has anyone tried bars like this?

[ccf]

Anyone know where I can get black anodized bar clamps? The shiny silver would look much better black.

-Cliff

 

[ChaleJake]

Agree. Since I switched to the Salsa bars the silver really stands out. I'd be interested in a black clamp also.

 

[ratz]

Agree. Since I switched to the Salsa bars the silver really stands out. I'd be interested in a black clamp also.

Black enamel spray paint; coat with clear nail polish; should last more than a season.
If they weren't aluminum I would say bake in oven like we do with stainless steel screens; but that would end badly with aluminum.

Or get a really nice Garmin GPS to mount there and hide the silver.

 

[ChaleJake]

Black enamel spray paint; coat with clear nail polish; should last more than a season.
If they weren't aluminum I would say bake in oven like we do with stainless steel screens; but that would end badly with aluminum.

Or get a really nice Garmin GPS to mount there and hide the silver.

I've been looking at GPS devices. It is on my Christmas list.

 

[Bentas]

Finally have new Deda bullhorns dialled in , they are 44cm wide and I have added a couple of inches to length.
This enables me to get arms straight when hands are up near bar end shifters I find this helps to really get the power down, and I can rest my hands down in the cradle for cruising.
Finding bars that enable straight arm position whilst having a more upright seat position 28 degrees, has been a challenge.
Bike seems to handle better with extra length because it brings hands nearer to steering axis.
Waiting on new brake levers before doing a better job with new bar tape.

 

[Bentas]

I still was not happy with the limitation of hand positions with bullhorn set up , when Kline ( ReklinedRider) dropped the idea into my head to flip them and create drop bars , though asthetically they look strange , well let's just say different, they work remarkably well , have attained almost straight arm positioning in drops and hoods, good leg clearance and because bars are now inline with steering axis , stability and handling are much improved.

 

[ReklinedRider]

So those are your Deda bars from the last post, just flipped? Pretty cool. Comfort and function/safety first, looks a distant second, imho. After all you're already on a 'weird' bike and most people won't see beyond the bike itself; the bars won't even register. If you're happy with them, that's all that counts!

 

[Bentas]

That's right Kline, the Deda bars from previous post flipped , if you look closely, the attachment location of boom clamp is now centred above head stem , and not slightly forward, as in previous post, as mentioned the bike seems more stable and predictable, the most telling indicator of this is , riding no hands, used to be doable but I was always ready to react quickly when the bike/ me would veer of course, about 20 to 30 metres usually.
Now I'm peddling for as far as I choose, at up to 30 Klms hr last ride, and the bike just feels planted, unlocking new options for eating , zipping clothing etc on the fly.
I've been building riding this format for over a decade, and love the fact that I'm still learning, still being surprised with
little bonuses like this.

 

[ReklinedRider]

if you look closely, the attachment location of boom clamp is now centred above head stem , and not slightly forward, as in previous post

yeah that's a subtle change. nice work!

 

[bladderhead]

I've been building riding this format for over a decade, and love the fact that I'm still learning, still being surprised with
little bonuses like this

What happens inside the brain of a Cruzbike owner? I never thought about modifying a DF. Just get the saddle the right height. You know right away how high you want it. It never occurred to me to modify the Grasshopper, and we have been through a lot together. But everybody's messing with their Cruzbike.

 

[1happyreader]

What happens inside the brain of a Cruzbike owner? I never thought about modifying a DF. Just get the saddle the right height. You know right away how high you want it. It never occurred to me to modify the Grasshopper, and we have been through a lot together. But everybody's messing with their Cruzbike.

[Deep voice] in the beginning there were only kits and how we modified.
Then came full bikes with few accessories ,, and we modified and posted our finds and victories over diamond frame designed bags, racks, ect.
It has been our History, our attitude, and perhaps our blood.
We are the type of people who will try different things, we are the cruzbike tribe.
LOL ,,, well I had fun

 

[Greg S]

What happens inside the brain of a Cruzbike owner? I never thought about modifying a DF. Just get the saddle the right height. You know right away how high you want it. It never occurred to me to modify the Grasshopper, and we have been through a lot together. But everybody's messing with their Cruzbike.

Full disclosure: I'm a dyed in the wool tweakaholic.

Having said that though, there are a number of bikes that I haven't laid a glove on since I first built them up other than to do maintenance.

There are others that I've changed everything (and I do mean *everything*): drivetrain, Campy, Shimano, Sram, doubles, triples, even fixed gear, not to mention bars, stems, saddles, ...

but oddly enough, I eventually hit on a combination that feels "right" for that bike. Sometimes, I get it right on the first try, sometimes I don't.

I feel like I'm close with the S40 but not quite "there" yet. Thor seat on order. Recently tried 650b, went back to 700c. Changed from disc to rim brakes (part of the reason for going back to 700c). Pretty happy with the drivetrain (went from 1x11 to 2x11), pretty happy with the bars (Soma Gators), finally got the headrest dialed, went to a 19" chain stay.

 

[cranky cyclist]

Hi Greg, I am just wondering why you decided to go back to a 2x11 and rim brakes? I am also building up an S40. Why the 19 inch chain stay?

 

[cranky cyclist]

I should also add that I am going with a 1x 12 system with a 9/ 50 cassette.

 

[Greg S]

Different reasons for each of those things:

2x11 - I wanted both a higher high and lower low gear than the 1x (which was the standard 42 tooth chainring and 11x42 cassette). I changed to a 50x34 with an 11x40 tooth cassette.

19 inch chain stay - I'm 6'3". I felt the "angle of attack" to the pedals with the 17" stays was too different as compared to a DF. I wanted to have the crank up a bit higher.

Rim brakes - I had a set of light wheels that were rim brake and wanted to try them. For the vast majority of riding I do rim brakes are more than adequate.

None of the changes I've made are irreversible. As I said, I like to experiment. So far, I like the chain stays so will stay with them. As I said, I also like the drivetrain. Jury is out on the rim brakes/lighter wheels.

 

[Greg S]

I should also add that I am going with a 1x 12 system with a 9/ 50 cassette.

If I go with electronic shifting on the S40 (which I might well do) I'd likely do the same: a 1x12 with a 9/50. I'm "sort of" waiting for the new Vendetta to see if there's something there I can't live without and if so would order the frame only option and build it up with an AXS drivetrain.

 

[Bentas]

What happens inside the brain of a Cruzbike owner? I never thought about modifying a DF. Just get the saddle the right height. You know right away how high you want it. It never occurred to me to modify the Grasshopper, and we have been through a lot together. But everybody's messing with their Cruzbike.

I can only speak for myself, being a DIY builder , I started tinkering with bikes when I was 10 years old, not satisfied
with the forks on my " dragster" in the sixties, I was heavily influenced by pics of Peter Fonda' s chopper in the cult classic "easy rider ", so I rigged up some radical extended forks from the legs off a discarded TV set, add a 16" front wheel off my scooter and I'm Peter Fonda,
Fast forward 40 yrs and not having worked creatively on bikes for many years, only maintenance on lots of road bikes ,
I was struggling with depression in my late forties , and came across some pics of recumbent bikes on the net.

My first build was a steel front wheel drive twist chain, pictured, I found that building and riding something from stuff mostly found in my shed, very satisfying and in my case therapeutic, and a dozen years later after moving from steel , to alu and now carbon, I' m still getting the same buzz out of building and refining home built bikes.

I heard it said once, if you feel stuck, as I was, " find something that you enjoy so much that time disappears"
tinkering with bikes worked for me in my early childhood , and it's working now in my second lol!
P.S it helps having an understanding wife.

 

[bladderhead]

Bicycle engineering is interesting because it is so complicated. All that rake and trail stuff about which there is no definitive answer. And the rider is part of the machine, so there is bio-mechanics. Then the wheel-builders say that the wheels are the most important bits, and start arguing about spoke tension.I

Whole new areas of thought are opened by the idea of the bicycle.