In particular…with flat not angled bar ends where the brakes go…I am tinking of just chopping off my flat Vision bar ends…just the upturned part…has anyone done that…looks like I will have to grind out the inner diameter to get a brake lever to fit?
I think that’s exactly what Johnny-o did.
Much easier to do with the T2 Wing bar (the cutting off part), but since it’s 31.8, you would probably need a new stem too.
Chris
I have a Bontrager base bar which I chopped off the “upturns”. I find this much more comfortable (and aesthetically pleasing). Probably more aerodynamic as well. I don’t understand why handlebar manufacturers insist on tipping the ends up at a ~40 degree angle. It is uncomfortable (for me) and unnecessary. My Cane Creek aluminum brake levers work just fine having the ends of the bars chopped. The only downside to doing this is you are effectively shortening your reach by about 2 cm. I want manufacturers to offer an option to have the bars “non-upturned”… so the reach is normal, I get a large section for my hand, and don’t have to take a saw to my new bike parts! Here’s an older photo of my bike so you can get a look at the bars:
Yes… flat, no upturned section for sure. Then all they need to do is angle the bar downward so you aren’t up in the wind like a sail when on the base bar. Almost no one seems to get that.
What chainrings are those?
Looks good…someone needs to build a flat aero shaped base bar without the brake lever upturns…like the HED bar…or the Zipp.
I have a visiontech basebar and didn’t like the upturns. I cut them, but the remaining part of the tubes was too short to handle comfortably and safely. I then took an old MTB handlebar and cut it in half. The middle part is 25.4 outer diameter, so I tried to fit it over the remaining part of the basebar, but the inner diameter was too small (it should be at least 22,2). I then filed away the inside of the tube with some special device up to the point where i could slide the MTB handlebar over the remaining ends of the visiontech basebar. I fitted both parts and as I wanted to take it apart again to glue both parts together, I found out that they were stuck and I couldn’t get them apart anymore (which is basically what i wanted it to be like).
I used it for several thousand km now (even on very rough roads (I live nearby some of the most famous pavé sections in the world)) and they are still holding together. So I would say: go for it!
I’ve been using the new Profile carbon x 1.5 which is much better that the last version in my opinion, I have cut the upturns of them and they work fine. Personally i prefer the 1 piece design over clip-ons as i’ve had a bolt come loose in the past which was not fun!
I have the Easton carbon bar, and the ends are long enough to cut so it is flat. I rode it all year that way, including IMLP.
It actually feels better to me that way.
Stock Ultegra 10-speed 39/53 rings.
I have a T2+ base bar (not on a bike currently), and it looks like it wouldn’t work to cut off the upturns due to the placement of the internal cable routing hole. You’d have to chop off a whole heck of a lot- the upturn, and about another 2 cm to get rid of the internal slot.
The best thing to do on the wing bars is to cut the upturn but leave the cable routing hole alone. I just drilled an additional hole on the underside (which is where I prefer it anyway). It’s not super easy to get the cables through anymore, but it didn’t take more than 5 minutes.
Chris.
Are there any problems with installing the brake levers? i.e. any interference between the expansion wedge of the brake lever and the cable groove?
I filed on the routing hole a bit. Don’t know if I had to do that, but probably not, as my brakes don’t go in very far.
Chris