It's been a long road of struggling to get this Salsa Fargo to fit me right. However, good things come to those who wait. I think I have found just the right handlebar to fit me just right. I need to swap out the brake levers and shifters back to the Shimano Xl dual control set-up and get a couple rides to know for sure. I zip-tied the drop bar to part of this new bar and rode around the driveway and down the gravel road just a bit and so far I think it will be just right. Finally! One problem I can see is that I will be so comfortable on this bar that all of my bikes might need the same bar. That will have to wait a while cause these bars ain't cheap!
Captain.
13 comments:
What's that bar???
Titanium?
It's the Carver My Ti. Yes, titanium. It's the heavy version with no weight limit.
I'm curious, I know others have put non-drop bars on their Fargos, and of course they are entitled to do so, but isn't the Fargo designed around drop bars? I recently bought a Fargo and love it with the drops, I plan on ordering some Woodchippers soon. What made you choose the Fargo over some other 29er? If it's just the braze ons I would argue put a Fargo fork on another bike. Just curious, not judging
Great questions joe. Too much to coment from a blackberry. I'll type up a good response from home tonight. Thanks.
A long time ago I first rode a Fargo and it was set up with a bell lap drop bar and controls were Sram Force (think, something Sram Double Tap) I never once use the drops. Only the hoods. I didn't actually fall in love with the bike until later on. I didn't think I needed a "touring" rig. However, the versatility of the Fargo won me over. I had good intentions of running a drop bar but tried a Origin 8 Space bar. I love the feel but there were many things that didn't work about that bar. I knew all along that the Fargo top tube was shorter than all my other bikes and that was due to it being designed for drops. I ended up using that set up for the summer of 2009 but was never really comfortable. Backing up I should mention that I broke my elbow last winter which still gives me lots of elbow and wrist pain. I bought a Woodchipper and gave it a few rides but with no luck. The part of my hand that rests on the drops is too sensitive to pressure. So, back to the alt bar quest. The Carver My Ti sweeps way forward and then back which helps on the stem length issue. I hate running LONG stems. Right now I have it mounted with a 110mm. The Space bar was with a 120mm stem but should have been a 130mm. Stupid looking to me. Also, the Carver has a 29 degree bend and with that combined with Ergon grips is outstanding for me. Ride all day I think without getting sore.
The Fargo's fork is so specific to the Fargo frames geometry that doesn't really allow it to work well with other frames. It's non-suspension corrected and my size frame as a 55mm offset. Put that fork on a normal mountain bike frame and you'd be asking for trouble. Ask G-Ted for a lesson on fork offset and trail or whatever else they call it. I don't have the words to explain it but I do know the Fargo fork won't work with much, if anything else on the market.
The Fargo is SO STABLE which is another reason why I own one.
Not much else to say other than I am happy that I (I hope) I found the right bar.
Too lazy to spell check so if the note is butchered, sorry.
Thanks for asking.
Thx for the detailed explanation, makes sense - use what works for you. I don't suppose you have the woodchippers lying around and feel like selling? I agree the fargo is super stable, I feel really smooth even over rougher sections, the front wheel just wants to cruise straight.
Yeah joe. Got the bars laying right here. I paid $45 at europa cycles. Make me an offer. They have maybe 50 miles of use.
Sweet! I don't know how much shipping will run, light but bulky. Are they the 25.4 or 31.8 clamp? I recall they came in different widths as well? Would you consider $35-$40 shipped? You can email me at joe.p.cook(at)gmail(dot)com if you would rather contact me directly.
Thx,
~Joe
Dang, I am trying to find the right bars for my Fargo right now. I will be using it for the DK 200 and the drop bar it came with is giving me serious wrist pain. I was thinking about going with the Woodchipper, but this post has me wondering...
Adventure Monkey:
I wouldn't give my post to much credit. I have had bad wrist issues ever since the broken elbow. I never had problems with any drop bar before. You know, for the inexpensive cost of a Woodchipper I think it's well worth trying it. Most folks run the drop section higher than with a normal drop bar so your ideal position would be a little different than with the Bell Lap bar that came stock on the Fargo. If you don't like the Woodchipper you will be able to unload it pretty easily.
Good luck.
Captain
Yeah, I think I want to try the Woodchipper. Gnat says he wouldn't go with anything else. It's worth a try.
Appears that you should take that for sale link down then, eh? :) Glad you worked through your wrist and arm pain issues. I think this is the first Fargo I've seen without drop bars, not that I've looked a bunch. :)
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