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So getting last few bits together for the HT and not sure whether to go for 20mm or 35mm riser bars.
Bike is going to be mostly light trails and some longer flatter rides with a fair bit of climbing. Not really sure what ones to go for!
What rise have people gone for on HT 29ers?
Well it depends on all sorts of things - head tube length, steerer length, fork travel, intended use.
Do you have another bike with a bar height that you like? You could measure that and replicate it.
Add leg length and hip/hamstring tightness to that list!
Current bike is a FS 130mm travel with 20mm rise.
The HT has 5mm longer Head tube with same 130mm front fork so all in all be same height.
Light trails and longer smoother rides over the South Downs.
Hips/Hamstrings… old weak and past sell by date!
“ The HT has 5mm longer Head tube with same 130mm front fork so all in all be same height.”
What are the reach and stack measurements for both? How many spacers under the stem on the full-sus?
FS
Stack 603
Reach 450
4 x 10mm spacers under stem
HT
Stack 622
Reach 440
**edit - I’m pretty clueless when it comes to numbers and the effect it will have on high/low rise bars! Higher stack means front end sits higher?
You have to try riding the bike and seeing what works for you on the trails you ride.
Having said that, I'd generally go for the higher rise on the basis that having the bars a bit too high is usually less of a problem than too low, plus it's generally easier to lower the bars than to raise them.
If you have both bikes side by side, get a tape measure and measure things up.
When I switched from a short 26" bike to a long 29" bike I thought I'd need a relatively low front end but I went from 1 spacer and 15mm rise bars to about 4 spacers and 35mm rise bars.
At sag the hardtail stack will reduce to not a lot more than the full-sus and the reach increase similarly, so the fit will be very similar. As you’ve got 40mm of spacers you’ve got more than enough height to add 15mm more bar raise without problems, so I’d go with the 35mm rise bars.
you'll need to ride it...
I'm a bit of a believer that having the bars as low as usable encourages proper front wheel weighting, especially as I'm lazy/crap...
Seeing bikes with all the spacers and all the rise makes me wonder if the rider is missing a trick by shooting for comfort
i've swapped all my stuff a cross a few different 27'5s and onto a 29er, all similar ish geo IIRC ...
i prefer to run about 15-20mm of spacers, so i guess if i did go for all the rise, i could compensate by dropping spacers.
so if you need to choose some bars, it would be safe to guess, you could buy a 35mm rise bar assuming you can drop some spacers if it is too high.
i do realise that dropping spacers and lowering bar rise alter the reach differently.
No idea why I put 4 spacers. It’s actually 3.
Guess will get it all built and see what’s suits!
Think I would prefer less spacers and higher rise than lower rise and a stack on spacers. Always thought the current bike looks a bit cumbersome with a stack of spacers underneath.
Seeing bikes with all the spacers and all the rise makes me wonder if the rider is missing a trick by shooting for comfort
Or the rider is tall and/or has long legs.
I've a 140mm 29er with 50mm of spacers and 38mm riser bars and my saddle is still well above my bars.
"Or the rider is tall and/or has long legs"
ah yer. i forget.. at 5ft 8 or so i'm slap bang in the middle of the size range usually, stack doesn't seem to scale up as you would imagine as you size up, which suggests that taller people are more flexible 😀
Think I would prefer
lessfewer spacers and higher rise than lower rise and a stack on spacers. Always thought the current bike looks a bit cumbersome with a stack of spacers underneath.FTFU.
Doesn't matter how your get your bars and grips where you want them. Functionally, it makes zero difference.
I will see if I can borrow some bars to try before purchasing. It’s not built up yet so hard to get a ride in!!
On a completely different note I went from 20mm rise to 35mm rise and got terrible pain on my outer wrists. I tried altering the spacers etc. but still loads of pain. I tried it on both bikes and the same thing happened. Went back to the 20mm and all was fine.
Very odd.
On a completely different note I went from 20mm rise to 35mm rise and got terrible pain on my outer wrists
Quite likely they had different sweep. You can also rotate them backwards or forwards to try and find a comfortable position. Many bars have markings etched in to show the zero rotation position. Ignore those markings, they are utterly useless, just rotate the bars until they are comfortable for you.
I’m a bit of a believer that having the bars as low as usable encourages proper front wheel weighting, especially as I’m lazy/crap…
Seeing bikes with all the spacers and all the rise makes me wonder if the rider is missing a trick by shooting for comfort
Traditional geometry thinking IMO.