Mwc01l88

I want to convert mine and my son's MTB's over to drop bars. What measurments do I need to know in order to do this, and can it be done? We want to do this, but do not wish to break the bank doing it. I am figuring Ebay will help us out for most of the parts, just need some guidance. Any suggestions would be welcomed. Thanks

fietsbob

Do you have a MTB now, do you have a road bike that fits ? can you measure and report ?


AFAIK, "NEXT" is a brand that is less than Quality , mainly Cheap.. send a picture to confirm
or refute this.

Trekking Bars are an easier swap as You keep all the levers you have now.

Accommodating a headwind is a far rather than a down reach. those bars are about $20./

bobotech

I would look for a better quality used bike on CL to put drop bars on or start with a used drop bar bike if you really want drop bars. Something without a name that is sold at Walmart.

Drop bars just really aren't suited to pseudo full suspension bikes or even front suspension bikes.

I like the trekking bars idea, cheaper and you can keep your existing shifters.

What exactly are you hoping to accomplish with this conversion, your end goal?

Mwc01l88

we are changing the MTB tires out for street tires, for less rolling resistance. we saw the handlebars on ebay and thought why not try to get ourselves down out of the wind a little bit. the end goal is to gain a bike that is easier to ride for not much money. my son is 16 and so this little bike fetish we have recently discovered may go away as quick as it came on. so we don't want to sink much money into something that may be short lived. if that makes sense. would like to know more about the trekking bars, they sound like they are more of what we need. also having a hard time finding road tires to fit my son's 24" MTB, they are 24x1.95, any leads on tires would be helpful.

DX-MAN

Dump the Walmart crap and get a couple cyclocross bikes. Seriously. Walmart bikes (NEXT is their 'house brand') are like Bic lighters -- disposable. You'd have to be a near-mechanic with access to free parts to make any sort of 'upgrade' worthwhile.

13 years of dealing with that garbage every day has taught me that, in case you're wondering.

ncrnelson

A 24" department store bike is a child's bike and is probably too small for a 16 year old, you'd be far better off finding a decent used road bike. The shifters you have now, despite being low quality wont fit drop bars anyway, nor the brakes and most likely the stem. This kind of transformation is often prohibitively expensive even for quality bikes. Check craigslist, it's full of cheap 10 speed road bikes that would be far better suited to your needs.

Wilfred Laurier

sadly all responses are correct
bike is not worth sinking any money into
and it is a kids bike

to repeat
find a used road bike
even a 10 speed with steel wheels would be a lot better
except for braking

how tall is your son and do you think he is finished growing

dabac

You can get a pair of drop bar ends. That'll give you that "out of the wind" position you're asking for. If you've got wire-operated brakes, there are brake levers that can reasonably easy be fitted to the drop bar ends. Keep your shifting where it is at the moment.

sreten

Hi,

Forget drops, its too complicated and expensive, add bar ends
for a bit more reach, (but really for more hand positions too).
Set the bars as low as they will go generally, set the seat as high as it will
go without rocking your hips generally, set the seat for more reach generally.

https://www.amazon.com/Resistance-Erg...grips+bar+ends



Search for 24" x 1.75" / 47mm x 507mm street tires for the smaller bike.

Kenda seem to do the smoothest tread at a reasonable price :

https://www.bikepartsusa.com/tire-24i...0psi-tire.html

That is it, change the tires and add bar ends, fiddle with the set up of
each bike. Anything else is pretty much a waste of time and expense.

rgds, sreten.

Check your chains for wear (google), replace if necessary, lube otherwise.
Generally lube up your bike. I'm not a maintenance fanatic, but I use
my chain lube into the wheel bearings, bottom bracket, pedals, head set,
derailleur pulleys, v brake pivots. WD40 for everything else,
cables, brake pivots (calipers), derailleur, brake levers etc.
I use WD40 to clean the chain then apply some proper chain lube.

jim hughes

This is an insult to the fine people at Bic. Their lighters are exactly as good as they need to be. Walmart bikes on the other hand are exactly 1/2 as good as they need to be.

JBHoren

I believe this 2009 posting from Mountain Bike Tires <dot-com> is appropriate: Why I Ride Dropbars

(towards the end, the author discusses size and setup)

sreten

Hi,

Not really at all when you factor in cost for the OP.

The bars he is using are not remotely standard drops.

rgds, sreten.

byrd48

I'm doing such a conversion now, and it likely will cost more than you paid for your bike (I bought a used 90's mtn bike off CL for $125, so it will also cost more than I paid for mine). That's not a bad thing, just be prepared for it.
I don't know the specs of your bike, how upgradeable it is. If you have a local bike co-op, maybe take your bikes there and they can take some measurements and give you advice. They probably have a box of dropbars lying around and may be able to get you set up (or help you help yourself so to speak) for not much $$.

gyozadude

If these are the standard Next 24 and 26 inch MTB BSOs with pseudo-suspension, I'd be +200 on all the comments above to junk it and move on. Basically, aerodynamics aren't going to be too much help for you. Granted, with head winds, aerodynamics always helps, but the main issue is that these bikes rob you of energy because you're going to heat up the suspension components. The front fork is too soft and has no lock-out, and the frame suspension just robs you of energy. My son used to ride a 24 inch NeXT and we did a very simple dirt trail with a few miles of uphill grades, and he died from exhaustion on that one. Swapped him out to a cheap Bridgestone CB2 from CL for $50 which I overhauled and replaced front/rear rims with new dirt cheap Alex x202s and had two sets of tires. A cheap set of Nashbar City slicks 26 x 1.5inch for commuting, and 26x1.75 maxxis tires for dirt trails. He had no issues with the bike and he just got the best time in all 7th/8th grade for the cycling segment of their end-of-year team triathlon on that dirt cheap CB2.

He grew up on grip-shifts so I replaced the thumb shifters with cheap SRAM units that were Shimano compatible. A new HG 6 speed freewheel and chain, and new Tektro 316AG levers and front/rear set of Acera V-brakes and the bike rides great on the flats, and he's in the lead on our group 50 milers with other youth. So he doesn't need a really expensive bike yet. But deals are there on CL. You just gotta wait for them and know what you're buying.

sreten

Hi,

Finding drop bars is the least of the problems.

Generally a nightmare to convert to drops regarding shifting and the brake levers.

New tyres, dropping the stem, flipping the bars for more drop, adding bar
ends and possibly a new longer seat-tube to allow for the right seat height.

rgds, sreten.

Yo Spiff

Depends on what you want. If you want brifters, yes, it can be a PITA. If some sort of friction shifter is acceptable, then it's a fairly easy conversion. I have Suntour barcons and Tektro levers on mine. I wouldn't waste the effort and $ on a Wally World bike, however. If all you want is some better hand positions and speed, then, as suggested, lower the stem, then put some cheap bar ends and street tires on it.

Since nobody else has mentioned it yet, there is an ongoing thread in the C&V forum about drop bar mountain bikes. Lots of good info and inspiration in this thread. They make comfortable and bomb-proof city bikes, tourers and utility bikes.
Show-Your-Vintage-MTB-Drop-Bar-Conversions

sreten

Hi,

In terms of the OP I don't know why your even discussing it.

It is a very bad idea if we are talking $100 "NEXT" MTB's.

Which sadly, though I have no problems with cheap basic
bikes, a bit heavy and basic but they work, I do have
some issues with dual suspension MTB's under $100.

What can I say ? Useless offroad and even worse onroad ?

$100 no suspension MTB styled bikes can be great cheap
road bikes fitted with decent tyres, they are really city
bikes and good tyres transform them into that role.

rgds, sreten.

Mwc01l88

How does the suspension rob you of energy? Not questioning your statement, just really want to know how. I was so curious that I had my neighbor machine me a solid steel bar (if it makes a difference will replace with an aluminum bar)to replace the center spring, and the bike definately rides different, but I don't know if it is better. Have no fix for the forks though. Changed the MTB tires for some narrower street/comfort tires. Bike is definately rolling better.

likebike23

I also want to put drop bars on my next MTB, not my Next MTB.

dabac

If you're sitting down, and pedalling with a very nice and smooth technique - not much. But as soon as you get out of the saddle(if not sooner) a lot of the pedaling turns into the rider stomping down on the pedals. and the bike, poor thing, can't see the difference between the ground moving up (as when you hit a bump) and the bike moving down (as the rider stomping on the pedals), so it lets the suspension compress. And the task of the suspension, or particularly the shocks, is to soak up energy associated with the bike suddenly moving in the vertical.

In a rigid bike, pretty much all of the energy the rider puts in that stomp down is converted into forward motion. In a suspension bike, particulary an inexpensive one, an important part is soaked up by the suspension.

clydeosaur

In all seriousness, look around on craigslist, yard sales, etc..for either an older roadbike, 26' rigid mountain bike or sport hybrid. Any of these can be had rather cheap. Parts will be easier to find and cheap as well. If you go with the mtb or hybrid, you can get drop bar extensions to mount your flatbars. That way you have the drop bar with no change in shifters of brakes for $25. THis will be far cheaper than adding bars, shifters, cables, etc to the current bike.

bobotech

I remember one day switching bikes with my buddy a year or two ago. He had at the time a cheap crappy Mongoose full suspension bike similar in quality and design to the Next bikes. I at the time was using a rather nicely converted to flat bar mid 80's Schwinn Traveler which has no suspension. When I rode his bike, it was awful. I had to pedal so much harder to keep up with him when he was on my bike. I couldn't believe how much energy was absorbed by the cheap suspension.