Aero Bars - Straight bar, J-bend or S-bend

[DoubleSpeeded]

Interested to know, in terms of comfort, ergonomics and the number of people using each.


im Using a J-bend and is my first aero bar. It appears S-bend and Straight bends are quite common.

I've heard good reviews about J-bends being the most aerodynamic out of the bunch and others especially the straight type is uncomfortable to the wrist.

[jcjordan]

I have always used a J bend.

I did try a S bend when I got my new TT bike but could not get a comfortable position due to my past history with a broken collar bone

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[DoubleSpeeded]

I have always used a J bend.

I did try a S bend when I got my new TT bike but could not get a comfortable position due to my past history with a broken collar bone

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Hmm did u end up swapping it back to J-bend or just put up with it?

[jcjordan]

Swapped back to the J bend.

No problems with should plus on my test course it meat that I could stay on the bars for the entire 20 minutes

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[DoubleSpeeded]

Swapped back to the J bend.

No problems with should plus on my test course it meat that I could stay on the bars for the entire 20 minutes

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see the problem i see is that majority of the complete carbon aerobars come in s-bend or straight bars...

J's arent always available.

thats why i was considering the change.

[dalai47]

Always had ski bend extensions (including when I went into the windtunnel back in 2008 running Vision tech Trimax bars) but had to change out the bars due to UCI aspect ratio rules introduced. Ended up with 3T Pro Mistrals which came with s bend extensions. Persevered with these for a season, but found the position painful even on 20km TT's and had to rotate the bars high to keep my forarms level! Bought replacement ski extensions and been running these since...

[DoubleSpeeded]

Always had ski bend extensions (including when I went into the windtunnel back in 2008 running Vision tech Trimax bars) but had to change out the bars due to UCI aspect ratio rules introduced. Ended up with 3T Pro Mistrals which came with s bend extensions. Persevered with these for a season, but found the position painful even on 20km TT's and had to rotate the bars high to keep my forarms level! Bought replacement ski extensions and been running these since...

i was considering the Vision/FSA trimax carbon bars but the problem with them is that something about the aero brakes only compatible with VISION brake levers.
And they seem to be one of the heaviest out of the bunch

and it seems like you have had the same problem as JcJordan.. didnt like the change and had to go back.

see, with Alloy... thats no problem.. the aero bars seem dirt cheap.

but carbon fibre they are generally around $100, so forking out another sum is impractical.


Hmmm might stick with J-bends
seems like people who started with J-bends cant get used to anything else ever again.

[Duck!]

Straight & S-bend bars exist almost exclusively due to UCI rules. I can't remember the exact details, but in addition to the aspect ratio rule, which applies to all parts of the bike, there's something about limits to the rise at the tips of the extensions. The side effect of both designs is that they contort the wrists into horribly uncomfortable positions, which as jcjordan discovered affects joints further up the line too.

J-bends still have their place in triathlon circles, which are not bound by UCI rules, so are still readliy available. If you're not going to be doing any races where they're likely to check for UCI compliance, stick with the J-bend 'cos it's a stack more comfortable on the hands.

[dalai47]

J bends are still UCI compliant. I race only under UCI rules and this is the only thing that haven't questioned...

You need to make sure you can't still use them and have your forearms angled up in a Flandis position. Recent amendment coming in 1/01/2014 replacing the text 'only a position where the forearms are in the horizontal plane is permitted.'

http://www.uci.ch/Modules/BUILTIN/getOb ... M&LangId=1

1.3.023
For road time trials and individual and team pursuit on the track, a fixed extension may be added to the steering system; in this instance, the height difference between the elbow support points and the highest and lowest points of the handlebar extension (including gear levers) must be less than 10 cm.

[DoubleSpeeded]

Straight & S-bend bars exist almost exclusively due to UCI rules. I can't remember the exact details, but in addition to the aspect ratio rule, which applies to all parts of the bike, there's something about limits to the rise at the tips of the extensions. The side effect of both designs is that they contort the wrists into horribly uncomfortable positions, which as jcjordan discovered affects joints further up the line too.

J-bends still have their place in triathlon circles, which are not bound by UCI rules, so are still readliy available. If you're not going to be doing any races where they're likely to check for UCI compliance, stick with the J-bend 'cos it's a stack more comfortable on the hands.

Thanks for shedding some light on this... i didn't understand why

some people have converted to J bend from S-bend and have claimed that they should've changed it years ago.

im taking your advice for it.. I'm gonna stick with J's

but like i said, the only nuisance is that some aerobars are standard with S-bends and i gotta buy the J-bend which makes the whole item cost up to $100 more than what its worth... unless i sell the S-bends

Do you recon Carbon S-bends will sell well here? otherwise Ebay would be the option.

[Slowcoach]

I have had S bend bars on my bike for 4 years - I find them uncomfortable on the wrists. I rode a hire bike in London last month that had J bend bars - couldn't believe what I have been putting up with. Looking forward to changing mine over asap....

[Grim]

The topic of what aero extensions to use is a much misunderstood topic and for a long time, straight and s bend extensions have been getting a bad rap from people who are misunderstanding why the bar shape is the way it is and trying to incorporate it into a riding style for which they are unsuited. S bend and straight extensions were developed predominantly for the pure time triallists who requires a lower front end and more importantly, the ability to use them as anchor/lever points for max efforts in the saddle, think pulling up on the bars whilst exerting max force on to the pedals and is really suited to the shorter more technical/explosive TTs which requires quick spooling up to max speed coming out of corners for example. Also, how to grip the bar ends is something that doesn't get mentioned often enough where a full wraparound grip which is the default one most people refer to tends to hyper extend the wrist causing the dreaded pains that is much complained about. The most comfortable grip that is recommended by many top TT'ers is the less known but very simple using the last 2-3 fingers to hook under the ends whilst relaxing the wrists. Try that and you might be pleasantly surprised that you no longer feel any wrist tension.

The J bend, Ski extensions were developed for the Tri market where for most, cruising at 70-80% FTP for anywhere from 90 - 180km , comfort is probably the most important aspect of having a good race, no max accelerations, no spooling to max speed out of corners and certainally not the case of having no gas left in the tank after the bike leg as it would be in a TT max effort and you simply need a contact point for the hands to rest. For most who get TT type bikes to compete in Triathlon, they will predominantly use J and Ski type extensions, for the pureTTers, getting that leverage on the extensions is something that is simply not possible with the more acute angle especially on a technical course.

Of note is the omission of wind based factors where there are significant time savings being more aero over a longer distance ala the "praying mantis" landis position where the hands and forearms are used as a wind buffer which has been outlawed by the UCI but the primary rationale around TTs are of distances up to 40km where the aero savings for most mortals would be minimal for this setup compared to being able to muscle the bike. Having said all that I've used s bend for over 10 years and have never had any wrist issues either in TTs or Tris, I can't stress enough how important it is to get your bike fitted, most common reasons for discomfort is simply improper setup irrespective of equipment.

Cheers

[Slowcoach]

Great insight thanks, Grim.

You know your stuff... I use my TT bike only for triathlon & I like the setup for short races 20-40k rides, but have the wrist issues in long races - particularly the 180k version where any avoidable discomfort is stupid to endure, so you are spot on the money there.

As it happens, I picked up a set of Ski Bend Zipp Carbon extensions this week for a bargain - $30 and will give them a go. I've had my bike pro fitted twice fwiw.