Gravity Light Carbon Flat Bar and Direct Connect Stem - Taipei Cycle Show 2011

Inside you can get the first look at Gravity's new carbon and aluminum hybrid flat bar that measures out at a full 29" wide, as well as their updated lower rise Direct Connect stem.
The new Gravity Light OS flat bar is not only wide, measuring out at a full 740mm wide (that's 29"), but is also made using an interesting combination of double butted 6066 aluminum and unidirectional carbon. The obvious question is, why combine these two materials? If you were to cut the bar in half you'd discover that the aluminum internal layer is thinner than you'd find on a standard full aluminum bar, and is reinforced with the carbon outer layer. Unlike a lot of carbon/aluminum hybrid parts, the outer carbon layer is not a simple wrap around the metal component. Instead, the two parts are thermally bonded together and the carbon plays a structural role in the bars performance. Gravity calls this Carbon System Integration (CSI).

Gravity Light OS handlebar details:

• Flat bar
• Carbon/alloy construction
• 9° sweep, 4° upsweep
• 740mm width
• Weight: 240 grams
• MSRP $130 USD (approx)


It is obviously more labor intensive to build the new bar out of two different materials, but according to Gravity it does offer benefits over both aluminum and carbon bars. The hybrid bar is said to offer a slightly different ride characteristic, halfway between a full carbon and standard aluminum bar when it comes to stiffness. But the real benefit may by the aluminum core's added resiliency against damage, from both impacts and clamping forces from an over-tightened stem or lock-on grips.




Check out the Gravity website for more information.


What do you make of Gravity's hybrid aluminum/carbon flat bar? Do you see the benefits of combining the two materials in a handlebar?