Originally Posted by
Rowan
I don't know about this. I have several pairs of CF bars with the wing shape on the flats. I have several aluminum bars with the wing shape on the flats. In fact, the profiles are identical in that regard.
I picked up a pair of the winged CF bars on eBay from a Taiwanese seller for $85. Compared with the Easton equivalent, I think they are actually, on the outside and what I can see and feel on the inside, to be of better quality... for a third of the price.
I think (and I have to admit that it is a "think" rather than a "know") that the CF bars help dampen the road shocks. I know that the CF bars on our Santana tandem, combined with the CF fork, give a much better feel than the alloy bars and alloy fork on a KHS tandem we borrowed.
If I could find aluminum bars shaped like my Winwood Road Scholar bars, I would buy them. Maybe I am not looking in the right place. If you are aware of any aluminum bars that have large float tops I would like to hear about them.