Handlebar stiffness aluminium vs carbon
Moderator: robbosmans
This past weekend I did first ride with new handlebar. A carbon S-Works Hover. Previously I had only run aluminium bars and previous model was Specialized Hover - yes, same handlebar but different material. Both 42cm wide too.
When doing some uphill standing grinding I had a weird sensation. Difficult to describe but felt as if front and back of the bike are not "in sync". Never felt like this before. Could it be that carbon bar is a "wet noodle"? I'm not a powerful rider at all and weigh about 74kg and have never really felt that any component would be too flexy for me but this is the first time I get this kind of feeling and it doesn't feel good at all.
Anyone else have S-Works Hover bar and thinks it's flexy? Is there a simple way to test stiffness at home? Not scientifically of course, but some quick validation method to get some basic understanding perhaps?
Stiff sub-200g handlebar recommendations are welcome too.
When doing some uphill standing grinding I had a weird sensation. Difficult to describe but felt as if front and back of the bike are not "in sync". Never felt like this before. Could it be that carbon bar is a "wet noodle"? I'm not a powerful rider at all and weigh about 74kg and have never really felt that any component would be too flexy for me but this is the first time I get this kind of feeling and it doesn't feel good at all.
Anyone else have S-Works Hover bar and thinks it's flexy? Is there a simple way to test stiffness at home? Not scientifically of course, but some quick validation method to get some basic understanding perhaps?
Stiff sub-200g handlebar recommendations are welcome too.
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http://blog.fairwheelbikes.com/reviews- ... em-review/
Some interesting results there that might help you.
Some interesting results there that might help you.
That link to FWB is about stems. I have read their test about handlebars as well and it wasn't really clear from their tests that stiffness would be highly correlated to material.
What I'm trying to understand is if my sensations are correct and if someone else can also confirm that S-Works Hover is flexy.
What I'm trying to understand is if my sensations are correct and if someone else can also confirm that S-Works Hover is flexy.
The material doesn't make difference. You're just looking for stiffer bars. Any bar that improves ride will feel more flexy. Any lightweight aero bar will feel flexy. You options are to ignore, move your hands inboard, or get a heavier/more rounded bar.
They've done some handlebar tests too:
http://blog.fairwheelbikes.com/reviews- ... ar-review/
http://blog.fairwheelbikes.com/reviews- ... ar-review/
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Sub 200gr 3T Ernova Team Stealth Carbon Handlebar even in 44 very little flex.
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Are you on a avnege vias - if so I would imagine you need to reroute brake cables through stem and might have removed that. Is the preload on the headset set properly?
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Different bars, but I had some flex with my Zipp Contour SL carbon bars when I was really getting on it, and don't have any flex now with the Bontrager Elite Aero alloy bars (made the switch so I could run clip-on aero bars). The minimal amount of flex in the Zipps wasn't an issue, just something I noticed. I think that's just the nature of carbon bars, and probably why they're a little more comfortable.
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