# Flat bar to Drop bar conversion Specialized Sirrus Elite



## Lonerider (30 Jul 2008)

Here are before and after pictures of my recent flat bar to drop bar conversion

I initially bought my Specialized Sirrus Elite to get into road cycling. I always thought drop bars and levers looked dangerous to operate and settled on the Sirrus following the advice of Dales cycles in Glasgow. It is a great bike and was the right bike for me at the time.

However, having gained confidence on the roads and wanting ever more speed and performance and having had a go of some road bikes recently I saw the advantages of having a racing styled bike. These for me included being in a wind beating posture and being able to control braking and gear changes from both the upright position (on hoods - previously bar ends) and on the drop position.

Having been out on the bike following the conversion I have noticed an overall advantage in my average speeds of around 1 mph (previously 15.5 mph now 16.5 mph on country lanes with rolling hills). I also think my bike is lighter overall however I have not weighed it.

Here is a list of parts bought from Ribblecycles.co.uk used for the conversion:


Shimano Tiagra 4500 9 Speed STI Levers 
Road racing drop handlebars
Cinneli cork ribbon
Gear/ Brake cable inners and outers
Total Cost £112


The Ergo levers work with mini V brakes – something which when researching I found much conflicting information.

The Tiagra Ergo levers plumed straight in to existing front and rear derailers and work with triple and double chainsets. They are of high quality and are extremely comfy.

I hope this is of some interest to those thinking about doing the same. It saved me a fortune from buying a new bike (which I nearly done at a cost of £900).

Lonerider


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## GilesM (31 Jul 2008)

The after pic looks much better, I'm glad you are seeing the real benefit of the drop handle bar. Just as a matter of interest, did you change to the SPD pedals before of at the same time as the handlebar change, just wonder if that added any improvement to the average speeds. 

Have fun

Giles


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## Flying_Monkey (31 Jul 2008)

Good job - and yes, mini-Vs are fine with both Shimano and Campag road levers. I have them on my drop-barred Kaffenback.


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## Lonerider (31 Jul 2008)

GilesM said:


> Just as a matter of interest, did you change to the SPD pedals before of at the same time as the handlebar change, just wonder if that added any improvement to the average speeds.
> 
> Have fun
> 
> Giles



I changed the pedals around 2 months ago along with the tyres which were 28c before - now 23c for improved rolling resistance, My average speed went from low 14s to mid 15s in MPH. 

Again I was fearfull of being attached to the pedals, however having took the plunge it's been a cycling revolution for me (exuse the unintended play on words). I haven't had a clipless moment (yet) and am really confident in them. In terms of difficulty of use out of ten - ten being the hardest to operate I would have initailly rated them on first use as 2/10 for difficulty, now 0/10.

As for skinny tires, I assumed these would die at the first road defect along with me. However these to have proved to be pretty robust, some of the roads I am on really test them. 

Road bikes looked flimsy and easily broken to me, however they seem to work pretty well on the 'roads' funnily enough considering thats what there designed for.

p.s. thanks for all positive feedback


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## HLaB (31 Jul 2008)

Good Job Lonerider,

I'm thinking about doing something similar myself to my Sirrus and making it a better winter bike for club runs.

Having said that my work are starting the cycle to work scheme in October and I might be tempted to get a new bike although, where do I put it .

I've not had a serious look yet but I'm considering a SCR or Spesh Tricross.


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## BentMikey (31 Jul 2008)

I've done the same, weirdly on the same model of bike, though a few years ago.


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## Lonerider (1 Aug 2008)

HLaB said:


> Good Job Lonerider,
> 
> I'm thinking about doing something similar myself to my Sirrus and making it a better winter bike for club runs.
> 
> ...



I had the same urge to buy something. Seemed like a good excuse for a treat. But whilst browsing some £800 - £1000 bikes I came across the Sirrus and it looked good. I thought 'I already have a nice bike', sure the Cannondale CAAD rrp £999 that I test rode was Shimmano 105 equiped and a few pounds lighter, but purchasing it would have made _me_ a few hundred pounds lighter. 

The performance of the Cannondale CAAD over my Sirrus did not blow me away, not enough to say I really want it and it's worth the extra dosh. I probably would have thought 'that was a waste' and then felt sorry for my trusty Sirrus getting sidelined. Furthermore I also have little space for storage and would have had to sell the Sirrus and probably would not have got a lot for it second hand.

So converting it met my need to have a racing styled bike and saved me a fortune from buying a new bike and selling the Sirrus for next to nothing. 

The two bikes you are considering are quality bikes, and if you took the plunge I would totaly understand, the urge to get a new bike is something which lingers not too far from me most of the time.


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## Maz (1 Aug 2008)

Nice job. I have a Sirrus Elite, too. Your finished bike looks like an Allez now. I think I'd be way out of my depths doing a conversion, but would love to have a road bike.


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## GilesM (1 Aug 2008)

> I changed the pedals around 2 months ago along with the tyres which were 28c before - now 23c for improved rolling resistance, My average speed went from low 14s to mid 15s in MPH.
> 
> Again I was fearfull of being attached to the pedals, however having took the plunge it's been a cycling revolution for me (exuse the unintended play on words). I haven't had a clipless moment (yet) and am really confident in them. In terms of difficulty of use out of ten - ten being the hardest to operate I would have initailly rated them on first use as 2/10 for difficulty, now 0/10.



I'm glad you've taken the plunge and are happy, feet locked firmly to the pedals has to be the way to ride a bike.

Have fun

Giles


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## Steve Austin (2 Aug 2008)

Good Job!!


Looks so much better now. :?:


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## ohCoy (10 Jul 2009)

*I'm converting my Sirrus too..*

Thanks for posting this very helpful information - I really appreciate it!! I have the same bike & love it & it meets all my needs...except for the flat handlebar. I just can not get used to it regardless of what I do. I've tried different stems, different seat placement, angles etc & have finally gotten to be 75% OK with it - which is not good enough for me. 

So I said the heck with it & decided on changing the handlebar to what I really want & began research a few months ago. Like you, I ran across much convoluted & contradictory information & was about to give up. Thankfully I tried once more & hit upon the magic Google word combination & your entry popped up.

The information is exactly what I needed & I am in process of getting the components now. The cost is roughly the same as you reported. Once I have everything, I'll be praying for bad weather (won't have to wait long in Ohio) so I can get off the bike & begin surgery.
I'll post again later with the results. Again , thanks for taking the time to share!!


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## Downward (10 Jul 2009)

Can this be done on any Hybrids ?

With the increasing costs of Entry level Road bikes there must be a cheaper option ?


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## HJ (10 Jul 2009)

Downward said:


> Can this be done on any Hybrids ?
> 
> With the increasing costs of Entry level Road bikes there must be a cheaper option ?



It can but whether it is worth it on some of the heaver entry level Hybrids is debatable...


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## upandover (12 Jul 2009)

I've just been looking for the leavers/shifters, and can't find any below around £100. Where did you find yours please?

Thanks
Steve


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## HLaB (12 Jul 2009)

upandover said:


> I've just been looking for the leavers/shifters, and can't find any below around £100. Where did you find yours please?
> 
> Thanks
> Steve


Mine were £99 from the Ed CoOp but that was before Christmas and only Sora prices have went up since.


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## citizenthom (5 Aug 2009)

Hi. I'm thinking of doing the same.
Did you put a 9 speed shifter on an 8 speed bike? Are they compatible?


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## Sam Kennedy (29 Aug 2009)

citizenthom said:


> Hi. I'm thinking of doing the same.
> Did you put a 9 speed shifter on an 8 speed bike? Are they compatible?



Yeah I'm really curious about this as well...


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## HLaB (30 Aug 2009)

citizenthom said:


> Hi. I'm thinking of doing the same.
> Did you put a 9 speed shifter on an 8 speed bike? Are they compatible?


I've got 8sp shifters on my conversion.


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## Dave Elcome (13 Nov 2009)

This forum is great!!

I have been pondering doing this very same conversion to my 2008 Sirrus LTD.

I was looking at getting Shimano Ultegra STi 6603 levers to go with the current 10Sp set up. I take it this will be OK, and work with the V brakes that mine is equipped with?


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## MacB (13 Nov 2009)

Dave Elcome said:


> This forum is great!!
> 
> I have been pondering doing this very same conversion to my 2008 Sirrus LTD.
> 
> I was looking at getting Shimano Ultegra STi 6603 levers to go with the current 10Sp set up. I take it this will be OK, and work with the V brakes that mine is equipped with?



nope the v-brake would require a different lever or a cable pull doubling device. A v-brake requires nearly double the amount of cable pull that a road brake does.

For my recent conversion I used a travel agent which replaces the v-brake noodle and doubles the amount of cable pull. I hated drops so have been seeling off my conversion stuff, the travel agents are still for sale in the classifieds bit.

It's a toss up, the STI's will come with cables so, if your frame will accept dual pivot road brakes then that may well be the way forward, mine wouldn't, the drillings aren't there. Costs a little more for the road brakes, but the travel agents aren't cheap. Main limitation from switching from v's is clearance for tyres and guards.


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## Neil Mann (3 Jun 2010)

Hi, I found your thread on a google search because I wanted to do the same and convert my Sirrus having bought it with the same intentions and then got into some longer rides. I asked a bike shop and they said it would cost too much to convert and for the same money I could get a new Road bike. I am glad I didn't fall into that trap. I currently have the flat bar set up and some tri bars, which having been out with friends to train for a charity 66 mile ride I was surprised how much difference just being a bit lower and changing the bike set up made. When I used the tri bars and settled I was able to pull away from some of the others. I realise this is an old topic now but thanks for the advice as I have convinced 'finance dept' that this is a much smaller investment rather than buying a new Tri Bike as I am looking to do an Olympic triathlon on the Sirrus by the end of the year. Furthermore, for anyone with money the 'Ribble Bikebuilder' on their website is awesome. You will be addicted to building your fantasy bike.


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## mcshroom (3 Jun 2010)

As a cost saver, would it work to put 10sp campag shifters on with an 8sp shimano cassette?

I've seen it on here somewhere and in a blog that the cable pull is the same

There's campag shifters for £62 at CRC


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## RecordAceFromNew (3 Jun 2010)

It should be less than £50 at Ribble after the current TRIP7 7% discount code. P&p is free if the original price reaches £50. 

This explains why the combination works.


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## g00se (4 Jun 2010)

Hi,

Just wondering - those Escape brifters are "quick shift" and not "ultra shift" like the Veloce models. From what I've read, the quick shift are indexed on the front mech, so they won't work with Shimano kit - the ultra shift are ratcheted so that there is no indexing issues with the front.

Hope you can prove me wrong, as I'm looking to put some drops on a hybrid at some point - but for as cheap as poss.


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## Globalti (4 Jun 2010)

Nice job, you must feel very satisfied at having built up your own custom bike. It looks pretty slick.

Those flags need resetting though.


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## RecordAceFromNew (4 Jun 2010)

g00se said:


> Hi,
> 
> Just wondering - those Escape brifters are "quick shift" and not "ultra shift" like the Veloce models. From what I've read, the quick shift are indexed on the front mech, so they won't work with Shimano kit - the ultra shift are ratcheted so that there is no indexing issues with the front.
> 
> Hope you can prove me wrong, as I'm looking to put some drops on a hybrid at some point - but for as cheap as poss.



For what it is worth, my understanding of the theory is that Shimano MTB front mechs, which a Sirrus Elite comes with, happen to require nearly the same cable pull across a triple chainset that the Campag Escape mechanism provides. Hopefully folks who have tried can confirm or illuminate pitfalls.

For double chainsets indexing shouldn't be an issue obviously.


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## Fattman (5 Jun 2010)

Nice job! Very impressed, and it's good to hear it has already proven fun!


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## Strawberry (16 May 2011)

Am I being dumb? I can't see any pictures?


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## pb63 (17 May 2011)

it's an old thread...


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## arsa3858 (19 Jul 2017)

I would love to have pics from this conversion


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## Rickshaw Phil (19 Jul 2017)

arsa3858 said:


> I would love to have pics from this conversion


Hi and  @arsa3858

Unfortunately this is a very old thread and the links to the pics have got lost somewhere along the line. Since Lonerider hasn't logged in since 2010 it doesn't look likely that we'll get to see the photos again.

Be that as it may; come in, make yourself at home and enjoy the site.


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## bonsaibilly (19 Jul 2017)

Lonerider said:


> Here are before and after pictures of my recent flat bar to drop bar conversion
> 
> I initially bought my Specialized Sirrus Elite to get into road cycling. I always thought drop bars and levers looked dangerous to operate and settled on the Sirrus following the advice of Dales cycles in Glasgow. It is a great bike and was the right bike for me at the time.
> 
> ...



Well chuffed you had a good conversion. Would be v surprised if it weighed any less though.


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## cyberknight (19 Jul 2017)

arsa3858 said:


> I would love to have pics from this conversion


I have done a drop bar conversion on a subway , i used bar end shifters as a cost effective way to get over the issue with mtb brake lever and front mech cable pull difference to road levers .
https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/mtb-drop-bar-conversion.197717/


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