Steel vs alloy handlebars

[ttcycle]

In the middle of finding out the drop measurements on two ebay handlebars.

What are the thoughts of the CC collective brain of the pros and cons of alloy bars and steel bars weight considerations aside.

Thanks

 

[biggs682]

steel can go rusty even when they have been chromed !

 

[Keith Oates]

If your handlebars have tape wound around them, whether steel or alloy, the sweat from your hands will get through to the bars and corrosion can and will take place. However apart from weight I don't think there is much difference !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[I like Skol]

As a teenager or in my early 20s I had a pretty nasty accident while riding an MTB downhill off-road quite fast. It was then that I found out what that annoying, incurable creak had been. My alloy handlebars had fatigued just outside the clamp and snapped unexpectedly! These were not super expensive or mega lightweight but were a branded/unbranded set (I think the manufacturer was reasonably well known at the time as an OEM supplier to some of the big bike brands) so I would have liked to think they were well enough engineered for a high profile company to spec them without worrying about a flood of comp claims from injured riders.

I have since had a deep suspicion of alloy handlebars and the fatigue properties of aluminium alloys in a critical, high flex application like handlebars. Having said that, all my bikes still have alloy bars as that is what they are supplied with or what is commonly available on the aftermarket.

Would I buy something this critical off ebay? Would I buy something this critical secondhand? Would I buy something this critical from a less than well respected manufacturer? The choice is yours.....

EDIT: Just for clarity, the bars that snapped were bought and fitted by me and were not original kit.

 

[mjr]

Steel parts on steel frames and alloy on alloy, no? Should reduce the chance of corrosion concentrating at the interface(s), as I understand it.

 

[ttcycle]

@Keith Oates yep pretty much my feeling.

@I like Skol - plenty of ancient bikes with original bars have lasted for many riders.

I am limited in that I need a 25.4 central clamp measurement as I want to keep the quill stem, and essentially, the drops need to be a specific measurement too.

 

[midlife]

Used, sold and rode Cinelli / SR alloy bars for years without any problems. I'm struggling to think of any that broke, even during Grasstrack racing which was pretty tough on kit.....

Shaun

 

[TheDoctor]

I can't see a reason not to use steel bars if that's what's available in the right size. A bit of coppaslip will stop any issues of galvanic corrosion, although I've never had that happen at the bar/stem interface. It's more usually quill stem into steel forks that sticks, but that's down to rust rather than dissimilar metals, which would see the alloy corroding rather than the steel.
[/engineer hat]

 

[ttcycle]

Cheers for the responses all! Steel bars winging their way to me