Singular Switch-Up: Part 2

Well......That Didn't Take Long!

After I determined the frame would fit and my stem choice was good, I then decided to make a switch to the old, long discontinued Luxy Bar. Ironically, the Luxy Bar is the key to making this whole swap successful (so far). I also went geared. 

A little backing up with this story is in order here, I think, to give context to why the Luxy Bar is the key to the build. So, this entire group, the GRX Limited Edition silver group, was originally on the Twin Six Standard Rando. 

The GRX Limited Silver group on the Standard Rando in September of 2025

 The switch over to the Peregrine Mk4 included a switch to silver Cowchipper alloy handle bars. The slight differences in geometry between the Cowchipper and whatever bar I had on the Standard Rando was in reach and stack. The Cowchipper being ever so slightly longer/taller. This in turn made the rear brake hose appear to be too short. The Peregrine also had a short cockpit area, and it just didn't feel quite 'right'. 

Singular Peregrine Mk4 size Large. 

 Now the Luxy Bar has a entirely unique layout. Of all the flared drop bars, it is a unicorn in that it has a severe flare and swept extensions. The only other flared drop bar that ever came close was the Salsa Cycles Woodchipper and in reality, the Woodchipper is not even in the same zip code as the Luxy Bar. 

One thing about the Luxy Bar which is unique which doesn't strike you upon first seeing it is how narrow the bar sets the hoods apart from each other. The difference between the Luxy Bar and, say the Cowchipper, is tremendous.  This closer positioning of the hoods, and the canted position of the levers, makes the cable runs shorter than if you use a conventional flared drop bar. 

So, my too short rear brake cable? It is perfect with the Luxy Bar, and on an XL frame with a longer top tube. Additionally I am running a longer stem than before as well. But that's not all. The stack height on the XL is taller also, which should make the rear brake hose too short, but nope! 

Sat on the bike the XL now shows me the classic "bars hide the front axle" thing, which I know, bike fitters and younger folk think is dumb. The 1.25" of spacers I removed also helps things look cleaner and more classic, in my opinion. I should mention the new frame did come with a new fork, but I retained the old one because it was cut to length and already had a star nut installed.  

Singular Peregrine Mk4 XL

So, you can compare and contrast the two set ups here. They are radically different. You can see on the Large I biased everything rearward as far as how I was sat on the bike. The XL allowed me to push everything forward a bit more. 

You can also see how radically different a Luxy Bar is compared to a Cowchipper. Very different. Big different. The levers lay over a LOT with Luxy Bars and some folks don't like that for various reasons. I happen to like it a lot and I find it to work well ergonomically. Pushing more downward with your hands (to shift) is more natural than pushing inward laterally compared to your body. Try it by sticking your arm out and when you push inward you'll feel more tension in your forearms. 

As I stated earlier, the seat post and saddle are placeholders for the time being. However; I used to love SST's, so maybe it stays. I have test rides to do so we shall see about this. I may swap back to the GRX wheels and 50mm tires as well. But the Irwins are fast wheels and the Conti tires are very smooth. I have options, so that is nice. 

So, now all that is left is to ride. I will see if this is a smart move or not, but so far I have been happier with this XL frame. Stay tuned.....