Rotating dropped bars back a bit.

[Banjo]

Looking at pictures of other peoples road bikes in the gallery quite a few have rotated the bars back a bit, I think my hands would lie more naturally on the hoods if I did this.Are there any pros and cons or is it just personal choice?

 

[MajorMantra]

With drops there are a number of variables (bar design, angle at which hoods are mounted, bar angle) so really it's up to you. In general you want things set up so that both hoods and drops are usable and so that you can brake comfortably in either position.

Matthew

 

[gbb]

I tilt my bars back at quite an angle, simply for comfort. What you sacrifice is the ability to go onto the drops comfortably. Me, i hardly ever use the drops, so nothing lost.

 

[tyred]

I've done this too. The bottom line is whatever feels most comfortable for you. It's your bike and you're the person who has to ride it. Try it, and if you don't like it, it's easy to put it back again.

 

[ColinJ]

I have done that too - see photograph below. I used to get sore wrists when the hoods were tilted forward more, now I don't.

I have also 'flipped' the stem to get the bars up to a more comfortable position.

 

[Banjo]

Thanks for all the replies.I havent ridden a road bike for nearly 30 years and I didnt have that one for long. Have been riding a hybrid on long road rides so have now taken the plunge and bought the Scott.

Did about 15 miles this morning and it felt great to be on a light quick road bike .I think I may try flipping the stem as well .

Is there much involved in turning it over?

 

[alecstilleyedye]

useful in the short-term, but a better solution is, when next changing cables and hence bar tape, is to move the shifters further up the bend towards you.

 

[ColinJ]

I think I may try flipping the stem as well .

Is there much involved in turning it over?

Some stem manufacturers design the concept in and have logos which can be read both ways up. If you don't have one of them, the logos will be the wrong way up when you flip the stem. I don't think that flipped stems look as good as ones that are the 'right' way up, but I live with that for the sake of increased comfort.

I've seen some manufacturers state that you shouldn't flip their stems because they are 'not designed' for it. I think that they are probably just covering themselves should anybody try suing them if a flipped stem failed. Obviously when you flip a stem, the stresses on the different parts of the stem change but I'd hope that all stems are very over-engineered and should be able to cope.

When you raise the bars by flipping a stem, you may find that your cables are too short and need to be replaced. That turns a simple job into a more complicated and expensive one, but it is easy to establish whether this is the case by just trying it out. My cables were only just long enough (as you can see in the photograph above - especially the front brake cable) but I got away with it. When you do this, don't forget to turn the bars both left and right to make sure that the cables have enough slack to let you turn!

 

[Paulus]

As a general rule, the end of the bars should be more or less pointing at the rear drop outs. If you start from this point and adjust the bars up or down a bit , you will find the point that is comfortable for you.

 

[youngoldbloke]

As a general rule, the end of the bars should be more or less pointing at the rear drop outs. If you start from this point and adjust the bars up or down a bit , you will find the point that is comfortable for you.

If you look at the bars in the photo of your new Scott in your other thread you can see that if you follow Pauluss' advice you could rotate your bars upwards quite a way. (btw, is that saddle horizontal, as it should be, or sloping down at the front a bit?)

 

[Banjo]

Adjusted bars as per Paulus,s recommendation to aim at the rear drop outs also levelled seat using a line in the wallpaper as a guide. Will let U all know how it goes.

Just back from a very short test ride .The difference is immediately noticeable,bike now feels as if it fits me so will only be making tiny adjustments now.Also just went clipless for first time,no bruises yet :-)

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions about the bike and interior decor.

 

[Tollers]

Now that photo is the right way around

Good luck with the clipless pedals. My advice is just to be conscious that you're clipped in and whenever youre slowing, unclip before stationary so you don't have a panic moment.

What's the black bit covering the rear dropouts? I haven't seen one of those before. Some sort of bashguard or are you trying to save us from being blinded by the bike's shinyness?

When is the long test ride?

Tollers

 

[ASC1951]

As a general rule, the end of the bars should be more or less pointing at the rear drop outs.

That does depend on the shape of the bars and where you or the LBS have put the brakes. With my Campag Ergos, which have a flat top, I find that the best position is to have the flat part of the bars and the top of the Ergos all in a line parallel to the ground - that is how ColinJ has his set up, I see.

 

[fossyant]

Computer cable routing - route up the front brake cable to the bars (wind round it) - end up with a much better finish.

The 'thingy' over the QR, near the mech is packing for transit.

PS that is a smart looking bike !

 

[mickle]

Oi! Remove the plastic disc from the RH rear drop out and re-cycle it. It's protective packing from the shipping box. It should have been removed by whosoever PDId your bike. The fact that it is still there concerns me actually, it looks like it has been assembled by someone who isn't familiar with bike assembly.

Rotating drop bars backwards in the stem is pish poor compensation for a badly fitted bike.

Now then; And these are proper facts: If you cannot reach into the drops (comfortably and for many miles at a time) then the bike simply doesn't fit you. This may be as a result of the wrong stem, the wrong frame size or the wrong bars. Drop bars are designed (by the manufacturers who know about these things) to be used within a fairly limited set of parameters. With the flat section of the drop angled towards the rear axle at one extreme, aimed towards the rear brake bridge or even horizontal at the other. Depending on the shape.

The bottom line is though, if you have to adjust the bars (to get comfy on the tops or hoods) so much that you cannot comfortably reach the drops then your stem, or frame or bars are the wrong size and/or shape.

But most likely the stem thankfully.