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I currently have traditional drop bars and cross (interrupter) brake levers. I like the interrupters and use them a lot.

But I'm going to get a compact drop bar (FSA Omega Compact bar on order), and in trying to envision this new setup, it seems the interrupters might be less useful with compact bars because my hands, even on the cross bar, will be closer to the (regular) brakes. Plus the "cockpit" area, being more compact with compact bars, might be overly cluttered with interrupters in there. Plus with a compact bar I suspect I'll have my hands on the cross bar less of the time.

All in all it seems interrupter brakes are less desirable on a compact drop bar than they are on a traditional drop bar.

Does anyone use interrupter brake levers on a compact bar?

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    Theres no reason why you should or shouldn't use interrupter levers on this drop bar -- this is entirely a matter of preference. Try setting it up both ways and see which one you like better (and stick with that option, assuming the bars work out for you).
    – Batman
    Apr 28, 2014 at 2:18
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    I've got that bar and while my bike doesn't have cross levers, I think if you had cross levers on the old bars you'll want them on the new bars. They should fit just fine.
    – Fred the Magic Wonder Dog
    Apr 29, 2014 at 2:46

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Generally a compact bar refers to the drops, not the width of the bar. The drop levers and interrupter levers will most likely be nearly the same distance apart. Your preference is all that matters.

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  • In this case, the particular bar tends to be a bit less wide when you buy it based on a given width (relative to other bars marketed as the same width).
    – Batman
    Apr 28, 2014 at 20:42
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I've have a straight bar on a classic bike.

When I installed drop bar adaptors with brake levers, I replaced my normal levers with cross brake levers.

Routing the cable in a safe manner was tricky, because brake cables can become unsafe if you bend them too much, but that's not your situation anyway.

Overall it's wider than normal drop bars, but I like to have brake levers close to my finger tips where ever my hands rest, on drop or straight bar.

front view of handlebars showing the interrupter levers installed inboard of the drop bar extensions

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