Bar change inspired by another forummer.

[Zipperhead]

Andy G, you led a young man astray by showing him your bike last year, and he's been plotting and scheming ever since.

As it was a nice sunny morning (birds singing and all that) and we had sufficient pieces to make the change, we spent an hour or so round at the garage...

[Séamas M.]

I thought this might have been a Windoze rant! 

Bike and rider look really cool though. 

[andygates]

Nice job that.    

There's a really nice semi-aero perching position you can get now, on the "brows" of the M. 

[clarion]

Unique, at least!

[Wowbagger]

Left lever for front brake?

[andygates]

Cleaner cable runs...

[nuttycyclist]

But the cable run for the back is worse as it goes round the headset.

You can get a decent and neat cable run for the front by cutting the cable shorter; plus it conforms to standard so you don't go arse over tit when getting back on that bike after riding a proper one.

[David Martin]

Is PG Tips racing at Herne Hill yet?

..d

[Zipperhead]

But the cable run for the back is worse as it goes round the headset.

On my Pompino, with standard cabling (left rear), it still goes round the headset.

You can get a decent and neat cable run for the front by cutting the cable shorter; plus it conforms to standard so you don't go arse over tit when getting back on that bike after riding a proper one.

It's much neater if it comes from the left hand lever, it doesn't have to double back on itself.

In practice, neither he nor I have ever found it an issue swapping between bikes with the front brake on the left or right.

[Zipperhead]

Is PG Tips racing at Herne Hill yet?

..d

He's talked about going to the training sessions there, and immediately started off on thinking about how to have a quick change conversion for his bike.

[andygates]

I have an Ahead stem, so the faceplate and brake bolts are all that need to come off to remove all that road-legal nonsense.

[David Martin]

Is PG Tips racing at Herne Hill yet?

..d

He's talked about going to the training sessions there, and immediately started off on thinking about how to have a quick change conversion for his bike.

If it is  Go-Ride club or similar then they may well have bikes he can borrow to avoid the fettling (at least for the first few sessions). Definitely worth going along and having a go.

..d

[MSeries]

But the cable run for the back is worse as it goes round the headset.

You can get a decent and neat cable run for the front by cutting the cable shorter; plus it conforms to standard so you don't go arse over tit when getting back on that bike after riding a proper one.

That isn't a problem in practice, it wasn't for me anyway when I had bikes that different. Hang on though, is that a fixed ? Why have a rear brake at all ? Surely if we are talking about drag from 2" of extra brake cable we might as well dispense with it and save some weight as well. Talking of saving weight those bars look very wide.

[Jakob]

Left lever for front brake?

Yes. This way I can brake and abuse gesture to the driver who cut me up at the same time.