Cycling UK Forum

The utility cyclist wrote:

tim_f wrote:The Ebay page says "For V-Brake" so they will pull the wrong amount of cable for the dual caliper brakes on your road bike.

Those models are canti compatible so are fine, there's two positions for the cable head.
Go for the flat bar, people are ignoring the fact the OP has said he doesn't like the gear changers (fakey/repluca suntour command shifters)
Get the shimano sti's a flat bar and an angled stem if the one in situ doesnt give you enough of an angle (doubtful) and this not only resolves the bar height but importantly the crap gears. Just flippung the stem won't resolve the issues!

Don't worry about changing tyres, they're fine, raisung your position up a bit will have no effect on their abilities as you aren't creating a sit up and beg position as mentioned above.

By suggesting a simple swap of stem rather than going for flat bars I hoped to keep costs down. New bars, levers and stem could be a costly experiment. OP's choice, though.

A bike swap might be a surer way of getting what the OP needs.

Personally I think the first bit of advice - as mentioned by several here is to get a stem with plenty of rise, or even go for an aheadset extender system like this - https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-Satori-B ... Sw~XpZW1l~

Then cut and turn your bars the other way up as in the pic which will require no money and just a hacksaw (or better still a pipe cutter. All your brakes etc will still work...

amediasatex wrote:I don't think it's the type of bars that are the issue, it's where they are, even if you replaced those drops with flats there's a lot of saddle-bar drop going on there!

I think a great many people have been put off drop bars over the years by them simply being in the wrong place from following the fashion of a racing setup

The saga just goes on and on and on - people being attracted to bikes that they later find they cannot ride. It's so sad. It means though that MTBs probably saved a lot of young people from giving up cycling.

horizon wrote:

amediasatex wrote:I don't think it's the type of bars that are the issue, it's where they are, even if you replaced those drops with flats there's a lot of saddle-bar drop going on there!

I think a great many people have been put off drop bars over the years by them simply being in the wrong place from following the fashion of a racing setup

The saga just goes on and on and on - people being attracted to bikes that they later find they cannot ride. It's so sad. It means though that MTBs probably saved a lot of young people from giving up cycling.

Did an article on this a while back... http://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cyc ... -handlebar

Thanks for sharing that Breton. I think you have nailed the pros and cons for me quite well. Personally I prefer flat bars for better braking and gear changing options but it is largely down to practice. For riding off tarmac the leverage of flat bars can also be helpful. Drops look better, offer more hand positions and better aerodynamics, oh and they really look better.

PH wrote:

itaa wrote: I barely ever drive on tarmac and I don't like at all the position when using the bike.. I like the bike itself, it's rather light and nimble, however... the gear changes /brakes/position= sucks so bad

As you barely ride on Tarmac it's the wrong bike whatever the bars. Sell it and start again, put it down to a learning experience.

I agree with PH and others who've said the same. One glance at the Raleigh (with its short wheelbase, steep angles, close clearances, skinny wheels/tyres, no provision for mudguards etc.) is enough to tell you it's fundamentally the wrong kind of bike for off-road use.
Let's face it, it's a "Road" as in "Road Racing" bike, suitable for riding only on roads and nowhere else. To get where you want to be, you wouldn't start with that. Sell it to someone who wants that kind of machine and buy something more suitable for the intended use to begin with.

bretonbikes wrote:Did an article on this a while back... http://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cyc ... -handlebar

I always enjoy your articles and normally agree with most of what you write, but I think this article is based on a couple of considerable inaccuracies.
Firstly

For nearly 100 years anyone doing 'serious' cycling – as opposed to just hopping to the shops – would use drop handlebars

Simply isn't the case, that's always been a geographical perception, in those countries where cycle touring has arguably always been more popular (In particular Germany) drop bars have never been the norm.
Then

This is why such bars are universal in competition.

Leaving aside the narrow interpretation of competition, where aerodynamics are most important drop bars are rarely used unless there's UCI restrictions. When did you last see a drop bar used on a TT when other options were available?

People who have always cycled tend to prefer the bars they were bought up on. People coming to cycling later in life will often start out with whatever is in fashion, the bike in the OP is a prime example of this.

PH wrote:

bretonbikes wrote:Did an article on this a while back... http://www.bretonbikes.com/homepage/cyc ... -handlebar

I always enjoy your articles and normally agree with most of what you write, but I think this article is based on a couple of considerable inaccuracies.
Firstly

For nearly 100 years anyone doing 'serious' cycling – as opposed to just hopping to the shops – would use drop handlebars

Simply isn't the case, that's always been a geographical perception, in those countries where cycle touring has arguably always been more popular (In particular Germany) drop bars have never been the norm.
Then

This is why such bars are universal in competition.

Leaving aside the narrow interpretation of competition, where aerodynamics are most important drop bars are rarely used unless there's UCI restrictions. When did you last see a drop bar used on a TT when other options were available?

People who have always cycled tend to prefer the bars they were bought up on. People coming to cycling later in life will often start out with whatever is in fashion, the bike in the OP is a prime example of this.

Actually I agree totally with all that;-)

I've made a couple of small edits to the article to help - the addition of 'road' makes it much clearer... But the point about the drop barred tourers in our fleet being almost totally neglected (from being the most popular option 27 years ago) is the most surprising thing.

Roadster wrote:

PH wrote:

itaa wrote: I barely ever drive on tarmac and I don't like at all the position when using the bike.. I like the bike itself, it's rather light and nimble, however... the gear changes /brakes/position= sucks so bad

As you barely ride on Tarmac it's the wrong bike whatever the bars. Sell it and start again, put it down to a learning experience.

I agree with PH and others who've said the same. One glance at the Raleigh (with its short wheelbase, steep angles, close clearances, skinny wheels/tyres, no provision for mudguards etc.) is enough to tell you it's fundamentally the wrong kind of bike for off-road use.
Let's face it, it's a "Road" as in "Road Racing" bike, suitable for riding only on roads and nowhere else. To get where you want to be, you wouldn't start with that. Sell it to someone who wants that kind of machine and buy something more suitable for the intended use to begin with.

From what I understood from the OP's post he actually wants a road bike, just doesn't like the handlebar set-up/position. He's also specified a budget of £40 max hence my suggestion to just flip the bars and cut the ends off;-)

That's not what I understood the OP to mean when he wrote, "I always thought I wanted a road bike, I finally got one to test the concept out, Turns out I don't like road bikes at all since I barely ever drive on tarmac and I don't like at all the position when using the bike".
I don't think this means that he still actually wants one, but rather that he only thought he did until he tried one. No amount of handlebar setting-up will alter the basic nature of what is clearly the wrong bike.

Roadster wrote:That's not what I understood the OP to mean when he wrote, "I always thought I wanted a road bike, I finally got one to test the concept out, Turns out I don't like road bikes at all since I barely ever drive on tarmac and I don't like at all the position when using the bike". He doesn't actually want one now, but only thought he did until he tried one.

Funny how two people can read the same thing and come to completely different conclusions - I was concentrating on "I ''think'' I want a Hybrid bike now , to have something as light/nimble as a road bike but still fairly fast."

But it was a pretty vague OP:-)

Perhaps, but "Road Bike" means "Road Bike"...

Yes. Full stop. Better stronger braking. More USEABLE hand positions if fit bar ends. Drop bars/levers are an ergonomic nonsense and an historical accident.

hilarious!

cheers

djnotts wrote:Drop bars/levers are an ergonomic nonsense and an historical accident.

I don't think the discovery of drops was accidental: as I understand it, delivery cyclists in the early 1900s deliberately turned their "porteur" handlebars upside down for competition purposes, fully aware that a less upright riding position meant less wind resistance and hence greater speed.