About to re-wrap my bar tape using some specialised stuff with gell inserts.

Anyway, why are my bars shaped like they are…I do try to use the drops occasionally and I don’t find the shape particularly comfortable. Having removed the tape it looks like the wiggle in the drop is designed as another clamping point for the levers?!

Bought the bike secondhand and have rotated the bars up slightly, I know its partly down to personal preference, but I’m not sure if the bars are at the right angle and whether the hoods are in the right position so thought I’d check before putting the tape back on.

IMAG0542.jpg by Ollie and Sally, on Flickr

Edit: Its a cross bike though I’m using it for road riding, and the bars are by Oval.

The pic is slightly deceiving, at the moment the top of the bars to the hoods are horizontal (not sloping up as the pic suggests) and the levers are vertical.

Found a pic of an Oval R700 bar that looks similar and that suggests the bottom of the drops should be horizontal, with the top of the bars to the hoods sloping down?

that wiggle in the bars is simply an ‘ergo’ bend and designed to be a comfy place to put your hands in the drops, although it can be anything but

if it was me i’d rotate the bars so the flat bit of the drops is in the same line as the top-tube and i’d move the brake levers up, but YMMV, you can always experiment by riding around without bar-tape on for a bit just to check everything’s alright for you

Thanks Jo, that makes sense as at the moment my hands feel too high under the hoods to make use of the ergo bit.

Suffering from numb hands on the hoods so I think I’ll do as you suggest, stick the gell pads on but reuse the old tape until I’m happy with it.

P.S YMMV?

Your Mileage May Vary.

I’d agree with JoB tho I don’t get on with that kind of bar.