Stem\bar width

marathon dave

marathon dave

Member
Looking at going wider from 650 mm. I'm looking at 680, 710 and 745 (maybe way to wide). Want to hear what the benefits are you experienced. When you went wider, did you go shorter on the stem? I've read the wider you go the closer you get to the bike which may help balance myself but will it affect climbing?
 
I kept the same stem (+10x100) when I went with wider bars as to not mess with the steering. I have Niner bars that are in the 690 area (I'd have to measure) on a SS 29er. 2 Things I noticed are they help keep my chest open so I breathe easier and the added leverage for climbs
 
745 is way wide. I think the Niner bars Uncut were 710. I'm not totally sure. I walk into Halters and say "lemme get dat" BECAUSE BALLER.
 
hmm, I did opposite. I keep going more narrow and shorter stem. My next stem I'm thinking about dropping to 80. Gotta measure the bars to see how much I've cut off.
 
If you go wider, I always thought the rule of thumb was a shorter stem.

I try to get away with the widest bar I can.
 
mr.chainsaw said:
You don't feel twitchy with short bars?
Click to expand...

Nah. I started w/ wide bars, but kept cutting 1/2-1/4" off each side until I found a good point. I still feel like I can take another 1/4" off but I'm going to leave it where it is I think. When they were new, I felt like I was steering a steam ship or something. Definitely feels more responsive now, but not narrow enough to be twitchy.
 
Yeah. I guess the length of the bars are relative to the shoulder width of the rider...perfect for you might be narrow for me. Different strokes to rule the world. FTR my bike rides like a shopping cart....and I like it
 
wide but not too wide

I'm running 710mm bars on my 29er and I like the width, but I think I'm going to trim then down to about 680mm. For some of the places I ride the 710mm is a tad wide. I'd like a little more breathing room between my nuckles and the trees.

I don't think there is a hard and fast rule about stem sizing, but technically speaking as you go wider you are increasing your reach, so to keep the reach the same with wider bars you need to use a shorter stem or reduce your drop to keep the reach the same. Like wise, as you go narrower you are decreasing your reach, so to equalize you can go longer in the stem or increase your drop.

I think two important factors for bar width selection are:
1.) your size. if you are 5'6", a really wide bar might not make sense.
2.) your usual terrain. if you ride a lot of technical tree buzzing single track then really wide might not make sense.

I think for most trails anything up to 710mm will not be a problem. wider than that and you might be asking to punch a few trees. although you might be able to take flight😉

just my 2 cents.
 
mr.chainsaw said:
Yeah. I guess the length of the bars are relative to the shoulder width of the rider...perfect for you might be narrow for me. Different strokes to rule the world. FTR my bike rides like a shopping cart....and I like it
Click to expand...

Yea it definitely is. I went for a fitting at signature cycles for my road bike and although I felt ok on 44's, it was determined that I needed to be riding 42s. Kind of ironic considering I just finished saying how I like narrow bars yet I was on bars that were too wide. If only road bars were as easy to cut down as mtb bars 🙄
 
Thanks for the inputs guys. I saw a sunline vs one 745mm bar in red on chainlove and I'm thinking of cutting it down to 710. anyone use this bar? I have the stem and it's great, I assume the bars are solid.
 
if you are riding all mtn type stuff - i.e. Ringwood yellow etc. 685-720 width bar is good - also shorter stems 60-80mm are good - shorter stems help descending - above 90mm stems are for road bikes IMHO.
 
Ive got the Sunline 685MM on 3 of my bikes, they are the carbon version. I personally think it's a perfect width. I think over 700 would be overkill for non real freeride/DH riding. I run a 70, 90 & 100 stems on my bikes. Start with what stem you have & size down if needed, you wouldn't necessarily need to size down but it will certainly help if you are riding the chunky stuff.
 
this summer i went from to a 711 bar with a 90 stem on my 29'er ss. definitely opened up my chest and added leverage for climbing, also enabled better control for descending. however, i will occasionally will skim a tree with my hands which can be sketchy.
 
Whatever they said...more technical, more uphill; more wider, more better. More control, less twitchy. I never really thought about stem length in terms of bar width, always thought it was more related to cockpit comfort, but I humbly admit, I could be wrong.
 
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