Originally Posted by
nick_a
Do you all have a preference between aero and non-aero levers, insofar as their function vs. looks? I have a great set of Weinemann drilled levers with nice new hoods (non-aero) or a set of very comfy cane creeks (aero) to choose from.
My bicycles are from late 70's or early 80's and I'm not that interested in any components newer than mid-80's really. That being said, I have 6400 Ultegra gruppo (not complete) and that originally would have come with aero brake levers or brifters. I still went with older 600EX levers when using it. I like the whole retro look of the cables sticking out and downtube shifters so it's an esthetics decision for me. If I were ever to commit a crime of getting some modern (as in 90's modern) bicycle (don't see a reason why I would do that at this point) and go for aero levers, I think I'd just go for brifters instead.
The most modern components I use are of the 600 EX SIS group (86/87), which had both aero and non-aero brake levers. Non-aero ones look much nicer to me. All the aero levers look sort of generic and very much alike.