Track Bars for the Effin Fixed Gear...

[William]

Well, the Effin Fixed Gear is nearing completion and I’m down to just needing handle bars. I’ve got a set of Bullhorns coming in courtesy of a fine forum friend. :cool: I also decided to find a set of track bars just in case the bullhorns don’t work for me. I spent part of the weekend calling around to the different bike shops in my area when my preferred shop didn’t have anything for me. I finally found a shop who said they had the bars I was looking for so my son and I climbed into the cruiser and headed across the state to pick them up. Aaaaaand it turns out that they didn’t really have them after all. They had one pair that was too small and wouldn’t fit my stem anyway. The trip wasn’t a total loss since they did have the Eggbeater re-build kit that I was looking for. So, no one in RI has a set of track style bars in a 46 cm (44 minimum)…and most had none at all.

I had been doing some looking around on line and came across Soma Fabrications who has a few different options at decent prices…and in the size I need. I’ve seen one set of Soma bars up close and they seemed to be very good quality with a good finish. I was curious if anyone else has dealt with them and used their products? At this point the 456 track bars are looking good.

http://www.somafab.com/bars.html


William

[Oirad]

William,

I've a Soma Fab "Major Taylor" on my fixed gear bike and (their stem too). The quality is very good and the look and feel are excellent. You could always go with Nitto too, I suppose.

Oirad

[11.4]

William,

Track bars tend to be narrower than road bars. Bars like you're looking for are almost unheard of. Even big sprinters are riding 39 or 40 cm width bars. On the track it lets you work through small holes. On track and road it keeps the pull of your arms more in line with the push of your legs -- simple efficiency. And at higher track speeds you just put on a slightly longer stem and have a more aero position with your rib cage lifted more above your diaphragm so you actually breath better. The whole wide bar thing is a bit of a crock -- you'll notice that the pro peloton has been moving back into more reasonable bar widths with many big riders doing 40's and 42's these days.

I'd suggest you try out narrower bars. Nitto does make their track drops in very wide sizes (at least in 44's c-c) but the question is whether you really need it. If part of your goal in riding a fixie is to gain specific fixie-related improvements, you can do this best riding more of a track position and with decent bars. The shapes on a lot of the fixie-oriented bars (like the Soma) are not as refined as on Nitto's or the like.

Also, many fixie riders find that track bars are good for track, where the curve helps keep the bars from hitting your forearm in a proper standing start, but on the road (especially with brake levers) you want something better suited to riding part of the time on the tops of the bars. Just put on a pair of road bars. Heck, in the massed start events most trackies are on standard road bars anyway.

[William]

William,

I've a Soma Fab "Major Taylor" on my fixed gear bike and (their stem too). The quality is very good and the look and feel are excellent. You could always go with Nitto too, I suppose.

Oirad

I ordered the Soma Fab"456" Track bars. :cool:



William