Hate flat bars - what else? (Alt bars)

[Espresso_]

Hi all

I've just finished the build on my parts bin special On One Inbred for (mostly) off-road touring.

Are there any good alternatives that don't cost as much as Jones bars?

I've known for some time that I'm not a fan of spending long hours behind flat bars, so I've fitted some second hand Promax Bendy Bars bought off this forum (around 30deg rear sweep, I think) to this build. Guess what - I don't find them comfy either.

The source of my discomfort is not so much the lack of hand positions but that the one position offered doesn't feel right.



For reference, I have Ergotec Country MAS bars fitted to the city/kiddy bike (maybe 50 degree sweep), and I really like them, on that bike. However, the resulting VERY upright position is not ideal for the off-road bike, and I think I might need less sweep for "technical" bits of riding here and there.



Ps want to keep my mtb shifters and brakes, so only interested in bars that will take them (22.2mm ends).

E

[Thoglette]

Firstly, with your existing bars, try turning them upside down. (That's what was done "back in the day")

Velo Orange (and a pile of others) have lots of interesting bars - a few shops in .au hold stock

[HappyHumber]

What the Thog says.

Also sniff around some LBS bargain bins and the WTS threads here for cheapie 2nd hand stem alternatives for subtly different reaches and rises. Swap spacers around.

Try incremental rather than complete differences. It can be like comparing apples to tennis balls otherwise. It's too personal a choice to expect any other persons opinion/experience/preference to suit yours.

[Espresso_]

Firstly, with your existing bars, try turning them upside down. (That's what was done "back in the day")

What does that do for sweep?

Might give it a go - couldn't hurt to try.

E

[Thoglette]

What does that do for sweep?

Sweep is unchanged - but you can adjust your stem length to adjust the effective sweep.

[HappyHumber]

pressure points on your wrists will vary with subtle +/- 10 or 20mm variations of your reference or benchmark reach.

Of course, the trigonometry of reach is affected by the angle (rise) of the stem.

[il padrone]

I've got the swept-back 30 deg Nitto North Road bars on my commuter roadster. I have also ridden with then upside down (that was not so good - too much weight placed on my hands). They are great around town - real 'happy bars', but not for off-road.

I have remained convinced that the best bar for off-road and steeper hills is the flat bar (mine is a 10 deg bend from SJS Cycles) with the long bar-ends. Flat bar for control and braking grip; bar-ends for variety of positions and a longer reach for standing climbing. This layout has been working very well for me for over 20 years now.

[Espresso_]

pressure points on your wrists will vary with subtle +/- 10 or 20mm variations of your reference or benchmark reach.

Of course, the trigonometry of reach is affected by the angle (rise) of the stem.

I'll keep playing around.

I've tried two different spacer stack heights and two different stems (80mm/17deg, 60mm/45deg) and neither have produced a change in the comfort levels.

E

[Thoglette]

I have remained convinced that the best bar for off-road and steeper hills is the flat bar (mine is a 10 deg bend from SJS Cycles

My experience is like the OP - I can't use "real" flat bars without my wrists having a sook after a while. I need some bend. Whether 10 degrees is enough I don't know.

[RonK]

Ended up with nerve damage after touring NZ on flat bars - even with the u- beaut Ergon GC5 grips.
The feeling didn't to return in my fingers for two months after the trip.
No more flat bars for me.

[DavidS]

I have RSI and ride a flat bar. I understand what people are saying but I often ride with the side of my wrists resting on the handlebars. This works for me but I understand it won't work for everyone. I don't really have wrist problems riding and find flat bars suit my back.

Each to their own I suppose, or maybe we're all just getting too old (hmm, that doesn't really work since my back has been problematic since I was a kid).

DS

[Thoglette]

...I often ride with the side of my wrists resting on the handlebars.

You might like bull horn bars

[AUbicycles]

Here are some ideas, the first is an extreme example, though it is about drop bars upsidedown.



And these are called touring bars. May not be everyones cup of tea, though I had some on a city bike and they give you a range of grip positions.




One additional tip are regular flatbars, with a bit of sweep for comfort and the ergonomic style grips, ergon make some and bontrager and specialized have knock-offs. These give your palms far better support and I find them very comfortable.

[silentbutdeadly]

I run Answer Pro Taper 20/20 bars on both my 29ers which a swept carbon bar that are very lovely but not cheap - they are a low riser bar that can be run as a riser or dropped. They replaced the now defunct Ragley Carnegie alloy bars that I have now either sold or lent to a mate...

Alloy alternatives include On-One Fleegle and/or Mary. Fleegle are around five quid plus shipping at the moment. Mary are 12.5 quid.

These sort of bars give me a range of hand positions including my preferred road position on the 29er which has my hands on the brake lever pivots.

Bear in mind that none of the typical Ergon grips with their palm heel support work on swept bars - I run the Ergon enduro versons and they work a treat. Ergon does however make a specific grip for swept bars for the touring crowd.

[Espresso_]

Alloy alternatives include On-One Fleegle and/or Mary. Fleegle are around five quid plus shipping at the moment. Mary are 12.5 quid.

Yeah these both look interesting but "plus shipping" was ridiculous last time I checked.

I tried just then on my phone and was directed to the Planet X USA site. Bars $20, shipping $98. I kid you not.

E

[DavidS]

...I often ride with the side of my wrists resting on the handlebars.

You might like bull horn bars

Yeah but then I end up with my arms far apart, not good for the headwinds I get riding home for at least 6 months of the year. I am pretty happy with what I have but might look up some of the suggestions above.

DS

[Trevtassie]

Here are some ideas, the first is an extreme example, though it is about drop bars upsidedown.



And these are called touring bars. May not be everyones cup of tea, though I had some on a city bike and they give you a range of grip positions.




One additional tip are regular flatbars, with a bit of sweep for comfort and the ergonomic style grips, ergon make some and bontrager and specialized have knock-offs. These give your palms far better support and I find them very comfortable.

Those trekking bars are on backwards! The opening goes towards the rear. This generally means fitting a longer stem so the brake position is forward of the stem pivot axis. The idea is that the braking is closer to you for sitting up, cruising and generally riding around. The loop bit is for stretching out into an aero position and climbing, especially using the side positions. The other thing to do is have them very flat or even tilted slightly towards the front, so you can get down out of the wind. Tilting them backwards doesn't change anything, as they end up being in the plane of your arm radius, if that makes sense. ie moving from one bar to the other doesn't change your back angle of do much to the weight on your hands.

[ColinOldnCranky]

IMHO the answer is obvious.

[Kalgrm]

I've just ordered a set of Origin8 Space Off Road II bars from Amazon. Cost is about AUD$120 delivered. I'll give a review when I've run them for a while.

Cheers,
Graeme

[Espresso_]

Wow that is spendy!

I can't quite bring myself to push Buy Now on these similar Humpert Space bars for half that price.



E

[Kalgrm]

Yep, spendy alright ...

I did have a squiz at the Humpert ones and decided against them for the time being. I'd need to buy a new stem to fit them since my current stem is 31.8mm clamp. They look pretty good and they'll be next on the list if I need to change from the Origin8 ones.

Cheers,
Graeme

[Mugglechops]

I was looking at these

46.5 degree sweep. I got the Promax 30 degree sweep for free off my LBS and fitted them to my fixie. They are not too bad.

In the end though I bit the bullet on the Jones Bars which after 400 or so kms I am happy with. Thanks to Mr Tax man