Phil1979

Hello everyone,

I just got a 1977 Schwinn Varsity, and it has a bent handlebar stem. Looking head on at the bike, one side of the handlebars hangs lower than the other. It must have been in quite an accident to do that.

I want to keep it all original, and was thinking of putting it in a vise and using a pipe to bend it back. I think it's made of steel and not aluminum so that should be ok, I hope.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Metacortex

That stem is thick forged steel. The handlebar on the other hand is thin tubular steel. Because of that I'd guess that it is the handlebar that is bent and not the stem. This is the perfect chance to replace the heavy steel handlebar with a lightweight aluminum handlebar. You will want one that is 25.4mm (1") at the center to fit the existing stem. That change will save nearly 1.5 lbs. alone. Here is an example: https://www.ebay.com/itm/390688709186

You could also get a new aluminum 21.1mm dia. stem along with the handlebars, which would save an additional 10 oz, for a total savings of about 2lbs. Here is an example: https://www.ebay.com/itm/121192704452

surreal

The OP said:
And then Metacortex said:
And that illustrates what is wrong with this forum. No one pays attention to the OP's mission.

I concur that the bars are more likely to be bent than the stem. Finding unbent varsity bars should be easy...

Metacortex

I apologize, I am into originality perhaps more than anybody. I was looking at this as a chance for period correct upgrades used by Schwinn at the time, but I should have also suggested original steel Varsity handlebars. Allow me to suggest these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/261319764047

Or these: https://www.ebay.com/itm/251368473994

surreal

No worries; I actually think the Le Tour piece is a rockin' upgrade for a good many projects, and the advice kinda makes sense (although making a Varsity lightweight is an exercise in futility), but it doesn't take into account the OP's wishes.. I didn't mean to single your post out; I just see a lot of cases on here where ppl say "I have X, and I want to do Y..." and ppl respond with "Consider Z instead!"

In other news, the $6 varsity bars on ebay look like a good solution. A quick way for the OP to ensure that it is, in fact, the bars amd not the stem causing the droopy set-up: temporarily install other nars in the stem, and see if they're straight or not.

Andrew R Stewart 

Until i were to look at the stem and bars i wouldn't assume that the bars were the problem. I've seen many twisted stems. The biggest advantage those forged stems have over the alternatives (the flat plate that has been folded and shaped stems) is the bar clamp doesn't tend to stretch and close up on it's self as easily. Both have a low resistance to twisting. The forged stem usually has a small cross section along it's extension and the folded from plate stem is not tubular at all as it's not welded along the seam. It's not hard to rebend and straighten a twisted stem (of these types), although depending on how much bending is needed one might not trust them. Andy.

cny-bikeman

I did a good bit of wrenching when there were more Varsity's around, and I have seen bent stems, so I agree with Andrew. if both bars are bent at an angle then it is indeed the stem. If one is level and the other bent then clearly it's the bar at fault.

Metacortex

If the stem is actually bent, this is a potential replacement: https://www.ebay.com/itm/251370679535

Phil1979

Thanks for the replies, everyone. I finally decided to chuck "all-original" and get a longer stem for the comfort factor. Decided to make this bike my primary bike for long rides, such as the Silver Comet Trail.

After installing the new stem (I did clean and repack the headset bearings as they were dry and cruddy), the handlebars are now straight. :-)