I am looking at several different drop bars trying to make a purchasing decision, after gifting my KHS Flite500 with generic carbon drop bars to a family member in Portland. I was in the KHS pedals over 3,000 miles preparing for the 2012 STP, which I enjoyed. I used that bike with the original KHS alloy drop bars for a bit but changed them for generic flat top/wing style carbon bars in a successful attempt to avoid the road vibrations killing me in my shoulders/neck. I made this handlebar change after riding a neighbors bicycle 50 miles outfitted with carbon bars.

The generic bars had a grove for the cables, and I had to wrap the bars to cover the tape I used to hold the cable tight to the bars. I saw some Specialized S-Works Carbon Bars with a narrower flat tops than the generics I used, and can not find detailed photos to see if they have internal or a similar groove requiring bar tape to cover the tape required to hold the cables secure.

I found the flat top/wing style drop bars made a great deal of difference in my upper back/neck after a 70/100 mile ride, over the alloy bars I have always used (I seem to be getting older).. It could have been a combination of the flat top/wing hand comfort and the carbon reducing some vibration on the road surfaces I ride.

Question one: how large is the the flat surface area of the tops on the Specialized S-Works Carbon Bars compare to the FSA K-Wing carbon bars, similar or smaller?

Question two: do Specialized S-Works Carbon Bars have a grove or drilled for hidden cabling, not requiring bar tape for the upper half of the bar tops?

JR