I got a chance to ride the Dirt Research today and figured the fit kind of lends itself to a drop bar. I've been kind of hankering to build a drop bar bike anyway, so this is as good a time as any. So, my questions are:
What bars have you used and which of them did you prefer? Why?
Midge versus Gary. I saw another thread in the 29er forum about the two and the Gary looks kind of attractive because it is shallow and cheap. Thoughts?
Stem length? I've got a 135 on the bike now with a very low riser bar. I'll need a shorter stem with more rise? I had a drop bar on the gigantic stumpjumper many years ago for a very short time and the stem I used for the flat bar just seemed way too long for the Specialized dirt drop bar I was using. Is that right?
I don't know if maybe I should consider a mustache bar. I have one and it would make my wife happy if I stopped buying bike part. I used the mustache on an old road frame I had and kind of liked it. Kind of a different aesthetic though.
Yeah, I had a dirt drop for a while and gave it away :madman:
The midge and gary seem pretty close to the dirt drop and much easier to find. The new WTB drop bar looks more like a whacked road bar. They look to have really deep drops even.
So what did you find you had to do regarding stem length? Obviously you wouldn't ride that bike with a flat bar on that big riser stem, right?
I've not tried any other versions of dirt drops...so I'm really no help there.
SSMike is probably a good guy to ask about that.
As for position, imagine where your hands would be in that picture if it had something like a 130mm stem with a little rise and flat bars. Should put you right about the same place as where your hands would be if you were riding in the drops.
General rule of thumb is that your saddle height is even with the tops of the drop bars.
Stem length is much shorter with a whole lot of rise.
WTB Off-Road Drop Bar :The standard by which all other off-road drop bars are measured and a personal favorite of mine. Shallow drop, W-I-D-E flare, not much room to ride on top of the bar, if you're into such things.
Nitto Dirt Drops: Very roadlike, fairly deep drop, not much flare. Similar to a randonneuring bar.
Ibis Dirt Drop: Somewhere between the WTB and Nitto.
Midge: My other favorite. Shallow drop, wide flare(not as wide as the WTB) but the bar itself is wider. Better control in the drops and more space to ride on top, if you're into such things.
Haven't tried the Gary(which appears to be the love child of the Midge and the original WTB) nor the new WTB (which appears to be the spawn of the original WTB, the Salsa Bell Lap with a sprinkling of Midge thrown in for the hell of it)
BTW,
Rumphy's correct, ssmike would be the best person to ask.
Thanks for the input. Saddle height I figured would be about like what you describe. Similar to the position on my old road bikes, or on that bike currently with a low riser bar. I figure for a stem length I'll get the bar first and lay it on top of the current setup and see where the bar clamp area of the bar falls to get a general idea, then work from there.
This will be interesting. I figure it will feel more like riding on barends on a flat bar than the drops on a road bike.
I did a search. It's kind of hard to tell from the subject line what the contents are of each thread. About 4 pages into the results I found a couple threads that offered info about what levers to use, etc. The aforementioned thread in the 29er forum comparing the gary and the midge was helpful too. Not entirely what I was looking for though. Mostly I am interested in what people like regarding fit and style of bar.
Fit: top of the drop should be around the level of your seat +/- depending on whether you feel more comfortable sitting more upright or down low. Also, if you prefer riser bars, you might want to be on the plus side. If you like flat bars, level to minus side.
Style: flared ends like the original WTB or Midge bar are best. While I like moustache bars on commuter/all-rounder type bikes, I don't dig them as a pure off-road bar as much as the original WTB bar. I also like the old Ibis drop bars. Here's a photo of a bike with the Ibis bar. It's really an old Cinelli shape with the end twisted out instead of flared like the WTB.
Here's another link to an article about drop bars on mountain bikes. And another drop bar bike with WTB drops.
I like the WTB dropbars, RM2. They come with a Specialized and WTB logo stamped in. I recently bought the Specialized dropbars that were originally used on the Specialized Rockcombo. They are deeper than the WTB's, with less flare and wider in the topsection.
SSMike or other: do you know more about this Specialized Offroad dropbar.
I like the WTB dropbars, RM2. They come with a Specialized and WTB logo stamped in. I recently bought the Specialized dropbars that were originally used on the Specialized Rockcombo. They are deeper than the WTB's, with less flare and wider in the topsection.
SSMike or other: do you know more about this Specialized Offroad dropbar.
That bar kind of splits the difference between the WTB bar and the Bridgestone/Nitto bar with its very slight flare. It's probably closer to the new WTB bar.
Not fans of the Svelte pedals huh? I guess pedals aren't supposed to be considered 'consumables'
Anyway, lots of good pics and info. I think I have an idea of what to go with now. Just need to convince meine frau it's something that needs to get done
So do the Midge bars require road levers? I'm assuming the original WTB Off-Road Drop required road levers(?).
I'm currently running a disc front and V-brake rear on my Yo Eddy! SS and can't afford/justify changing the brakes, wheel and fork.
You can get linear compatable road levers, Diacompe 287-V, though I don't suppose that helps much if you are using a hydro disk in the front. I think Avid also makes mech disc brakes that are compatible with standard road levers.
You can get linear compatable road levers, Diacompe 287-V, though I don't suppose that helps much if you are using a hydro disk in the front. I think Avid also makes mech disc brakes that are compatible with standard road levers.
You can get linear compatable road levers, Diacompe 287-V, though I don't suppose that helps much if you are using a hydro disk in the front. I think Avid also makes mech disc brakes that are compatible with standard road levers.
Well I guess I could try them on another bike that has V's.
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