With the trend to wider and wider bars is it fair to say that size matters ? What width do you run vs. your size ?
I am 5' 6" so when I read in the magazines about 711mm, or 720mm bars giving more control I am thinking - Too wide for me ...... I run 685mm bars at the moment,with a 60mm stem (on a 2010 SJ FSR).
Will 720mm be too wide ?
Cheers.
your bars should be just wider than your shoulders.
42cm, 50cm & 68.5cm
mine were 810mm now there 730mm
Call Trimix to the forum ... think his are 800mm, rode his bike one it was hilarious! there's one trail at Woburn where he has to go last as 2 bits of it the trail is 800mm wide! It's brilliant.
6' and 760mm wide. I've got used to them and find anything smaller really twitchy now!
5'10"
XC bike 645
AM bike 685
DH bike 745
5'10.5"
Road bike - 440mm compacts + 100mm Stem
SS commuter - 440mm bull horns + 100mm Stem
SS MTB - 660mm low rise + 80mm Stem
FS MTB - 685mm Mid Rise + 65mm Stem
5.11 685 on both
I'm think of changing mine from 685 which I have run for years, but really want to try a set of 711mm on my bike before buying any.
Easton Havoc's have caught my eye!
my bike has 580s (flat bars, with a 100mm stem) on atm but im thinking they are too wide so i might get 40mm off them.
Mine are whatever length Easton EA70s are, they feel just right to me and I have no intention of changing them 😀
Edit - Oh and im 6'2"
Had some easton bars 610mm on y 5spot as I ordered the wrong ones but found them pretty good and the steering precise, however I have now put some raceface 680mm wide bars on and its even better now seem to have more control.
5`10"
ss 720
ht 710
fs 720
I wanted to try wider bars (than the 711s that I have) but 50+ quid was a bit of a gamble so bought a pair of wide-ons for £15 ( http://wide-on-mtb.com/). Give you an extra 50mm, and whilst I'm not taking them down Fort Bill, they've made me realise that I want to invest in some 750mm bars.
760's on my xc bike and my dh-bike-with-a-granny-gear.
it's ace on the d-b-w-a-g-g, but i accept it may be wider than is ideal for the xc bike.
i'll chop 10mm off each end when i get back from a ride 'knowing' they're too wide...
until then i'll not bother.
5'8
711 on dh and am bikes
685 on comuter
Loving the idea of the wide on conversion, I'll give them a bash and if they are no good I'll stick them on the HT 660mm bars. Cheers.
I am 6 ft and just put some 785mm bars on my hard tail (dialled prince albert) was planning to try them there and then stick em on me full suss bike but having ridden a few times with the wider bars I am going to get another set for the full suss. Combined with a 45mm stem the front of the bike feels really planted , it seems to offer loads of leverage when hauling the bike around on descents, and yesterday was notably better on a short techy climb so yeah I like em. Not fitting through gaps = scaremongering, just get a wiggle on!
5ft 9"
760mm
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710mm
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I would say 720mm will be fine.
your bars should be just wider than your shoulders.
Nope. You bars can be as wide/narrow as you like for the sort of riding you do.
I'm 5'9" and use 640s on my xc, 685 on my wee hardtail and 750 on the dh bike
Had 685 on my Enduro. Switched to 711 Ragley wiser bars at the weekend and they feel great.
Feel i need something wider for my SS voodoo build. 685 doesn't give me enough when climbing
er, need to check what size came on the bike out of the shop.....
[goes to halfords website....]
er probably 640mm - I think they're fine, the last one had wider ones and I didn't like em
I find it best to run the same bars on all my bikes as you feel at home straight away jumping from one bike to another. I run 745mm Sunlines.
5' 10" and 560mm shoulder width. Running 685 bars on my AM Five.
Fancy something wider but my local woods are very tight even on 685
Bought a short stem for my DB alpine and steering felt twitcy with my old 680mm low risers, after a few experiments settled on 711mm HR's and very nice now - it made a big difference all round. Experiment and go with what feels best.
760mm on big bike, 760mm on commuter (with road tyres) it is so wrong but can't make up mind what to cut down too. And 710mm on my fs racer.
Settled at 60mm stem and 710mm bars I think.
55mm and 745mm on my big bike though.
FS 710mm low riser
HT SS 710mm low riser
New 29er 700mm flat
Couldn't really go any wider as the local trails are quite narrow and there are a couple of bits at Cannock where I have caught the bars where the trail pass through narrow trees.
I have some 690mm ones if you want to try them Craig
42cm on the fixie
44 on the roadie
660 on the Soda
715 on the BFe
750 on the Uzzi.
A skinny 5'10" here.
Only ridden the 750's once - they're a bit of an experiment being flats too. The width is great - really lets you haul the bike around in corners, but whilst the lower front end is great for cornering grip, it's put too much weight on my hands the rest of the time for long term comfort, and makes it hard work to unweight the front rapidly.