log in
register

Carbon bar upgrade?

  • Creator
    Topic
  • April 1, 2015 at 2:22 pm #23642
    Rich_O

    I’m a relative road biking novice and I have just bought my first full carbon road bike, a Scott Solace 20, having spent a couple of years on an alloy framed Trek Domane as I got to grips with the sport.

    I fell for the Solace as I got a great deal on it, less than £1500 vs £2800 RRP, full Ultegra, less than 7.5kg and although I have no other carbon experience to compare it to, it is noticeably more responsive than the Domane, which was what I wanted out of it.

    So here’s where I am looking for help and advice: there is a bit more road buzz through the handlebars than I expected on crappy Derbyshire roads, a characteristic that a few reviews of the Solace have also picked up on. They recommend that a ‘decent’ carbon bar would turn it from a good bike to a great bike, so my question is what kind of bar would achieve this?

    Bearing in mind the price I paid for the bike, I’m not looking to spend a huge amount on changing the bars, certainly less than £200, but I’m interested as to what difference I could achieve at different price points. I’m not a weight weenie, as my 85kg+ attests, it is about the comfort.

    Many thanks for your help in advance.

  • Creator
    Topic
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 20 total)
1 2
  • Author
    Replies
  • April 6, 2015 at 10:22 pm #839897
    0
    AJ101

    if you’re adamant you want
    if you’re adamant you want carbon bars there’s some heavy discounts showing on Spokely behind the scenes (its still in beta sorry!)

    FSA K force £300 down to £100
    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/fsa-k-force-new-ergo-road-handlebar-with-green-decal/

    or FSA 3k down from £225 to £90
    http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/fsa-k-force-3k-carbon-new-ergo-road-bar/rp-prod36071
    3T Tornova too from £250 to £118
    http://www.wiggle.co.uk/3t-tornova-team-carbon-handlebar/

    or if you want to go really crazy theres the Cinelli Ram 2 All in one from £362 to £164 http://www.wiggle.co.uk/cinelli-ram-2-road-handlebar/

    just depends what size youre after…

    Spokely actually knows about a load more than that but its not [i]quite[/i] ready yet 😉

    April 6, 2015 at 9:09 pm #839895
    0
    Batchy

    Exactly, is that not what I
    Exactly, is that not what I said/meant? Its all a matter of opinion and as everyone’s bike is set up differently. It is true that I may well get a better or different ride by swapping tyres. The Mavic Elites are a very stiff ride, but as far as I can see the tyres that came with them have so far proved to be excellent. Mind you they are attached to a PX RT58 which is an extremely compliant and manoeuvrable frame set. No problems dropping off Shap at 45mph at the weekend for example ! I dont do Duranos or Veloflex so I cant compare. I did have have some Vittoria Open Corsa jobbies many years ago and they rode exceptionally well for an extremely short period of time before they wore out ! Now if its comfort,speed, puncture resistance,durability and value for money your are after, then Michelin Lithium 2s at 28 quid a pair tick all the boxes. But there again that is only my opinion !

    April 6, 2015 at 5:05 pm #839893
    0
    Chasseur Patate

    FullGas wrote:
    How much? I’ve

    FullGas wrote:

    How much? I’ve beaten some people riding on these tyres. ;)

    So have I, they still feel like you’ve mounted wooden rims though!

    Batchy wrote:
    Yeah ! There is a great deal of misleading information regarding tyre performance

    Not really, tyres vary hugely in both comfort and performance. Ride some Duranos then ride some Vittoria Corsas or Veloflex masters. Night and day in the comfort stakes.

    April 6, 2015 at 8:52 am #839891
    0
    Batchy

    Yeah ! There is a great deal
    Yeah ! There is a great deal of misleading information regarding tyre performance ( I believe that this is how you spell TYRE in English ! ) Everyone has a personal opinion. I recently bought a pair of Kysirium Elite S wheels including the Mavic front and rear specific tyres. These tyres , at least according to most reviews, are not too good though in IMO they are brilliant. Why would Mavic spend decades researching and developing only to balls it up with crap rubber ?

    April 5, 2015 at 10:04 pm #839889
    0
    FullGas

    Chasseur Patate wrote:
    As

    Chasseur Patate wrote:

    As durable as they are, Duranos are some of the worst riding tyres going IMO. I’d put money on that being a major factor.

    How much? I’ve beaten some people riding on these tyres. 😉

    April 5, 2015 at 7:26 pm #839887
    0
    gmac101

    Try this guide to setting
    Try this guide to setting your tyre pressures

    http://www.bikequarterly.com/images/BQTireDrop.pdf

    April 5, 2015 at 5:36 am #839885
    0
    Chasseur Patate

    Rich_O wrote:Thanks for all

    Rich_O wrote:
    Thanks for all the input. Regarding tyres, the Solace comes with 25mm tyres as standard anyway, Schwalbe Durano S, as does my Domane which I upgraded to Conti GP4000S 2. I run them at about 100 psi usually, any lower in the past I have suffered from pinch flats.

    I think that looking at bar tape is a quick one to check, as without realising, the standard tape on the Solace is quite a lot less cushioned than on my old Domane.

    As durable as they are, Duranos are some of the worst riding tyres going IMO. I’d put money on that being a major factor.

    April 4, 2015 at 9:55 am #839883
    0
    Rich_O

    Thanks for all the input.
    Thanks for all the input. Regarding tyres, the Solace comes with 25mm tyres as standard anyway, Schwalbe Durano S, as does my Domane which I upgraded to Conti GP4000S 2. I run them at about 100 psi usually, any lower in the past I have suffered from pinch flats.

    I think that looking at bar tape is a quick one to check, as without realising, the standard tape on the Solace is quite a lot less cushioned than on my old Domane.

    April 3, 2015 at 6:40 pm #839881
    0
    matthewn5

    I just picked up some
    I just picked up some magnificent Syntace Racelite 2 carbon bars on Ebay. Can’t even see they’ve been used. I have them on another bike and the difference they make – especially on the drops – is miles more than 25c tyres!

    April 3, 2015 at 4:26 pm #839879
    0
    bashthebox

    But yeah, don’t spend 200
    But yeah, don’t spend 200 quid on bars.

    April 3, 2015 at 4:26 pm #839877
    0
    bashthebox

    I’ve got carbon bars on two
    I’ve got carbon bars on two of my bikes and I do love em, but I agree they’re kind of an unnecessary luxury. Have you tried double wrapping bar tape before? I love it, just around the drops. A bit of extra cushioning goes a long way.
    25mm tyres are great too – I run mine at 80-90 psi but I’m around 70kg; you might need a bit more pressure.
    If you do go for the new bars, you can do well enough with chinese unbranded ones – I’ve got a set on my fast bike. I’m sure there’s a lot of variance, but if you get it right you can get good performance very cheaply.

    April 2, 2015 at 9:52 am #839875
    0
    jamtartman

    Perversely, I have all carbon
    Perversely, I have all carbon finishing kit and cranks on my Caad10. I started with the seatpost and it made such a big difference that I wanted more of it. As other matching items came up at bargain prices, I bought them and haven’t regretted. The biggest surprise was the impact the cranks had. The road buzz through the pedals was very pleasantly reduced. The bars/stem not such a big difference though. Probably because the caad has a carbon fork, but could be because the alloy bars and stem were rather flexi in comparison.

    April 2, 2015 at 9:35 am #839873
    0
    musicalmarc

    I bought a carbon bar and
    I bought a carbon bar and stem as bike bling and it made a small difference but not massive. Getting my saddle position right made more difference to my general comfort on the bike.

    April 2, 2015 at 8:42 am #839871
    0
    hampstead_bandit

    I run a S-Works carbon road
    I run a S-Works carbon road bar on my road bike and its got a very noticeable damping effect, especially on the drops. This is compared to the stock aluminium bar it came with, which just felt harsh. If you jump up and down on my bars whilst holding the drops, you can see them actually flexing!

    In contrast I’ve ridden different aero carbon road bars and found them rock solid

    really depends on the design and construction of the carbon fibre handlebar.

    Good set of 25 tires (or 28 tires if you can fit them), then a nice carbon bar are great way to smooth the ride.

    April 2, 2015 at 8:02 am #839869
    0
    P3t3

    I’d agree with the comments
    I’d agree with the comments regarding tyres; everybody seems to fall for the manufacturers marketing about comfort in bike frames and assume it all comes from the frame. Then they whack on some small tyres at enormous pressures.

    But look at a bike, specifically the frame, regardless of what it is made of you will find its pretty strong. Its difficult to bend. Now look at the tyres, they are made of soft rubber you can squish with your fingers. Which part of the system is going to be suited to deforming to cancel out impacts and vibrations?

    If you want more comfort: let your tyres down a bit. If you want even more comfort: put some bigger tyres on at a lower pressure. It won’t cost you anyting meaningful in rolling resistance – especially if you go for a nice supple tyres – and tyre wear will be lower and cut resistance will be higher due to lower specific pressure on a larger contact patch.

    I don’t understand why non-race racing bikes come with such small tyres as standard but i suppose it sells frame technology and it looks like the pros.

  • Author
    Replies
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 20 total)
1 2
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.