Charlie, I've got one of those as well. From what I know about AVA failure, it occured more frequently on the cast stems and matching bars as opposed to the forged stem that we have. A telltale sign that one might let loose is to take a look at the bars from the front of the bike. Usually bars that fail start to develop a "droop" downward from the stem clamp. Sometimes this droop is very subtle but still noticeable. Also, check your stem for slight cracks by inspecting the stem closely while moving your bars back and forth. I have many happy miles on my AVA bar and stem with nary a creak. For peace of mind, change 'em. Its not like they are going to just drop off the bike mid-ride. I would be more fearful of modern Control Tech stems! I'm sure somebody out there has a horror story but in general the model that you have is fine.
Don Andersen Columbia, MD
>Folks:
>
>I am considering replacing the AVA (death) bar on my 74-ish Peugeot PR-10L
>for
>safety reasons. Are the AVA stems also prone to spontaneous failure? This
>stem
>has a recessed allen bolt for the binder and is cutaway in the front above
>the
>clamp bolt. Kind of cute the way the AVA engraving on the bar shows
>through,
>but if it is out to hurt me, I'll replace it.
>
>If the stem is OK, will it work with a Nitto 25.4mm moustache bar? My
>calipers
>show the AVA bar at 25.2mm (they may be a little generous). Don't be
>affronted
>by the substitution, if it were a bit (OK, a lot) prettier, I'd probably
>put a
>Belleri or ATAX combination on it...
>
>Charlie Young
>Honeybrook, PA
>Who can find enough ways to damage himself without using faulty
>equipment.