MTB ~~> Commuter Help

[Andrea]

Ok, so I know my road bike stuff, but when it comes to parts that make a comfy commuter, I'm at a bit of a loss...

I've got an old rigid chromoly steel Univega MTB that I'm not really planning on using for its original purpose since I prefer to go on foot when I'm off-road, and because I operate a bike off-road about like a monkey can operate rollerskates.



I'd like to turn it in to something I could use for getting groceries, going to work, etc- Light carrying and round trips of 30 miles or less.
I was thinking about getting some smaller, slick tires for it as well as a stem with a rise to it and some different handlebars.
I was hoping for some advice:
-Can I put some narrower tires on the 26" MTB wheels?
-I am not totally sold on staying with MTB bars because I find that they aren't that comfy on the wrists. Drop? Moustache? What do you think?
-What's the best way to carry stuff like a change of clothes, a 2 liter of Diet Coke, or the like? I won't need a trailer or anything, but I don't want to run out of room, and I don't want to spend an arm & a leg (as much as I loooooove all the classy canvas/leather touring stuff).


Oh Yeah... and it's got SPD pedals on it now instead of the baskets. I am gonna pick up a pair of commuter sandals as soon as the bike has been converted!

[spokewench]

There are many widths of tires for mountain bike tires just like road tires that will work and some without tread or very little tread - if you are riding on hte road, you do not need the tread. If you still want stability, just go with a tire that is almost as wide as the one you have, but has no tread. I've put treadless, really narrow tires on my mountain bike - almost looked like road bike tires, but they are a little dicey on the downhill - used to ride them on mt diablo uphill race in california.

I see you have bar ends on your bike - that for me is fine for hand positioning. I use those a lot but you will have to experiment if that is not good enough for you for hand positioning. What I've found is my commute is not long enough to bother my wrists or hands so I'm fine with bar ends.

There are lots of baskets, fenders, stuff out there to carry things. What I've found is that all mountain bikes are different and you have to look around for stuff that will actually fit your bike without like kicking your heel into them all the time, etc. I don't use my bike for grocery shopping except for smaller items, so I don't have all that pannier stuff. The easiest thing for me to carry stuff,clothes, shoes, etc. is a nice backpack. Also, I don't commute every day so I take extra clothes, etc. in my car on those days I don't commute.

I leave my bike lock at work most of the time so I don't have to carry that weight with me every day - unless, of course, I'm going to have to lock the bike somewhere else after or before work.

spoke

[Grog]

I operate a bike off-road about like a monkey can operate rollerskates.

It can't be THAT bad:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=toZASyaH23Q

Just kidding. I have no idea about your conversion, but good luck!

[Melalvai]

I'd like to turn it in to something I could use for getting groceries, going to work, etc- Light carrying and round trips of 30 miles or less.

Congratulations! This is REAL biking. (just kidding--mostly.)

-Can I put some narrower tires on the 26" MTB wheels?

I recommend hybrids, instead of road tires. Riding through town on streets, sometimes you have to go through some rough stuff, or you have wet pavement or other unexpected situations, and hybrids work really well.

-I am not totally sold on staying with MTB bars because I find that they aren't that comfy on the wrists. Drop? Moustache? What do you think?

You can sure say that again. Torture devices, more like. I like the Trekking bars available from Nashbar, but I think albatross bars would be nice too.

-What's the best way to carry stuff like a change of clothes, a 2 liter of Diet Coke, or the like? I won't need a trailer or anything, but I don't want to run out of room, and I don't want to spend an arm & a leg (as much as I loooooove all the classy canvas/leather touring stuff).

If you can store it, a trailer is awfully handy, but it is not something I use daily. A rack is a must. Personally I'd like to have more versatility with my rack. I'd advise you start out with a grocery-bag style pannier, it will be roomy enough for everything, but eventually add on a trunk so you don't always have to take the pannier. A lot can be strapped directly on to the rack with enough bungees, too.

I'm not a big fan of handlebar bags/baskets, although I've seen some designs that might be good. The only time I need something like that is when I go on a long ride, because I don't have a proper jersey with pockets, and to eat I have to stop the bike.

Good luck, and keep us posted on how your bicycling for transportation is going!

[kfergos]

-Can I put some narrower tires on the 26" MTB wheels?
You can get a pair of 1.5" slicks that work beautifully on a mountain bike. That's what I have used for a couple years now, and just having them be slicks makes a huge difference in the riding experience.

-I am not totally sold on staying with MTB bars because I find that they aren't that comfy on the wrists. Drop? Moustache? What do you think?
I converted mine to drops. This ended up being pretty expensive, requiring a few weird parts (the people at my LBS called it "rollamajigs") and a lot more replacements than I expected (shifters, brakes, cables), but I found it does make my commuter mtb *much* more comfortable.

I think, though, you could just BUY a commuter bike outfitted already for the cost of having the LBS replace your handlebars.

-What's the best way to carry stuff like a change of clothes, a 2 liter of Diet Coke, or the like? I won't need a trailer or anything, but I don't want to run out of room, and I don't want to spend an arm & a leg (as much as I loooooove all the classy canvas/leather touring stuff).
So far I've found my Timbuk2 bag carries tons of clothes and stuff well, but I'd recommend slapping a rack and panniers on that sucker if you want to carry groceries. I can't imagine a 2 liter bottle feeling so great in a messenger bag!

Note on the rack: I found that using the rack on my mtb made it feel very draggy, like I was pulling a dead elephant behind me or I had a flat all the time.

[Geonz]

Welp, the ultimate conversion would be to get an Xtracycle extension on it

Yes, you can go with skinnier tires - I agree that hybrid kinds of tyres are good choices. Mountain bikes are what, 35 or 38 cc? So cutting down to 32 or 28 cc gives you good stability but lots less resistance so you don't have to work as hard. I have Bontrager Hard Case tires and they're awfully good at fending off glass or (per yesterday's adventure) pretty harsh treatment from my fenders! My bike shop guy said that one of our buddies came in for repair and he pulled something like 35 pieces of glass out of his tire ... none of 'em had gone through. THey're not cushy, though... I gotta say I *love* the gentle ride that my fat 2-inch Schwalbe Big Apple tires give me on my Dahon; it's a "commuter" tread, not a "mountain bike" tread and it just absorbs potholes.

I dream of moustache bars. I've tried 'em a couple of times. They are divine. Hmmm!!! if my handlebars really are whacked from yesterday's pounding, perhaps now is the time

Rack or baskets will do ya fine for carrying... though the Xtracycle will mean you just kinda forget about the car.

[Andrea]

The xtracycle looks awesome!!! That could be an option down the line someday...

Thanks for all of the advice! I think I'm going to start out with the Nashbar Trekking bars and a stem with a nice rise to it. As for tires, I'm going with the Kenda Kwick Roller Sport with "iron cloak" flat protection in a 1.25" width. I'll post pics as I start the conversion!

Edit/Update: For a few $$ more, I ended up ordering similar bars from Harris Cyclery. They look the same as the Nashbar ones except they're silver, and not being sold by the Wal-Mart of online stores

[Melalvai]

The xtracycle looks awesome!!! That could be an option down the line someday...

Thanks for all of the advice! I think I'm going to start out with the Nashbar Trekking bars and a stem with a nice rise to it. As for tires, I'm going with the Kenda Kwick Roller Sport with "iron cloak" flat protection in a 1.25" width. I'll post pics as I start the conversion!

Edit/Update: For a few $$ more, I ended up ordering similar bars from Harris Cyclery. They look the same as the Nashbar ones except they're silver, and not being sold by the Wal-Mart of online stores

I'm glad of that. I didn't know Harris carried them. If money is a consideration, switching handlebars was one of the easier things I did (with guidance from a friendly bike shop mechanic).

Will you put wrap on your handlebars? That made it a lot more comfortable. I got foam wrap, which is cheap, but I've already had to replace it once, so I've probably spent as much as if I'd gotten leather to start with. On the other hand, the colors are cooler.

[Andrea]

I'm gonna get some Bontrager gel cork. My LBS has a lot of different colors, it's comfy, and it has backing with grip without being sticky.

Oh yeah, and I found a stem at Cambriabike.com that's for MTB-diameter bars with a 40 deg. rise, so with the shorter reach & higher bars, I should be able to use the Brooks I got a while back that didn't work out on my road bike!

[Andrea]

I'm just waiting on my new tires and seatpack to get here!

Other stuff- new chain, a water bottle cage, and eventually a rack/pannier (I am ordering the Delta megarack supersherpa since it's pretty light, not too expensive, and I'll never get close to its carrying capacity as well as a Detour Toocan pannier to go with)

[mimitabby]

the tulips are a nice touch


so is that saddle!!

[Irulan]

fenders?

[tulip]

the tulips are a nice touch

Yes they are !

Wow, Andrea, you don't mess around! I like people who have an idea and then go for it. Congratulations. Your bike already looks fantastic, and with the new tires and a rack, you'll be good to go anywhere!

You've got me thinking about those trekking bars for my Jamis Coda. I inquired about getting drops, but it's very expensive and complicated. What was the complexity of changing to the trekking bars (in terms of brake cables, shifters, and brake levers?)

Fenders are great if you expect to ride in wet weather. I ended up taking mine off my Coda because they wouldn't stay put and rattled around alot. But if you want to stay relatively dry and clean, they can't be beat.

Keep the pics coming as you continue to make improvements. Univegas are great, sturdy frames.

-Tulip

[Melalvai]

You've got me thinking about those trekking bars for my Jamis Coda. I inquired about getting drops, but it's very expensive and complicated. What was the complexity of changing to the trekking bars (in terms of brake cables, shifters, and brake levers?)

When I got the trekking bars on my bike, a bike mechanic friend showed me what how to do it. When I got trekking bars for my husband's bike, I was able to do it at home by myself. Later, I got albatross bars for my daughter's bike, and because I'd done the other 2 bikes, I was able to switch out hers with no problem.

It was not complicated at all, but I am glad I had guidance the first time.

The trekking bars make some interesting bends, so it did take me a few tries to get it in right. I held it above the bike in the position it needed to be in, and figured out from there which way I needed to slide it through the stem to get it to end up in the right place.

[Andrea]

They were a cinch to convert from flat bars! The MTB style levers slide right onto the ends. I didn't have to adjust cables or anything. If you have road-style integrated shifters/brakes, I imagine it'd be pretty tough to get them in a functional spot. They're very comfy, and grabbing the sides of them gives you a ton of leverage for hills.

As for fenders, I'm pretty used to the roadie mentality- just deal with getting dirty and clean up later

Thanks for all of the encouragement... I'm pretty excited! When I order the rack, I'm also going to look for a steer tube extender. It won't be pretty, but after taking it for a quick spin around the 'hood yesterday, I decided that I want to be more upright (even with the sharp stem angle, my hands are still about even w/my butt). The extender would be much cheaper than getting a new fork that hasn't been cut down so much

If my tires arrive before the weekend, I'll be rockin' the 2-wheeled ride to work on Monday!

Update: The tires came in! I installed those, a new chain, and adjusted my shifting a bit. I even rode down the the bike shop a few miles away to show off my new "car" The Kendas are very nice. Much better ride than the knobbies.