I know I'll still be slow! It will take much more than a change in handlebars to do anything about that!The bars are at seat height. The torso position affects the aero much more than the position of the arms. However, if you ride along with hands on the outside of the bars and then move them inboard a couple of inches, you can notice a small jump in the speed. Nothing drastic, but an improvement never the less. Its
also easier to keep your elbows tucked in a bit, which also helps.

LBS acted like losing the "leverage" was a bad thing. Maybe on a mtb, I could see it. Just does not seem like a big deal my city bike.

Will a regular tubing cutter do the job?