On the stem question, I know that some have removed material from the stem clamp area in order to fit a larger diameter bar, but I would not. It is a relatively small amount of material, but you have to ask yourself if material removal at that particular place is really a good idea. It may never fail, but the stem was designed for a certain size bar. And there are so many good options for putting together a great bar/stem combo that were made to fit, so altering something like that is really not necessary. It just becomes a kludge. Whether or not it is unsafe is up to one's judgement. A stem failure is among the worst that can happen on a bike.

Thank you. It's more material to remove than for the stem steerer tube diameter (22.2 --> 22.0mm) so it seemed like a good idea to ask. I'll re-calibrate my plan and keep an eye out for a pair of 25.0 mm clamp diameter bars.

I hope you find what you're looking for. I know the search can be both frustrating and rewarding.

In the event that you don't, keep an eye out for an SR forged stem like this:


They made some of these sized to fit the 22.0 French steerer tubes, but they have a 25.4 clamp diameter, so your bar options increase. It's a nice stem, and they sometimes pop up for a good price.

Thanks for the tip. I'll keep an eye out for one of the 22.0 SR stems. I know that I can likely find the Atax Franco Italian bars with a 25.0 mm clamp, but I do have myself set on the Professionnel model for no other reason than vanity (and to match the stem).

They were not stitched; they were molded in the shape you see with FAKE stitching molded in.

As to whether they were rubber -- that word gets used for a lot of things that never came from a rubber tree. I'm no expert but I would assume they are some kind of petroleum-based plastic, but definitely a rubbery feel. I wouldn't mind if someone called them rubber. They give a slight amount of cushioning, less than say Cinelli cork or some other padded tapes, but better than unpadded tape.

BTW I think the ones in the photo from randyjawa have normal bands holding the levers on -- not riv-nuts. I'm pretty sure I can see the bulge in the rubber where the band is underneath. Unless I'm imagining it...

Mark B in Seattle

I don't think you're imagining it, unless the power of suggestion has me seeing them too.

On purchase, the bars were wrapped with Cinelli cork tape. So, a previous owner dispatched with the rubber sleeves. I've not seen "soft-stitched sleeve" handlebars in the wild and I imagined they were a bit more "luxe"-- like the leather sleeves VeloOrange was selling a while back. A bit of a let down. My only point of reference for this bike are the catalogs available online-- I believe you may have posted many of them, Thank you. In any case, I won't worry about restoring that original detail.

Cheers

My Super Mirage--a 1978, I think--had those plastic bar sleeves. The brake levers had conventional bands, as I found when removed the sleeves so I could install a longer stem. Maybe those rivnut bars were seen as an upgrade, and didn't extend down the food chain as far as the Super Mirage?

Yes - see my post in the ISO sticky thread - a pair of bars with them that just came off a MB tandem.

agnewton Are you still looking for a FR handlebar? I could not find any back in July, but doing a deeper dig (looking for some Ford Falcon hubcaps but another story) I did find a pair of Belleri "Ile de France" alloy bars that have a "medium" drop and bulge-formed center.The 2 engravings are pretty worn so hard to read (and my attempt to take pix resulted in the focus way off) but I can see enough to ID them and the clearest part says "St. Ettienne" Measure between 41 and 42 cm. NOTE: according to Velobase these might be 26mm clamp so I will have to measure and update this post. But LMK if interested in FR bars with an "Italian size" clamp diameter?

You can buy replacement rivnuts. They are inexpensive, too.

If re-tapping solved the issues, great.

I would guess the brake kever took a hit and was bent inwards a bit.

Update, these Belleri Made in France bars measure a 25mm clamp diameter, just like a FR bar should, if interested PM me

those soft stiched bar coverings weren't a French thing they were a proprietery Motobecane thing
they came on all but the the top two models for about 5 years. the riv-nut ones were on the better
models for a cleaner look. many 1000s were sold with no bar failures

It's 40 years later. Aluminum doesn't fail with warning, and you have no idea whether the OP likes cranking on the bars or not.

Admittedly, there's little empirical evidence for or against the potential failure of these bars, but I wouldn't base a judgement call on their safety because of a lack of hearsay from BITD.

-Kurt