Hi all,

I've got a flat bar road bike that I picked up second hand ( for about USD$80) that I've made SS for commuting. Being as much or a roadie as I am a MTBer - I've come to the conclusion that I hate flat bars and want something different for the commuter.

I've only got a short 10km each way commute that has one false flat- and was thinking that since I like riding the commute on my roadie, drop bars would be the go. But the Provence 2006 post here a couple weeks ago got me thinking of using a Mustache Bar instead (partly, because it would just confuse people :) ).

Having never used one, nor the opportunity to try one- does anyone have any advice/suggestions/input on the ol' mustache?

Looking at the Soma 3-speed bar:
http://www.somafab.com/moustafabar.jpg

Which would be something like this (but in a more ugly location on a more ugly bike)
http://forums.roadbikereview.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=94204&stc=1&d=1183926902

tache bars are great for commuting but IME not great for long rides - earlier posts on this appear to confirm this view

I have them on my frankenfixte commuter and like them alot - anything longer than 40 miles and I get unhappy

I've got a set and I love the style, but I'm not so happy with the comfort. I get the feeling that to make them really comfortable, you need to be able to set them up as high or higher than your saddle. When they're lower than your saddle, you really get pushed into the hooks at the front, and putting your hands on the ends of the bars makes the bike pretty skittish. At least, that's in my experience, and the bike I've got them on has the handlebars significantly lower than the saddle.

agreed

What the others said...if you go Moustache, you MUST have them level with, or preferably 1-2cm above the saddle. They're great heads up/commuter bars, but for long rides, not comfortable. Look also at Riv's Albatross bars...these also are heads up, and ARE comfortable for as long as you care to ride.

Here's an article (5 pages, 1mb, PDF) from when the handlebars were first introduced that gives you some idea of their comfort issues... The last page concentrates on the bars. The article also gives you an idea of just how far bicycling magazine has fallen...

www.sheldonbrown.com/bridgestone/pdfs/bstoneXO11992.pdf

Basically, there's nothing mustache bars do that dirt drops don't do better. Except for looking really cool.

The article also gives you an idea of just how far bicycling magazine has fallen...


Nice. If this review was in a current issue of Bicycling, it would be less than 50 words long, include pictures of all the accessories you "need" and focus more on how it affects your sex life.

Back OT. I tried moustache bars too. Like the other posters, I liked it for short rides then when I raised the bar high enough to where it was more comfortable, the bike started to look pretty funny. My Nittos required an odd mix of components. Of course you need road levers but mine used a mountain bike stem. Position of the brake levers made a lot of difference too. It seemed like I was always fiddling with it. While my average hands are never bothered by the lever position on regular drops, I wished for a reach adjustment (which road levers lack) with the moustache. I believe the Rivendell bars another poster mentioned will take your flat bar levers.

I've got a flat bar road bike that I picked up second hand ( for about USD$80) that I've made SS for commuting. Being as much or a roadie as I am a MTBer - I've come to the conclusion that I hate flat bars and want something different for the commuter.

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Well...since that is my bike in Provence, I thought I would respond. I liked the moustache bars (those ones are Nitto) for commuting but I have since changed them back to drop bars. I prefer drops for longer rides and for rides with loads. I also am just more comfortable climbing on the top of the bars, cruising on the hoods and down on the drops for most descents. But, for a single speed commuter, I think moustache bars would be fine (and they do look sort of cool)

I use scott at4 bars not moustache just a wrap around mtb bar that gives me heaps of hand positions, can pick these up on e bay from time to time.

Just want to say a big thankyou for all your input- especially the Bicycling article (hehe, couldn't agree more regarding the current content).

But I've decided to go with Drops after all that. Not that my commute distance justifies it, but it's all about comfort for me. I'll come back and post some pics up when I'm all done (this bike's constantly getting changed into a bitsa)- just waiting on some Dia Comp levers.

Thanks again :thumbsup: