aluminium bars - 3 year life?

[Sweep]

In looking for some bar ends, found this:

https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/handlebars/ ... asic-bars/

from the esteemed sjsc, which says this at the end of the description:

>>For reasons of material fatigue aluminium handlebars must be
replaced at the latest after 10,000 km or 3 years.

One of my bikes is 20 years old.

I have never replaced any bars.

Though admittedly I have come across tales on rides of two folk who had bars give way on them - one person well known to me - happened on a London bridge.

Views?

Any precautions to take?

Apologies if covered before.

[Audax67]

The only bars I ever replaced had been modified by a cycle track barrier. I used the replacements regularly for ~13 years and they're still on my backup bike. Couldn't tell you how many km they've done, probably >100,000.

[cycleruk]

Not replaced any of mine. A couple of friends though have had broken bars.
I have had a stem and also a threaded steerer break.

[Greystoke]

Probably a legal thing to cover themselves in our blame claim society

[pwa]

Avoid the lightest ally bars, and view any scratches with suspicion. Oh, and keep your fingers crossed.

[Sweep]

Avoid the lightest ally bars, and view any scratches with suspicion. Oh, and keep your fingers crossed.

Will bear this in mind - I have two bars from 90s Ridgeback hybrids I can use. So heavy part of me wonders if they are aluminium. No probs for me as I'm no weight weenie.

Any place in particular that stresses/scratches/cracks might appear? Near the clamp?

[Mick F]

The one's on Mercian were fitted in Oct 1986 when I built it. Same quill stem too, both Cinelli.
Seapost - Campag - is the same age.
I have no intention whatsoever any of changing them.

[pwa]

Avoid the lightest ally bars, and view any scratches with suspicion. Oh, and keep your fingers crossed.

Will bear this in mind - I have two bars from 90s Ridgeback hybrids I can use. So heavy part of me wonders if they are aluminium. No probs for me as I'm no weight weenie.

Any place in particular that stresses/scratches/cracks might appear? Near the clamp?

If they are metal and a magnet doesn't stick to them, they are either aluminium or titanium. The latter is unlikely.

My own feeling is that scratches in the central area are of most concern, but hopefully Brucey or another proficient voice will be along with a more fulsome reply.

[Sweep]

Avoid the lightest ally bars, and view any scratches with suspicion. Oh, and keep your fingers crossed.

Will bear this in mind - I have two bars from 90s Ridgeback hybrids I can use. So heavy part of me wonders if they are aluminium. No probs for me as I'm no weight weenie.

Any place in particular that stresses/scratches/cracks might appear? Near the clamp?

If they are metal and a magnet doesn't stick to them, they are either aluminium or titanium. The latter is unlikely.

My own feeling is that scratches in the central area are of most concern, but hopefully Brucey or another proficient voice will be along with a more fulsome reply.

Yes I'm looking forward to brucey's response.

Though not a "fulsome" one and I don't think that's what you mean.

will check those bars - I assume they are aluminium - are bars often steel?

[pwa]

Will bear this in mind - I have two bars from 90s Ridgeback hybrids I can use. So heavy part of me wonders if they are aluminium. No probs for me as I'm no weight weenie.

Any place in particular that stresses/scratches/cracks might appear? Near the clamp?

If they are metal and a magnet doesn't stick to them, they are either aluminium or titanium. The latter is unlikely.

My own feeling is that scratches in the central area are of most concern, but hopefully Brucey or another proficient voice will be along with a more fulsome reply.

Yes I'm looking forward to brucey's response.

Though not a "fulsome" one and I don't think that's what you mean.

will check those bars - I assume they are aluminium - are bars often steel?

Fulsome is the wrong word, but maybe Brucey will be fulsome anyway. See how the mood takes him.

Steel bars are heavy and are less common on bikes striving for lightness.

[mig]

i'm not sure that all 10,000kms are the same, nor are any 3 years in the life of a 'bar.

despite being fairly robust i think that i'm pretty light on bars as i tend to ride on the tops and climb whilst seated so i'm not thrutching and twisting them so much.

most of mine are 20 years or more old and i'm with MickF - not gonna change any*

*well maybe one set as they've done mega miles and the drops are wayyyy too short on them

[pwa]

Thrutching means summat else where I come from

http://www.wordwizard.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?t=18898

[Brucey]

I'm with MIG; not everyone is as hard on bars. If you have a well-set riding position there is very little weight on the bars and they have an easy time of it, except when riding out of the saddle.

However some folk have a riding position that means that they lean on the bars all the time and/or they 'wrestle with the handlebars' as they ride. I have seen such folk break handlebars in a year.

My preference is for 'old fashioned' bars that have a reinforcing centre sleeve. IME these are pretty reliable (in my use). However they can still corrode so in recent years I have taken to taping the bars with a layer of something thin and basically waterproof before applying the main bar tape; this stops sweat from corroding the bars. If you tape over the end of the sleeve, this stops most of the corrosion that might occur under the sleeve.

Bars that are single-walled at the clamp can be damaged by

- being scratched
- being crushed
- getting corroded

and any of these may start a crack off. Modern 31.8mm handlebars are so thin -walled that they are easily damaged by simply overtightening the face plate bolts slightly. The material often isn't very ductile either, so when deformed it cracks quite easily.

it is a very good idea to inspect the bars for cracks but this needs to be done at very regular intervals; the time between there being a small crack and the bars just breaking needn't be very long at all.

One of my mad schemes is to install a strong cord within the handlebars, anchored securely at each end; in the event of breakage the handlebars will at least not separate completely, and this might make the difference between a very nasty prang and not.

cheers

[9494arnold]

Circa 1956 Thanet still seems to be on it's original GB Alloy bars and Stem (I've owned it for about 12 years, Bars and Stem in place when I aquired it) (In fairness it does only get ridden a couple of times a year)

[rjb]

Don't Panic chaps here's a bit of reading for you all.
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=112977&hilit=Handlebar+Life