levers I have spec the clamp for 24mm OD handlebars and those fit fine. I don't have a measuring caliper but using a metric tape measure the ID of the Cruzbike is about 21mm and the Deda is 20mm with both having an OD of about 23.5mm. The wall is thinner on the Cruzbike bar. Strange ways these manufacturers spec their measurements...
If I find something that works, I'll post an update.
-Eric
ReklinedRider
Zen MBB Master
Soma Urban Cross Levers,
Soma Urban Cross Levers, maybe?
Soma Urban Cross Levers, maybe?
ratz
Wielder of the Rubber Mallet
Interesting....
Thanks for posting the comparatives Eric...
I'm Curious.. How much further is the reach on the cruzbike bars?
I hadn't consider the interference on the orientation of the shifters; I've had mine going backwards since the beginning so I never tried that combination to see the conflict. I know they do the offset brake on the zockra prototypes with the brake lever on the outside. One thing I like on the reverse is I can just tap the round part of the shifter with me thumb and it will shift. Silly but effective.
Doesn't John's Design call for Flexible Cable Noodles to prevent the cable from splitting from the tight turn? I wonder if Jagwire Link Elite would handle that better.
Interesting how you noticed the finish right away compared to your Vendetta's high gloss yellow and smooth bullhorns. A Silvio user wouldn't notice because that's the exact same anodized finish we have on our booms; it's almost identical. So on a black Silvio it blends in perfectly. As for the metal burs... yeah those suck I had to use a file on mine to clean that up.
My Vendetta showed up today. So I'll be in the Garage building that tomorrow. I scored some Origin 8 Gary Bars on ebay; Not sure if they are the original ones or the version 2. I'm going to build up the Vendetta with those and brifters. If the bars are low enough I'll give that a go for a bit. So far I like what I see from those bars. If they aren't low enough or I don't like them then I have a Deda on order and I'll be doing Brifters as the horns same as Mrs Ratz; those won't get here for 6 weeks (takes a long time to get the wide ones) so that will give me some time to test the drops.
It's possible I'll wind up with bar ends like I have the Silvio; I've used brifters for years without issue; but I find I really really like the bar ends on the Silvio; they remove the ambiguity of wonder which gear I'm in. It's also nice that the sifters look like they are flippy off the biggest hills when I climb them.
Thanks for posting the comparatives Eric...
I'm Curious.. How much further is the reach on the cruzbike bars?
I hadn't consider the interference on the orientation of the shifters; I've had mine going backwards since the beginning so I never tried that combination to see the conflict. I know they do the offset brake on the zockra prototypes with the brake lever on the outside. One thing I like on the reverse is I can just tap the round part of the shifter with me thumb and it will shift. Silly but effective.
Doesn't John's Design call for Flexible Cable Noodles to prevent the cable from splitting from the tight turn? I wonder if Jagwire Link Elite would handle that better.
Interesting how you noticed the finish right away compared to your Vendetta's high gloss yellow and smooth bullhorns. A Silvio user wouldn't notice because that's the exact same anodized finish we have on our booms; it's almost identical. So on a black Silvio it blends in perfectly. As for the metal burs... yeah those suck I had to use a file on mine to clean that up.
My Vendetta showed up today. So I'll be in the Garage building that tomorrow. I scored some Origin 8 Gary Bars on ebay; Not sure if they are the original ones or the version 2. I'm going to build up the Vendetta with those and brifters. If the bars are low enough I'll give that a go for a bit. So far I like what I see from those bars. If they aren't low enough or I don't like them then I have a Deda on order and I'll be doing Brifters as the horns same as Mrs Ratz; those won't get here for 6 weeks (takes a long time to get the wide ones) so that will give me some time to test the drops.
It's possible I'll wind up with bar ends like I have the Silvio; I've used brifters for years without issue; but I find I really really like the bar ends on the Silvio; they remove the ambiguity of wonder which gear I'm in. It's also nice that the sifters look like they are flippy off the biggest hills when I climb them.
mzweili
Guru
Deda Handlebars
Bob,
I ordered twice from following seller:
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/High-On-Bikes_Handlebars-Road-Bike_W0QQLHQ5fSellerWithStoreZ1QQLHQ5fTitleDescZ1QQ_fsubZ10575221QQ_sasiZ1QQ_sidZ69901822QQ_trksidZp4634Q2ec0Q2em322
Always got delivered within 10 days to Canada
Marc
Bob,
I ordered twice from following seller:
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/High-On-Bikes_Handlebars-Road-Bike_W0QQLHQ5fSellerWithStoreZ1QQLHQ5fTitleDescZ1QQ_fsubZ10575221QQ_sasiZ1QQ_sidZ69901822QQ_trksidZp4634Q2ec0Q2em322
Always got delivered within 10 days to Canada
Marc
Eric Winn
Zen MBB Master
Kline, the Soma Urban Cross
Kline, the Soma Urban Cross levers are either clones or re-brands of the Tektro RL720 levers so no joy there.
Bob, the straight part of the bar ends on the Cruzbike bullhorns are 60-65mm depending on how far you measure into the inner or outer part of the curve. The corresponding measurement on the Deda's is 30-35mm. The bar-end shifter base adds another 7mm on the palm side (the way I use them) and about 11mm on the forward side where my index finger wraps.
I have ordered two different regular brake levers (non-cross) that will result in a cable pull with the lever arm mounted pointing forward which eliminates cable housing under the hands and works well for the holes and internal cable routing through the Cruzbike bullhorns. With the Tektro RL720s, I mount them in the curve for the best orientation for cable routing and hand position on the levers. The clamp part of any replacement needs to have similar flexibility to accommodate the slightly extra width of being on the curve. The Deda curve is also a tad sharper than the Cruzbike curve.
I'm going to try a Tektro RT354AG and something called an Eastern Bikes brake lever (6061 alloy, Matte Red - heh!) that looks a little bit like a Tektro FL540 except it has a two-piece hinged clamp similar to but thicker than the Tektro RL720. Apparently I was tired when I ordered the EB lever as I only ordered 1 so if this fits and works I'll need to order another one.
There are a few others that look like they might work but I pretty much have to assess by looking at the photos and review comments to get an idea if they will fit as few provide any kind of useful specifications for clamp diameter and other dimensional numbers...
Kline, the Soma Urban Cross levers are either clones or re-brands of the Tektro RL720 levers so no joy there.
Bob, the straight part of the bar ends on the Cruzbike bullhorns are 60-65mm depending on how far you measure into the inner or outer part of the curve. The corresponding measurement on the Deda's is 30-35mm. The bar-end shifter base adds another 7mm on the palm side (the way I use them) and about 11mm on the forward side where my index finger wraps.
I have ordered two different regular brake levers (non-cross) that will result in a cable pull with the lever arm mounted pointing forward which eliminates cable housing under the hands and works well for the holes and internal cable routing through the Cruzbike bullhorns. With the Tektro RL720s, I mount them in the curve for the best orientation for cable routing and hand position on the levers. The clamp part of any replacement needs to have similar flexibility to accommodate the slightly extra width of being on the curve. The Deda curve is also a tad sharper than the Cruzbike curve.
I'm going to try a Tektro RT354AG and something called an Eastern Bikes brake lever (6061 alloy, Matte Red - heh!) that looks a little bit like a Tektro FL540 except it has a two-piece hinged clamp similar to but thicker than the Tektro RL720. Apparently I was tired when I ordered the EB lever as I only ordered 1 so if this fits and works I'll need to order another one.
There are a few others that look like they might work but I pretty much have to assess by looking at the photos and review comments to get an idea if they will fit as few provide any kind of useful specifications for clamp diameter and other dimensional numbers...
