Handle Bar and Brakes

Today there are many styles of handle bars being used on fixies from traditional drop bars and bullhorn bars to free-style riser bars and slip-between-buses, sawed-off straight bars. Even brake levers are manufactured to accommodate different types of bars, e.g. Æro, tt/tri/bar end/inverse, inline/cross/interrupter. The three setups I am considering are:

1. Drop Bar with Inline Brake Lever (see fig. 1),
2. Drop Bar with Æro Brake Lever (see fig. 2), and
3. Bullhorn / Pursuit Bar with Bar End Brake Lever (see fig. 3).

Figure 1. 2009 SE Premium Ale with drop handlebar and inline brake levers.


Figure 2. 2008 SE Premium Ale with drop handlebar and Æro brake levers.


Figure 3. 2008 SE Lager with pursuit handlebar and bar end brake levers.

Setup 1 (see fig. 1) is actually the stock setup of my Premium Ale, which implies no change. Setup 2 (see fig. 2) requires the purchase of an Æro brake lever and a set of brake cables [sample]. But, it wouldn't look right without bar tape. Setup 3 (see fig. 3) requires the purchase of a pursuit bar, bar end brake lever, and a set of brake cables. So the list above is arranged in increasing cost order for me.

What I've always wanted when I thought about a fixie for myself is bullhorn bars. But I'm beginning to like the look of pursuit bars more. What's difficult about my fixie (see fig. 1) is the handle bar isn't covered by bar tape, implying I'd have to purchase a handle bar that looks similar to chrome. On top of that, I'd like for it to be a steel handle bar for a really comfortable ride. (Aluminum frame, carbon fiber fork, and aluminum drop bars doesn't absorb enough road shock for me on my Specialized Allez.) So the criteria is as follows: pursuit bar, chrome finish, and steel. The only product satsifying these criterias, I've found, is the El Toro from SOMA Fabrications, which is a chrome plated, Tange steel pursuit handlebar (see fig. 4). Review of the El Toro can be found here.

Figure 4. SOMA Fabrications' El Toro urban pursuit bar.

For the above, El Toro bar, I'll need to consider a set of compatible levers:

• Cane Creek 200TT Levers ($30 + free shipping at bike island)
• Tektro RX4.1 Levers in Silver (requires MTB type brake cable end) [matches El Toro's chrome finish better]
• SOMA Fabrications Urban Pursuit Levers in Silver
  

The problem with the El Toro is its dimensions: 26.0mm center and 20.9mm internal bar end diameter. SOMA Fabrications themselves had to introduce a pair of plugs that replaces the stock plugs of their very own Urban Pursuit Brake Lever to fit the El Toro. Another consideration: is my fixie's quill stem 25.4mm going to accept the 26.0mm center? [http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/335924-Can-25-4mm-clamps-be-used-with-26-0mm-bars]

Costs:
El Toro + Oversize Plug + Inverse Brake Lever = $43.99 + $3.99 + $31.99 = $79.97
need new stem with 26mm internal diameter
El Toro Brake Lever Options

El Toro would require swapping out the stem. So, maybe Fyxation's White Rodeo Pursuit Bullhorn bar available at Amazon, may work. Turns out the Rodeo Pursuit bar end has an internal diameter of 19.3mm