New Handlebars for the Ross, Take Three

The bag of clamps arrived from eBay. It's a pity there is only one that fits, but that's all I need.

The double-ringed gadget is what broke.

I squeezed the brake lever. The best tool to remove the inset screw is a ratchet.

Voila. I could barely see this break when the lever was all together, but as I said I'd heard an audible crack and thereafter the clamp wouldn't tighten, well, it became obvious, especially after I slid the clamp from the bar and peered inside.

It was an easy repair, really. I gingerly tighten the brake lever back in place. As this replacement piece was difficult to locate, I'm erring on the side of caution. As a matter of fact I backed off a turn on the left hand brake mount, just in case that one's stability is on the edge. I presume I may never locate another one of these specialized clamps.

It's looking good. I took the Ross for a spin around the block. Braking and shifting worked reasonably well. Oh heck, I went ahead and put on the leather grips. This time I placed them in water so twisting the grips in place was a breeze.

Using the mustache handle bars sits me more upright on the bike. A bit too much. I lowered the stem as far as possible. And angled the seat differently. This feels better. I presume there will be more adjustments as I get used to the changes.

Ready for a test ride, I installed the bell and mirror. I've never put a mirror in this position, but it turned out to provide more visibility. On the other hand the bell is more awkward. But I'll leave it for now as it's functional. I routed the right hand brake wire under the bar and cinched it with a green zip-tie to another wire. This provides adequate room for a front bag.

At first I didn't like the spider web of black wires, but I'm getting used to it, especially with the addition of mirror and bell.

I'll eventually adjust the braking power as it's a bit soft. But all the gears seem to work. That's amazing. It's an adjustment getting used to braking with two fingers as it's rather uncomfortable gripping with my whole hand. Another reason to fine tune the braking system.

I'm happy I made these adjustments to the Ross. It's better suited to the way I use this bike. It'll never be the Pilen or the Betty Foy, but it's uniquely, distinctly mine.