New handlebars - clamp size unclear.

[karlt]

Handlebars broke as I was riding my old Raleigh Eclipse yesteday. I've been measuring the existing bars as best I can but cannot be absolutely certain if it's 25.4mm or 26mm. Could anyone with 80s bike knowledge advise? Brucey? [flutters eyelashes] From my best measurements it appears to be 25.4 but does that sound likely?

[Brucey]

if you could perhaps post a picture of the stem, I feel confident that someone will recognise it and therefore what size the bars are.

cheers

[gaz]

My own vernier gauge is cheap, worn and inaccurate. However it will still tell me if two sets of bars are the same diameter.

If you have a vernier gauge of any description you can use it to compare against a known set.

[karlt]

I don't have a gauge, alas.

Photos if you think it'll help:

[Audax67]

Your local DIY shop will have a cheapo gauge that'll serve adequately for years.

[rjb]

if you remove the stem from the bike you may find that the size is engraved on it usually on the section which sits inside the fork column.

[gaz]

Wrap a piece of paper with a straight edge around the bars, mark where it overlaps, unwrap and measure it.

25.4 x 3.14 = 79.75mm

26.0 x 3.14 = 81.64mm

Could be accurate enough to establish which one you have.

[karlt]

if you remove the stem from the bike you may find that the size is engraved on it usually on the section which sits inside the fork column.

Alas no; just says SR 80 with the no. 5355 on it. Came out easily enough though; the person who'd put it in had greased it well. It's a bit pitted and the black anodised coating is worn, so one option is to replace the stem as well.

[karlt]

Wrap a piece of paper with a straight edge around the bars, mark where it overlaps, unwrap and measure it.

25.4 x 3.14 = 79.75mm

26.0 x 3.14 = 81.64mm

Could be accurate enough to establish which one you have.

Aha! Bingo! Definitely <80mm. Together with http://www.ebay.com/itm/CUSTOM-SAKAE-SR ... 1c5242db17 I'm guessing it's indeed 25.4. It does, it has to be said, also appear to be exactly 1" Thanks all!

Recommendations welcomed. It's a hack bike so I'm not looking to put 300 quid's worth of carbon on it. Found http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/zoom-anatomi ... prod20173/ ; don't know what folk think.

[Brucey]

I think that might be an SR Sakae stem (Raleigh used a lot of those), but the dark finish is confusing me. If you can remove the stem and it is an SR one, it'll have SR marked on it. Like this one;

SR stems normally take 25.4mm handlebars. If there are any markings on the handlebars (apart from one big crack.... ), that might help too.

oh, solved whilst I was typing!

cheers