New handlebars..

[Dave]

I just noticed that Easton has changed their handlebar offerings, once again. Here are links for the two new bends, the SLX3 and Aero.

Finally, some decent illustrations, showing the intended mounting of the brake/shift levers!

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/08/bar_road_ec90_aero_'08.html

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/08/bar_road_ec90_slx3_'08.html

[davids]

I guess they figured riders who are smart enough to buy aluminum bars are smart enough to figure out where the levers go on their own.

[pdxmech13]

with those short reach lever blades you could never reach those brakes in the drop without tweaking your wrist. all this silly bends are just silly atafj.

[Fixed]

well bro you have to use the drops first
imho sprinting hows that with em ?
cheers

[Grant McLean]

I guess they figured riders who are smart enough to buy aluminum bars are smart enough to figure out where the levers go on their own.

:banana: :banana: :banana:

-g

[Climb01742]

on both these bars, the drops have apparently been...dropped. :crap:

[obtuse]

wow, those suck.

jerk

[obtuse]

this looks nice though.

jerk

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/08/bar_track_TKO_'08.html

[DarrenCT]

the slx3 bar looks ok however still not a nice class round curve

these don't do it for me

-d

[Grant McLean]

jerk

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/08/bar_track_TKO_'08.html

Doesn't look like much of a track bar,
looks more like a Cinelli 64 Giro d'Italia bend...

-g

[BdaGhisallo]

That Easton track bar looks a lot like the Pro bend that used to be offered in the EC90 Equipe bar line. Anyone seen the new ones in person to compare? Jerk? And would there be any issue with using that as a road bar and clamping STI levers onto them?

[jerk]

That Easton track bar looks a lot like the Pro bend that used to be offered in the EC90 Equipe bar line. Anyone seen the new ones in person to compare? Jerk? And would there be any issue with using that as a road bar and clamping STI levers onto them?


haven't seen'em in real life. 11.4 probably knows but they look like typical omnium six day/madison etc. bars so they're basically road bars. a bit heavier though. no idea if shifters can clamp on them but you can always make something work. i've got the easton sprint bars on the dogma and they're pretty high-five....everyone else in the world would hate'em but i like'em.

jerk

[BdaGhisallo]

Interesting... Judging by the pic on this page, once you enlarge it, that new bar looks very much like the pro bend. The drop and reach numbers are identical, and it's made in the right width, and the extra 100 grams on it should increase the strength and durability greatly I would think.

11.4 come in, come in. What do you think?

Cheers,
Geoff

[Dave]

I guess they figured riders who are smart enough to buy aluminum bars are smart enough to figure out where the levers go on their own.

You'd be amazed how many newbs don't have a clue, judging by some of the pictures posted on various websites.

The real issue is that some bends work well with Shimano levers but not with Campy levers. My FSA K-force compact bars are a good example of that.

Previously, Easton offered slightly different bends in the SLX model, one for Shimano and one for Campy. Apparently, Easton feels that the new bend accomodates all three major brands of brake/shift levers.

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/bar_road_ec90_slx_'06.html

[BdaGhisallo]

That new Easton TKO bar combined with the forthcoming and beefed up Ritchey 4 Axis 44 stem should make for one very stout cockpit!!

http://ritcheylogic.com/web/Ritchey~Logic/Ritchey~Site/Templates/eproducts_single.aspx?id=28852&live=true

[BdaGhisallo]

Hey Jerk,

You mentioned that you use the EC90 track bar on your road mount, which means that you would have ergo or sti levers clamped to them. Are these bars (easton track bars in general) able to safely take the clamping pressures from road shift levers? I am thinking that the extra 100 grams they have over the ec90 equipe bars should obviate the worry, but it's nice to know for sure.

Cheers,
Geoff

[11.4]

this looks nice though.

jerk

http://www.eastonbike.com/PRODUCTS/BARS/08/bar_track_TKO_'08.html

Just got to see one yesterday evening. It's exactly like the old Equipe pro except much heavier, much stiffer, and probably not all that comfortable on the road for most people. I didn't stick a caliper on the bars to confirm diameter for brake levers but it all looks the same.

The bar is intended for the massed-start track market, which is actually bigger than the pure sprint market that has bought the Easton track bars in the past. Easton said it only comes in one width for now (40 cm c-c), which is their favored width for track generally. That gets a lot of pushback from many riders who want a 38 or 39 (a centimeter in bar width makes a lot of difference to track riders) and presumably they will eventually come out with a different width (but perhaps not a wider one). With the sprint bars, instead of coming out with the same bar in a 38, they came out with one something like the old Dia Compe bars (or like the Nitto B127) that hasn't been all that popular. You have to put up with a lot when you race track -- the equipment selection just ain't what it should be.

To repeat, in your hands, this bar is HEAVY. Absolutely rigid, but extremely HEAVY.

[BdaGhisallo]

I have been emailing with Eric Brecheen at Easton and, for those interested, the TKO bar highlighted by the Jerk will be okay to use on the road and it will handle the clamping forces of sti or ergo levers. The only issue, as far as Eric sees it, will be the increased weight of the TKO and the much greater stiffness in comparison to Easton's road bars.

Eric suggested that the new SLX3 bar will be a big hit and that of the folks he knows that have tried it, all love it.

So there you have it. Easton Pro bend lovers, there is a new option, albeit a stiff and slightly heavier one.

Eric has also pledged to pass on word about resucitating the Pro bend in their lineup due to the resurgence of appreciation for classic round and shallow drop road bars.

Cheers,
Geoff

[Blue Jays]

That new Easton TKO bar combined with the forthcoming and beefed up Ritchey 4 Axis 44 stem should make for one very stout cockpit!!

http://ritcheylogic.com/web/Ritchey~Logic/Ritchey~Site/Templates/eproducts_single.aspx?id=28852&live=true
BdaGhisallo, thank you very much for posting the information about the new Ritchey stem. I have been undecided between using the WCS 4Axis 44 and the WCS Carbon 4Axis model on my new roadbike being built. I'm a traditionalist and would be combining either stem with a Ritchey WCS Classic Road Bar in 40 cm center-to-center size. Any insights, observations, and suggestions between these two fine Ritchey stems would be sincerely appreciated! :)

[Avispa]

They finally did what FSA started with their Compact line of bars... I believe a compact should be a "requirement" for every bar manufacturer.

Now the bar they have with the groves for the fingers, the EC90 Aero road bar, there is something wrong with those! I think any bar that forces one to stay locked in one position is no good!

..A..

[BdaGhisallo]

Well the 4 Axis 44 stem seemingly hasn't made it to market yet. It was supposed to be available in early Dec but I know that Quality don't have a date yet and are thinking February... maybe.

It simply looks like a beefed up version of the regular 4 Axis. The bar clamp bolt spacing has also been increased somewhat and the clamp width is 4mm wider than the regular 4 Axis at 44mm, hence the imaginative name! I don't know how the wider bolt spacing will work out with carbon bars as the great advantage of the close bolt spacing on the original 4Axis was that those two little bolts top and bottom acted as one larger bolt to mimic the clamping force and distribution that two bolt stems offer, since many bar makers, like Easton, were speccing two bolt stems only with their bars. (It couldn't have had anything to do with the fact that Easton didn't sell any fourbolt stems at that time? Nah!).

The 44 stem is said to have a wider cross section on the stem shaft that is slightly squared off to increase stiffness. I have seen it specced on quite a few 2008 Scott MTB bikes but that's about it so far. Scott USA and Ritchey have always been tight.

Geoff

[BdaGhisallo]

One more update from another helpful guy at Easton:

"The EC90 TKO is the exact same mold as the Equipe, so it has the same shape just a different lay-up. It can take brake levers



The EC90 Track Ergo and EC90 Track pro are for Track use only and will not accept brake levers.





I understand that you want that more traditional pro bend but the new SLX3 -2008 has very close to the same size drop. It looks ergo but it’s not. If set up correctly it has a perfect transition from the bar to the hood so you get a nice flat platform for the palm of your hand. The drops have a great shape so it’s not a long reach to the lever and you have more room for your wrist / forearm in the drop. If you look at the numbers we decreased the reach and drop a lot verses the older Equipe ergo.



I was a diehard pro bend rider but the SLX3 blows it out of the water."

[Blue Jays]

BadGhisallo, my incredible mechanic is putting his feelers out there for Ritchey and Easton news as well. I'll post to this thread if he hears anything of interest...