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Albastache Bars on my Bianchi Volpe

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Albastache Bars on my Bianchi Volpe

Old 11-15-16, 10:07 PM
  #26  
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Yes a front bag would look better. Check to see if it would fit. Having weight at the front may be an adjustment. I find I like it a lot better in the front than in the back. I now have a front rack on this bike.
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Old 11-16-16, 04:11 PM
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Barfly always make me think of my misspent youth...
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Old 11-16-16, 04:28 PM
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Old 11-16-16, 11:16 PM
  #29  
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Your bike setup looks a little odd. The saddle seems low, and the reach to the brake levers seems very long in proportion. I wonder if your neck and elbow issues are due more to poor fit than anything else. Wouldn't be surprised if you start getting wrist pain with the new setup. Frankly, it would probably make more sense to go with an MTB setup with trigger shifters and disc brakes. The new Shimano M8000 stuff is very easy to shift and one finger is all you need for braking.
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Old 11-17-16, 07:17 AM
  #30  
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One of my bikes has a similar setup, and it is supremely comfortable. I’m not wild about the way Albastache bars look, but as my mother used to say, “pretty is as pretty does.”

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Old 11-17-16, 10:55 AM
  #31  
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Originally Posted by rmfnla
Barfly always make me think of my misspent youth...
Originally Posted by fietsbob
BarFly a Book by Charles Bukowski Charles Bukowski (Author of Post Office)

Made it on the movie screen Barfly (1987) - IMDb
Him, too...
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Old 11-17-16, 07:39 PM
  #32  
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Originally Posted by katzenfinch
One of my bikes has a similar setup, and it is supremely comfortable. I’m not wild about the way Albastache bars look, but as my mother used to say, “pretty is as pretty does.”

I love this. I've been looking at that sackville trunk bag. How do you like it? I want something that won't overwhelm the front of the bike visually, and most rando bags are huge. The Acorn compact bag looks good to me too.
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Old 11-17-16, 07:48 PM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by alan s
Your bike setup looks a little odd. The saddle seems low, and the reach to the brake levers seems very long in proportion. I wonder if your neck and elbow issues are due more to poor fit than anything else. Wouldn't be surprised if you start getting wrist pain with the new setup. Frankly, it would probably make more sense to go with an MTB setup with trigger shifters and disc brakes. The new Shimano M8000 stuff is very easy to shift and one finger is all you need for braking.
The bike is a bit too big for me. I was between two sizes and the bike shop said it was better to be too big than too small. In spite of the issues I've had, I think this is the best bike I've ever owned.

I made this bar switch a week ago and have put about 85 miles on it since then. No wrist pain as of yet, but the longest ride was only 18 miles. The reach to the brakes feels about right to me.
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Old 11-17-16, 09:39 PM
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Originally Posted by Giant Doofus
I love this. I've been looking at that sackville trunk bag. How do you like it? I want something that won't overwhelm the front of the bike visually, and most rando bags are huge. The Acorn compact bag looks good to me too.
I like the bag, but it’s not very big. It can carry tools, a spare tube, a small first-aid kit and some snacks, but that’s about it.
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Old 11-18-16, 01:36 PM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by katzenfinch
I like the bag, but it’s not very big. It can carry tools, a spare tube, a small first-aid kit and some snacks, but that’s about it.
Good to know. That's not quite big enough for my purposes. Sure is a good looking bag, though.
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Old 11-19-16, 06:26 PM
  #36  
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@Giant Doofus, here are pictures of my current handlebar setup. The tape is not permanent. The right brake cable is too long, and the left one is too short. The ends of the bars farthest from the stem are parallel to the ground. The levers point down quite a bit, and I think I like them where they are.

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Last edited by noglider; 11-23-16 at 05:14 PM. Reason: retrying image permissions
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Old 11-23-16, 03:35 PM
  #37  
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@noglider - For some reason, I can't see the photos you posted. Is this a problem for others, or is it my computer?
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Old 11-23-16, 05:15 PM
  #38  
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Sorry @Giant Doofus. Stupid Google Photos. I think you'll see them now.
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Old 11-24-16, 08:33 PM
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Originally Posted by noglider
Sorry @Giant Doofus. Stupid Google Photos. I think you'll see them now.
Yep. They show up now. Thanks. Very nice. I like the way you've angled the levers down. Might try that. The front rack is gorgeous! Is it a Velo Orange?
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Old 11-24-16, 10:00 PM
  #40  
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Originally Posted by Giant Doofus
Yep. They show up now. Thanks. Very nice. I like the way you've angled the levers down. Might try that. The front rack is gorgeous! Is it a Velo Orange?
I like to angle levers so that they are along the same line as my arm. This minimizes the amount I lift my fingers.

Yes it's a Velo Orange rack. So far, so good.

Thanks.
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Old 10-13-19, 04:03 AM
  #41  
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Originally Posted by fietsbob
Shifting across the whole cassete, pushing that lever down 40 some odd degrees Comfortable?
These are Shimano shifters. You can only go one gear at a time. It’s no where near 40 degrees. I’m a Campy guy but in a case like this Shimano is the only way to go. It would impossible to reach Campy thumb shifters on the handlebar.
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Old 06-02-22, 06:22 PM
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Hi @giant doofus, Russ on the Path Less Pedaled youtube channel just reviewed this bar. Are you still using and liking it? I’ve decided my mustache bars are not for me, and I need to think of what is next for me.

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Old 06-02-22, 06:58 PM
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Every year or two I give drop bars another try... then stop. Most recently I converted my single speed commuter from dirt drops to swept flat bars (Salsa Cowchipper to Salsa Bend). They have a moderate sweep, not like a Jones bar but more like a MTB bar for people who never stand on the pedals... and they sweep forward first so they are still nearly as reach-y as a drop bar. Clearly this isn't the right look for whatever had a mustache bar, but I'm sure you could find something similar in the VO / Soma / Sim Werks vein.

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