jimmie65

I added drop-bar handlebar ends to my last commuter. I'm playing around with butterfly bars on my newest commuter, but find that I miss the option of drop bars on longer rides.

realityinabox

My commuter came with these in-line brakes standard. I used them a lot when I was getting used to the drops, but I find it to be much more stable to ride with my hands on the drops and to use the regular brakes. When I have my hands up on the cross bar, fingers on the inline brakes, I find that my steering is too twitchy.

I love my drops. After getting used to them (and riding with them through the winter), I find them to be very comfortable, and prefer to keep my hands on the drop, rather than the hoods or crossbar. This is my main/only bike, but when I ride other's bikes without drops, it feels weird now.

To each their own!

Steely Dan

+1

my dedicated commuter is a CX bike with fenders and rack. i LOVE being able to access the brake levers from the drops, the hoods, or the tops. i've found it to be super ideal for commuting, best handlebar and brake combo i've ever found, so freaking versatile. maximum flexibility. also, i put a riser stem on the bike so it's not such an aggressive geometry. it's certainly not an upright ride, but riding on the tops, i'm pretty damn far from an aero tuck.

my winter beast has a flat bar, but that's primarily because it has hydraulic disc brakes, and a flat bar is really the only kind of bar that works for basic hydraulic levers without spending A LOT of money for much fancier hydraulic lever systems that work with drop bars.

noglider 

I prefer flat or swept-back bars for short rides and drop bars for longer rides. My cutoff between short and longer is about six miles round trip.

In traffic, I don't want my handlebars to be wide, so I sawed my flat bars short.

RaleighSport

I personally find bars more reflect the bike I'm using rather than the commute.. my Turbo, I love having those drops there especially when I feel like speed racing in... if I'm running late I pull the Leader off the wall and fly like lightning in my TT position on the pursuit bars, slow poke days I take the city bike with it's fully upright geo and risers... I could go on but there's no need. We all got preferences, run what you like/works for you.

hyhuu

I switched from a flat bar to drop bar a little more than 5 years ago. Forgive me because I don't know what I was thinking.

snow_echo_NY

i like riding on the top/flat part of my drop bars when cycling with the little one and going at a recreational pace around town, < 10 mph i suppose.

but on the 10 mile round trip commute (roughly 5 each way) i like the versatility drops give me and also the more aero position for a fast pace during sections of just cyclists (no peds, motorists) on the manhattan bridge and for riding into wind. that said, i don't do it often, but am glad i have it when i use it.

i had brake levers on the flat part of my drop bar when i had the road bike, and i'm still waiting to get them installed on my cross bike (LBS is slammed these days). it's about $30 to get them and to get them installed which i like. getting a new bar perhaps costs less but to me, it's worth it.

Ratzinger

I switched my commuting bike from drop to flat a while ago. I didn't like the lack of hand positions (I do about a 20km commute).

I switched up for trekker bars (also called butterfly bars?). They're great. And fun. I also commute on a 10-year old Giant touring bike with drops that I love though.

beerRun

My bike's got bullhorns. I like them well enough (they are great out of the saddle like @hardboiled718 said).

All of the bikes I'm considering for the first bike I actually buy have drops though.

kickstart

With drops it happens rather quickly, and I need to change positions fairly often. Inversely, the traditional Dutch bars on my gazelle are always comfortable and never call for more hand positions, with the bonus that the shifter and brakes are always at hand.

RaleighSport

Are you talking about your Tequesta? And if so stock bars? And if so.. those aren't really bullhorns, they're way way way way better.

bikemig 

I have one commuter set up with flat bars and another with drop bars. I tend to use the one with drop bars most of the time but use the one with flat bars when there is a lot of snow and ice out there. Other than that, I find the 2 bikes fairly interchangeable for a shortish commute (say less than 5 miles or so).

beerRun

They are stock and are pretty unique. Do they even have a name?

RaleighSport

Scott AT-2's if you've got the same as on my Tequesta. Like this, correct?

There's also AT-3's which come in more at the ends, AT-4's which connect fully (with a bridge), there's even some road bike versions.. I have a pair of scott drop ins.. very awesome drop bars, they have a second set of flats on the bottom of the hooks!

beerRun

Those are they!

DiabloScott

I loved my Masi fixed gear commuter with dropped bars. When it got stolen the only new bikes I liked were all flat bars so I looked at swapping... bars and brake levers...



so I said "screw it", and ordered the bike as it came standard and now I really like the position.

RaleighSport

That's a nicely appointed cockpit there neighbor.

no motor?

Isn't a Huffy supposed to have flat bars?

DiabloScott

One 550 and one 750... I was fed up with cheap light sets. Not shown is my Contour camera mount... on my other bike at the time but fits next to the stem on the opposite side of the computer. That's another advantage of these bars, lots of real estate for doo-dads.

MileHighMark

Saw this thread and immediately though of this sticker:

Eric S.

About 8 months ago I built up a Torpado frame I found on Craigslist for $50. It has been a full-on road bike until yesterday when I outfitted it with trekking bars and microSHIFT 9sp twist shifters.

It's been a bike that I tend to commute or run errands on, so the drop bars were not best for the traffic I ride in. I'm really liking this configuration so far.

fietsbob

Ergon Grips Help a Lot. w or w/o Integrated Bar Ends.

My other favorite set up is figure 8 bend trekking bars..

Steely Dan

yes! ergons for flat bars are must in my opinion. i have 'em on both my dahon folder and my winter beast.

Dan515

I think that if you have a dedicated commuter bike that is mainly used in stop-go city traffic (or even MUPs) then drop bars won't be the greatest or most necessary. Often when I commute, I see other cyclists who are using North Road-style bars and I get envious at how suave they look.

However, if I go for longer weekend rides with fewer interruptions, I find the drops are helpful to vary hand positions and get out of the wind. Plus, I can tell I'm much faster.

I only have one bike, so drops for me. Compact drops, that is. If I were to get a dedicated commuter, definitely something more upright.

Johnny Mullet

I was considering some "cruiser" style bars for total comfort. Like I said, my commute is only 5 miles and I take my time. As much as I like my drop bars, I needed to change this particular bike for the environment. On the weekends, I'll jump on the other Huffy and enjoy the drops.