What is the use of this brace/cross bar?
04-21-21, 04:23 PM
#1
Newbie
Thread Starter
What is the use of this brace/cross bar?
What is the use of this brace/cross bar? It clamps down on each side of the bar with hex bolts. I bought this bike on CL and the previous owner didn’t say why he installed it. This is on an early 90’s Specialized Rockhopper.
04-21-21, 05:05 PM
#2
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Probably an accessory bar -- lights, computer, phone, etc. Pretty common with mountain bikes converted to commuter use. It's hard to clamp anything on those stock handlebars because the difference in diameter caused most clamp-on accessories fit askew.
Some 1980s rigid mountain bikes had a double cross bar for reinforcement, that often was padded with purpose designed foam rubber, or makeshift stuff like pipe wrap from the plumbing department. Presumably to reduce injuries from cracking ones face on the bar. I rarely see that anymore.
Some 1980s rigid mountain bikes had a double cross bar for reinforcement, that often was padded with purpose designed foam rubber, or makeshift stuff like pipe wrap from the plumbing department. Presumably to reduce injuries from cracking ones face on the bar. I rarely see that anymore.
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04-21-21, 05:58 PM
#3
Senior Member
I have seen after market bolt on braces, but it's generally something that came with the bar originally.
It's just an attempt to emulate moto stuff that looks similar, and probably does stiffen the bar to some degree.
It's just an attempt to emulate moto stuff that looks similar, and probably does stiffen the bar to some degree.
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04-21-21, 06:53 PM
#4
Really Old Senior Member
The diameter looks too small for an accessory bar, but I can't think of another reason why one would attach extra weight.
Maybe someplace to put ones hand for a downhill "more aero" position?
Maybe someplace to put ones hand for a downhill "more aero" position?
04-21-21, 07:22 PM
#5
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Wow people missed out on the 90s. It is a bar to stiffen up the front end. Back when we rode on 25.4 bars they tended to be a bit flexy and so it was a way to make things stiffer and maybe a touch stronger. They are certainly more common on motocross bikes but that is where a lot of the early MTB stuff came from before it fully branched out into its own stuff though a lot of those companies are still doing MX stuff as well.
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04-21-21, 08:02 PM
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Saw these a lot with BMX. Not sure why they would use there.
04-21-21, 09:55 PM
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Probably an accessory bar -- lights, computer, phone, etc. Pretty common with mountain bikes converted to commuter use. It's hard to clamp anything on those stock handlebars because the difference in diameter caused most clamp-on accessories fit askew.
Some 1980s rigid mountain bikes had a double cross bar for reinforcement, that often was padded with purpose designed foam rubber, or makeshift stuff like pipe wrap from the plumbing department. Presumably to reduce injuries from cracking ones face on the bar. I rarely see that anymore.
Some 1980s rigid mountain bikes had a double cross bar for reinforcement, that often was padded with purpose designed foam rubber, or makeshift stuff like pipe wrap from the plumbing department. Presumably to reduce injuries from cracking ones face on the bar. I rarely see that anymore.
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04-22-21, 02:28 AM
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On other things, it needs something like a reflector mounted on that hole in the forks where a caliper brake would go, to act as a brake cable catcher - so that it looks even more retro
04-22-21, 07:41 AM
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Or, more importantly, to act as a stop to keep the straddle cable from falling onto the front tire if the main brake cable breaks.
04-22-21, 08:21 AM
#10
Newbie
Styles peak, decline and eventually return as retro (like Bermuda shorts). Cross-braced BMX bars made it onto early mountain bikes I think Nitto did a variation called a Bullmoose integrated with a quill stem. Now Nitto is back with another one on a threadless stem. It costs almost as much as a whole BMX bike did back then but the nostalgia effect is cool. This is on my fixed bike. I had to trim the saddle nose up a bit from the previous drop bar setting to sit a little up right.
04-22-21, 08:37 AM
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Accessory mount? 
Aero Bar?I've said it many times, for BF, there are only two kinds of MTB's FS 29'ers and '85 Schwinn High Sierras.
"Moto" cross-bar. Keeps this from happening:
From the time when before they made bars like this:
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