creaky aluminium handlebars

Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?

 

"Ric" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?

Upgrade to carbon bars.

 

Coat the stem with a little grease where it enters the headtube/fork.

Andrew

 

Ric <[email protected]> said:
> Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?

Take the bars out and make sure the places where the stem and bar contact are *really* clean with no
grit. Then put them back together nice and tight. If the stem is steel a bit of anti-seize is
probably a good idea.

This cured it for me anyway. Some bits of sand had got into the stem/bar join when I put them
together the first time and made a terrible noise.

Regards,

-david, squeak free

 

On Fri, 11 Apr 2003 14:09:05 +0000 (UTC), David Nutter <[email protected]> wrote:

>Ric <[email protected]> said:
>> Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?
>
>Take the bars out and make sure the places where the stem and bar contact are *really* clean with
>no grit. Then put them back together nice and tight. If the stem is steel a bit of anti-seize is
>probably a good idea.

Ickle bit of copper grease will work a treat.
--
"We take these risks, not to escape from life, but to prevent life escaping from us." ***** replace
'spam' with 'ben' to reply *****

 

"David Nutter" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Ric <[email protected]> said:
> > Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?
>
> Take the bars out and make sure the places where the stem and bar contact are *really* clean with
> no grit. Then put them back together nice and
tight.
> If the stem is steel a bit of anti-seize is probably a good idea.
>
> This cured it for me anyway. Some bits of sand had got into the stem/bar join when I put them
> together the first time and made a terrible noise.

Fankin' you. I'll give it a go as my mtb seems to have developed various creaks over the winter, bit
like me really.

Pete

 

Ric wrote:
> Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium handlebars?

I think this is where my bike is creaking as well. I've heard of using wax. Not sure what sort of
wax and if they'll be a danger of slippage, but it's an idea for us to think about!

~PB

 

"Peter B" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> "David Nutter" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Ric <[email protected]> said:
> > > Any tips to stop creaks from the stem-bar join on aluminium
handlebars?
> >
> > Take the bars out and make sure the places where the stem and bar
contact
> > are *really* clean with no grit. Then put them back together nice and
> tight.
> > If the stem is steel a bit of anti-seize is probably a good idea.
> >
> > This cured it for me anyway. Some bits of sand had got into the stem/bar join when I put them
> > together the first time and made a terrible noise.
>
> Fankin' you. I'll give it a go as my mtb seems to have developed various creaks over the winter,
> bit like me really.

Done as suggested then decided to check the fork steerer as well. This revealed the culprit, the
upper headset cup is loose in the head-tube allowing it to rock from side to side as leverage is
applied to the bars. I've wrapped PTFE tape round it so's I can ride today but will re-fit using
Bearing Fit when I get back to work. (The PTFE tape cured the creak but not the real problem).

Pete