Modifying a bike

[[email protected]]

My roommate is on the short side. She found a mountain bike that was
about the smallest frame she could get (13"). But when she rides it she
still feels as if the reach to the handle bars is too far. Can the
headset be turned 180 degrees to bring the handle bars closer to her?
Has anyone done this?

 

[[email protected]]

No way. Turning the bars to the right will turn the wheel to the right
no matter what you do. But turning the stem 180 degrees (I think of
this as a stem with negative length) will make the bike handling less
stable. For example, holding the bars with just one hand would likely
be dangerous. I haven't tried this, but the geometry feels clear to me.
If using a shorter stem in the normal orientation doesn't fix the
problem, I'd try shifting the saddle forward.

-- Gary.

Anthony A. wrote:
> Of course, reversing the stem brings up another problem - reversed or
> "tiller" steering.
> In typical configuration, turning the handlebars or a bike right will
> steer the bike right - with the stem reversed turning them right will
> turn the bike left.
> A minor issue.
> I would agree with Jeff & say seek out a super short stem, and mount it
> in the traditional direction.

 

[John Everett]

On 15 Jun 2005 08:54:53 -0700, "Anthony A." <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Of course, reversing the stem brings up another problem - reversed or
>"tiller" steering.
>In typical configuration, turning the handlebars or a bike right will
>steer the bike right - with the stem reversed turning them right will
>turn the bike left.

This is a troll, right???


jeverett3<AT>earthlink<DOT>net http://home.earthlink.net/~jeverett3

 

[sceptborg]

"Anthony A." wrote:

> Of course, reversing the stem brings up another problem - reversed or
> "tiller" steering.
> In typical configuration, turning the handlebars or a bike right will
> steer the bike right - with the stem reversed turning them right will
> turn the bike left.
> A minor issue.
> I would agree with Jeff & say seek out a super short stem, and mount it
> in the traditional direction.

You can compensate for this by merely crossing over your arms before you
grab the handlebars.

 

[Anthony A.]

John Everett wrote:

> This is a troll, right???

I guess that my implied sarcasm was not implied enough, huh?
*Note to self - use more emoticons*

In all actuallity, I've tried a reversed stem on a chopper, and it is
tiller-ish, and difficult to get used to. Something about having the
bars behind the steering axis upsets the natural "feel" of steering a
bike.

This was discernable even against the high background noise of the
unnatural feel of a home-grown, long wheelbase chopper.

 

[Werehatrack]

On 15 Jun 2005 08:16:15 -0700, [email protected] wrote:

>My roommate is on the short side. She found a mountain bike that was
>about the smallest frame she could get (13"). But when she rides it she
>still feels as if the reach to the handle bars is too far. Can the
>headset be turned 180 degrees to bring the handle bars closer to her?
>Has anyone done this?

Several alternate suggestions:

Old-style cruiser bars, with their swept-back ends, might be a good
fix. Using a short BMX stem (BMX stems often have a shorter reach
than what's available for mountain bikes) would move the bars back a
bit, and if reversed, it would not be as severe in the tiller-like
feel.

Is it possible to move the seat position forward a bit without causing
leg angle problems for the rider?
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[JeffWills]

Anthony A. wrote:
> John Everett wrote:
>
> > This is a troll, right???
>
> I guess that my implied sarcasm was not implied enough, huh?
> *Note to self - use more emoticons*
>
> In all actuallity, I've tried a reversed stem on a chopper, and it is
> tiller-ish, and difficult to get used to. Something about having the
> bars behind the steering axis upsets the natural "feel" of steering a
> bike.
>
> This was discernable even against the high background noise of the
> unnatural feel of a home-grown, long wheelbase chopper.

The geometry has to be adjusted some if your hands are behind the
steering axis.

I didn't mention before (because it wasn't relevant) that I often ride
a Tour Easy long-wheelbase recumbent. On it, the stem points
"backwards" and the grips are somewhat behind the steering axis. In
order to balance this, there's very little trail built into the
steering- self-centering in accomplished by the weight of the riderr's
hands pulling back on the handlebars. It's *different*, but after
getting used to it, it "feels" natural. Nowadays, I swap around among
my two recumbents and four uprights with impunity.

Jeff

 

[Werehatrack]

On 15 Jun 2005 08:54:53 -0700, "Anthony A." <[email protected]>
wrote:

>Of course, reversing the stem brings up another problem - reversed or
>"tiller" steering.
>In typical configuration, turning the handlebars or a bike right will
>steer the bike right - with the stem reversed turning them right will
>turn the bike left.
>A minor issue.

One could always move to Australia, where it would then work
correctly, as they drive on the other side of the road and are in the
southern hemisphere. (Take your pick as to which is the appropriate
reason.) Beware of the drop bears when biking through gum forests,
and remember, Australian beer won't keep the flies away, but enough of
it can make them seem amusing.

This message brought to you by the Western Canadian Tourism Board, eh?
Because if you believe any of it, we'd be delighted to hear that
you'll be visiting Australia this year.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Ryan Cousineau]

In article <[email protected]>,
Werehatrack <[email protected]> wrote:

> On 15 Jun 2005 08:16:15 -0700, [email protected] wrote:
>
> >My roommate is on the short side. She found a mountain bike that was
> >about the smallest frame she could get (13"). But when she rides it she
> >still feels as if the reach to the handle bars is too far. Can the
> >headset be turned 180 degrees to bring the handle bars closer to her?
> >Has anyone done this?
>
> Several alternate suggestions:
>
> Old-style cruiser bars, with their swept-back ends, might be a good
> fix. Using a short BMX stem (BMX stems often have a shorter reach
> than what's available for mountain bikes) would move the bars back a
> bit, and if reversed, it would not be as severe in the tiller-like
> feel.

Not sure whether this is a threadless thing or not, but thanks to
current dirt-jump and downhill setups, you can now get wildly overbuilt
threadless stems in lengths so short that they're pretty much limited by
the need for the steerer hole and the handlebar hole to avoid
overlapping:

http://raceface.com/components/stems/evolvedh-stem.htm

That's a 35mm stem, and not radical design in this market.

http://syncros.com/stems.htm

Okay, the On Top stem is pretty radical: It's a 0mm 90-degree stem. Yes,
you may need to look at the photo, as this stem transcends the normal
system for specifying stem dimensions. Also available in a 20mm version,
not shown.

> Is it possible to move the seat position forward a bit without causing
> leg angle problems for the rider?

--
Ryan Cousineau [email protected] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos

 

[Leo Lichtman]

"Werehatrack" wrote: (clip) Old-style cruiser bars, with their swept-back
ends, might be a good fix. (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Whether you put your hands behind the stem axis by reversing the stem, or do
it by installing swept-back handlebars makes NO DIFFERENCE. The connection
from your grip to the fork is virtually inflexible, so it doesn't matter
what shape it is. In an earlier post, I suggested a comparison to a car
steering wheel. You can steer your car equally well whether you hold the
wheel at the bottom or the top. I have seen dumb-ass kids ride a bike with
a steering wheel installed. Don't you see that you turn the wheel (or the
handlebars) clockwise or counterclockwise regardless of where you hold it?

 

[Sandy]

"Leo Lichtman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Werehatrack" wrote: (clip) Old-style cruiser bars, with their swept-back
> ends, might be a good fix. (clip)
> ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
> Whether you put your hands behind the stem axis by reversing the stem, or
> do it by installing swept-back handlebars makes NO DIFFERENCE. The
> connection from your grip to the fork is virtually inflexible, so it
> doesn't matter what shape it is. In an earlier post, I suggested a
> comparison to a car steering wheel. You can steer your car equally well
> whether you hold the wheel at the bottom or the top. I have seen dumb-ass
> kids ride a bike with a steering wheel installed. Don't you see that you
> turn the wheel (or the handlebars) clockwise or counterclockwise
> regardless of where you hold it?
I'm not sure I get you ...
Pushing the bars right (turning them counterclockwise) moves you right on a
bike.
Or so I thought.
Turning the steering wheel counterclockwise (were it a bar, pushing it
right) moves you left.
Or so I thought.

Did you have a different idea to convey ?
--
Bonne route !

Sandy
Verneuil-sur-seine FR

 

[Leo Lichtman]

"Sandy" wrote: (clip) Did you have a different idea to convey ?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
First, you and I must have different ideas of clockwise and
counterclockwise. To me, assuming a mountain-bike handlebar, straight ahead
puts your left hand at 9:00 and your right at 3:00. Turning "clockwise"
would move your left hand to 10:00 and your right to 4:00. But that's not
my point. My point is that any connection from your hands to the stem of
the bike allows you to rotate the fork clockwise or counterclockwise.
Steering a bike with a forward pointing stem is like holding the steering
wheel at 9:30 and 2:30. Steering a bike with a rearward pointing stem is
like holding a steering wheel at 8:30 and 3:30. It hardly changes the way
your hands move to produce the same steering effect. All the things we
already knew about steering a bike remain the same, such as: pushing the
left handle forward moves the bottom of the front wheel to the right,
resulting in a left-leaning left turn.