mountain bike handlebar width

[teleguy57]

Got out my mid-2000s Fisher X-Caliber this weekend, and after riding my Pugsley with wider bars I was surprised at how narrow these felt the ones on the x-cal felt.

I know tmtb geometries have changed a fair amount. What bar width are folks riding these days for general all-around use, and are there implications for stem length or other positioning/fit?

Yes, I know I can experiment but I'm looking for a starting point. Thanks!

[jtakeda]

I’m using hunter smooth move bars on 35mm stem and lovin it

[joosttx]

Got out my mid-2000s Fisher X-Caliber this weekend, and after riding my Pugsley with wider bars I was surprised at how narrow these felt the ones on the x-cal felt.

I know tmtb geometries have changed a fair amount. What bar width are folks riding these days for general all-around use, and are there implications for stem length or other positioning/fit?

Yes, I know I can experiment but I'm looking for a starting point. Thanks!
740 to780mm I would guess is the normal range for handlebar width. Stem range from 80 to 30mm. clearly, the top tubes are longer and the head tube angles are slacker.

[Cicli]

I just installed some carbon Ritchey Bullmose bars. 720 wide. Hate the width. Need to trim 20-30 off each end.

[Jaybee]

If you don't have crazy descents and climbs and have average shoulder width and strength, I'd start with 760mm and cut as needed. Easy to cut, hard to add length.

[Red Tornado]

My bars are about 715mm. Also run a slightly longer (100mm) stem due to the fact that my current MTB is a hand me down frame from my son & probably on the bottom end of the size I should be riding.
Compared to the 90's/early 2000's things have changed a lot. When I see pictures of me racing back in the day I can't believe I ever ran bars that narrow.
The only disadvantage to using really wide bars is if you have to go between narrow trees. There are a handful of places on my local trails where I have to sort of "swim" through. Get some long bars, cut A LITTLE at a time until it feels right.

[weaponsgrade]

I'm running 750mm and 760mm on my two mtn bikes. I was coming from "narrow" bars of the 90s and 2000 eras and things felt really really wide at first. I wanted to cut them down, but others were encouraging me to stick with it. Now I love them. The funny thing though is that I prefer 40cm drops on my road bike.

[Ronsonic]

I'm on 660s. They're comfortable for me riding mostly XC sort of stuff here in Florida where the trees are kinda close. These are really about as narrow as you can get to work with modernish geo.

[quickfeet]

820s on my ss mtb give me some extra oomph to muscle up climbs

[JAGI410]

750 on fatbike and 760 on 29er

[tommyrod74]

I'm running 750mm and 760mm on my two mtn bikes. I was coming from "narrow" bars of the 90s and 2000 eras and things felt really really wide at first. I wanted to cut them down, but others were encouraging me to stick with it. Now I love them. The funny thing though is that I prefer 40cm drops on my road bike.

Ditto. 780mm bars/60mm stem on XC bike, 40cm bars/110mm stem on road.

[Gummee]

Both my bikes are 'older school geo' in my Superfly and Top Fuel so I have bars that are only slightly wider than my shoulders.

I'm convinced that geos are going to come back to cloesr to 'normal' once this new trend runs its course

M

[d_douglas]

It’s common for locals to ride 800mm bars. I use 740 and it’s my sweet spot. I’ve tagged a few trees, but nothing catastrophic. I use 80mm stems and that is co sidered long by modern standards. A 60mm is what the manufacturer recommended to me, but i felt like the long length was better for me...

As for a trend, it is one (like anything) that really helps when hitting technical trails. Riding on a groomed Jeep trail doesn’t warrant these widths. I think a 680 would be good if you were cruising.

[teleguy57]

Lots of good stuff here -- particularly appreciate your rationale for your choice. Keep it coming

@JAGI410, I hadn't mentioned it, but my x-cal is a 29er so thanks for your observation about that aspect of frame design.

[Peter P.]

I'm running 51cm bars (that's not a typo), not including bar end width. The bars are paired with an 11cm, 84 degree stem. I like a road bike-like feel to my mountain bike hand position. I never understood the wide-bar trend.

[jghall]

Guessing in am going to be outside the norm. I like narrow bars. Not sure I have anything outside a 700. Maybe just me, but I prefer narrower.

[Dad2TnR]

For townie and trail use, I ride in the 660-680mm range. For strictly trail bikes, I'm most comfortable using bars around 710mm.

[oldpotatoe]

If you don't have crazy descents and climbs and have average shoulder width and strength, I'd start with 760mm and cut as needed. Easy to cut, hard to add length.

:eek:I've cut it three times and it's still too short!!":)

[benb]

My bars are 10 years old at least... so stupid narrow compared to modern ones but not like the 1990s ones that are incredibly narrow.

But I feel like I have a spot on almost every single track ride where I barely make it through the trees and these modern 800mm bars would basically force you to dismount and turn the bar to get through the narrow spot in the trail. Not sure how that would be desirable for me.

It must depend on where you are.. I constantly see MTB videos from other parts of the country where there are basically no trees.

[Jaybee]

:eek:I've cut it three times and it's still too short!!":)


Who among us hasn't trashed a fork by way of sloppy measurement?:)

That said, there actually is a way to add length (https://www.pinkbike.com/news/ibis-introduces-adjustable-width-carbon-handlebar.html), provided you are ok with a minimum width of 750 and a max width of 800.

I also rode the NORBA-width bars that some of you are mentioning above. Can't imagine riding less than 740 today, even in tight trees. 780 on my current trail bike, though the Front Range definitely tends more toward the wide-open let it rip style of singletrack.

[Gummee]

I'm running 51cm bars (that's not a typo), not including bar end width. The bars are paired with an 11cm, 84 degree stem. I like a road bike-like feel to my mountain bike hand position. I never understood the wide-bar trend.

If you're not riding one of the WAY SUPER LONG top tube bikes from the last 12mos or so, you don't need or want the wide bars. The wide bars are a response to the extraordinarily twitchy nature of the short stems and 'regular' bars.

Wide bars means the steering inputs are bigger at the ends of the bars to have the same effect as a 'normal' bar to not have the rider shooting all over the trail.

I can't tell you how many people have told me 'geez your bars are narrow' when they're wider than my shoulders. ...but like you, I'm riding old school geo bikes with 110 +/- stems.

Now GET OFF MY TRAIL ya geezer! :D

M

edited to add: I still have a pair of Icon (pre Trek) bars that I got the great idea to cut em down to make em the same as my road bars. That experiment lasted a few rides. Those bars have been in my bin o' fun for how many decades now?!

[p nut]

I like 720mm. Wide enough for control and leverage (even for my SS), and narrow enough for shooting through trees out in the west. For east coast, I'm sure I'd be down a bit narrower.

[sparky33]

I wanted to cut them down, but others were encouraging me to stick with it. Now I love them.

Exactly this.
760 on my xc mtb. The handling with wide bars is awesome.

Squeezing through tight spots with wide bars used to bother me, but I adapted quickly.