Have old bar end shifters which don't seem to fit in the new handlebars

Question

I retrieved the Shimano bar end shifters from some old handlebars and now I want to fit the shifters to new bars.

However strangely I can't fit the shifters in the new bars. See the following photo:

I don't understand why this happens: I have loosened the stick of the bar end shifter enough so the the clamps can "fall" to the centre. Here a photo to illustrate this:

?

Some more details:

• The new bars should have the same inner diameter than the old bars.
• Even more important; The shifters don't seem to fit back into the old bars either.

Do I overlook something? Do I do something wrong? Or are the shifters just broken?

Update 2 days later

I have payed around with the shifters - and noticed that apparently the area of the handlebars which is on the inside wide enough differs between the old and the new bar:

I found this out by using the screw with the cone head which goes through the clamps of the shifter: With an allen key I held the srew as far into the hanldebars as possible.

In the old handlebars I can fit the whole screw in:

However in the new handlebars only approx 2/3 of the screw fit in:

It explains why I cannot fit the whole shifter in the new bar even with grease and lots of wiggling!

Not sure what to make it tough: I can think of two explanations for the difference:

1. Either it is a manufacturer fault. (The new bar is from the same manufacturer as the old one and both are designed for bar-ends.)
2. Or newer Shimano bar-ends have a shorter stick part than older versions of Shimano shifters have.

Any ideas? (Particularly abot explanation 2.)

Answer 1

I think your picture shows that the expander wedges are riding up on the ridged part of the shifter pod, which keeps them from being able to get small like they're supposed to, hence not fitting the bar they just came out of. You need to twist them around so they're not riding up. Also at the very least grease inside the bar, but ideally grease the threads and every surface of the expander wedges.

Answer 2

Try the dirty finger gauge - push a finger into the ends of the old bars, and draw a line on your skin. Then do the same on the new bars - the line should be pretty much the same place relative to end of bars. And the inside should feel about the same. If there are ridges, or if the new bars close up inside quicker then that could be the cause.

I wonder if your old bars were steel, and the new ones are aluminium. I have cut down some aluminium handlebars to make squirrel-bars, and found that the barplugs did not go in because the metal gets much thicker toward the middle. Upshot - the alloy bars were only thin in the outer 2 cm whereas steel bars were consistent thickness.

Answer 3

After a while I'm back on this question, because finally the issue is solved.

A local frame builder (Thanks Myles!) did the following:

1. He reduced the diameter of the main bolt's conus.
2. He shortened the bolt a bit
3. Hi cleanend the inside of the handlebar (and possibly filed it slightly thinner).

Now the bar end shifters fit well: