What size bars are you riding?

PB Forum :: All Mountain, Enduro & Cross-Country
What size bars are you riding?
Author Message
flag MPasqualoni
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 5:33 Quote
760mm for me and I am 5-7. Lots of tight slow trails with trees and noticed a big difference in "clipping trees" when i cut them down from 780
flag metro24
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 6:41 Quote
780mm and 6ft, but I like to have my hands at the very ends of the bars, even hanging over the edge a little
flag GAQ
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 6:51 Quote
MPasqualoni wrote:
760mm for me and I am 5-7. Lots of tight slow trails with trees and noticed a big difference in "clipping trees" when i cut them down from 780

im 5'7" riding with 760mm bars as well.
honestly feel like i would be more comfortable with 750mm but 760 is pretty good and i cant uncut my bars
rode with 730mm bars for years before i went wider. so thats probably why i dont like going too wide
tried 780mm but it didnt feel good to me at all
flag DeoreDX
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 6:54 Quote
5'8"

Depending on backsweep I find I'm most comfortable in the 720-760 range. Just outside of that range I can still ride with comfort but it begins to feel narrow or wide to me. 800+ causes some strange shoulder pains to show up.
flag kram00
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 9:29 Quote
MPasqualoni wrote:
760mm for me and I am 5-7. Lots of tight slow trails with trees and noticed a big difference in "clipping trees" when i cut them down from 780

I 2nd to this, 5'7 running 760mm bar, Used to run 780/800 and it was very slow to corner.
flag Danzzz88
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 12:19 Quote
I actually find I turn much faster with 800mm bars than 760mm at only 5'8, reason being I mostly like to turn by tilting the bike over not 'steering' it....the longer bars make it much easier to lever the bike over and get my hand nice and low for good lean angle and stability. I was actually surprised how fast my confidence grew just switching to wider bars on the first ride.

But..... I definitely think it's bike dependant, on previous bikes or mates bikes etc when I have tried wider bars I didn't like it, but stem length, geometry, bar sweep, stack, and rise probably all play into it, so I think asking what is the best or most popular size isn't going to do you any favours. The only way is to try, just like saddles, I can read a hundred forum posts and reviews saying a saddle is a 9/10 and super comfortable, then you sit on it and it feels like you are perched on a brick. My current saddle doesn't even have any reviews etc, no one would ever think to buy them except recreational noobs that don't know about bikes, yet it is the most comfortable saddle for me by miles out of all the ones I have tried.

Remember everyone is unique and has preferences, especially when it comes to fit and comfort, no amount of forum posts or research is going to give you a definite answer.... Also what is one mans junk is sometimes another mans treasure, we all have different standards of what we consider acceptable or good too.

Best thing to do is get a cheap alloy 800mm bar off ebay or whatever and cut it down and compare back to back, that's the cheapest way of knowing.. there is no right or wrong in this just preference.
flag adespotoskyli
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 14:01 Quote
185cm had 820 and got stiff shoulders and neck issues constantly, measured my most powerful pushup position, cut bars to 755, was going 760 but missed one side by 5mm ‍♂️ but never looked back, I keep my hands centered/slightly inwards on the grips
flag Kidklayko
O+
Posted: Apr 6, 2021 at 17:56 Quote
740 for XC, 780 on Trail Bike, 810 Enduro, I'm 5'9 and ride a large across all bikes
flag Prodigalcyclist
Posted: May 3, 2021 at 16:56 Quote
Im 6'1". I started with 810 and cut them down to 740. Run a 100mm stem. Been riding at 740 for nearly a year now. I constantly find my hands in the narrowest position, never towards the ends, so I'm thinking of cutting down to 720.
flag DJ-24
Posted: May 3, 2021 at 18:56 Quote
Kidklayko wrote:
740 for XC, 780 on Trail Bike, 810 Enduro, I'm 5'9 and ride a large across all bikes
At 5'9 with 810 bars your chest must be hitting the stem.
flag Danzzz88
Posted: May 4, 2021 at 14:36 Quote
I'm 5'8 and run 800mm and much prefer them over 760mm. I find my hands naturally want to rest right at the ends of the bars on 800mm whereas 760 I'm almost cupping tge ends with my palms. What I like about wider bars is I actually feel you can turn faster, it may sound counter intuitive given that it's a longer lever, but what I find with wide bars is I can really lean the bike over and get my hand nice and low in turns with little effort, I feel the leverage allows you to tilt the bike over much easier which means more aggressive handling yet not feeling twitchy like narrower bars.

I do believe height has bugger all to do with it though, just like some people have big feet, big noses, big ahem.. 'cough'. Some people have wider shoulders than others and not everyone who is tall neccessarily has wider shoulders. Also your bike geo, ape index, stem length, stack height, bar geo, and just overall preference all comes into play... Height is a really poor correlation to bar width imo. Forget what other people your height ride and expect it to work for you, you need to try for yourself. Buy a cheap alloy bar off ebay and keep cutting it down and see if it gets better or worse. Or even easier and free if you have a narrow bar now, just clamp your grips a bit further out than fully pushed on and see what the increased width feels like. Bars are like saddles, you could read 100 pages of forum chat and reviews, go out and buy a bar based on that and absolutely hate it, contact points are really personal so experiment yourself to see what works best for you.. and f all those that say what you run is wrong or stupid etc, it doesn't matter as long as you like it, you are setting the bike up for you, not to please / show off to others.
flag Dr-YTMTB
Posted: May 4, 2021 at 16:16 Quote
5’6”, I run 800mm bars. Absolutely love them.

I also run a low stack and 35mm stem.
flag friendlyfoe
Posted: May 4, 2021 at 17:01 Quote
I am clearly an alien because I'm 6'0 with a long upper body and 760mm is my happy place. That's riding proper gnarly DH trails. Bar was originally 780 which I tried without cutting, cut it down to 770, and then 760. Anything wider feels off balance and my natural pushup position has my hands landing around 760mm at the outside as well. I'm glad because there are a few spots locally where 780mm bars wouldn't quite fit.
flag johnovey
O+
Posted: May 4, 2021 at 17:37 Quote
Thanks for cutting your bars & not the trees!
flag melanthius
O+
Posted: May 4, 2021 at 18:15 Quote
750mm, at 5'8". Everything wider feels super awkward and I ride slower.

 


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