Originally Posted by
Chukbacca
I'm a little curious how you all choose your handlebars (short of having a fleet of bikes to swap from
). I absolutely prefer a more upright ride; I slapped cheap beach cruiser bars on my beater Motive Duet tandem, which has done the job but is ugly as sin. I tried ordering a set of handlebars once and while they weren't horrible, they were not what I wanted. I'm a bigger guy, I think I'd prefer a wider bar that curled around just a bit. Does anyone feel like sharing their experience and of give me some insight?
Thanks a bunch!
Bars are really tricky because there are so many elements of personal preference. Here is a breakdown of how I look for bars.
First I look at the width. If I am building a city bike or commuter of sorts I like my handle bars to be just a little wider than my shoulders, maybe 1-2 inches past my shoulders on each side. (or based on whatever happens to be the widest part of my body)
Next I consider my sweep back angle. Wrist position is very personal. The Velo orange Left Bank handle bar is a great example of a nice wrist angle that isn't too extreme in or out.
Rise is my next consideration. If you find a bar that is the right width and right wrist angle but lower than desired rise, you can always work to compensate for that with the right quill stem. It's reasonable to expect to find a bar that has a 2-4inch rise in it.
Whenever I'm in a bike shop I'll pull sets of handlebars off the shelves so I can grab onto them and get a general sense of what they feel like. Even picking up stuff you know you wouldn't use helps give you direction about what sorts of elements you don't like.
Anyway, nothing to live by here, just what I happen to do when I'm looking for bars. Hope it can help!