Seems all this time, looking for the right handle bars, I've looking for drops in all the wrong places.
First of all, I had no idea why Cinelli, being pesky Italians, made two sizes of stems, one of them being 26.0 and the other being a proprietary 26.4.
When I search for handle bars, I usually just punch in 26.0 and see what's available.
Well, a whole new world of alloy goodness is right at my fingertips.
I just need to get me yet another stem, this time one with a 26.4 clamp.
Maybe.
All this time, I supposed that the 26.4 size was for like track bars or something, and they sort of are, we'll see in a minute.
Now I don't know why Cinelli decided to go all proprietary on the world, but they did and thus a whole bunch of new handle bars went undiscovered by me.
Okay, let's say it together: I'm a banana head.
The trick here is to figure out just what the hell you are looking at, when looking at Cinelli and even 3T stuff, for there's a bunch of different models out there with numbers and stuff you need to figure out.
Okay, let's get to it.
Thanks to eVil eBay seller bajajohn 1959*, who seems to know his pesky Italian alloy goodness inside and out, I was able to obtain these top secret photos that decipher the Italian handle bar code:
That image right there, used by permission, is what the drops look like on the Cinelli bars.
Finally!
Something I can understand!
Pictures!
By the way, bajajohn 1959* seems like a really cool dude who has all sorts of really cool stuff, his eBay store can be found here.
Here's another one of the bends:
As you can see, the bars sort of transition from road to track.
You just have to know what you're looking for.
Now the sizing part is easy.
Cinelli uses a numbering system with the reach as the first number and the width as the second.
So that's what 64-40 means!
Now it's all so clear!
For me, I'd want a set of Giro bars, 64 reach and 40 width(Cinelli measures c-c, but make sure) so a Giro 64-40.
Thank you bajajohn 1959*!
Looking for some bling 3Ts like moi?
There's your 3T handle bar comparison thingy.
Just remember that 3Ts are sometimes measured outside to outside when choosing width.
If you've been following along at home you, the reader, remember that I just got me some of them TDF bars, 42s but actually around 40 c-c.
Boy, this stuff really makes choosing bars a snap, crackle, and pop!
Seriously, I wish I knew about this like three sets of bars ago.
Okay, not really for now I've decided that I absolutely freakin need a set of Cinelli bars!
Which means I may or may not need a new set of stems.
Cinelli makes bars in both 26.0 and 26.4, just gotta find the right ones.
I figure the bright alloy of the Cinellis will match the Celeste Devil better than the black bars I got now.
Like you can actually see it under the bar tape.
Well, you can, just a little.
Oh the eVilness!
Thanks again to bajajohn 1959* for letting use the images and for enlightening me on some of the finer points of pesky Italian alloy goodness.
I'll be searching his store soon.
Like right after I'm done with this post.
Which is right now.
3 comments:
Those pictures are great, except, like nearly all the other similar comparisons, they are taken with the drops level, rather than the tops, and it's hard to visualize what they will look like when mounted with the tops almost horizontal, let alone what they will feel like...and you're going with the Giro bars, the ones with the steepest angle? That's intriguing, can you say why you chose that end of the line rather than the other with the flatter tops?
I feel smarter.
JRA, compromise.
My response was reaching post proportions so I'll do a part III.
By the way, I am anxiously awaiting more images of the bridge, I thought the lizard wall was cool, and anytime I see that asphalt ripper upper I get a warm fuzzy.
Mark, hope you found it interesting.
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