every single time someone says they’re going to convert a mtb to drop bay, I say “the reach is going to end up way too long.” this is what I mean.
ChunkbrotherATX on
Judging by the seat height, this frame may have been too big for you to start with. That being said, I was about to start a similar conversion and you have given me pause. At the very least I am going to mock it up before I go all in.
Only_Jury_8448 on
At least it looks cool.
I think 90s hybrid 700c bikes are better platforms for this sort of thing, especially ones that have a more sloping top-tube geometry. You can put pretty wide 650b/27.5″ tires on many of them, 2″+ depending on the model.
OldSchoolWillie on
Yup, pretty much over building vintage 26ers. Vintage road and hybrid bikes work out way better IMO.
konishiwoi on
I mean if you look at YouTube videos from roadies and gravel people, like Cade Media, they also talk about smaller sizes being better
Someone like me (5’7) would need about a 52cm effective top tube on a modern gravel/road frame to be comfortable but finding that in an old ATB I would need to get a 15in frame instead of 17in (about 54cm eTT usually)
So I guess to make it work for real, size down the frame from your usual straight/altbar sizing, and get drops with short reach. Also maybe narrower drops
If someone has any experience with this lmk if I’m right or wrong and by how much. I’m interested in a drop bar conversion myself on my old trek but how comfortable would it be with the short stems, different head tube angle etc
basbell4 on
That’s a pretty short stem for such a long top tube. Have you tried playing with stem height and reach? I wouldn’t write off drop bar conversions completely without trying to find a sweet spot with the stem and bar placement
Plenty of 90s mtbs used high-angled, long stems to get the drops way up high. That could help significantly with the handling issues. Also, the drop on those bars look uncomfortably deep. Maybe try something more gravel-specific?
Beautiful bike, btw
No-Bottle-300 on
Thankyou , you have just talked me out of this 😄
Adventurous_Fact8418 on
Those bikes already had aggressive geo. Slap some deep sweeps on her and you’ll fall in love
-Don_Corleone- on
Before writing it off completely, perhaps it might be worthwhile finding a used high-rise stem (e.g., Nitto Dirt drop, VO removable faceplate, or one of many offering from companies like Kalloy) to get the bars up higher. The low stack/ long TT of the 90s MTBs is a bit fucky.
MikeSRT404 on
Short reach bars. Those are monsters.
Wide-Review-2417 on
Tho, bar end shifters <3
wstephenson on
To be fair, you did do 1 out of 4 things right: short reach stem. The top tube does look relatively long on this frame though, so the deck was stacked against you.
Did you consider
– inline seatpost
– short reach bars
– higher rise stem
?
harlequin137 on
Now that you’ve already built the whole thing, why not try inverting the stem so it’s reach is negative? Easier than starting from scratch and would be curious if it looks decent.
Matv9 on
A longer fork might help if you’re trying to save the project
Skooma-Lord on
I opted for a zero setback seat post for mine and a shorter stem, those fixed the reach issue for me. Hopefully you can save the build, looks fun imo.
negativeyoda on
Looking at your seat height, I think you’d want to size down to make any of these superman position 90’s MTBs work for you. They always had insane top tubes for their relative seat tube lengths. A zero setback seatpost might help, but you’d potentially be entering a whole different world of fit fuckery.
ohneEigenschaften01 on
I think it depends on the geo of the bike and your body. I’m really long in the torso and my 1992 frame is closer to square, so drops are actually really comfy for me.
cycling_rat on
With the extremely wide variety of alt bars you don’t really need drops anymore.
Imnothere1980 on
Why do people do this? Why bother buying a vintage bike and then altering it to the point that’s it’s basically almost not a vintage bike? Just buy a gravel bike.
Coyotesamigo on
have you tried mounting the stem backwards
Boxofbikeparts on
Always measure the top tube length of any prospective mtb-to-drop bar conversion before you start. The older MTBs just added a huge stem length to get the ride fit, but later designs increased the tt length to make the stem length more reasonable, and get the bars farther back for more control.
23 Comments
Somebody pin this post.
Lol you found out the hard way. So did I.
Sizing down isn’t always the answer.
every single time someone says they’re going to convert a mtb to drop bay, I say “the reach is going to end up way too long.” this is what I mean.
Judging by the seat height, this frame may have been too big for you to start with. That being said, I was about to start a similar conversion and you have given me pause. At the very least I am going to mock it up before I go all in.
At least it looks cool.
I think 90s hybrid 700c bikes are better platforms for this sort of thing, especially ones that have a more sloping top-tube geometry. You can put pretty wide 650b/27.5″ tires on many of them, 2″+ depending on the model.
Yup, pretty much over building vintage 26ers. Vintage road and hybrid bikes work out way better IMO.
I mean if you look at YouTube videos from roadies and gravel people, like Cade Media, they also talk about smaller sizes being better
Someone like me (5’7) would need about a 52cm effective top tube on a modern gravel/road frame to be comfortable but finding that in an old ATB I would need to get a 15in frame instead of 17in (about 54cm eTT usually)
So I guess to make it work for real, size down the frame from your usual straight/altbar sizing, and get drops with short reach. Also maybe narrower drops
If someone has any experience with this lmk if I’m right or wrong and by how much. I’m interested in a drop bar conversion myself on my old trek but how comfortable would it be with the short stems, different head tube angle etc
That’s a pretty short stem for such a long top tube. Have you tried playing with stem height and reach? I wouldn’t write off drop bar conversions completely without trying to find a sweet spot with the stem and bar placement
Plenty of 90s mtbs used high-angled, long stems to get the drops way up high. That could help significantly with the handling issues. Also, the drop on those bars look uncomfortably deep. Maybe try something more gravel-specific?
Beautiful bike, btw
Thankyou , you have just talked me out of this 😄
Those bikes already had aggressive geo. Slap some deep sweeps on her and you’ll fall in love
Before writing it off completely, perhaps it might be worthwhile finding a used high-rise stem (e.g., Nitto Dirt drop, VO removable faceplate, or one of many offering from companies like Kalloy) to get the bars up higher. The low stack/ long TT of the 90s MTBs is a bit fucky.
Short reach bars. Those are monsters.
Tho, bar end shifters <3
To be fair, you did do 1 out of 4 things right: short reach stem. The top tube does look relatively long on this frame though, so the deck was stacked against you.
Did you consider
– inline seatpost
– short reach bars
– higher rise stem
?
Now that you’ve already built the whole thing, why not try inverting the stem so it’s reach is negative? Easier than starting from scratch and would be curious if it looks decent.
A longer fork might help if you’re trying to save the project
I opted for a zero setback seat post for mine and a shorter stem, those fixed the reach issue for me. Hopefully you can save the build, looks fun imo.
Looking at your seat height, I think you’d want to size down to make any of these superman position 90’s MTBs work for you. They always had insane top tubes for their relative seat tube lengths. A zero setback seatpost might help, but you’d potentially be entering a whole different world of fit fuckery.
I think it depends on the geo of the bike and your body. I’m really long in the torso and my 1992 frame is closer to square, so drops are actually really comfy for me.
With the extremely wide variety of alt bars you don’t really need drops anymore.
Why do people do this? Why bother buying a vintage bike and then altering it to the point that’s it’s basically almost not a vintage bike? Just buy a gravel bike.
have you tried mounting the stem backwards
Always measure the top tube length of any prospective mtb-to-drop bar conversion before you start. The older MTBs just added a huge stem length to get the ride fit, but later designs increased the tt length to make the stem length more reasonable, and get the bars farther back for more control.