I really hate those 4400, 5500, 6500 and 7700 STI levers.
they simply don't merge well with a lot of bars.

some 4500 tiagra levers will be much better ergonomically, btw.

to elaborate, the bend that the collar is mounted on is different for every bar and certain bars make flat transitions easier.

you should be riding in the drops anyway.

It's people like you what cause unrest.

just trying to help. hmmm. i might even convince myself.

This thread is a Fred Hootenanny.

Do the shims also work with 7700 Dura-ace levers? Perhaps this will postpone the purchase of an updated groupo.

Seriously though, the bar and the angle that the shifters are mounted on the bar can make a huge difference in how the shifters feel. That said, the hood shape also can make a huge difference. Post a picture of your setup, as was requested earlier, and maybe you will get more meaningful comments.

Sorry for the hijack, but I had my bike with me at the office today and snapped a pic. As mentioned earlier, I am a bit new and wide open to suggestions. I've kept this setup as the reach is fine from both positions.

IMG_01671..jpg

that is exactly how i have one bike set up. it's not quite how i like to have it but the shape of the bars only allows this. the angle of drop from the tops wont allow for a horizintal forward transition. to do so would mean virtually no drops. to stop me sliping down the bar, the hoods need to be slightly upwards.

my other bike has a totally flat horizontal forward transition to the hoods and the hoods are set to go straight forward. That is ideal for my hands.

I pull back the rubber hoods on my shifters and put some spare gel bar tape underneath to beef up the padding where the shifter meets bar. This makes the base of the shifter both wider and softer.

As requested, I finally was able to take some photos.

I put some extra bartape under the hood and did an extra loop of tape around the lever body to pad out the grip area.
IMG_7397 (Small)..JPG

These two pictures illustrate my hand placement.
IMG_7395 (Small)..JPG
IMG_7396 (Small)..JPG

See all that air under the straight-edge? That is the problem. And it would be worse without the extra padding under the hood. I don't know where on the bar I can put the levers to eliminate this space. The spots where the ruler touches are where the pressure hits my hands.
IMG_7398 (Small)..JPG

I hope that I don't get flamed too hard for bringing this thread back up. I had lots of problems with hand and wrist pain with my setup, but changing bars did help.

My original setup looked like your pictures, until I moved to the Deda Supernatural handlebars.



I don't have the bike anymore, and the photo is older, but I think you see the flat transition from bars to hoods. I was never comfortable on longer rides until I switched to these bars.

But those levers are not the same as mine. You can tell the angle at which they attach to the bars lends itself to a flatter transition.