Flared Bars-What am I doing wrong here?
11-02-21, 07:02 AM
#26
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Also, you earlier mentioned moving the levers “out and down,” but did you consider angling them more inward? It seems inward would be the direction to go to bring the lever ends more inline with the bar hooks.
11-02-21, 08:00 AM
#27
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I think there is reach adjustment, and obviously some part of the lever is moving closer to the bar, so maybe that’d be a more comfy place to grab it than at the distal end (where there’s more lateral offset). I dunno, but it may be worth a try, and even if it doesn’t achieve the positioning you want, at least you learned something about your bike!
Also, you earlier mentioned moving the levers “out and down,” but did you consider angling them more inward? It seems inward would be the direction to go to bring the lever ends more inline with the bar hooks.
Also, you earlier mentioned moving the levers “out and down,” but did you consider angling them more inward? It seems inward would be the direction to go to bring the lever ends more inline with the bar hooks.
As for rotating the shifters inward, its weird, it seems to make it worse.
11-02-21, 09:30 AM
#28
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Interesting video, the sram website says the Apex1 shifters aren't reach adjustable, but I checked it out and sure enough the bolts are there like in the video. I don't think it'll make any difference, but its easy enough to try.
As for rotating the shifters inward, its weird, it seems to make it worse.
As for rotating the shifters inward, its weird, it seems to make it worse.
Here are my Force HRD on Easton EA70 AX for reference. They look like they’re pointing out from the front, but viewed from above, you can see they’re inline with the outside edge of the drops, and not flared out at all:
11-02-21, 12:06 PM
#29
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11-02-21, 12:36 PM
#30
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This is something I considered, but this is where they need to be to be comfortable in the hoods. I’ve thought that maybe I’ve got them too far up the bar where it’s still transitioning into the drops, so the clamp area is more horizontal than the drop grip.
Maybe I need a bar with a flare kinda like this? These are $$$ carbon bars though and I really don’t like spending >$100 on handlebars since they’re mostly disposable for me.
Maybe I need a bar with a flare kinda like this? These are $$$ carbon bars though and I really don’t like spending >$100 on handlebars since they’re mostly disposable for me.
I'll share my two flared bar rigs:
Drop-bar Pugsley with Salsa Woodchippers and Gevenalle GX shifters. Notice that these hood are mount below level and I've got the bars rotated down. I don't ride the hoods often, mostly low speed manuvering, but I find the "pistol grip" great on with this set up. I spend most of my miles on the drops.
This is my 2017 Breeze Radar Pro with stock flare bars and SRAM Double Tap shifters. This looks more like your set up, but I've never felt an issue with reach on the hoods or drops. I have to admit, I haven't done any adjustments since the shop set it up for deliver 4 years ago.
Last edited by Hypno Toad; 11-02-21 at 12:40 PM. Reason: added image
11-02-21, 01:26 PM
#31
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11-02-21, 03:03 PM
#32
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Hand position question for the OP: how are you positioning your hands on the hoods?
Try rotating your hands 'out', meaning giving your fingers more reach with less of the thumb on the insides of the hoods. Frau Toad met with a bike fitter over the summer and found this advice helpful for both her wrist pain and better control on the brakes and shifting also she has much smaller hands so the reach was a big help.
For reference, here's my hand position with the right hand comfortable reaching the brakes.
Try rotating your hands 'out', meaning giving your fingers more reach with less of the thumb on the insides of the hoods. Frau Toad met with a bike fitter over the summer and found this advice helpful for both her wrist pain and better control on the brakes and shifting also she has much smaller hands so the reach was a big help.
For reference, here's my hand position with the right hand comfortable reaching the brakes.
Last edited by Hypno Toad; 11-03-21 at 07:23 AM. Reason: Edit: these bars are Oval Concepts 325, 125mm drop, 25° flare, 4° sweep
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11-02-21, 03:06 PM
#33
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C'mon bro! 
I'm not getting rid of the SRAM shifters, but I do see what you're saying. Anyways, backcountry.com is taking the bars back even though they're used, which is pretty awesome. Not sure what I'll get next, Specialized doesn't sell the exact bars I had on my bike originally as an aftermarket part, and FSA doesn't make the bars I used to really like anymore, so I'm not really sure what I'm going to do. Maybe get a set of Zipps, since they're owned by SRAM and the ******g bars better work with the ******g shifters they make.
I'm not getting rid of the SRAM shifters, but I do see what you're saying. Anyways, backcountry.com is taking the bars back even though they're used, which is pretty awesome. Not sure what I'll get next, Specialized doesn't sell the exact bars I had on my bike originally as an aftermarket part, and FSA doesn't make the bars I used to really like anymore, so I'm not really sure what I'm going to do. Maybe get a set of Zipps, since they're owned by SRAM and the ******g bars better work with the ******g shifters they make.
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11-02-21, 03:11 PM
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They'll definitely work Phatman ...you're just going to have to get used to the ergonomics of the SRAM shifter, which on a flared bar cause the flare to be a bit more pronounced. Take a look at post #32, I think Hypno Toad is on to something.
11-02-21, 03:47 PM
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Maybe more than you want to spend, but Lauf sells their smoothie handlebar: Lauf Smoothie - Lauf Smoothie (laufcycling.com). Almost all Lauf builds are SRAM, so you can look through the pictures on the website to see if it would work. Not cheap at all, but might work for you.
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11-02-21, 07:42 PM
#36
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Maybe more than you want to spend, but Lauf sells their smoothie handlebar: Lauf Smoothie - Lauf Smoothie (laufcycling.com). Almost all Lauf builds are SRAM, so you can look through the pictures on the website to see if it would work. Not cheap at all, but might work for you.
11-03-21, 04:12 AM
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Here’s my cable brake Rival levers on a Redshift Kitchen Sink bar. While they do go a bit past the bar it’s not much
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11-05-21, 03:36 PM
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More elbow bend and flare, Its the shifters and not the bars. I run 24 deg flare with shimano hydro shifters and minimal flare with my sram HRD shifters. They don't play well with the design
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