Bar Widths

[fatbottomedgurl]

Just wondering what bar width you run on you ride. I have always ridden men's bikes and recently test rode some wsd's and saw a difference with a shorter bar. I certainly noticed a tighter turning ability.

[mimitabby]

my mountain bike came with men's standard bars too. I had all sorts of hand problems that went away when they cut the bars down to a more reasonable size for me.

[SadieKate]

Fashions have changed over the years regarding bars. It used to be that all XC mtb were set up with 23" flat bars and bar ends. Nowadays the rage seems to be riser bars (26" standard?) even though flat bars and bar ends are stronger and lighter.

A couple of things to consider:

width = gives you stability but makes tight turns harder
narrow = may fit your shoulders better at the risk of loosing steering stability
bend = flat bars tend to be 3-5 degree bends while riser bars are more. Many women (and men) do better with a greater bend in the bars, 9-11 degrees, because it take the kink out of your wrist.

Years ago, I cut down my flat bars to 22" because everyone said I should because I am short/small. That was the trend. However, I think I did myself a disservice because it speeded up the steering on my bike, good for slow speed technical singletrack but scary for fast and loose descents. I'm scared of heights anyway.

Last year, I took a long wheelbase bike and morphed it into a freeride bike. It got 25" riser bars. The riser part wasn't important; the width was. Suddenly, I gained huge stability and control on downhills. Wow! I looked at my XC bike with the 22" bars and had an epiphany. I needed a 9 degree bend to keep my wrists happy, but wanted wider bars. No one makes anything like that any longer as far as I know, but Seven (and Dean) will custom make flat Ti bars to the width and bend your specify. Two weeks later I had a 23.5" bar with the 9 degree bend. Absolutely superb for the XC bike. Great compromise. It has made squishing between the trees in central Oregon ST much tighter, but it is worth the gain in steering stability and I have not sacrificed wrist comfort. However, the 25" riser bar is by far better for open technical terrain like Moab and the desert southwest.

So, you need to consider the type of trails you ride to choose the bar and the compromises you're willing to make.

[fatbottomedgurl]

Thanks, that really helps. My bike now totally cocks my wrists weirdly and I have CT issues in my right hand. I swapped the stem which helps some, but it's nice to know there is a custom bar available.

[SadieKate]

Be sure your levers are set up to keep your wrists straight also. Levers can cock your hands up. Bars can cock your wrists oddly side to side. Funny how just a bit a tweak from either can give you pain.

PS - At 5' 3 1/2" I've never ridden anything but "men's" bikes, road or mtb. It's all in the components you choose.