Not the Slowest

After 3 years of riding my Felt TK3 with the original bars that are listed as 39 wide, (c-c is my guess) No name Felt item and flexy.

I figured that now would be a good time to purchase new and narrower bars to go with my Affinity Kissena.

I am a broad shouldered, 210lbs and pretty much an all-arounder on the track which here at Kissena is 400m.

I am not ready to break the bank and figured to go to a 37-38m wide for no specific reason other than slow and easy in the transition and of course based on whats out there and available.

Looking at something similar to what I had which one could say is Pista like shaped.
Easton EC90 ( hard to find in US, not sure why but looks about $275)
Alpina Sprint Bars ( hard to find in US and $200+ overseas, plus shipping)
Nitto 123 , on this I am unsure as if I should/could use a shim as I planned to use a Thomson Stem X4, which is OS. Nitto has an OS model but I think its listed as Alloy.
Scattos, Maybe but that would break my budget and may require longer adjustments to get used to.

Suggestions and locations selling them is appreciated
Thanks All
Robert

queerpunk

The easiest to access and most affordable are the Nitto bars. You can either use a shim or get a 26.0 stem. Or you can shell out for the OS version. The steel ones are heavy af. That is not a liability. But some people like knowing that their bike is light.

I think it comes down to how much you want to spend. If you want to spend around a hundred bucks (or less, if you're willing to use ebay) then get Nittos. They come in tons of sizes - possibly even 1cm increments, definitely 2cm increments down to the mid-30s.

If you want to spend 2 or 3 times that, then get one of the carbon models you listed.

The Scattos are an outlier, here - they are quite shallow, and that would require re-configuring your stem setup.

Not the Slowest

In regard to the Nittos. Do I stick with Steel or the NJS aproved which may be Aluminum.

Also any issues with a shim to for use in an OS Stem?

Thanks

1incpa

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but the Nittos are all NJS approved. I have steel 127's on my bike and they're NJS.
Personally, I like the steel bars.
PI

queerpunk

No issues with a shim.

Steel is cheaper. Aluminum is lighter. Both are stiff. It's your decision.

carleton

Many Nitts are NJS approved. Not all.


+1

For what it's worth, Nitto B125 would be closest to the Scattos in terms of reach and drop. But, the grip area (where your hands sit) is shorter. Nitto B123 are closest to the Easton EC90. Actually, the EC90 was designed to be a carbon version of the B123 (the standard at the time). EC90s are great...if you can find them.

I think Scattos (and the like) are the way to go these days with modern frames with short head tubes. Remember that when the B123 became famous, head tubes were very tall, so you needed a deep drop to get your hands (and back) down. With short head tubes, you need a short-drop bar.

Not the Slowest

Answers are all great.
This was so simple when I bought a complete bike. I road it and raced it and as a newbie I had fun. I broke the saddle in and that was my only issue.

I have time to find the bars as the new bike was suppose to be here in April, now mid-July. The answers and help are great as usual. I just figured the Nittos may give me something close to what I I have and test going narrower.
In fact my coach did think a 33 made sense but will take a while to adjust to.

Scattos will be on my list and I can try a teammates after we end in September.
Seems anyone with EC90 or Alpina's have gotten theirs from a friend.