Mark B
Zen MBB Master
While I have my doubts that the occasional hard pulling we do climbing or sprinting exerts near the stress that the constant load and occasional stress of pushing/pulling a standing rider throws into the bar, I certainly have no way of validating any claim of mine. So, it's a moot point. If it came right down to it, and a rider was injured with this bar even unmodified, the lawyers may claim they are not responsible because the bar was not designed to be used like we're going to use them. :|Hotdog wrote: I'd be slightly wary of the argument that handlebars on a Silvio are subject to smaller loads than on an upright road bike. Handlebars on most recumbents are indeed subject to very light loads (just steering forces) but MBB FWD bikes are different as you can be expected to pull (hard) on the bars in order to use upper body strength to assist your pedalling action. I would imagine the peak stresses on the handlebars of a Silvio would be similar to those of an upright road bike, in both cases it's not due to the weight they bear but is determined by how hard the rider pulls on the bars (and that can be a lot more than the weight of the rider's upper body). The main difference would be that a rider on a upright road bike pulls the bars mostly upwards while standing to climb/sprint whereas the equivalent action on a Silvio involves pulling the bars mostly backwards.
Exactly my thought. I've modified many handlebars over the years. Homemade chop and drop bull horn bars and such.Hotdog wrote: So, I'd say a Silvio will want similar strength in the handlebars as an upright road bike, but that doesn't mean trimming the bars is necessarily a bad plan. The ends of the bars below your hand position contribute nothing to structural strength, so cutting a little off below the final bend in order to increase leg clearance/reduce weight/get a cool new look won't weaken them.
Again, I agree. I'm going to ride the full bar for awhile and try and think how it would be with some material removed. Brian could very well be right, that last bit of the drops might make a great alternative hand position on long rides. But I think the look of the chopped bar could be irresistable. Kind of like Brian. :lol: :lol:Hotdog wrote: I would ride with the bars unmodified for a while first though, to establish just how much of the bars you're actually making use of in practice.
Mark