# Flat bar to Drop Bar questions



## HOOKEM (Apr 4, 2004)

My current commuter:bike is a Specialized Hardrock ultra MTB of the early 90's era. Currently I'm running a flat bar with stubby bar ends, grip shifters the stock cantilever brakes/levers. 
I want to put road bars and levers on this bike, but I have heard that cantilever brakes do not work well with road levers. I have read that tektro mini v's will work better with road levers. The question is can I still run my 26" michelin country rock 1.75 tires wiht the tektro minis?
Or am I better off with standard V's and travel agent adapters?


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

HOOKEM said:


> but I have heard that cantilever brakes do not work well with road levers.


You have heard wrong. Cantilever brakes will work with road levers. V-brakes have a different pull ratio. Lots of cross bike use canti's with ordinary road levers.


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## jgsatl (Mar 16, 2009)

and there are some road levers that work great with v-brakes. but as jcavilia mentioned, different pull ratio so you have to be careful what you get.


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## StageHand (Dec 27, 2002)

Why drop bars? Can I talk you out of it? Would you consider a short reach bar like a dirt drop or something like that?

My reasoning depends on yours. I've done a few of these conversions for some folks, but they never end up being the bike they want for various reasons.


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## HOOKEM (Apr 4, 2004)

Sorry, Stagehand, but I've had this bike set up with drop bars before, only as a singlespeed and not with road levers. There are some lengthy hills on my morning commute that just beg for the aero tuck of being in the drops. A Sheldon Brown article found validated my concept of putting grip shiftes on the road bars and now that the brakes *should* work, I think I'm golden.


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## windmic (Jun 11, 2007)

Cantilever brakes do work with road levers. I've set this up several times. I have also used this on my own MTB for long miles on gravel roads. As discussed, they do have to be old cantilever brakes and not V-brakes. You can set up for V-brakes, but you need adapters. I have run that set up as well. I would use the cantilever brakes before the V-brakes. V-brake set up is a pain, and even after perfectly set they are still too squishy in my opinion.


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## tarwheel2 (Jul 7, 2005)

I've got two bikes with road levers and cantilever brakes, and they both work fine.


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## eddie415 (Oct 9, 2008)

*Crossroads with drops*

Just did a flat to drop conversion on my specialized crossroads. Works great! I have the stem height similar to my stock flat bar location for a comfortable position with nearly identical handling characteristics and the reach slightly longer for a better stretched out position for that aero tuck. More hand position options with drops.


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