What width handlebars do you guys like?

[QuestionMan]

I would like to hear what you prefer taking into account comfort and handling. I am building a new ebike and need to buy a handlebar so I am unsure of what width to get.
Currently my cross country ebike has a 25.5" or 650mm width handlebar which I find comfortable as that is what I always used and had.

The current trend is most people seem to like these really wide handlebars like 750mm. Is this comfortable for long ebike rides?

Maybe I should consider going wider?

 

[Drunkskunk]

I ride with 770mm on my Monster bike, but on my 29er I use >600mm.

 

[friendly1uk]

I'm at 630mm, although my bar is around 610. My grips hang off the end a bit. I reckon with 750mm I could about fit all the bells and whistles on there that I need.

I like around 600 and can't deal with racing bikes. 600 won't pass through uk cycle gates though.

 

[cal3thousand]

670mm on my DH bike with 35mm rise

 

[QuestionMan]

670mm on my DH bike with 35mm rise

have you ever tried wider?

 

[cal3thousand]

670mm on my DH bike with 35mm rise

have you ever tried wider?

Not on this current bike. I do have wider bars on my commuter, but that is completely different. It's a cruiser type bar and the steering is really slow on it.

670mm is a good spread for my shoulders and wide enough for solid control. Any longer and it starts to be a reach, but your high speed stability might improve.

 

[RoadWrinkle]

Totally rider dependent. This is like asking what shoes size is most comfortable...what size foot do you have? 8)

Easy way to determine: The width of your shoulder joints is going to dictate the most comfortable fit for your bars. Find the midpoint of each shoulder joint. Its half the distance from the outside of your shoulder to where the skin crease starts at your armpits. Now measure the distance between these two points and you have your shoulder-joint-width. Now, gripping the bars, you want the distance between your thumbs to be two-three inches wider than the distance between your shoulder joints.

If you do not have the prospective bars in front if you to try this out, just subtract the length of both grips from the overall bar length to find out approximately how far apart your thumbs would be on any given set of bars.

I have a fairly wide shoulder joint width so I prefer cruiser bars myself.


Of course, if you want to sit more upright then some rise and back sweep to the bar is nice. This depends on the type of riding you want to do.

 

[Scott]

My giant DH Team has 760mm handlebars. I love them wide like that. I prefer it over short bars that cross country bikes have. Although when doing cross country mountain biking the bars sometimes don't fit through tight trees. I went to stevens pass and did DH mountain biking all day and they worked out great but I don't have my bike running on power yet so I can't speak to ebiking yet.

 

[DAND214]

My giant DH Team has 176mm handlebars. I love them wide like that. I prefer it over short bars that cross country bikes have. Although when doing cross country mountain biking the bars sometimes don't fit through tight trees. I went to stevens pass and did DH mountain biking all day and they worked out great but I don't have my bike running on power yet so I can't speak to ebiking yet.

A'm I reading the numbers correct? 176mm, 7 inches? Gotta be a typo.

Dan

 

[Kingfish]

in 2010, mine were stock for a MtB, though for the 2WD the new CF handlebars were cut down to 22 or 23" (559 - 584mm); I don't remember right off the top of my head. Mainly it's so I pass between obstacles much more easily, like those upright poles in the ground designed to keep motorcycles off bike trails...

Thinly profiled, KF

 

[MadRhino]

Handlebar ideal length is a matter of geometry, and riding style.
Short cockpit requires a longer handlebar to tune to rider geometry, and gives stronger, precise control.
Long cockpit is more stable at high speed, and gives faster reaction time.

 

[speedmd]

Wide bars are terribly inefficient aerodynamically and hurt you in a bunch of other ways in the woods. I have hurt my hands more times than I have fingers due to wide bars. Some will argue comfort or ability to mussel the bike better on climbs, but I don't buy it at all as a overall benefit when weighing all things out. Best to stay as narrow as you can handle comfortably. Anything much wider than your shoulders should be avoided IMO. The trend is to go wider, but be warned, this will cost you. Unless your trying to mussel a 3-4 hundred pound bike around, your kidding yourself. Just my opinion.

 

[MadRhino]

It is a matter of riding style. Sometimes a wide cockpit hurts a knuckle to save a nose. :wink:

 

[alsmith]

Try a web search, there are LOADS of links. Many mention shoulder width which is possibly a relevant factor.
I would think it's a personal thing, but it may give you a few things to consider.
a couple of examples near the top of the list
Road bike
http://www.artscyclery.com/learningcenter/findrighthandlebarwidth.html
BMX
http://www.bikeradar.com/mtb/gear/article/mountain-bike-handlebars-the-width-issue-34169/
I bet Sheldon Brown has thoughts on the subject to- he's always worth checking out.

 

[Scott]

A'm I reading the numbers correct? 176mm, 7 inches? Gotta be a typo.
Dan

Yes definitely a typo those would be some small handle bars!
I meant to say 760mm.