Two Wheel Blogs

This happens to me sometimes...I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about something really important like clamp diameter of road stems/bars and how it is marketed (that is sarcasm BTW, I have no idea why I lose sleep over such silly things).

Before I start let me go back a bit and cover some really basic things that you probably know.

Years ago when you went to buy new bars or stem for a road bike, your LBS ONLY had to have a few bars and stems in stock in order to suit your needs (that is sarcasm again).

The serious roadie fitter would have had various bars in various drops (perhaps two to choose from), various reaches (perhaps two to choose from), bends (may be "ergonomic", and "classic"), and reaches (usually 40, 42, and 44cm). This added up to a minimum of 24 permutations that a serious fitter would have on hand (lets not discuss preference between silver or black, aluminum vs. carbon, or brand preference).

This same fitter would need a case full of stems to address the needs of the rider. This collection would include every length between 80 and 140 cm. and perhaps a few different drops/rises.

Notice I never mentioned anything about clamp diameter? Everything was 26.0mm diameter (slightly larger than one inch). There was never any question...it was 26mm standard. Until a few years ago when the over-sized bars came into vogue and we all had to run out and buy the newer bars with the bulge in the middle that was supposed to increase stiffness.

Yikes, now the fitter (and LBSs) had to double their inventory to accommodate the whim that a buyer might have to go BIG! But is there any benefit to be gained from this bulge?

There may have been some logic to using 26mm! The GIC (Guy In Charge) at Oval concepts seems to think so. In a letter regarding his preference for the 26mm standard he wrote the following.

...Maybe the actual bar/stem frontal area drag difference is 5 seconds per hour for an aero bar where your hands and arms force more air toward the centre. (Can you lose the Tour by 10 seconds?) Maybe it is only 1/2 second per hour for a road bike (45 seconds for the Tour?) or one watt savings per hour on an e-bike (an extra minute cruising time?). The bigger savings by far is properly fitting every rider with a stem/bar standard that makes the most sense. Proper positioning of the rider means 100 times the savings discussed above. This makes the debate significant....

Morgan Nicol
Oval Concepts, Switzerland

One look at the bikes in the TDF that sported his bars (Garmin/Chipotle and Silence/Lotto) and you will see that he put is money where his mouth/science is.

The new OS (over-sized) standard is no longer new. It has taken over, and you would be hard pressed to find many of the new offerings in the old 26mm clamp size (and you can not shim a big bar in a little stem...duh). So the LBSs can breathe a sigh of relief now that they do not have to stock 2x the needed number of stems and bars. Oh wait, now they have all this outdated 26mm stuff that no one wants...

So now I am left (AGAIN!!) to wonder what is fact and what is marketing. Is there no real difference between the two clamp sizes? It would be tough to determine in a blind test I think? Is there really a benefit to a stiffer bar, some might argue that a flexible bar is more comfortable for the long haul. Finally, is there a significant aero penalty for OS bars or are we just being subjected to marketing claims?

I gotta go take a nap now...