I've got similar projects going on, but in the opposite direction. Like you, I've been preferring to ride my cross bike lately, on single track mostly. It has Woodchippers on it now, and I've uploaded some photos at the link below. Meanwhile, I'm about to take the moustache bars off of my (slightly too small) XO-1, replace them with some traditional-style dirt drops on a tall stem, and then put the moustache bars on my new All Rounder. Other than getting each bike to fit and perform as well as possible, my real goal is just to retain enough variety and differences between the bikes that I'll continue to ride them all. So for that reason alone, I'd be reluctant to completely take the moustache bars out of rotation, if it were me. Something to think about perhaps. I also think your bike is beautiful, just as it sits. But here are some thoughts on the Woodchippers:
- I used the new ergo TRP levers from Rivendell, and they're fantastic. Even though the bars angle inward at the bends, the curve is more "vertical" than other dirt drops, so the hoods are actually usable as a 2nd hand position. And because of the lever shape, they are easy to reach from the drop postion, too. I was also able to add interupter levers at the top, though I had to replace the clamp screw with a slightly longer one, because they are just barely affected by the bulge in the center of the bar. (I have the normal 25.4 version. The oversize 31.8 version probably wouldn't work.) So this actually gives me three hand positions! As noted above, get the wider version, because I don't think the narrower one would give you as many hand positions - That said, for any kind of technical or off-road riding, you will absolutely want to have you hands in the drop position for control. No way around it. The problem, at least for me, is that these are the same circumstances when I want to be sitting more upright. Going down a steep, bumpy hill can be pretty uncomfortable when you're hunched over, and I've had more than one endo because I couldn't get my weight back far enough. They're not as bad as most road-style drop bars for off road use, because the drop is shallow and the forward bend is small, but the unique angles have a completely different feel to them, so it's not an apples-to-apples comparison. - With all this in mind, I feel like are really designed and best suited for a bike with a very tall head tube, like the Fargo, which would put the top of the bars ABOVE your saddle. My own bike doesn't lend itself to this, but I HAVE recently switched to a taller stem, as you can see in one of the photos (with the trail in the background.) I still like the bars enough to not want to get rid of them, but I'm not taking the bike in the mountains any more. - You COULD possibly use a taller stem but NOT the Nitto Dirt Drop!!!!!!! (This is important!) Because of the way the bar bends and the angle that the quill will pass when you rotate it, it is impossible to fit them in without having to cut about 1 1/2" off the ends, at which point you've completely ruined the nicest thing about the bars - the nice, wide, angled lower section. Even if you do get them cut down and installed, you might put a huge gouge in your stem and score the bars to the point that you wouldn't trust them not to break. Go ahead... ask me how I know. (If you want to try a free cut-down pair in a dirt drop stem, just to see if you like them, send me a note.) Uploaded some pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/87152838@N05/sets/72157632696827760/ -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
