OS Handlebars

Jay Beattie

Are the 31.8 handlebars a better idea? Any bar recommendations
for a 200lb rider? I am starting my component purchase jihad for
my new, replacement bicycle and am toying with going light.

Lastly but not leastly, what is the convention for width. I have
used 42s (mostly) and 44s for years, but have never selected a
bar scientifically. I figure science may help me now that I am
old and slower. -- Jay Beattie.

Chalo

"Jay Beattie" <jbeattie@lindsayhart.com> wrote:

> Are the 31.8 handlebars a better idea?

No. Hypothetically, the thicker center section offers superior
stiffness to a 25.4/26.0/26.4mm bar. But all the readily available
drop bars in the fatter size are very lightweight and double grooved,
so they'll flop around just as impotently as any other very
lightweight, double grooved bar. What tiny amount of stiffness you
may gain will not be worth the sacrifice in interchangeability and
compatibility with clamp-on accessories.

> Any bar recommendations for a 200lb rider?

Something with a round cross section. All else equal, a round-tubed
bar will offer better stiffness, strength, and durability than a
grooved bar.

> Lastly but not leastly, what is the convention for width. I have
> used 42s (mostly) and 44s for years, but have never selected a
> bar scientifically.

There is no science to it; the drop bar itself is the result of a
confluence of tradition, superstition, and misguided conventional
wisdom. Use whatever width you like best, or use a proper handlebar
like most of the world's bicyclists and all its motorcyclists.

Chalo Colina

Mike Jacoubowsky

> Are the 31.8 handlebars a better idea? Any bar recommendations
> for a 200lb rider? I am starting my component purchase jihad for
> my new, replacement bicycle and am toying with going light.

31.8mm handlebars definitely improve stiffness, although that's not
something too many people complain about in a road handlebar. However, when
you test-ride identical bikes, one with a 31.8 and another with a 26.0 bar
(as we had the opportunity to do this year, since some of our earliest '04
models shipped with 26.0 bars until they had a supply of 31.8s), many will
say the 31.8 is a big improvement. I notice some difference, but not in a
way that would make the ride better or worse and, since a 31.8 bar typically
has less clamping area for things like a handlebar bag, I'll probably stay
with 26.0 until at least after my next trip to France (or until I find a
better way to carry my bulkier, non-pocketable camera).

But when you mention "going light", well, 31.8 has *not* delivered on the
promise of lighter equipment. If anything, it's usually slightly-heavier.

> Lastly but not leastly, what is the convention for width. I have
> used 42s (mostly) and 44s for years, but have never selected a
> bar scientifically. I figure science may help me now that I am
> old and slower. -- Jay Beattie.

I usually size a bar 2cm wider than the shoulder blades; back-in-the-day,
we'd go for straight shoulder width. I much prefer a wider bar, using 44cm
for the past several years. When I raced (back in the mid-70s) I was
running 38cm bars on my crit bike and 40cm on my road. When I try out a
bike fitted with such narrow bars now, they feel just plain wrong! In
general, once you go to a wider bar, I think you'll have a difficult time
going back to something narrower. For me, climbing & breathing seem
enhanced by the wider bar. I say "seem" enhanced, because I have no
scientific proof (nor have read any) that there's any real benefit. But I
figure if they feel better, why not?

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com

Qui si parla Campagnolo

jbeaghttie-<< Are the 31.8 handlebars a better idea? >><BR><BR>

Nope, marketing driven.

<< Any bar recommendations
for a 200lb rider? >><BR><BR>

Ritchey Pro...WCS also(I use one and I am also .1 offa ton)

As for width, use what ya think is comfy. Put three people inna room and ask
about hbar width, get 4 opinions.

Peter Chisholm
Vecchio's Bicicletteria
1833 Pearl St.
Boulder, CO, 80302
(303)440-3535
http://www.vecchios.com
"Ruote convenzionali costruite eccezionalmente bene"