Chelsea Brown reviews the UNO Carbon Racing Handle Bar and UNO Alloy 3D Stem

Product: UNO Carbon Racing Handle Bar and Alloy 3D Stem AS-025

Model No/Article No: QTS-CR01/QTS-CR01

I am very happy with this carbon handle bar. It is very light and stiff which is important to road racers. Since it is full carbon, it picks up some of the road vibrations as well making rough roads easier on my hands and wrists. I am a sprinter, so I need very stiff components to transfer all of my power to the road. These handle bars are plenty stiff for my sprints. Here is a picture of a recent race I won with the handle bars and stem.

(First Place: Red Kite Criterium #3 on April 13, 2014)

Installation was not so easy. I had to install them twice torqueing them down to the correct amount (5Nm). But, it would not stay in place and was slipping during a race. After trying to tighten them down several times, I tried using carbon paste. This helped a lot, and they have not moved since I used the carbon paste. It might be helpful to package the handle bar with a small set of instructions to let the consumer know to apply carbon paste before installing. They are staying in place very well since using the carbon paste and I have been using these handle bars for about 6 weeks now.

The design is very slick. They look really great.

Installation

Installation

The stem is very light weight and stiff as well. Much lighter than the full carbon Specialized stem that I was using before I switched to the UNO stem. Recently I did a race that is nicknamed the “Paris-Roubaix of California” because the roads are so bumpy that it is comparable to the famous cobblestone race in France. I used all of the UNO components including handlebar, stem, and seat post. These quality components held up very well in the race despite the incredibly bumpy road and all of the pot holes. None of the components came loose when torqued to the appropriate levels. I also noticed a marked improvement in smoothing out the bumpy road using these components. I did this race course last year using a specialized stem and William’s seat post. This time using UNO handlebar and stem my wrists and hands were much less tired and strained than they were last year using other components.

The seat post is very light and stiff as well. I like that the seat post has lines to mark seat position, so that you don’t have to guess when raising or lowering the seat during a ride. The design of all the UNO components is very aggressive looking and looks great on my bike.