msl109

Hi folks - building up an '83 Trek 720 from the frame up. Though I'm generally trying to keep it era correct, I'm not necessarily trying to duplicate all the factory equipment.
But I did take a look at the' 83 catalog and saw that it came equipped with what seems to be a stock Cinelli 64 handlebar - like many production bikes of this era, no randonneur bend. My first thought was this was just a cost effectiveness move on Trek's part, but I've seen more than one comment on forums suggesting that randonneuring bars aren't for everyone and the wrong bar could leave one more uncomfortable than a more typical drop bar. I've also seen many custom framebuilders' bikes from this era equipped with ordinary drop bars. Any thoughts? Would like to hear your experiences, doesn't necessarily have to be with this particular bike.

OTS 

I'm running Sakae Road Champion Randonneur bars on my 720, but that's how it came to me and I like them. I should qualify that by saying I don't spend a lot of time in the drops.
They can be had on eBay for not too much or if you have a near by Co-op that might be worth a look. They have what I consider a relative mild flair for the drops, newer bars like VO rad bars I think seem to run wider and the flair is more pronounced.
I'd say try'em you might like'em.
Here's a link to some additional thoughts from BF forumites: Nitto Randonneur bars...differences

bikemig 

I'm running randonneur bars on my '82 720 but the bike you run randonneur bars doesn't matter much. That said, I think randonneur bars are very fine for long distance touring bikes as you will spend a lot of time on the tops.

ironwood

Some of my bikes have Nitto Noodles, another has a VO reando bar and one has an ordinary drop bar. They are all comfortable, but if I would buy a new bar , i think I'd go with the Randoneur bend. There is no rule for handlebar shape, position and height that applies to everyone. A bar that is perfect for one rider might be torure for another.

thumpism 

My experience with randonneur bars is that for a given bar width (42cm preferred in my case), if the width at the ends is 42cm the width at the levers is considerably less and that will make them uncomfortably narrow. The widest such bars I've found came on my Nishiki Cresta GT.

Same wdith at the ends, despite how it looks.


New production bars are likely better in this respect.

due ruote 

I have Noodles on a couple bikes, and Nitto randos on a couple others. Big fan of both. What they have in common is a flat ramp behind the brake hoods. For me, that makes them way more comfortable than Cinelli bars etc.They also have a relatively small amount of drop.
The sit-bone to brake hood measure is something I pay close attention to, so the bar/stem combo has to respond to the saddle position, and will vary depending on bar reach.

Classtime 

I'm going to leave the 40mm 64s on my current Rando build because they are 40mm wide between the levers which leaves room for my rando bag plus like Thumpism says, more room on the tops. To get wider at the top on a rando bar, I think I need to get a modern bar like the Compass but I'm not sure I want 44mm wide on the drops where I spend significant time.

Prowler 

I built my Fuji TS III with rando bars and a front rack. I installed a large, boxy rando type front bag and found right off about the flared drops. With normal bars and a bag that size it would be quite awkward to ride in the drops as they would too close to the bag, no room for your hands. The outward flare of the rando bars creates the clearance needed to ride in the drops with a large bag installed.

Yeah, I regularly ride “way down in the drops”. When I have to battle a headwind for an hour or more I REALLY like the drops. I’ll also comment that I can ride in the drops because I do.

ehcoplex 

Not exactly cheap to do, and a PITA as far as un-taping, moving controls, re-taping, etc, etc, but you really just need to try them to see if you like 'em. Personally, I've discovered that I don't really like randonneur bars, in spite of everything about them that 'makes sense'. The original bars on my PX-10- somewhat narrow, virtually no flare, more-or-less parallel bend- have ended up way more comfortable for me than the two rando bars (a Nitto and a Sakae- I think.....) I've had on a couple other bikes. FWIW, I ride mostly on the ramps or hoods, drops only in a strong head-wind- I think it's the flare, and the way it angles the brake levers out and the slight upward/outward angle of the ramps that make them less comfortable for me.

VintageRide

I have Velo Orange Rando bars on two bikes, both the widest size at 48 cm which makes them a bit narrower on the flats but I find them quite comfortable although I prefer a more upright position due to older age.

msl109

I actually have those - off a Bianchi Randonneur a friend took cross country but rebuilt with modern components first. I thought it waa a bit narrow for me at the time but might be worth another try.

msl109

I rarely am in the drops so yes, that's the case.

msl109

Have heard a lot about the noodle - looks to be a softer bend than the traditional randonneuring one. Wish I could try before I buy..

msl109

That was my experience with the Sakae Road Champs and I've given thought to going with new production as a result. Though I did find what one seller is measuring as 44cm GB randonneuring bars. Not sure I trust his measuring skills.

msl109

What do you find they don't have in common? I'm trying to assess why a rider would go with noodles over a traditional bar when touring, mostly on the tops.

msl109

Afraid that's the answer - trial and error. As you mentioned, time and expense (especially as I have a bad habit of putting off selling off parts I end up not using) is the main drawback there.

msl109

Anyone try the ones Rene Herse sells? ($$$ holds me back at the moment - over $100), from what the site says, based on the GB bend?

Jeff Neese

I have Nitto B135A Randonneurs on my two drop-bar bikes, and I find them to be a big improvement over traditional drop bars. More comfortable for long rides, with more usable hand positions and better placement for brake levers. Tried the Nitto Noodle but didn't like those as well.

steine13

I'll second the Nitto Noodle, model #177, recommendation. I've got the 46 and 48 cm version on my touring bikes, with interrupter brake levers. They feel great.

The picture is "this year's bike", a 25" Cannondale ST600 I built from the frame up. It's a little tall for me but super comfortable. This picture shows how the ramps sit high and fairly flat.. under the hand there's actually a bit of a "swell," if that's the word I want, that is really comfortable. I spend a lot of of time riding with my arms straight and the hands a couple inches behind the hoods.. when I move my hands to the hoods, my elbows naturally bend a bit, moving my back forward, so it feels like two separate positions. With the bar high like that, the drops are also comfortable for this 58-year-old, and the whole thing plain works for long days in the saddle. This bar is the cheaper 44-cm version and it's great for the application.

cheers -mathias


Nitto Technomic 60 mm, Nitto Noodle 44 cm, Campy Triomphe levers, original Mirrycle.

ehcoplex 

Ha, been there, done that (or maybe more accurately, "am there, doing that.....")

bwilli88 

Some GB rando bars on my Witcomb

due ruote 

The biggest and most important difference for me is greater width at the hoods on the Noodles. I can’t comment specifically on touring, but generally I just feel more comfortable and stable with a wider grip. I still like my rando bars, but I definitely wouldn’t use smaller than 44 cm, and I am a fairly small human.
The upward bend of rando bars gets the hoods a bit higher of course, and the flare means you can ride the drops for extended periods or climb without bumping your forearms.

mstateglfr 

I had some Nitto Rando bars on a build and they were...meh. They were narrow for the stated width because they were measured from the drops and flare. I dont think the up-sweep makes any difference for me.
They werent bad, but I dont plan on buying them again and there are other bars I would use in a quill stem- namely some Soma Hwy 1 bars. Wide, comfortable, and a nice bend.

The Golden Boy 

I have a lot of thoughts on this...

I have a 1985 Trek 720, a 1985 Trek 620 and have used the stock Cinelli bars, the stock Belleri bars on the 620 as well as the Nitto B132 rando bar and the Nitto B177 "Noodle," and the Sakae "Grand Randnner" bars. With the Cinelli not having the "rando bends" going to the SR bars having the most exaggerated "rando bends." With the Cinelli and Belleri having pretty normal curvature.

I rode the 720, sorta stock/period correct for a few years. In that time period, I'd put a B177 on my 620 and really liked it. Also in that time I had the SR bars on my Schwinn Voyageur SP. The 720 went through a few different cockpit changes- and at some point, I redid the 720 with a more modern setup, with a taller Nitto Technomic stem and B177 bars because I liked them on the 620. (I used to remember all the measurements- but I don't anymore... sorry) After I redid the 720 I got a Miyata 1000LT and got a set of Nitto B132 bars on there with bar end shifters.

So my preference, in order- B177 .... long gap... B132, Belleri, Cinelli, SR. I love the B177 because they're wider and the long, flat ramps. The B177s are kind of the "anti-rando" bar because they go down and go back at the corners instead of up like a traditional rando bar.
[img]https://live.staticflickr.com/4743/39573143872_0bff80085e_c.jpg[/img]Rough Fit 720 by https://www.flickr.com/photos/151917295@N05/]1969TGB[/color], on Flickr





One thing sorta unique about my setups is that I use the Suntour Command shifters, they mount inboard of the brake levers- and I have a handlebar bag- so the bars need to be wide enough for the shifters to clear the bag. Additionally, I'm not a big guy- but wider bars are much more comfortable to me. Because bars are measured at the drops and rando bars splay out- even though they may measure 44- they're still like 38 at the hoods- and that "between the hoods" distance is the more important distance unless you spend much more time in the drops.

Dfrost 

Noodles have distinctly less angle between drops and ramps compared to “traditional bars”, as well as the shorter reach that my short (and getting shorter/stiffer at 73 YO) torso prefers, while still having plenty of room to roam across the hoods/ramps. The slight backward bend across the tops works fine for me. FWIW, I only use the tops when climbing steep hills (plenty around here), drops on long descents or when I might need maximum braking, and move all over the hoods and ramps for the bulk of my riding. That was true when touring decades ago, but now the cockpit is taller and shorter. I’ve found the Noodles exceptionally comfortable over the last 8 years/20,000 miles in all those positions and really like the multiple positions - I identified 10 used frequently on long rides. (FWIW, I used Soma Hwy 1’s and similar compact bars on the same bikes for several years and liked them but prefer the larger ramp area of Noodles.)

I tried an SR “Grand Randnner” bar (43cm at drops, 38cm at hoods), that had been donated to Bike Works and cheap to me as volunteer for about 50 miles in comparison with my long-time favorite Noodles/177 (42cm at drops, 41cm at hoods), to see if there really was the impressive comfort that JH claims. If there was a noticeable improvement, I would have considered investing in the spendy RH version with an even shorter stem (RH bars have >1cm more reach). I set up the SR bars so that the Campy Ergo hoods were very similar in height, location on the bend and reach to the saddle so that only the bar shape was distinctly different. (As a former aerospace test engineer, it’s all about reducing variables!)

The SR version has the same shallow drop angle and shorter reach like the Noodle, but I never felt any improvement over the Noodles, actually a bit odd. Riding on the tops was distinctly weird and I didn’t much like the flare. In most of the ramp positions, it felt like my elbows were being pushed inward, but on the tops they were pushed outward/forearms twisted less naturally. BTW, I have narrow shoulders and used 38cm bars in the past so I’m not averse to narrow bars; 40 cm Noodles might be “ideal” for me.

I’m not suggesting that JH with his extensive experience and mileage/strength/capability >>>mine is mistaken but my little experiment suggest that hand-bar comfort might be like saddles. We’re all different in our musculature, proportions and preferences. (But JH and I share GB saddle preference!)