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almost died .... (Easton, we have a problem)

Kanye West

220# bag of hacktastic
Aug 31, 2006
3,740
470
Would be interesting to rank various carbon parts on the "fuck no to hell yes" spectrum.

Bars, stems, seat posts, cranks, fork lowers, fork steerers, tallboy cages, pedal bodies, dildos, derailleur cages, frames (complete and halvsies), saddle rails, rims, etc...
In order of "fuck no" to "hell yes":

- Stems, cranks, fork lowers, fork steerers, frames, saddle rails, pedal bodies

- Rims, bars, posts, bottle cages, derailleur bits

- ......

- ......

- Dildos
 

marshalolson

Turbo Monkey
May 25, 2006
1,770
519
Fixed torque wrenches. Interesting. Never seen one before, learn something everyday!
Yeah man, they are pretty sweet actually. I went thru and compared the ritchey preset's to the shops high dollar expensive adjustible one, and were equivalent.
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
i blame this thread for the fact that i smashed my sixc's into about 30 billion trees during my ride today

You gonna die

Every ride from here on out.......can you really trust them now?

I mean gosh, when a handlebar goes......whew.

You ball ride out a crank. Even drag a broken rim around to a stop. But a handlebar? Man, it must suck having that in your head now. I can't imagine. Every single ride with that handlebar now.
 

HAB

Chelsea from Seattle
Apr 28, 2007
11,580
2,006
Seattle
You gonna die

Every ride from here on out.......can you really trust them now?

I mean gosh, when a handlebar goes......whew.

You ball ride out a crank. Even drag a broken rim around to a stop. But a handlebar? Man, it must suck having that in your head now. I can't imagine. Every single ride with that handlebar now.
:rofl:

I've got a carbon bar, crank and wheels on my Megatrail. I ain't scurrd.
 

jstuhlman

bagpipe wanker
Dec 3, 2009
16,627
12,918
Cackalacka du Nord
good luck when your crabon rims shatter on impact after a drop, causing you to careen out of control and catch your crabon cranks on a rock. instead of denting and deflecting they delaminate, wrapping themselves around said rock and whipping your bike into a tree, causing your crabon frame shatter into a million microsplinters. with nothing left to break you fall, you land directly on your aluminum bars, which pierce your chest and kill you on impact.

so yeah, good luck.
 

HAB

Chelsea from Seattle
Apr 28, 2007
11,580
2,006
Seattle
'woo, I'll PM you my address now so you can send me an "I told you so" card when my bars explode and I break my face. :D
 

Steve M

Turbo Monkey
Mar 3, 2007
1,991
45
Whistler
Since the bar broke exactly right at the clamp, and just to bear repeating, if you don't know what torque:

1. The bar is rated for
2. The brake lever was torqued to

It's impossible to call this Easton's fault

Over torquing aluminum is much more difficult than carbon. 5nm is not all that much. Always use a torque wrench on carbon, or don't use carbon.

If you can't be bothered to buy a $25 tool to properly install $175 bars,then don't use carbon. If you crash all over the place, or can't afford to buy new bars once they see a few big nicks, then don't buy carbon.
Agreed on all counts, however FWIW the torque at which I can move my brake levers around on the bars with a bit of a whack is about 2Nm. 5Nm - which seems to be the de facto standard torque for carbon clamping from what I've seen - is much higher than anyone should actually be running IMO. Annoyingly, Easton don't actually specify a maximum lever clamp torque from what I can find.
 

StiHacka

Compensating for something
Jan 4, 2013
21,560
12,504
In hell. Welcome!
If the lever can rotate, won't it rock ever so slightly and eventually cut a stress riser in the bar surface that will make it much more likely to fail than a properly tightened one?
 

marshalolson

Turbo Monkey
May 25, 2006
1,770
519
There's no way Easton could specify a torque. It would vary according to the design of each manufacturer's brake assembly.
It's not a suggested torque spec, it's a limit. above X may damage bar.

Just like everyone else, Easton knows how much clamping force brake levers generate, and design their bars to withstand it.

It does not matter if avid damages the bar at 5.5, shimano at 6 etc. all they are saying is that it's possible to damage the bar over 5, and there is no reason to exceed that because levers will not spin.
 

TGR

Monkey
Jan 9, 2006
263
3
snapped mine (havoc carbon dh, 800mm) two years ago, cased a jump and ended up flying over the bars... right at the edge of where the lever clamps
 

mykel

closer to Periwinkle
Apr 19, 2013
5,071
3,780
sw ontario canada
Pedant mode on
Carbon Havocs are 750mm not 800...
Pedant mode off

Had a good look at my carbon Havocs, no risers or cuts from the levers.
A few small scratches and a couple of small chips, all between the levers and the stem...

Keeping fingers crossed.
 

wood booger

Monkey
Jul 16, 2008
668
72
the land of cheap beer
It's not a suggested torque spec, it's a limit. above X may damage bar.

Just like everyone else, Easton knows how much clamping force brake levers generate, and design their bars to withstand it.

It does not matter if avid damages the bar at 5.5, shimano at 6 etc. all they are saying is that it's possible to damage the bar over 5, and there is no reason to exceed that because levers will not spin.
Yep, for sure.

I guarantee Easton has a max torque spec for those air tool toting folks who assemble a billion bikes over there in Asia Land...
 

TGR

Monkey
Jan 9, 2006
263
3
750 not 800, my bad...
easton happily replaced it though pretty fast with a new one!

I now ride a 35mm sixc carbon bar on my process and even though it's been battered to hell (mostly deep scratches from not so intelligent packing in a trailer) riding across europe this summer and flying back + riding around here, it's still perfect!
 

saruti

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,167
73
Israel
@TGR

how can you ride carbon bar after a fail like this? and the same type....?
I've installed a new aluminum KORE bar yesterday. cant think of riding a carbon bar again.
I hope to ride it soon....
 

iRider

Turbo Monkey
Apr 5, 2008
5,648
3,089
A
Rental bars is the way to go!
Actually, no. According to a fatigue test of a German bike mag the Renthal alu bars were the worst. Syntace carbon bars won the the test FWIW. Easton didn't fair too well either if I can remember correct.
 

Trasselkalle

Monkey
Oct 28, 2014
138
25
Sweden
Actually, no. According to a fatigue test of a German bike mag the Renthal alu bars were the worst. Syntace carbon bars won the the test FWIW. Easton didn't fair too well either if I can remember correct.
Is the test available online? Would be interesting to read.