[ire]

This bar was on my training bike, which sees the bulk of use. I use it indoor as well as out. I pulled off the bar tape and noticed all of this powder. It turns out that sweat/salt has severely corroded the bar. The bar is really pitted now and missing paint. I've never had this happen before. Too bad, I liked that bar. It was an Oval Concepts in case you're wondering. Anyone else had this happen? The bar was only on the bike about a year.

 

[gonefirefightin]

drink more alcohol and wear dish gloves

 

[ire]

drink more alcohol and wear dish gloves

Already did my tour at the bottom of a bottle. Dish gloves may help though...

 

[gonefirefightin]

go carbon with 80's sweatband

 

[sanjuro]

Put a towel over the bars.

 

[Westy]

Had the steerer of a fox fork do the same thing. I destroyed the steerer and headset trying to remove it. I guess the lesson is that aluminum parts need to be anodized.

 

[loco-gringo]

Parts need to be cleaned. Period. Bar tape is cheap. Change it often.

 

[-dustin]

as a shop mechanic, thank you for removing that yourself and not taking it to a shop.

 

[ire]

as a shop mechanic, thank you for removing that yourself and not taking it to a shop.

Why would I pay someone to do something I know how to do myself? The only reason I found this all out is because I was stripping my Scott cross bike to build up my DeSalvo steel frame/fork.

 

[jonKranked]

what's that, salt causes corrosion?!?! fvcking science

 

[golgiaparatus]

Carbon bars will fix that problem. I sweat a ton and therefore find that it's best that I remove, clean and regrease, my headset bearings about every 6 weeks to combat corrosion.

 

[ire]

What struck me as odd is that I've never had a bar do this. I used some crappy Scott bars for a long time on my trainer bike and they still look good.

 

[-dustin]

I see that way too often. Customers will bring in bike for some much needed maintenance and the stinch from the bar is overwhelming. we all know what's about to happen. Another reason why I wear gloves all the time. Usually there are signs - corroded rear brake cable, corroded stem bolts, sweat build up around the headset spacers.

 

[HAB]

I see that way too often. Customers will bring in bike for some much needed maintenance and the stinch from the bar is overwhelming. we all know what's about to happen. Another reason why I wear gloves all the time. Usually there are signs - corroded rear brake cable, corroded stem bolts, sweat build up around the headset spacers.

My old shop had a regular customer like that. Nicest guy ever, really like him, but I swear his sweat was fvcking radioactive. EVERYTHING he could possibly drip sweat on would corrode instantly. By everything, I mean, in addition to all the stuff you listed, seat post/ seat tube interface, seat post clamp bolt, the barrel adjusters on his down tube, shifter internals, and probably a bunch more stuff I've since forgotten. Super nasty.

 

[loco-gringo]

My old shop had a regular customer like that. Nicest guy ever, really like him, but I swear his sweat was fvcking radioactive. EVERYTHING he could possibly drip sweat on would corrode instantly. By everything, I mean, in addition to all the stuff you listed, seat post/ seat tube interface, seat post clamp bolt, the barrel adjusters on his down tube, shifter internals, and probably a bunch more stuff I've since forgotten. Super nasty.

Yup - I have a friend that did that on a 5500 Trek. Had to remove the post by turning it with 4' cheater pipe and a pipe wrench on the seat post head.

There are several others around. I have had multiple bike that the alloy nipples were weakened by sweat elements. How much are people sweating for that???

 

[jonKranked]

My old shop had a regular customer like that. Nicest guy ever, really like him, but I swear his sweat was fvcking radioactive. EVERYTHING he could possibly drip sweat on would corrode instantly. By everything, I mean, in addition to all the stuff you listed, seat post/ seat tube interface, seat post clamp bolt, the barrel adjusters on his down tube, shifter internals, and probably a bunch more stuff I've since forgotten. Super nasty.

had a guy come in once with all the above, plus the paint on his frame was starting to come off

 

[BikeMike]

Had a guy come in once and his bike was soaked in pee. No joke. Rag wrapped around the right hand grip included.

edit: not really sure what the point was there, but maybe you can be glad your bar was not soaked in urine.

 

[HAB]

had a guy come in once with all the above, plus the paint on his frame was starting to come off

Yeah, he's done that too. Also, chainring bolts.

 

[Wumpus]

I had the bar before this one snap at the barend when it fell over in the garage.

The sweat was wicking in between the barend and grip. No more barends.

I tend to kill front derailers the most though.

 

[Banshee Rider]

I've seen a set of bars fail for that reason.

 

[ire]

I've seen a set of bars fail for that reason.

That was my worry, so I replaced it. I wouldn't say I sweat like a beast, but when I ride the trainer for 3-4 hours in a small room it can get hot.

 

[oldfart]

That's pretty significant. I think that the anodizing on that bar, assuming it is anodized, was too thin and poor quality. The anodizing process simply adds a thin layer of amorphous aluminum oxide. Al2O3. The mineral corundum is the same stuff only crystalline. Corundum is the second hardest thing to occur naturally. Ruby and sapphire are the gem version of corundum. Corrosion is oxidation like rusting steel for example. But if the aluminum part has a thick enough anodized layer it should be difficult for sweat to get through under this layer and cause bad corrosion. That said, indoor training is a great sweat factory and one should wash down the bike after every workout. I make it a standard practice nearly every hot summer ride where I drip all over the top tube and bars to rinse the bike with a gentle spray and I periodically remove the bar, stem, fork headset to clean and grease the surfaces.