V20 Handlebar Options???
- Thread starter Al_D
- Start date
Frito Bandito
Zen MBB Master
400mm bullhorns turned down, uncomfortable, slow and clumsy...
Same bars but turned up. Functional, slightly more comfortable, and as nice as the Dura Ace bar-end shifters are, I had to let go of the bar to shift. Not a good idea when you are climbing or accelerating.
390mm Nitto flared drop bars. These get my forearms tucked while still allowing shifting in big turns without my knee getting stabbed by a brake lever. I have a different mirror now that wraps around the brifter which is somewhat out of the wind, but the higher position allows a better rear view. I cut about 5cm from the drops since I never use them anyway, and this is the setup I will use for the forseeable future.
Same bars but turned up. Functional, slightly more comfortable, and as nice as the Dura Ace bar-end shifters are, I had to let go of the bar to shift. Not a good idea when you are climbing or accelerating.
390mm Nitto flared drop bars. These get my forearms tucked while still allowing shifting in big turns without my knee getting stabbed by a brake lever. I have a different mirror now that wraps around the brifter which is somewhat out of the wind, but the higher position allows a better rear view. I cut about 5cm from the drops since I never use them anyway, and this is the setup I will use for the forseeable future.
Are you looking for aerodynamic efficiency for going fast or comfort or something else? Some of the faster guys like Larry who have done lots of testing have found the hands low on the narrowist dropbars you can fit around your legs are the fastest setups that are still safe for road use (stubby bars are faster but require a lot of experience to be stable). I use 44cm slightly flared drop bars with 5cm cut off the ends (since you don't use that on a V20 and it gets in the way on tight turns). I find this fast and comfortable but some prefer the higher arm position for comfort.
Al_D
Active Member
Frito...
I noticed that one of your photo's has the adjustable head rest... do you recommend it?
Your upturned bars seem to prevent the "tunnel" effect of the narrow bars at the top end of the
pedal stroke. I have already found that the drops get in the way during a turn.
Your hand positioning looks very do-able... I have to try that out.
Thanks.
I noticed that one of your photo's has the adjustable head rest... do you recommend it?
Your upturned bars seem to prevent the "tunnel" effect of the narrow bars at the top end of the
pedal stroke. I have already found that the drops get in the way during a turn.
Your hand positioning looks very do-able... I have to try that out.
Thanks.
Andrew Wilson
Guru
Frito Bandito
Zen MBB Master
I have and used both the adjustable and the regular head rest bars, and while both worked fine, I went with the regular ones simply because they are lighter. Yes, when the bullhorn bars were on a bit more of my forearms were sticking out. The bar-end TT shifters are probably a bit more aero than the brifters, but not much. I do have a Deda Tribar that with a AXS ETap Blips and CF bar-end brake levers could be pretty sweet. Also, I could probably twist the TT shifters and brake levers so that my wrists narrowed things out a little, but in the end I just went with the brifters since I am not ready to plop down that much money on a new groupset just yet.
chicorider
Zen MBB Master
It seems that handlebars are one of those high personal preference items, up there with crank arm length and headrest design. I use the Genetic Digest flared dropbar (weird name and hard to find, but light weight, affordable, and I love the shape). I don't cut off any of the length, but being a smaller rider, I have no trouble with the bar getting in the way while turning. I do use the full drop length, up high and narrow when I want to cut through the wind a bit more, and down lower when I'm feeling more relaxed or want a wider grip for handling or power. They also put the shifters in a nice spot for me to grip when I want to give my arms a new position. They come in 44 and 48cm widths. I use the 44 size. 
DavidCH
In thought; expanding the paradigm of traversity
Emmm almost tempted to put the v20 up there but the tape looks a bit shabby. LOL
A quote from Larry's book. Try at speed to hold your handlebar with one arm and put the other down by your legs. Then you can have a cheap handlebar and still be able. Still have to perfect this technique though. It seems bonkers but I guess if it works , it works.
A quote from Larry's book. Try at speed to hold your handlebar with one arm and put the other down by your legs. Then you can have a cheap handlebar and still be able. Still have to perfect this technique though. It seems bonkers but I guess if it works , it works.
Al_D
Active Member
Frito...
You mentioned bullhorn bars in the first segment of you comments...
With them flipped upright and angled away from you, the ergo wrist angle would appear
to be comfortable... all the while allowing you to naturally tuck your elbows in and minimize drag.
My bike has GRX brifter/group so an upturned set of bullhorns looks like it will work, so long as the
bars will accomodate the brifter mount.
BTW... is the handlebar thing something everyone goes through cyclically (pun-ishment) with the
V20 setup?
I'm sure most riders prefer stock? Is that correct?
You mentioned bullhorn bars in the first segment of you comments...
With them flipped upright and angled away from you, the ergo wrist angle would appear
to be comfortable... all the while allowing you to naturally tuck your elbows in and minimize drag.
My bike has GRX brifter/group so an upturned set of bullhorns looks like it will work, so long as the
bars will accomodate the brifter mount.
BTW... is the handlebar thing something everyone goes through cyclically (pun-ishment) with the
V20 setup?
I'm sure most riders prefer stock? Is that correct?
Frito Bandito
Zen MBB Master
Al_D, I was hoping for what you described when I flipped them over, but it was a combination of a couple or few of (1) having to reach too far for the TT levers, (2) the brake levers not being in a good position to apply brakes effectively, (3) the brake levers hitting my knees, (4) raising the bars high enough to be somewhat comfortable would have negated the aero benefits of going with a TT setup and/or (5) my fingers not really being able to wrap around the bar well enough for a comfortable position. That bar position does allow for a bit of elbow tuck, but at the expense of just about everything else. The Deda Tribar handles are a lot shorter than the aluminum bar handles I used, so that might solve 1, 3 and 5, and pointing them a little higher might solve 2 and 4 without giving up too much aero. The OEM bars are 31.8mm I believe but my Nittos are smaller so I had to use a sleeve. Some do prefer stock bars. They are good bars but I think that once people get accustomed to the bike they go more narrow to squeeze out every last bit of speed they can out of it.
Frito Bandito
Zen MBB Master
Thanks Al_D. While it is fun tweaking the bike it does get expensive. I have 2 flared and chopped drop bars and 2 bullhorn bars in a box that take up a huge amount of space, not to mention other parts that my wife twisted my ear about. The V20 is built for speed though. During yesterday's ride on a downwind open section of the bike path I put my hands as close to the stem as possible to get a feel for what gunner bars feel like. I didn't crash but with the amount of weaving I was doing during that 500m section I think I added about 50m of travel distance. So, no gunner bars for a while for me 
benphyr
Guru-me-not
Makes me wonder if the war would have been different if one side had flared drop bars instead.gunner bars ... with the amount of weaving I was doing ... So, no gunner bars for a while for me
Nick Hrycaj
New Member
Andrew, looks like you have an aerodynamic deflector in front of your computer?
Andrew Wilson
Guru
Thank you, Yes I did. I had to Fab a mounting plate and draw up and 3D print a twist mount for the Computer to get it above the bars for a better connection to the Stages crank based power meter. I was bored one day and drew up the aero cover and printed it.
I have also added some printed mirror covers.Attachments
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Al_D
Active Member
I just found the extensive treatment of "Bullhorn vs Drop Bars" on this Forum's Innovators Workshop...
It is so thorough, that I am sorry I didn't see it before starting this thread.
Of course, that was prior to discovering that my "stock" bars had been chopped/cut down.
Thanks to Maria and Morgan... I was able to order a new set of stock V20 bars that were "on the work bench"...
It's all good with the Customer Service at Cruzbike!
It is so thorough, that I am sorry I didn't see it before starting this thread.
Of course, that was prior to discovering that my "stock" bars had been chopped/cut down.
Thanks to Maria and Morgan... I was able to order a new set of stock V20 bars that were "on the work bench"...
It's all good with the Customer Service at Cruzbike!
jond
Zen MBB Master
yep cruzbike has the best service. Yep the search function in the forum is your friend.
