john hawrylak

Does anyone have the DROP and REACH for the randonneur style handle bar supplied on the Schwinn Approved World Voyageurs and Voyageur IIs???


My 75 Voyageur II still has the original no name randonneur handle bar, but it's hard to get the drop/reach with it taped.


If anyone has an original lying around, I might be interested.

3speedslow

No name Rando bar from a Schwinn? Sounds like the bars I had on my 76 Schwinn LeTour II. I believe they were made by SR.

If needed, I could dig them out of the box. LMK.

Metacortex

I believe they were a Japanese made clone of the GB randonneur bars Schwinn used on the 1970s Continental, Sprint, Super Sport and Sports Tourer. The dealer parts catalogs show the same part number for those bars and I know that they are the same 42cm width.

3speedslow

I wish they were 42cm at the levers! I used to not mind the narrow tops but balance is an issue for me now.

If no bar measurements show up I will dig them out, John.

Metacortex

Unfortunately you just missed a set on eBay: HANDLEBARS BRAKE LEVERS REFLECTOR FROM 1974 SCHWINN LE TOUR BICYCLE | eBay

You could substitute a set of GB rando bars, once they were taped nobody would know the difference.

john hawrylak

3sPEED, I would be forever in your debt, if you would grant me 1 small favor of measuring the bars. I find I like them better than 44cm Nitto Noodles on my 88 Voyaguer. With the Noodle, I feel like a parachute on the hoods or in the drops. The No Name feels just the right width.

3speedslow

I will get the measurements in the morning, happy to help!

AustinFitz

Now I'm not absolutely 100% sure on this, but I'm almost positive that the "no name" randonneur Schwinn bars you are referring to are actually the British GB rando bars.
From what I've read they were used on several different Schwinn models in the mid '70s, then a little later on they started using the SR versions. All of the SR rando bars I've seen have had identifying SR engravings on either side of the clamping area (misspelled ones at that).
The GB bars on the other hand were unmarked at first, then around '74 or so they started stamping them, but the stamp is small and located at the very end of the drop... You would never see it without unwrapping the bar tape. I actually just bought a pair of the GB versions on eBay last week. They haven't come in yet though.
All of the GB randos I've seen have had a bulged clamping area, and no markings besides the stamp under the tape.
I have seen 2 types of the SR randos. One has a bulged clamping area, and one is sleeved, but they both always have the engravings on either side of the clamping area.

Here are the GB bars I bought off ebay, and a couple of Google images of the stamping.





And here are a couple examples of the 2 types of SR bars

Sleeved clamping area



And the bulged clamping area

3speedslow

Unmarked referred to the lack of script on the top near the stem. These bars are marked Japan and the date on the end. So no marking for SR but most likely an SR product. I have another set of Rando bars with all the SR script on them as well.

I am well aware of the GB bars and their end markings.

Good news that you have landed a GB hb. They are wonderful and the only set I still have on my old Dawes.

AustinFitz

Oh ok, I gotcha now. Makes things even more confusing trying to buy vintage randonneur bars then... It would be nice if Schwinn had just been a little more specific on their handlebar choices... "Alloy bars" doesn't really tell you a whole lot

I did get mine from eBay in the mail today. Turns out I have no idea what they actually are though I unwrapped the tape, and removed the levers to find that they are 100% unmarked. No knurling on the clamping area, and not a single stamp to be found anywhere on them. Nothing.

Unfortunately I don't think I like them very much either. I haven't put them on a bike yet, but just holding them and air cycling (c'mon you know you've done it) they feel really odd... Not just like they'll take some getting used to odd. I mean on the verge of just dead wrong!

I was really hoping to pick them up and get that "oh yeah, this is what I've been missing!" feeling, but instead my reaction was basically just "Oh..."

The drops don't really flare out in the direction I was hoping for. Having never held a pair of rando bars in person before, I had the idea that they flared outward more away from the frame letting my wrists rest at a slight angle. In reality they seem pretty much parallel to the frame just like any other bars... The flare feels more upwards away from the ground than outwards away from the frame, and after looking at them for a while I realized that the drops really aren't flared in any direction at all! It just seems like they took several inches out of the tops causing an odd bend to connect back down to the drops that were left at a pretty standard width giving the illusion of a flare.

At the ends of the drops they are only 1/4" or so wider than my current bars, but the tops and ramps are much more narrow than my current bars.

The tops seem pretty much useless since they start gradually bending almost immediately after coming out of the stem causing my wrists to be bent inwards, and my elbows pointed out if I were to ride there. That's no good... I think I prefer the more traditional long flat tops followed by a sharper corner. That makes the tops a useable position for me.

Then finally I've heard loads of talk about the "long flat ramps" leading up to the hoods that make up for the weird tops, but whatever these are have almost no ramps at all! My current SR Road Champion bars have a much larger flat area there than these rando bars do! Feels like I'd nearly have to have the bar ends pointed directly at the ground to make that a useable position.

Maybe it's just me, but overall I feel like the tops would be less usable, the ramps would be less usable, and the drops would be about the same just with a little more forearm room when down there.

I really do want to like them, but I'm not sure if I want to go through all of the trouble and bar wrap expense just to take one quick ride and confirm that I don't like them, but I guess I'll never really know until I try!

I apologize for the novel lol. I'm just kinda bummed out after excitedly waiting on them for the past 2 weeks

3speedslow

Hey Austin,

Sorry to read about the letdown. The difference now is back when, there were a lot of us using these Rando bars so it was pretty easy to find someone to let you try them for yourself. Now they are not so common out there I guess. At least not around here. I really liked them at one time and found them perfect for long touring rides. But as you noticed the tops are quite narrow feeling which does not suit me now.
It is strange that there are no markings anywhere on the bar. Did it come with a stem attached? Can you contact the seller and question as to what bike it was pulled off of ?

Metacortex

I am positive that they were made by different companies. The early to mid 1970s Traveler, World Voyageur/Voyageur II and Le Tour handlebars were indeed unmarked, as in there were absolutely no markings *anywhere* on the bars. They were made in Japan (most likely by SR) and as far as I have been able to determine are identical clones of the GB (Gerry Burgess) British Made handlebars used on other 1971 and later Schwinn models. Identical that is except that is for the lack of the markings as seen on all of the GB British Made bars.

Another interesting fact was that both the unmarked Japanese made and GB British Made handlebars had the same Schwinn part number, which was 55 123. In other words even though a World Voyageur and a Super Sport came with handlebars from different manufacturers, if you looked them up in the parts catalogs they both referenced the same Schwinn part number. If you ordered that number over the counter you would get the GB stamped version, as the Japanese made clones were only installed where and when the Japanese made bikes were assembled.

Schwinn began using the GB handlebars in 1971 and they were marked with the GB stamp from the very beginning as I have several '71 and later models with those marks. The date code stamps on the other hand were not added until around mid-1974 and later.

AustinFitz

Thank you for the corrections, and the info! I'm still pretty new to C&V road bikes, but I do as much research as I can. Seems a lot of the technical info from the '70s era is pretty vague, and widely scattered across the internet with lots of misinformation mixed in, like my previous post. I did warn that I wasn't 100% though!


Well I actually may have been a bit hasty to judge them... I've been playing around with them all day, and I think they're growing on me. Plus I was already in a bad mood when I opened the box to check them out for the first time (I had been fighting a stripped bolt on a beach cruiser for too long) and I think that, combined with the shock of how much differently they're shaped than any other bars I've used before just got the bars and I off on the wrong foot. I've decided I'm at least going to put them on my Centurion and try them out for a bit.

The bars did come with what appeared to be the original stem, levers, bar tape, and bar end plugs. From the info above the fact that they're totally unmarked says that they are probably SR, and would have come on the early to mid 1970s Traveler, World Voyageur/Voyageur II and Le Tour.

Here are the pics from the eBay ad. I'll ask if the seller knows exactly what they came off of. I looked for date codes on the stem and levers, and the only thing that looked like an obvious possibility were two slightly large numbers on the stem stamped "3 1". March of 1971 maybe? I have no idea honestly, but I am curious to learn!

Metacortex

Based on the brake levers I see in the pics I think those handlebars, stem and brake levers came from a '72-'76 Traveler. Are there any date codes on the stem or the inside of the extension levers?

Edit: I see you did mention a possible date code stamp on the stem. Please post some close up pics of the stamping. The Traveler wasn't really imported until early '72 so I doubt the code means March of '71. Also check the extension levers for date stamps, however those didn't appear until late '74.

I think the "3 1" stamp is a mfr. stamp and not a date stamp, note the "3 S" stamp on this 11 77 (Nov. 1977) stem from a Le Tour: https://www.ebay.com/itm/SCHWINN-LE-T...-/252772927538



The 1976/77 and later stems also had recessed stem bolts.

AustinFitz

Ah! I was typing As you posted this reply! Thank you!

3speedslow

Hey Austin,

FYI... I freely admit to air cycling with new bars! My family has seen the weirdness of this hobby.

The stem on the bars is indeed a Schwinn stem. Mine looks exactly like that but has an indented Allen bolt for the steerer. It has the .833 diameter which fits into the fork. Might want to measure to confirm size.

I think that if you try these , you will see why long distance riders love them. Hopefully!

AustinFitz

Hahaha!!! I knew someone would relate! And I'm definitely going to give the bars a chance. Like I said, I really want to like them!

More awesome info! Here are some close ups of every stamp I could find on the stem and extension levers.

3speedslow

Aw yes, the good ol' 2 1/2" safety rule suggestion. Much like what Raleigh had in their lit back in the day. Your stem is the .833 size, don't know how that will work with what you have.

Those levers can be made to lose the safety wing if you source two other regular pivot axles. Or down and dirty cut them off. That would need hoods to cover it up though.

I always ride the bike before I tape it so that would be your chance to see if these bars do anything for you. Could take a few rides..

AustinFitz

Yeah it looks like these seem to fit in around '72 or '73. The eBay ad was simply titled "vintage Schwinn handlebars". I bought them thinking the bars were probably GB, and at only $21 shipped it was a cheap way for me to try out a Rando style bar.

Sounds like they basically are the British GB bars though, just without the branding stamp, and made in Japan most likely by SR for the Japanese production built Schwinns. I kinda like that fact honestly being that the bike I intend to put them on is Japanese anyway!

I don't have much use for the Schwinn stem and extension lever brakes right now. They were just kind of bonus extras I got with the bars. They'll go into one of my many parts boxes I have around until I find a use for them somewhere later on.

I plan to retain the original SR stem and Dia-Compe levers from my Centurion and just swap out the bars. As you said I'll probably leave them unwrapped for a while as I test them out. I figure it will take at least a few rides to get used to them. Although so far even without having them installed yet they're continuing to grow on me

Here is what they will be going on



I apologize for hijacking your thread man, but my intentions were to help if needed lol. I know you said your bars were "Japan" stamped, but if you think the unmarked versions I just got in are the same I don't mind getting the measurements for you while they're unwrapped and off the bike. I'm not sure if you still need them or not, but let me know if you do

Prowler 

An alternative is to do a 'cheap and dirty' wrap with an old inner tube. Take an old 27" or 700c tube and cut the valve stem section out. Then cut right down the inner diameter line and again along the outter diameter line. That will leave you two long black ribbons, plenty long enough for each side of the bar. Wash the ribbons in soap and water to remove any dirt or talcum powder then wrap the bars. The rubber is grabby enough to hold on the bar nicely. Just start where you like (top or bottom) and over wrap the loose end with a bit on tension - it will hold just fine. You can wrap around the lever bodies then on to the bar end. Tie off the ribbon end with a knot and cut off the extra.

You'll find this wrap comfortable enough for testing fit and loose enough that you can wiggle the lever bodies around to test different positions. I have one bike that is going into its second year of test riding. When your fit is just right, ravel the rubber wrap and install proper bar wrap.

This cheap but functional bar warp also seems to divert attention from the bike - not interesting to enterprising young drug addicts. Reminds me of the famous "Somebody Else's Problem" field - same thing as being invisible.

AngryFrankie

For visual reference, this guy has had this one listed for a long time. The bars look like the GB bars shown above to me. https://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/bik/5986209444.html

john hawrylak

3SPEEDSLOW, any luck with the measurements on the No Name Japanese Rando bar??? The discussion on GB bars was confusing and distracting.


John Hawrylak
Woodstown NJ

3speedslow

Yes, I sent you a PM. Did you not get it

john hawrylak

Law


I saw the PM and replied. Thnaks, I don't check the PM's as often as I should.

Metacortex

The original World Voyageur/Voyageur II bars were completely unmarked (no "Japan" or any other stampings) and were the exact same handlebars as used on the World Traveler and Le Tour. The World Traveler handlebars you purchased are in fact the specific handlebars he is looking for measurements of.