I tried the inward-facing brifters; no, alas, that doesn’t help. I rotated them forward again.
I rode the 1999 custom today with the old Dura Ace aero levers, and noticed how the outer edge of heel of my palms rest on the bar as it transitions into the levers, while on the R8000 levers the whole palm rests on the hood. Perhaps adjusting my hand position might work. At any rate, I was once again delighted to find that the cockpit on the 1999 remains perfectly comfortable, on the hoods as always, and also in hooks as I pushed home against a headwind (I should just bow to circumstance and move the chain to the 68’ gear, but I didn’t). Both bikes are set up almost identically, apart from bar types and brake types: 38 cm Maes Parallel with Dura Ace 7402 levers on the one, and a 42 cm Cannondale no-reach anatomic bar with the R8000 brifters. Apart from my left palm, and the further subtle inadequacy of the non-Maes bar and the non-BLR400-type levers, the Roadeo feels supremely comfortable. Aside: Regarding raising the bar for less weight on arms, etc: I had the opposite experience recently, tho’ it was subtle: on the 2020 Matthews clone of the 2003 Riv Road custom, I raised the saddle by about 5-6 mm/1/4” for slightly more leg extension. I left the bar where it was. I noticed — again, the change was subtle — that my shoulder-arm-hand apparatus seemed “lighter” on the bar than before, and this sensation repeated on the next few rides. I do think that a certain angle at the hips does encourage your torso muscles to do their work better. Back to the Roadeo. I do think of rebuilding it with friction bits, silver or not, including one of my stashed pairs BL 7402 levers, but that means changing the shifters and the bar as well, and re-cabling everything. I just read somewhere that 11 in friction is a doddle; would be fun to try; but frankly, I no longer like working on bikes (as opposed to riding them) as I did before. Perhaps the short BL 7402 hoods, compared to the long R8000 hoods, will compensate for the long Maes Parallel ramps in place of the tiny-ramp Cannondales…? We’ll see. Does anyone make a 38 cm Maes Parallel in black? On Sat, Mar 28, 2026 at 7:35 AM 'Steven Seelig' via RBW Owners Bunch < [email protected]> wrote: > A great start. Next adjustment could be to raise the stem height to > potentially take some weight off your wrists. > > On Friday, March 27, 2026 at 11:15:46 PM UTC-4 [email protected] wrote: > >> I angled them inward quite abruptly while leaving the tilt alone, and >> while I’ve not had the opportunity to ride with the the new brake lever >> position, a static test indicates that my hands drape over the hoods more >> as with the comfortable DA BL 7402s. Will test shortly and report. >> >> Thanks again. >> >> On Thu, Mar 26, 2026 at 7:58 AM Patrick Moore <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Steven: That’s worth checking out; thanks. At least it will let me keep >>> these hoods level to the ground, where I like them. Will report. >>> >>> On Thu, Mar 26, 2026 at 6:33 AM 'Steven Seelig' via RBW Owners Bunch < >>> [email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> When I got my bike fitting for my brighter equipped road bike, my >>>> fitter was adament about having my brake hoods turned in toward the center >>>> of the bars. For me, in that I have an outward flare for my drops we >>>> followed that angle. The logic both for the flares and the hood angle was >>>> that this kept my wrists at a angle that was not bending them backwards and >>>> helped relieve pressure. >>>> >>>> Think about the angle your arm likes for non drop bars. For me it is >>>> the Albatross and Billy bar as those have a similar flare to them. Look at >>>> what those bars do for your wrists and seek to replicate those in the >>>> drops. For me, keeping my wrists from bending backwards is a thing I >>>> repeat on all my bikes. >>>> >>>> On Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 4:17:00 PM UTC-4 Kieran J wrote: >>>> >>>>> I also strongly dislike the R7000/R8000 brifter shape. The hoods feel >>>>> bulky and boxy, which leads to numb fingers for me. On top of that, I find >>>>> the brake lever feel is weird, as if the pivot is too low. I've had both >>>>> mechanical and hydro versions of this shifter and I hated both equally. >>>>> >>>>> 12spd Di2 shifters on the other hand are ergonomically awesome. So are >>>>> 10/11spd Sram ones. >>>>> >>>>> KJ >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> On Wednesday, March 25, 2026 at 12:02:32 PM UTC-7 Patrick Moore wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> People say that “brifter” brake hoods are very comfortable, but even >>>>>> after futzing with the R8000 levers on the Roadeo to get the angle just >>>>>> right (the tops of the hoods are pretty much dead level) I find that my >>>>>> sensitive left palm starts getting numb or “tingly” after 10 or 12 miles >>>>>> riding on the hoods, unless I diligently move it around. (And I don’t >>>>>> like >>>>>> the hooks on the anatomic bar). Shimano’s non-shifting aero levers, OTOH, >>>>>> have been my hood comfort benchmark for decades and do not cause that >>>>>> pressure problem on the left palm. >>>>>> >>>>>> I wonder if I’ll have to start wearing gloves again, since this bike >>>>>> was bought for longer rides. >>>>>> >>>>>> Can anyone suggest ways to improve this situation? Is there a >>>>>> “correct” or at least “optimum” way to set up Shimano brifters? Are there >>>>>> tricks to address this? There won’t be much leeway here, though, as I >>>>>> have >>>>>> the levers set up pretty much perfectly for torso/arms/etc comfort on the >>>>>> hoods. >>>>>> >>>>>> I think that the difference is that, with the 7402s, I can rest the >>>>>> angle between base of thumb and base of forefinger across the lever, >>>>>> which >>>>>> takes up some of the pressure; the brifter does not seem to encourage >>>>>> this. >>>>>> >>>>>> Thoughts? >>>>>> >>>>>> Lovely ride on the Roadeo just now: got the rd hanger alignment >>>>>> checked and it’s fine, and ran some errands with multiple detours. The >>>>>> chain tracks dead straight on the favorite 50 x 18 gear (14-32) so I can >>>>>> pretend I’m on a 75” fixed gear. I know, I know. Still, the Roadeo does >>>>>> climb very nicely when your climbing style is to sit or stand and push. >>>>>> >>>>>> Aside: PSA: I just bought a Planet Bike analogue tire gauge, with a >>>>>> big dial marked from 20 psi to 140 psi, and good with Schrader and with >>>>>> adapter with Presta. Only $17.95. The great benefit is that I can read >>>>>> the >>>>>> dial without my reading glasses, while the otherwise very nice AccuGauge >>>>>> hp >>>>>> gauge requires me to put them on every time I use it. >>>>>> >>>>>> -- >>>>>> >>>>>> Patrick Moore >>>>>> Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum >>>>>> >>>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>>>>> >>>>>> Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other >>>>>> writing services >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>>>>> >>>>>> *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* >>>>>> >>>>>> *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* >>>>>> >>>>>> *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* >>>>>> >>>>> -- >>>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>>> Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>>> an email to [email protected]. >>>> To view this discussion visit >>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/5fdc2319-fa0e-4846-9523-ac335aa16245n%40googlegroups.com >>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/5fdc2319-fa0e-4846-9523-ac335aa16245n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>>> . >>>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> >>> Patrick Moore >>> Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum >>> >>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>> >>> Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other writing >>> services >>> >>> >>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >>> >>> *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* >>> >>> *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* >>> >>> *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* >>> >> >> >> -- >> >> Patrick Moore >> Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum >> >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >> >> Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other writing >> services >> >> >> ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >> >> *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* >> >> *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* >> >> *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/09e128f1-f811-4ab6-9a59-5a3ac6590b12n%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/09e128f1-f811-4ab6-9a59-5a3ac6590b12n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- Patrick Moore Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Executive resumes, LinkedIn profiles, bios, letters, and other writing services ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *When thou didst not, savage, k**now thine own meaning,* *But wouldst gabble like a** thing most brutish,* *I endowed thy purposes w**ith words that made them known.* -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/CALuTfguRbYOtHa0u4mXqzwpe%3DYi_q0SmABdGzF%2BaO9eeohg2rg%40mail.gmail.com.
