Replace drop bars & stem?

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,
ABS

Bent aluminum is soon to be broken aluminum. Definitely replace the
bars.

As for the stem, I'd replace that, too, but I'm someone who has no
aversion whatsoever to spending money on bike parts. If it wasn't bent
by the crash, it's probably safe to ride, but be sure to inspect it
before every ride, and be attentive for any creaking noises.

[email hidden said:

"]I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,
ABS

I'd expect the stem is so much stronger than those bars, there wouldn't be much damage the bars could impat to the stem. But, steering control loss could be catastrophic. Another option might be to take the stem to a machine shop and have them magnaflux the stem to see if there are any unseen stresses-I'm guessing $10-25 would be the charge.

Aluminum fails with little or no warning- should be a no-brainer on replacing the bars. Particularly since they've been bent.

On Mar 5, 1:21 am, meb <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I'd expect the stem is so much stronger than those bars, there wouldn't
be much damage the bars could impat to the stem. But, steering control
loss could be catastrophic. Another option might be to take the stem
to a machine shop and have them magnaflux the stem to see if there are
any unseen stresses-I'm guessing $10-25 would be the charge.

Aluminum fails with little or no warning- should be a no-brainer on
replacing the bars. Particularly since they've been bent.

--
meb

Magnaflux is for ferrous metals. Dye penetretnant-Zyglo-for aluminium.
Phil Brown

philcycles said:

On Mar 5, 1:21 am, meb <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I'd expect the stem is so much stronger than those bars, there wouldn't
be much damage the bars could impat to the stem.  But, steering control
loss could be catastrophic.  Another option  might be to take the stem
to a machine shop and have them magnaflux the stem to see if there are
any unseen stresses-I'm guessing $10-25 would be the charge.

Quoted message said:

Aluminum fails with little or no warning- should be a no-brainer on
replacing the bars.  Particularly since they've been bent.

Quoted message said:

--
meb

Magnaflux is for ferrous metals. Dye penetretnant-Zyglo-for aluminium.
Phil Brown

OP said the stem is Cr-Mo.

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,
ABS

My life is worth more than fifty bucks, make your own assessment.

In article <bba2d0f0-2351-4918-bbb0-
[email hidden]>, [email hidden]
says...

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,
ABS

Replace the bars. Cost $20-$40 off ebay.
Replace the stem. Cost $20 or so.

Have the bars or stem break, do a face plant.
Hospital cost + multiple operations $20,000 - $100,000+ or
Funeral costs plus plot $15,000 or so.

Personally I'd replace the bars and stem.

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,

Sounds to me like a trip to your LBS is indicated. Unless you're the
kind of person who would rather ask for medical diagnoses on usenet...
If you don't know how to examine parts to see if they need to be
replaced, find someone who does know.

Pat

Email address works as is.

Quoted message said:

[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?
Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

RS said:

Replace the bars. Cost $20-$40 off ebay.
Replace the stem. Cost $20 or so.

Quoted message said:

Have the bars or stem break, do a face plant.
Hospital cost + multiple operations $20,000 - $100,000+ or
Funeral costs plus plot $15,000 or so.

Quoted message said:

Personally I'd replace the bars and stem.

Not only! My donated corpse agreement has a rejection clause for
significant damage which may stick one's relatives with disposal expenses.
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On Tue, 4 Mar 2008 22:02:29 -0800 (PST), [email hidden] may

have said:

I'm trying to figure what needs to be replaced on my bike after my
recent hit & run episode. Since we (bike & me) impacted with the
street on the left side of the bike, the drop bar on the left side is
somewhat bent towards the center, maybe an inch or slightly more. I
assume they are the originals, 10 years old, Nitto aluminum, is it
best to replace or try to bend them back out?

IMO, given the fact that decent bars aren't horribly expensive, it's
probably more cost-effective to replace than try to reshape. OTOH, if
you seldom ride in the drops, attempting to bend them back close to
their original location might be worth trying, but be aware that
hardened aluminum is not a good thing to try this with. Remember,
you're not undoing the original damage when you bend them again to get
them back close to the pre-crash geometry; you're making more bends in
a structure that's already been stressed past its yield point. Some
crazing of the anodization has doubtless already taken place, and the
second bending may cause cracking that's bad enough to provide stress
risers that could eventually lead to a failure...which would occur in
a region that's covered with tape and therefore not readily subjected
to inspection that would catch the failure early. Whether the failure
risk is significant also depends upon your riding style; if you hardly
ever stress the drops, and don't lean hard on the hoods or tops, it
may not be worth worrying about.

Quoted message said:

Second, the stem is also assumed to be the original, Alico YC
chromoly. I see two welds on the stem...they look OK, but could there
have been stress from the impact transferred through the bars to
loosen those welds? Is it wise to replace the stem also?

If a close visual inspection (under magnification) of the ID of the
open tube shows no evidence of cracking, I wouldn't be worried about
the stem, but that's me.

You'll have to decide on the appropriate level of paranoia for both
components yourself. For me, the cost of replacements is seldom so
high that I'll try to save a badly bent item.

Quoted message said:

Opinions and/or wisdom sought,
ABS

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

philcycles said:

On Mar 5, 1:21 am, meb <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I'd expect the stem is so much stronger than those bars, there wouldn't
be much damage the bars could impat to the stem. But, steering control
loss could be catastrophic. Another option might be to take the stem
to a machine shop and have them magnaflux the stem to see if there are
any unseen stresses-I'm guessing $10-25 would be the charge.

Aluminum fails with little or no warning- should be a no-brainer on
replacing the bars. Particularly since they've been bent.

--
meb

Magnaflux is for ferrous metals. Dye penetretnant-Zyglo-for aluminium.
Phil Brown

Chromoly is a steel alloy-it is a ferrous metal. The stem is not aluminum.