For those that have these bars: How much can the armrests be moved rearward? I currently use Syntace bars and want to know if I can achieve the same pad placement with the HED’s. Also, what are the pros and cons of the deep and shallow S bend extensions?
Thanks.
I have my pads in their most rearward position, and use the shallow s-bends. I think they work well this way…
You can see my resulting position here…
http://www.printroom.com/ViewGalleryPhoto.asp?userid=websiteduo&gallery_id=157531&image_id=12
Hmmm. Very smart questions.
The distance from the tip of your saddle to the center of the aerobar pad may be the more important landmark in this instance in trying to duplicate positions. The pad on the Hed bar sits right on top of the bar, but the entire base bar assembly is located slightly farther (… not sure how much, sorry) rearward.
So, in other words, If the distance from the tip of your saddle to the center of your aerobars is the same on both set-ups, I think you will be OK. Also, if the extension dimension is the same, you should be fine. The bars are pretty tunable for fit and position. I like them.
As for the “S” bends: Basically, you use the higher bend if you use the risers under the elbow pad, and the lower one (shallower bend) if the elbow pads are mounted flush to the base bar in the low position.
I’m still not 100% convinced on this whole “S” bend thing. My initial impressions are that the previous bend is more comfortable and the ergonmics of your shifter are better on the older bend. With the “S” bend you really have to tailor the fit of the bar very precisely to get the shifter in a position to easily shift. Also, the angle of your wrist is very bent if you grip it on the flat and not the curve (which, if you did take the time to cut them correctly, you probably shouldn’t be…).
Anyway, I am about a week from switching back to the original bend.
So if my current setup is 47 cm from the tip of my saddle to the center old my bars, can I achieve the same with the HED’s without dramatically moving my saddle forward? Also, can you get the bars with the “old” extensions?
Thanks.
Yes,
Don’t move your saddle at all- saddle fore/aft is NOT for adjusting reach. It is only for adjusting proximity of pelvis relevant to bottom bracket. This adjustment controls your pedalling, it does not control your reach. In other words, you NEVER use saddle fore/aft as an adjustment to control reach. that is a very common fitting error. Saddle fore/aft is determined by femur length and foot size.
You will obtain the appropriate reach by changing your stem length. You may need to shorten it by 1-2 cm to acheive the proper (original) orientation.
Moose, I think the S-bends are very much an individual preference.
Tom said “I’m still not 100% convinced on this whole “S” bend thing. My initial impressions are that the previous bend is more comfortable and the ergonmics of your shifter are better on the older bend…”
I prefer the S-bends and find them more comfortable than the standard bends. I rode the standard Hed extensions for about a year. I’ve had the carbon s-bends on my bike for a couple of months now. I tend to like to point my thumbs straight forward on top of the bar. I think if you like to wrap your hands around the extension that the standards are probably the way to go. The best thing would be to try it each way…but to really know, you’d have to have both sets of extensions and cut them to your length and ride them for a while. For me it would be worth the little bit extra $ to buy the standard Hed bar AND a set of alloy extensions and play with both for a couple of months. As for the tall and short rise s-bends…I don’t find the need for the taller s-bends…I have the risers under my armrests, but use the carbon s-bends which only come in shallow with no issues.
No one here metions one of the most important thing with going from Syntace to HED. That is stack height. The Syntace have about 6cm of stack height while the HED bar has 1cm. So if you don’t have enough hip flexion or if you have really tight hamstrings combined with poor core strength then that 4-5cm is a lot! Since 90% of the population can not activate the core this presents a problem. HED bars are great and have a lot of adjustability you just need to build the bike around them.
Thanks for everyone’s response. As far as the increase in drop, can you use riser pads if the drop is the much? Thanks again.
You can use the riser spacers under the pads, but that might only get you 1cm. If you use the spacers and have the s-bend extensions, you will then need to swap out the shallow extensions and replace them with the deeper extensions made for use with the riser kit. Hopefully you figure this out before mounting shifters, cables, and bar tape. If you need to bring the pads up higher than 1cm, you’ll either be moving around headset spacers, flipping your stem over, or swapping the stem for one with a different rise/drop.