In a message dated 10/20/2003 8:14:37 AM Eastern Daylight Time, gillies@cs.ubc.ca writes:
<< However, the left handlebar is bent. the drops are about 1/2" too close to the headset. When i got the bike, it seems like the barcon on the left was in danger of hitting the head tube........... i am challenging myself to find a way to fix these bars on my own.
my approach is to disassemble down to bare bars, heat it in the oven for a while, and then, as in "anybody's bike book" i believe, step on one side of the bars and pull upwards........... i understand that it's a bad idea to cold set aluminum. >>
I would NOT heat the bars. I guarantee you that they were originally bent cold and that is the way they should be repaired. 1/2" off at the end is not much at all. You can leave the bars in the bike... put the bike on it's side and just gently lift up on the bent side.. No big deal. I have done it many times. If you are gentle and even in your pressure application, they ought to be perfectly rideable. FWIW, many bars are not symmetric in their bend patterns. Even such respected makes as Cinelli often are off a bit. Just like the humans that ride them...
Dale Brown
Greensboro, NC