First-time aero bar setup - am I doing something wrong?
 

I have the Mercier Galaxy AL road bike and recently purchased the Profile Design T3+ Aero bar. Today I went to set this up and it's given me absolutely nothing but headaches, but I got these because I thought they were a reputable brand and high quality aero bar. Basically what it comes down to is I can't get these tightened down enough on the handle bar so they don't move. The aero bar comes with these really annoying plastic shims which are supposed to make it fit a 26mm bar, but even though I can get them fairly tight so there's no lateral movement on the handle bar (this is after also wrapping the bar with several passes of electrical tape) then the aero bar wants to pitch up and down if I put weight on them which I'm sure is not right.

What am I doing wrong here? Does this aero bar simply not work with my bike? I'm very annoyed at how much money I've spent on this bar (thinking it was reputable based on my research) and the time I've wasted trying to mount it. Please help! If I need to send this back I'll gladly do it, but would appreciate some advice on a replacement aero bar.

Thank you

Switch to a 31.8 mm handlebar or return it and just get 3t aergonovas

The shims really are plastic?

How wide is the clamp where it attaches to the bar (in mm)?

The answer may be alloy spacers (if the shims really are plastic).

Umm, thanks, but I'm not looking to spend more money on handlebars. I'm pretty sure my handlebars are just smaller than 26mm - which I thought was a fairly standard size, but clearly mine must be smaller. I'm not real sure though how to get the actual measurement. Any thoughts?

Yes, they really are plastic. Trust me, when I saw that after how much I paid for them I was immediately disappointed.

I just looked closely at the specs of my bike on BikesDirect.com and it says it's a 26mm diameter handlebar, but it has to be wrong. My guess is it's either 22mm or 25.4mm, but I'm trying to figure out how to confirm this.

Profile Design is a very good brand, and has been a staple in triathlon circles. There have been many who have had only good to great experiences with their products, as your research has given you.

I would advise against wrapping the bar underneath the shims with electrical tape. The tape compresses/stretches and the adhesive is not designed for mounting purposes.

Remove the tape, reattach the bar with the shims, torque the bolts down properly. Since your handlebar is aluminum, you can go a bit "tighter" if you want to.

The plastic shims do the job well.

P.S. I've had the T2+ before. Didn't have the problems you are experiencing. And yes, I also had a 26.0 mm bar on it.

According to the spec in the link they are 26.0mm.

Again, are the shims really plastic? If so, I would go metal before spending any more money.

PM me if you can't find some locally. I'm sure we have shims here we can gift you.

Argh, I think my handlebars are really 25.4mm. I just did the best eyeball measurement I could and believe the radius of the handlebar is 1/2" which multiplied x 2 is of course 1" which converted to mm is 25.4. Well, at least that makes sense and would explain why this aero bar doesn't fit :-(

If your handlebar is not 26.0 mm (probably 25.4 mm, 22.0 mm is mostly found on BMX bikes), you can use an aluminum can as a shim underneath the provided plastic shim to make the bar thicker for the clamp+shim.

How to measure the bar diameter:
1.) Use a caliper.
2.) Wrap a length of string (the non-stretchy kind) around the bar. Measure the length in mm and divide by 3.14159. However, this method is prone to error, and the difference between 25.4 and 26.0 is small.

They are not 25.4mm.

This is not a size for road bars. You can find cheapo mtb bars in this size but not road bars.

They are not 25.4mm.

This is not a size for road bars. You can find cheapo mtb bars in this size but not road bars.

Yeah, you may be right. I was just reading something that said the diameter of the clamp area is likely 26mm, but the rest of the handlebar beyond that could be less. That said, just how close to the stem should an aero bar be? I was thinking it should be about shoulder width apart so perhaps I was trying to clamp them on too far away from the stem. Geez, I really didn't expect this was going to be this much of a chore!

Wha? You should google clip on aerobar and I think you'll see how far away they should be from each other. It's certainly not shoulder width, that'd put them out by the drops.

Lol, yeah, perhaps I overstated that :) I actually was just doing what you suggested and I can see that most setups appear to have them clipped on pretty close to the stem. Guess I'll give that a try later today and see if that makes a difference. I'm going to feel dumb if that's all it was; I hate being a newbie at this stuff! Thanks everyone for your input.

DOH? Mount next to the stem. :thumb:

So yeah, I'm an idiot... I mounted the bars within 1/4" of the stem and they are on just fine now. I'm still not crazy about the plastic shims though as I can see the bars coming loose over time. I guess if that starts happening with any frequency then I'll look into getting some rubber insert to put between the shims and the bar.

Now it looks like I'll need to spend some more time this weekend tweaking the length and rotation of the bars to get the feel just right, but at least I got them on there now which is an important first step, LOL ;-)

Stay away from tape or rubber for additional shimming. There will be movement of the bars. An aluminum soda or beer can could be used for small amounts of shimming.

Shouldn't need shims of any sort. Level forearms is a good start and usually the best. I used to grab mine by the horns, but now I hold them behind the horns for a tiny aero improvement. Just as comfortable IMO. I have mine set so that my torso and upper arm form ~90° angle.

Indeed, in the past some bars were only 25.4 mm. Other than diameter the tape may not be helping you. It could be providing a slick surface.