mach7-7 Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 Hi all, would really appreciate some feedback. I have just bought a 29er and the handlebar width is 680mm. My old 26er had 620mm wide handlebars and just felt right. I realise that a bigger wheel needs more leverage and with respect to head angle playing an important part etc.. Generally speaking though, what would the absolute minimum length be to be able to steer the bike adequately?. I am tempted to shave 30mm off each side to make it 620mm but have a feeling that I will then need to buy a new bar.. Responses would be greatly appreciated. Thanks all.
I FLY Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 Our experiences are:- 1. My SS commuter bike has 720mm bars and they feel just right 2. Our Tallboy was bought 2nd hand with a 620mm bar and it felt too narrow. We have replaced with a 680mm bar and are still fine tuning the set up so cannot comment yet.
NotSoBigBen Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 I just went from a 600 bar to a 660 on my 29r ....... Was strange at first and I tended to 'over correct' in the twistys but as I'm getting used to it it's fine!
KnobbyMech Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 I use a 680mm low rise bar on my Tallboy. It feels just right. Have a look at the bars specified on OEM 29er bikes, should be a good indication.
Thumper Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 (edited) I'm running am Easton EA90SL at 635mm and loving it. Edited October 24, 2011 by Thumper
Hairy Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 Hi all, would really appreciate some feedback. I have just bought a 29er and the handlebar width is 680mm. My old 26er had 620mm wide handlebars and just felt right. I realise that a bigger wheel needs more leverage and with respect to head angle playing an important part etc.. Generally speaking though, what would the absolute minimum length be to be able to steer the bike adequately?. I am tempted to shave 30mm off each side to make it 620mm but have a feeling that I will then need to buy a new bar.. Responses would be greatly appreciated. Thanks all. Is that 680mm bar of yours a flat bar? If so, and you want to get ride of it let me know please!!! I have a 710mm low rise on the Kona at the moment and would love to get another 710mm flat bar on there with maybe a slightly shorter stem ... the 710mm just feels right on the 29'er for me again. I tried a 600mm recently and it felt like I had lost alot of control .... I got scared! H
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted October 24, 2011 Posted October 24, 2011 Hey Mach, The last thing you want to do is cut off 30mm off each side and find out that you've just made it very uncomfortable. If you're feeling uncomfortable, and have REALLY tested the width out in a lot of different conditions and over a period of time, My recommendation would be to cut 5mm off each side, then test again. If still uncomfortable, cut another 5mm. Test again. Repeat until comfortable. I know guys who run 520mm bars on their niners, and I know some who run much larger than that. Each to their own. One q - have you really ridden it properly yet, over a long period of time? Last thing you want to do is cut it straight off the shelf, as you'll never know if that was the right width for you... JXV 1
Nimby Posted October 25, 2011 Posted October 25, 2011 I think it depends as much on the size of the rider as the size of the wheels. If you are very broad chested a wider handlebar would make more sense than if you were skinnier. Have to agree with cptmayhem above - make really sure it's too wide before lopping big chunks off the end. JXV 1
Lucky Luke. Posted October 25, 2011 Posted October 25, 2011 If it's a flat bar surely you can just shift the grips, brakes and gears towards the middle to see how it feels before you chop the bar? JXV, niterider and IH8MUD 3
wesley_r Posted October 25, 2011 Posted October 25, 2011 I ride with 780mm boobars on my 5.5 inch travel 26er full suss so my vote is ride whatever's comfortable! Mongoose! 1
mach7-7 Posted October 26, 2011 Author Posted October 26, 2011 If it's a flat bar surely you can just shift the grips, brakes and gears towards the middle to see how it feels before you chop the bar? Yes, I did precisely this. Carried on moving lock-on grips, (brake lever + trigger combo) inwards slightly until it just felt right and then I shaved the necessary off. Thanks to everyone that contributed for all the great advice.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted October 26, 2011 Posted October 26, 2011 I ride with 780mm boobars on my 5.5 inch travel 26er full suss so my vote is ride whatever's comfortable! I need to upgrade my XC's bars. They're too narrow! I'm also going to go to the Boo's. Got them on my DH bike and they're AWESOME/
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted October 26, 2011 Posted October 26, 2011 Yes, I did precisely this. Carried on moving lock-on grips, (brake lever + trigger combo) inwards slightly until it just felt right and then I shaved the necessary off. Thanks to everyone that contributed for all the great advice. Great! Glad to hear you got it sorted.
NotSoBigBen Posted October 30, 2011 Posted October 30, 2011 I'm happy with the wider bars (660mm) and no bar ends but don't like the 'sweep' of these bars or the rise .... will pop into the bike shop tomorrow. Maybe a 660 with 20mm rise and less sweep is available?
Iwan Kemp Posted November 4, 2011 Posted November 4, 2011 Have you tried rolling them forward? Ramrod 1
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now