When you say position same to the mm then I guess you almost hit the nail on the head when you point out the hoods are different so they cannot be in exactly the same place. From memory then I rode for a while, then moved them further round the bars a little bit. But after a month then I was fine. Just took getting used to after more than a 100,000miles of the old shape.

Also got better after I retaped the bars with my preferred tape, and not the thin lightweight stuff my bike shipped with

Curious, exactly what make and model did you have prior and what do you have now? And, are you using the exact same bars? The variances of the handlebar and brake lever interface is underappreciated in my opinion. David K

Old: 2013 Supersix, SRAM Red mech, rim brakes, round/ergonomic hoods
New: 2020 Supersix, Ultegra Di2, disc brakes, square/blocky hoods due to master cylinder shape

I had the same issue moving from the 6870 hoods to R8070. I ended up tilting mine up just slightly and angled them a little bit inward. In the end, I can't really tell a difference after a long ride.

What does "set up identically" mean when the contact points are shaped differently? Are you possibly putting more weight on your hands than before? Would a different hood position or angle allow them to mesh better with the shape of your hands?

The Ultegra disc hoods are indeed very blocky and uncomfortable for me as well when I first install them. My only solution was to change the bike to Di2 which has hoods much more like the regular rim brake version.

Judging by the comments, I'm not the only one confused; do you have DI2 levers, or cable actuated? I ask, because they are quite a bit different, and while many would likely describe the analog levers as blocky, not many would say that about the DI2 levers... which you seem to be doing.

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
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I think he's got cable gears and hydro brakes, which are as he describes (IMHO). But I've adapted and a combination of getting used to them, minor change to the angle of them when compared to the angles I used to set the old cable/cable levers and also using some alternate hand/hold positions (ie holding over the top in a 'claw' stance).

That's what I was thinking, but then he wrote this:

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Tech writer/support on this here site. FIST school instructor and certified bike fitter. Formerly at Diamondback Bikes, LeMond Fitness, FSA, TiCycles, etc.
Coaching and bike fit - http://source-e.net/ Cyclocross blog - https://crosssports.net/ BJJ instruction - https://ballardbjj.com/

I find the 6870 levers I have in my road bike to have a more squared off top tothe hood vs the 5800 levers I have on my trainer bike. Maybe that's what they're referrig to?

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Strava

Comparing hoodshapes of both Sram and Shimano, did you account for the much longer the (couple cm) hoods of the Shimano system?

Sp if you say adjusted it to the mm, did you adjust it so that the part where the hoods turn upwards is at the same place?

Ooh, well spotted Fredly. Good point. I was focussing on my experience with a swap, also cannondale to cannondale but I stuck with cables (for the very rational technical reason that the Ultegra Di2 was a shite colour but the cable version was a lovely all black. ;-)

Nope, just focused on getting the stack right and assumed they'd be the same length to the upturn in the hoods. I just measured, and it's actually the opposite...new bike has 30mm less reach to the uptorn in the hoods! Not real sure how I can address this, but I'll think about it after my coffee sets in. Thanks for your reply...very helpful.

Exact same handlebars bike to bike?

Either new stem or longer reach bars (or both).

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Strava

Yeah, that's the route I'm going to have to go if I can't acclimate to the shorter reach. I'm still concerned about the shape of the hoods though...there's just nothing palm-shaped about them.

See if you can score a NOS set of 3T Aeronova bars. Apart from their supremely comfortable shape and aero qualities, they're extremely long-reach by modern standards.

I recently moved from Dura Ace 7800 (back when the shifting cable wasn't hidden under the tape) to Ultegra 8050 (mech hydro) and have also been suffering from hand numbness and wrist discomfort. Haven't quite dialed it in to be as good as my old bike, but turning the shifters slightly higher and inwards helped significantly. The squared-off shape just doesn't sit as well in my hands as the old narrow shifters.

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