MTB Handlebars: What Width Is Right For You?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- Finding the perfect handlebar width is no easy task. What works for one, might feel completely awkward to another. While much of it revolves around height, shoulder width, and overall comfort, the type of riding you do also plays a key factor. As the lines continue to be blurred between bike categories, we are starting to see more riders spec their trail bikes with wide bars in the pursuit of added stability and control. In this video, we go in depth on what to consider when purchasing or cutting your mountain bike bars. The ideal bar width can make all the difference. Check it out!
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I have a Specialized bar from 2002. It's called the "Specialized Wide Boy". - It's 640mm wide. :D
Hahahaha that is classic.
I have them
Lol same on my cannondale gemini
My 2019 Trek Marlin 4 has 620mm handlebars stock
Still have mine too haha
I cant go riding anymore,my Bar cant pass my door.
😂
Specializedfabu 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Actually you can go ride here is how you go ride with bars and kinda navigate your way out of your house th-cam.com/video/0cdXe3R1HKM/w-d-xo.html
They're hacks btw
Specializedfabu very funny🤣
XC - 640mm with 45 degree sweep is my sweet spot. 6'2, 190 lbs, fully rigid 29er on 2.6-2.8 rubber. Works for me. I came from the 80's super narrow + bar end era, where I spent most of my time on the barends. So 640 feels wide to me, but works.
I don't feel right on the hyper wide albatross bars of today - just a personal preference thing, I guess.
Same here as canyon eagle. I'm 62 years old and I also came from short bar length but I will go as far as a 700 mm on upgraded Talon 1 which I only run all XT parts on it. Great video info but you will never see me on a 780 mm bar, that just me. Thanks
My old Marin has a Marin XC 630 mm w/32mm rise, bar. It's very comfortable. I'm 69 and just do light xc.,
0:02 my late 80s early 90s mongoose has a 636 on it which I have always found comfortable. I bought a new Kona last week, and with a 736 mm handlebar. I crashed the holy heck out of it on the downhill lol. No control with that wide handlebar whatsoever for me lol…
i say always buy a bar a bit longer than what you think you want and try it for a while and try to get used to it ... and if it still feels too wide after a while then cut it
That’s good advice. So far all the videos I’ve watched about bars haven’t given as much information than your comment thanks Colin
good advice
@@ls66 right
i really think of it at first now im inlove with my 800mm bars , and didn't give me wrist pain that i felt from my 740 before , and im also 5"6 tall 🤣🤣
Thanks 🙏 I just bought 740mm bats and now I'm having 2nd thoughts abt it
760mm for life! Agree with your take on having it comfortable and consistent across all bikes you own.
My XC bike came with a 720mm bar and an 80mm stem. I'm 5'9" and don't feel too good on it. Swapped it with a 660mm straight bar. It's very narrow compared to today's standards, but I never felt better.
That’s how my bike came and I’m 2” taller than you. I rode it once so far and I felt unstable on it. Thanks for your comment, I feel better now with my plan to chop them down to at least 660
i'm 5'7" using a 720mm bar with a 45mm stem. it fits. i ride a medium 29er with 27.5 wheels, i like the feel. the bike is a gt avalanche hardtail, 2.3 tires, 100mm fork, dt swiss hubs, mavic rims, shimano brakes and drivetrain.0
my stem is 40mm. update
My bars are 760 stock. I am considering cutting to 740 because in the push-up test my comfort/power arm width is at 740 for doing pushups. I also live in a very tree infested trails area and its easy to clip trees. My height is 5"6" and general mountain riding.
That's how you know what length work best by performing press ups individual width more you can do with out stress is the perfect number..
"pretty darn" count is at 22, lets beat it next vid
Let's get this comment to 22 likes
Didn’t notice till I read this comment lol
What does it say about you for sitting there counting them?
Damnit Dale
@@SamVeneman that they are pretty darn funny 😄
I ride a 680 bar. It’s on my XC bike, which I use for street trials. I’m sticking with that width because it’s fairly easy to bail during an endo.
I started mountain biking in the nineties and still like a narrow bar, especially in trees (and cactus in Baja). My carbon hardtail is a little extreme at 580 but I never feel I need more. It's still 160 mm wider than my road bike. On a trail bike, I use 700 or so. 760 or 800 results in mashed or thorn-filled knuckles.
I love to ride the local forest and go off trail riding the "deer" tracks, the trees are close together so I am starting at 760 with my new bars ( the old ones were cracking) and working from there (the old bars were 560mm)
I'm 5 ft 7 in and bought first mtb since a Trek I owned in early 90's. I was surprised how wide the bars were on the new bike - 780mm with 40mm stem. I instantly wanted to cut them down about 60mm but tried out and quite liked it. Set my grips and controls inwards to test a compromise 760mm as lot of trees over here in Scotland where I am. This vid has helped me decide to proceed with caution with the sawblade haha
Rode my 1992 Trek 970 recently and was shocked how narrow the bars were. It was super twitchy!
I'm going from 23 inch (584) max width ('99 series Raleigh MTB) to 30.5 inch (774) width (Trek Gen 6). Been on the Trek ~2 weeks and really want to cut the bars down to the old width; trying to take my time and get used to the new config. It's like giving up caffeine or nicotene.
That "trees everywhere vid!"... Brilliant additional humour! Bravo! ha ha
710mm wide on a 100mm stem is my favorite setup at the moment, but then again my rides are not technical at all, they are long, fast, with lots of punchy climbs and I ride a fully rigid 29er.
800 with ESI Chunky grips, feel like the Olympic Bar to bench press with. I also have a fat ebike so, it's proportioned. Rides great at high speed.
I'm 5' 8" and started riding MTB about 6 years ago with a 720mm bar on my hardtail. I bought a full-squish bike that was spec'd with something like a 685mm bar (I have NO idea why that narrow). When I replaced that FS bike last year, the new bike was spec'd with a 785mm bar. Really liked the stability and leverage it gave me. Felt like I could turn the bike more quickly and with a lot less effort. Liked it so much I put a 785mm bar on my hardtail to keep things consistent. First ride on the hardtail with the wider bars I felt an immediate difference in the handling. I could see possibly trying a 760mm bar someday (I've had a few bar strikes on our narrow, tree-lined trails in the Midwest) but I'm a fan of the wider bars for sure.
My XC bike from the 90s had 56cm bars, and they worked great! Never had any problems, and I liked not running into bushes.
at 5'8" you will probably like a 760 better, and 770 at most. A thing to keep in mind, at a certain bar width you change the muscles being used for pushing and pulling the handlebars during a ride, along with putting your shoulders at an unoptimal position. At 5"9" 770 is my max width I will run with, and find 760 pretty comfortible.
@@lforrest14 Also if you have narrow shoulders it compresses the wrist joints riding wider bars.
Currently running 780 fatbars but have the grips extended over the ends so closer to 800 and they feel perfect 👍
I went from a 1995 Trek to a 2017 Trek... The difference is bar width was noticeable. I ended up taking them down an inch... Got some narrow trails where I ride. I like it better...
You can find out what width suits you before you cut the bars. Most grips with a hole at both ends can be slid inwards when you move the controls. When you have tried a range of widths in regard to the location of the grips and are happy with their location then you can cut the bars.
780mm with 40mm stem on xc bike that i ride trails with, because I find it more stable all around climbs and descents. I have pretty strong hands and wide shoulders because I do calisthenics so I am able to pull myself closer to the bike with no problems on climbs. Wide bars are so much better for me because breathing is a lot easier with open chest and also that extra leverage gives so much more control not only on descents but also on rocky climbs when searching where to put your front tire.
I'm 5'5", riding a bike with a 440mm reach plus 32mm stem, a 650mm stack (including bearing cap), and am running 750mm bars with 10mm rise. I tried 800mm and it felt horribly wrong like my arms were being stretched out. Worked the grips in 10mm at a time until I settled on 770mm and then cut the bars down. The 770mm bars felt comfortable but I eventually noticed that I left a lot of grip sticking out the side so I chopped it a bit further to 750mm once I was sure I was comfortable with my hand position.
I think bar width really depends on your stem length, stack height, and weight distribution. Narrower bars = lower stack = longer stem, wider bars = taller stack = shorter stem. The bar width and stem length depends on what you want out of your bike I feel, and that triangle of bars/stem/stack is really just you getting your weight balance just right between the front and rear wheels.
Well said!
I'm short and ride an S size DH bike, but have a 800 mm bar because I have wide shoulders, doing weight lifting and I wanted to hold my bar like the barbell.
as a former shotputter that has done a lot of weightlifting, I also prefer less backsweep as my muscle memory is adjusted to the olympic bar :)
I replaced my 500mm 5 degree bar with an Answer 20/20 cut to 580. They felt ponderously long for months but I am used to them now. Hard tail 29'r. Cross country. Can't see ever going any wider. Raced Moto Cross thru 1976. Used to cut down my MX bars as well for tree clearance. The Answer 20/20 bars completely transformed my riding. Not because of the width but because of the 20 degree sweep. No more tired hands or wrists. No more aching shoulders. Looks like I might win the prize for shortest bars.
I really like that this guy allows for personal preferences and doesn't try and say everyone must get wider bars.
800mm fork travel will be the next hot thing to run.
665 bars and 70mm stem- can’t believe barely anybody else is under 720mm
had an 800, cut it down to 770 after nicking several trees on my local trail, I could probably go to 760 or 750 but too lazy to cut it down. I'm 6'4", but average shoulder width.
I have a 740mm wide bar but I've exteded my grips 10mm outward each side so it's kind of 760mm wide, 25mm rise, 9° backsweep, 5° upsweep + 50mm stem with 3° rise on my XC bike.
I’m a bigger guy at 6’ 220lbs. I ride a mid travel 29er trail bike.
What I did was get on the floor and do a bunch of pushups, adjusting my hands so it felt the best and minimized fatigue. i then had my wife measure the distance between the outer edges of my hands. Came out to about 785mm so I bought a set of Raceface SixC bars that were 787mm and have loved them so far paired with a 50mm stem(have ridden a few hundred miles on them) my first modern MTB was a hardtail with 720mm bars and it felt OK, when I bought my current bike used the previous owner had a 711mm bar on an 80mm stem installed and it felt too stretched out and XC like for me and my riding style.
That's a great idea.. gonna try that to find my width
I'm riding 760 and found those fit the best for my height and size. I have tried 780 and 800 before, though they felt fine but 760 fit the best for ME because I'm around 5'10-5'9.
Nice! Great to hear you experimented with other widths and found your preference. Nice work!
I'm 5'9 and just bought a 760mm handlebar. Hope it fits me best too lol
I'm 6'0" running a 780 - It feels stupidly wide and I punch trees left and right.
is not about your hight is about your shoulder witdh and whats feel right for you. I'm 5.6 and use 780's
5'5" I am running Rethal Fatbars 770mm - Too wide for me but I love it
Pretty darn right, I like wide as opposed to narrow bars, my riding performance excelled.
I just switched the original 110mm stem and 720mm wide 10mm rise bar on my Merida Big Nine XC bike to a 75mm stem and 785mm wide 40mm rise bar and as they often say at GMBN... It really is confidence inspiring on descents
I run 650mm bars. Basically what happened, I think 700mm is about ideal for me. Where I bought the bars they had like 800mm, and 650mm, and I kept trying both, and 650mm just felt better. I was also told not to cut carbon bars, so that's what happened (I also don't have anything to cut carbon bars)..........I also rode, "wide" bars in the past, my friends used to comment they were ridiculously wide, so I was shooting for narrower..........The bike feels, "darty" I guess, but I just need to get used to them I think. Ideally I would say a 700mm would be perfect. Narrow bars have a lot of advantages if you can handle them I think, but they are pretty bad for stability.
Average shoulder width with super long arms here... I was riding 740mm bars with a 70mm stem, and noticed I was always most comfortable with my hands hanging just off the ends of the bars. Switched to 800mm bars and a 40mm stem, and the change was amazing. I felt far more comfortable and confident downhill, and just had to shift my weight forward a hair more on steep climbs. I have punched trees a few times (resulting in an amazing half rotation front flip on one occasion), but I generally don't have issues.
Switching to ODI Elite Pro grips also helped to widen my grip and limit the amount of bar/grip sticking out past my hands. They're a good option if you want the feel of a ~10-20mm wider bar (depending on what you're switching from) and don't want to buy a new bar.
Downhill rider here with similar experience... I was riding ultra narrow bar like 620 from Ritchey, very old bar.
Switched to a 680 mm Easton because the 710 mm or 720 mm at the time was the widest, but a lot more expensive and the 31.8 mm stem was new and very expensive too.
Now... I have an Funn Fatboy with 810 mm in a 50 mm stem. The stem is ok to my frame, if i switch to a bigger frame, probally switch to a shorter stem (like 30 or 40) but at this point 50 is good and this Funn is one of the best upgrades i ever done to my bike.
I'm riding the 780mm fatbar carbon with 20mm rise and I'm very happy with it
im on my 50s and still riding a bikes i have so many collections of bikes from middle to hi end bike i have exprimenting handlebars for so many times.the answer is i choose what really comportable for me to use .it depends as well for every reach of individuals so dont afraid to experiment,every rider has different height and reach...thanks.more power on your channel.
Im' old, my last bike was a 20 year old Stump Jumper, then, I managed to get a 2016 Santa Cruz 5010, this thing has changed my life! However being old as previously mentioned, I didnt understand why the bars were so freaking wide, I cut them down, to 24.5, or 622mm, I've ridden them for a year now and recently been wondering why I can corner nearly as well. I'm going to try 760's now. :) Thanks for the great video guys!
My wife and I are both seniors. I have a Yeti and she has a new Juliana Furtado (Same as your 5010). She found the 760 bars way to wide and it seemed to really impact her climbing capability. I think a loss of power pulling on a wider bar is the problem. And she does not ride aggressively downhill. So I’ve cut them down bit by bit. We’ll see how they feel this season. Currently they are at 680. Did you notice any change in climbing power with the wider bar? BTW her old bike was an early Juliana with much narrower bars. She can climb much better on it, but it’s not nearly as nice of a bike as far as suspension or gear train goes.
Hi @@louispengue3144 , I've only had the chance to ride them once so far but I can say I kept trying to hold the bars between the grips and the brake levers on the climbs, it just feel more natural. But I am sure I'll get used to it eventualy. I think you're right though, climbing just feels better with less wide bars, 680 seems like a great compromise for both.
Thanks for the reply. Once our snow melts, we’ll have a chance to get out again. Good Riding !!
Just cut mine (pipe cutter) from 740 - 680...I use my mountain bike only on roads, i'm bias towards narrow, feels good to me
One of my XC bikes has a 640mm with a 130mm stem. It's so practical for weaving in and out of traffic so I hear you.
I'm 6'3" with the wide shoulders amd the arm and leg length of 6'7". I went from a 80mm stem and 680mm width bar to a 35mm stem and the same Renthal Carbon Fatbar Lite 760mm one in the vid...game changer! Stability, comfort, I can breathe due to open shoulder position.
Buy the widest ones you can find, and a hacksaw, just in case.
Agree. I also sawed off a bit from my seat post with a disc grinder. It's easier than I thought. Just don't forget the smooth out the edges with something.
@@valentinvas6454 unless you have a dropper lmao
@@valentinvas6454 haha lol
It's Toe-Mack and his son Eli Tomac is a one of the top if not the top rider in SX and MX. Your vids are rock solid though.
Just slap on a 780 on my hard tail and am loving the feel
I've been right at 780 for a few years now and I this it's perfect for me, although I do hit a good amount of trees.
You nailed it brotha
That's a darn informative video. Although nobody ever seems to mention how bar width effects pulling the front end of the bike up, I find it is pretty darn easier and more poppy with a narrow(er) bar.
Quick question, you mean narrower bars can help pop the bike up?
I'm running 740s and just ordered some 780s thanks for the advice!!!
740, hardtail 120mm Shock, free ride, city riding, 60mm stem. I feel 760 would be a little too wide but not afraid to try it.740 helps a lot to slip between the cars in the city
We've got bike boxes now in some places, for safe storage (mainly for commuters I guess). But the doors are apparently just 740mm wide, which excludes a lot of MTBs. So 740 plus grips could already be too wide (assuming you can't turn the handle to shove the bike into the box).
If I rode purely off road I'd probably go with 740+ But I cut mine down...now @ 675, great for filtering traffic and getting through door ways etc.....
I have a 620 handlebar on my 29er MTB, looks weird but had save me many times from crashing in traffic and pedestrians.
I just got a new MTB that came with a 740mm handlebar and its not as responsive when turning like my old 685mm. Also I carry my MTB in a stairwell through 4 doors and up 3 floors and getting that wide bar to cooperate on a tight doorway is a pain, I'll be cutting mine down. wide bars are worse in almost every way if you don't do downhill there is no point.
I'm running 780mm race face bars with a 50mm Shimano PRO stem on my fuel EX. The steering feels very responsive and I feel like the bike fits me better with that size handlebar.
I think a lot depends upon a rider's frame as well. I have a broad upper body and enjoy a wider bar while my wife is 5'2" and 112 lbs. a 680 words really well for her. There are a lot of tight, tree-filled trails in our area so anything over 760 can be a challenge.
Great job as always. Really enjoy your videos.
Thank you for the feedback! Let us know if you have any topics that you want to see covered in the future :)
More than welcome...I hit send on my post when you started talking about rider's frames. You may have covered it, but I would enjoy seeing what it takes to upgrade an older 3x9 to a 1x11/1x12.
Take care and Happy Riding!!
I’m 5.9 and I ride downhill and enduro and I prefer a less wide bar 760-750mm I feel more comfortable and in control with less wide bars
5'10. 750mm on my XC bike; 780mm on my trail bike. Works well.
Wider bars open up your chest more making breathing easier. To test this, ride with your hands on the grips in the normal position. Then ride with your hands on the bar ends. Riding with your hands on the bar ends opens up your chest area more.
Changes I had to make to my bike. I am 5 Ft 6 Inches and I bought a size small Crestone Borealis Fat bike which I had replace the Borealis flat bars with a 40mm rise handlebar in order for the handlebars to fit me right because the stem it came with was so short, and was maxed out on spacers. I also had to replace my pedals to make them wider, and I had to replace my ergon seat to make it more comfortable and my handlebar grips to make them more comfortable. Now that I have done all of that to my bike it is just right.
My handlebars are called Whisky Parts Co. No.9 Mountain Carbon Handlebar with stem clamp diameter of 35 and a width is 800mm
My handlebar grips are are called Lizard Skins
Lock-On Northshore Grips
My pedals are the Large CRANK BROTHERS STAMP 1 PEDALS
And my seat is called WTB Wheel Up road bike seat which has a seat width of 7 Inches or 177.8mm width.
Before part changes above my hands would get numb is less than 10 mile of the ride, as I was forced to lean to far forward during the whole ride.
My feet did not feel comfortable at all on the old pedals and the grips were just to hard and it was just uncomfortable all the way around and all of the time.
But I would still ride it and I still liked it.
Today ride with all of the new parts on the Borealis Crestone Fat Bike I was able to ride more efficiently, pace myself better and was more comfortable and had to use the bike to support me standing up when I was done because of oxygen depravation in the legs.
At one point when I got stopped at the lights during the ride. I Found it hard to get back on the bike because of oxygen depravation in the legs from riding. So now the bike is more comfortable, more efficient, more comfortable and more enjoyable to ride.
I have a 2019 Trek Roscoe 7 that is bone stock at the moment. I have 720mm bars and about a 15mm stem and still jammed a few trees .
? I also have a roscoe 7 2019. Stock stem is 60mm en handlebars is 750mm
My new Trek Fuel EX 8, small frame. I'm from cross country...Race Face Next carbon bars - 29". Same width as on my GT. In fact - same tires, pedals and with a carbon WTB saddle. Keep it consistent.
This video gives me the realization that I need to pay attention to bar size when I demo bikes. I've been running my bars exactly how they came when the bike was shipped to me. I get numbness and some pain fairly regularly. I recently demo'd some bikes and realized I wasn't having issues. I chalked it up to the grips the demos had, but now I'm realizing the bars were narrower.
I think I need to cut my bars down a bit. The other issue too, is my brake pulls suck. They are not adjustable so I can't set them up for ergonomics.
I would definitely try out different widths to see what fits you best. It can make a large difference, thanks for watching!
35mm Diety Cavity V2 stem and 780mm Wide x 38mm Rise, 7 degree backsweep, 5 degree upsweep Renthal Fatbars on my REDLINE D880 trail bike.
I used to ride trials a few years ago and we were the first discipline using 740 and 720 mm i think . In dh some friends used 690 or so. And then someday i heard of an 800mm bar and thought wow!. Now i have a gt hardtail with 710mm bar and is just right for me
just installed and tried OneUP handlebar 20mm rise - love it !
660mm on my 10 y/o XC bike.
700mm on my 29er XC bike.
780mm on my soon to be bought Evil Following MB trail bike.
Narrow bars on XC bikes for agility, wider bars on Trail/Enduro bikes for stability.
Following MB is a sweet bike! What color you going for?
Can't decide but I'm leaning towards pumpkin orange. There's something that bothers me about that dark olive color.
If they made the frame in matte black like on previous model, that would be my definitive choice. :)
780-800mm. At 5'6" on a good day it may seem wide but having brawd shoulders wider has always been comfortable. 800 next r is going on my custom enduro build this year.
I run a 750mm race face on my 2016 Yeti sb5. At first it felt too wide, but I’m used to it now and almost want to try 760 for my next trail/enduro bike.
I used to ride 620mil with 100mil stem back when I didn't know what I was doing. I was gifted 780s with a 40mil stem and they felt so much better. I got a new bike that had 710s with a 60mil stem and it didn't seem to bad me. I have decided to go with 780s on a 60mil stem and it feels great to me.
I just bought 740mm bars is that to big for trail riding?
I’m 5.10 running 740 but can not wait to try some 760. Thank you for the video.
Happy to help :) Let us know if there are any other topics you want us to cover!
My thoughts. My original bars on my MTB, I cut them down to 600mm, seemd right at the time. 25 years later fell off my bike, partly due to the bars being too narrow. Changed a few things on the bike plus fitted 700mm bars, huge diferrence to control, greatly increased stability. Wider bars made descending much safer, more controllable, have since replaced the same length bars with risers, which have raised my hand position by 2 inch. More upright pos, feels like even more control, better position. This is of course only for me, what suits u is up to u, best of luck, happy bike riding.
There is an easy way to tell if you've gone too wide with your bars: If your most comfortable hand placement always ends up 30-40mm from the end of the bar you don't need those; they're just gonna clip trees. Cut them to fit you. You gotta be a pretty big dude or gal to need 800mm bars. Also, there is a reason why you might be trying to go wider and wider for more control and leverage: chest /arm strength. If you can't bang out a few push ups in a row you're gonna feel less secure on a narrow bar. Save money and do a few push ups...all you need is your own body weight and it will improve your control on the bike. I'm not saying hit the gym to ride 690mm bars, but maybe just see if you could be 20% stronger before you conclude that 780 bar is too narrow.
I was just measuring bars on my bikes to try to figure out what width I like. I have many different bikes with different widths. I zeroed in on 760 and I'm from Pa. Then I came in and watched this video and you reinforced exactly what I discovered. I would probably go wider but there are too many trees in Pa.
I run 740mm on my street bike. NS-Bikes Proof bars stock width.
800 because it feels so stable in the air and on rough stuff, use to ride narrower but soon as i put on 800 it felt right, and when i ride my friend bike with narrower bar it feels heavy, specially on berm the bike doesn't want to to turn at all
My bars are 760 as well and it feels pretty much perfect! Lots of tree gates around here, and I'm clipping trees often with my 760, so I wouldn't want to go wider!
Nice! Where do you usually ride?
I'm in Dallas. Love to travel & ride, though! Bentonville is in range for a weekend trip!
Huntstyle go wider and film it lol
I have some tendinitis in my wrists. I cut 1.5" off my bars. Pain has decreased measurably...
Curious what caused the tendinitis. I just switched to a new mtb and getting tingling etc right hand .raced road for 35yrs.never had problem.
@@Nosaracasalaplaya it's your ulnar nerve being pinched. The solution is ergon grips. Discovered this when I started racing 24h solo MTB races and had the same problem.
I ride 800mm wide bars on the east coast. My first mountain bike came with 640mm bars that I rode with for 6 years before upgrading.
I picked up a bike last year, a very good quality hardtail, and the owner had done a bunch of “upgrades” to it, and didn’t really ride it. One of the “upgrades” was a set of Spank 825 handlebars. Holy moly are they wide! I’m an athletic guy with wide shoulders, but those bars are crazy wide. I’m off to the hardware store to pick up a tubing cutter to cut these back to 740-760’ish...
I run 740's and I still hit trees with my bars sometimes. I live in the Midwest and my local trails are super narrow xc so it's pretty much as wide as I can really get away with. If they were any wider I would have to slow down and turn my bars to get between half of the trees (some spots I still do even with the 740's.) I'm pretty comfortable on the skinny bars tho so I'm not really complaining.
i have 780 on mine and i can sometimes squeeze thru some goal posts. im here in northern indiana
630mm bar with a 110mm stem on a cross-country hardtail.
I'm 5'5, used to ride with 720 bars but once I tried 780 owned in 2020, loved it. still ride a 780 one :") it feels nice !
My handlebar is 720mm but thanks to me lock on grips it's extended to 770mm, I find it quite comfortable
What lockon grips do you have to extend your bars?
@@davidmeloni8282 rockbros lock on grips. They're really cheap for what you get, got my pair for £12. They do all sorts of grips
Interested video. Months ago I dug out my old 2007 cross country MTB with 600mm handle bars WITH Bar ends so it's really shorter. after not riding for years I'm looking at and test riding new bikes. They all feel wide to me! Haha
Wide bars result in Ulnar deviation for me.(Thumbs pushing in towards stem)... It caused chronic wrist problems.. Cut 2" off each end.. No more problems.
I started running the Easton 35 at I believe 760mm . My bike handling ability in rough terrain became instant. This is on a 26”er Kona Abracadabra. On my local Illinois woodland trails this became super hazardous. Flying through fast sections then all of a sudden the trees were to close together. I believe they are now better because of the newer bikes having wider bars . I haven’t ridden in a year on these trails because of knee problems.
I’ve been an advocate of wider bars shorter stems lower bottom brackets slacker head angles and bigger wheels since I first got my first Mtn bike in 1987. Why did it take so long for the industry to change ? Simple observations of geometry and riding down a trail show you need these things. Someone brilliant started the Mtn bike change to ridiculously hard to ride bicycles from 100 years tested design from people that road on rugged roads forever. Now the evolution is back to the proven design of yesteryear. With some huge tweaks of course. In the 1970s I made me woods trail bikes out of old Schwinn road bikes with gears. Tires were the main flaw with this back then .
Got off the subject a bit but wide bars equate to more control with less effort. I had asked people why the narrow bars back in the day. The consensus was they didn’t put as much movement into the steep head angle and you could hold a line better . Same with the longer stems . They both worked to slow down the twitchy steep head angles.
This made no sense to me because we didn’t need these super steep head angles anyway. Guys were flipping over their handle bars all the time . I did one time in a race on my Cannondale SV 2000 . This was going up hill. The small 26” wheel hung on a root . And I had put on a shorter stem and wider bars immediately upon purchase. This was one of the best full suspension designs back then. Don’t remember the exact year of my bike but Cannondale had just come out with the Raven that year . Both were 4” travel xc race bikes . The Raven was carbon with a cast aluminum inner skeleton. It was a pound heavier than my SV 2000. My bike on the shop scales was 28 lbs the day of purchase. As I owned it it went up in weight . I put on stronger wheels , downhill tires a shorter stem and wider handle bars. I had to cut the bars down to 22” to fit between the trees on our trails. That was wide around here back in the day. Crazy how times have changed.
I have in the shed, XC bike, Trail bike, and e-bike, all running 800's I come from a road back round, as well as a MX back round, and love the 800's. Yes I have had some crashes in the trees due to wide bars hitting them.
I went from 780 to 800 and I feel much more in control and it puts me in a more natural position personally. I ride enduro and narrow trees can be annoying but the positives outway the negatives for me
It definitely makes trees a bit annoying but if you are feeling more in control that is awesome! Thanks for watching.
running 780 atm ... upgraded from a 680 cuz i'm a big guy and i liked the feel of wider bars
i have the renthal fatbar lite 740mm wide and i love it. but im going to upgrade to fatbar 35's (800mm)
for those that like to run bar ends, keep that in mind before doing any cutting. what are they, about 3/4" wide each ?
I ride 760mm and those are pretty nice, 780mm on my next bike and I think they will be a bit nicer
Now running 780mm on the new bike and it's perfect.
My 2020 stumpjumper has 710mm bars I love it!
Personal preference is for sure..I do 80% ride biking and some flowy light trails. This said yes most road bikers seem to like 27.5 bars from what I've seen. But I'm. A 5'8" male with a 37 inch wide shoulder span so for me a 33" bar is my sweet spot. Great vids keep them coming.
Outstanding, informative video. I just bought new bars for my "old school" mountain bike (with about 650mm bars), so the background and tips were extremely helpful. Your presentation was really clear and enjoyable. Thanks very much!
I‘m 6’0 and I run 750mm on my XC bike, 770mm on my DJ bike, 780mm on my 26inch hardtail enduro.
Im using 690mm at 5'8" I tried putting 760mm the cable of my brakes and shifters are already stretched too much..
Same bro
taller the bike, wider the bar... had a fatbar lite 760 on my 180 lyrik... not stable on jumps... 800 with low stem is so much more stable now
what height are you?
@@ahamilton1305 5'11"
Right now I have a 755mm Kamikaze Bar with 20mm rise and a 60mm Trail Stem with zero degrees.
I used to ride with a 725mm Menace bar with 25mm rise but immediately felt that it was too narrow. So I expanded them with special grips to 745mm.
Though i miss the 25mm rise...
As you mentioned briefly, how about a video on the “why’s” of stem sizes and spacers? What are the affects of the different sizes, stack sizes, etc.?
Good call! We will add that one to the list :) Any others?
The article doesn't say, but if xc is 680-740, Enduro is 740-780, and downhill is 760-800. Than trail should actually be in the ballpark of 700-760. Trail bikes shouldn't come stock with 800mm bars. That's way too wide I have wide shoulders but my arms are shorter than average at 6 feet tall. Gonna try out a 720mm bar in the very flat xc area I live in and see if my shoulder pain goes away.
im running a 700mm wide bar with an extremely short stem and i cannot wait to upgrade to an 800mm bar
I race XC but i still use a 800 with a 50mm stem it feels great
I ride 740mm for all my bike (hardtail & full suspension) it fits my (short) hands and my shoulder width. I've tried 760mm but it felt sluggish for me (well, my height is 1.68m)
My bike is a older hard tail (Gary Fisher Mamba 09) the only thing that is left stock is the frame. It was speced with a 680mm bar and a 120mm stem. Now I have RaceFace bar and stem at 780mm and 80mm and love the feel that I have more control. It does get a little scary at times between the trees on the trail.
I mainly use my mtb for commuting purposes (it's a cheap one) so mostly flats, a few downhills and uphills. I'm running a 800mm handlebar and I'm 5'8".