Moisture

I know that flared drop bars seem to be very popular these days on gravel bikes...

Thought id share my experience on drop bars, with the different types I've tried. For reference, I ride my gravel bike on a mix of pavement, double/single track... And of course.. gravel.

The stock bars were 46cm with 8° of flare which transitioned into 16° once you started to hold lower onto the bars
​bars. After riding these along with 48cm riser bars with 12° of flare, I noticed that the shape in the drops was putting unnecessary pressure on my wrists on longer riders and didn't feel quite so natural anymore.

I set out to find some bars that were at least 46cm wide, no more than 48cm wide, between 4-6° of flare at the drops and found myself rather limited on options

I tend to aim for a bar that is about shoulder width (shoulder bone to shoulder bone..)

Do some of you prefer narrower? Wider? You guys fan of excessive flare? No flare at all? If so, why?

When using bars with different drop/reach figures, is it as simple as using different types of stems to compensate? Is there any major difference between using some combination of short stem, long handlebar reach or vice versa? Also, I assume that the handlebar drop should be based on your stack height, or how long your steerer tube is/how many spacers you want to have underneath your stem?