Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
User avatar
georgew
Posts: 1526
Joined: 27 Jan 2007, 4:23pm

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by georgew »

rjb wrote:I have these Scott AT3 bars on my tandem. Drops on all my other bikes. I find these trekking bars ideal for their purpose. They are at 500mm width a good deal narrower than current trekking & butterfly bars which are generally 580mm width. If I could get my hands on something similar I would also fit these to my tourer in place of the drops.


These are similar to the Humpert bars found at SJSC other than that the Humpert bars have the facility to adjust the position of the end sections. I have a few pairs of these and found them excellent but fail to understand the need for the adjusting part as it only serves to make them heavier.

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/humpert-ahs- ... prod24411/
tyred
Posts: 191
Joined: 14 Oct 2011, 11:17am

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by tyred »

I put a set on an old MTB I had built over the winter as a sort of "do everything bike" just for the sake of trying something different and that they had always looked to me like they should be comfortable and practical.

I do indeed find them comfortable with a lot of different hand positions. Although most of my bikes have drops, I have never been a huge fan of drops and I prefer these in most respects but a few issues I've found -

I still haven't found the ideal place for the brake levers/shifter (for Shimano hub gear). I keep moving things around and have become an expert at re-taping the things.

They are wider than anything else at their widest point and my cycle cape doesn't fit over them! Of course I hadn't thought about this until I got caught out in a torrential downpour..

A lot of people will ask questions which I don't mind if I'm in the mood/have time for a chat but at other times..

They definitely do flex, noticeable if you climb out of the saddle a lot.
pwa
Posts: 17368
Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by pwa »

georgew wrote:
rjb wrote:I have these Scott AT3 bars on my tandem. Drops on all my other bikes. I find these trekking bars ideal for their purpose. They are at 500mm width a good deal narrower than current trekking & butterfly bars which are generally 580mm width. If I could get my hands on something similar I would also fit these to my tourer in place of the drops.


These are similar to the Humpert bars found at SJSC other than that the Humpert bars have the facility to adjust the position of the end sections. I have a few pairs of these and found them excellent but fail to understand the need for the adjusting part as it only serves to make them heavier.

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/humpert-ahs- ... prod24411/


Apart from the weight they look good. I would choose the narrower (51cm) version, giving the kind of width I have on my tandem's straight bars. I put long Ergon bar ends on that, probably ending up with a similar (or greater) weight, so having the bar ends effectively built in excuses the weight for me. As with bar ends, I suppose, you can find your hands too far from the brakes.
User avatar
CREPELLO
Posts: 5559
Joined: 29 Nov 2008, 12:55am

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by CREPELLO »

rjb wrote:I have these Scott AT3 bars on my tandem. Drops on all my other bikes. I find these trekking bars ideal for their purpose. They are at 500mm width a good deal narrower than current trekking & butterfly bars which are generally 580mm width. If I could get my hands on something similar I would also fit these to my tourer in place of the drops.

Have you looked at SJS recently? http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/handlebars-o ... /#page=all
They've certainly got more butterfly bars than they had a couple of years back. You may like these Humpert bars. They look very similar to yours and they're available at 510mm. I'd certainly consider a pair if I needed some butterfly type bars.
Cyril Haearn
Posts: 15215
Joined: 30 Nov 2013, 11:26am

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by Cyril Haearn »

Just rode 9 km home on my new bike with butterfly bars, had them fitted specially, very first impression quite good, stem swivels too, lots of adjustability and different positions

When I was a boy we all had to have racing bikes with dropped bars

Are butterflies the new drops?
Entertainer, juvenile, curmudgeon, PoB, 30120
Cycling-of course, but it is far better on a Gillott
We love safety cameras, we hate bullies
pwa
Posts: 17368
Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by pwa »

Cyril Haearn wrote:Just rode 9 km home on my new bike with butterfly bars, had them fitted specially, very first impression quite good, stem swivels too, lots of adjustability and different positions

When I was a boy we all had to have racing bikes with dropped bars

Are butterflies the new drops?

No :D
User avatar
RickH
Posts: 5832
Joined: 5 Mar 2012, 6:39pm
Location: Horwich, Lancs.

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by RickH »

I got some Scott one piece bars, that were formed into a U shape at each end, back in the day for my old 1986 vintage MTB but eventually swapped them for more conventional straight bars (chopped down to the minimum width that would fit everything on) with slightly hooked bar ends. I found using the far ends of the Scott bars very flexy which was one reason I changed them. Now I have drops on all bikes & it is much more comfortable (for me).
Former member of the Cult of the Polystyrene Head Carbuncle.
User avatar
pjclinch
Posts: 5470
Joined: 29 Oct 2007, 2:32pm
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by pjclinch »

Cyril Haearn wrote:Just rode 9 km home on my new bike with butterfly bars, had them fitted specially, very first impression quite good, stem swivels too, lots of adjustability and different positions

When I was a boy we all had to have racing bikes with dropped bars

Are butterflies the new drops?


Aside from anything else they're not really new, but...

When I was a teen I had to have a racing bike with drop bars, because it was a racing bike. For racing bikes where getting as low as possible and never mind the comfort makes quite a lot of sense butterfly bars aren't going to get you anywhere fast (which is rather the point when racing) so not there, but for touring they make a great deal of sense. Look at typical European tourers and it's entirely likely this is the sort of bars they'll have. Drop bars on a tourer are something of a British institution, but with most tourers riding on the straights, corners or hoods rather than the drops almost all the time it may well be the case that just because it's an institution doesn't make it the best idea.

I went from my "racer" (a Raleigh Olympus) to a traditional British tourer (an EBC Country) and a lot of that was I felt that was what a Proper Bike was, but I abandoned drops on upright bikes after I started riding recumbents for touring, and frankly I don't miss them. That you have to be in an relatively uncomfortable position you don't usually use to get maximum braking effect, or add rather contrived extra levers, or these days only access the gears if you're on the hoods, isn't what you'd get if you were designing a cockpit from scratch IMHO.

If I were riding an upwrong a long way I'd probably go for butterfly bars. Failing that, straights with bar-ends (what my upwrong hack bike has).

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
crazydave789
Posts: 584
Joined: 22 Jul 2017, 10:21pm

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by crazydave789 »

I fitted some to mine and the wifes bikes last year, mainly because I was used to bolting two sets of bar ends together so they looked like stag antlers and it was a more practical to utilise what we had. I bought a second hand bike to start over and refurbished her neglected bike.

I like them and she prefers them to regular bar ends but I did end up wrapping more padded tape over the foam then cohesive bandage over that.

I still might end up adding some bar ends into a tri bar position up the front but that's just me - although I have seen several modded that way.

the only drawback is you need to fit the longest stem you can find preferably an adjustable one if your frame gives a tight riding position or it becomes too twitchy. we ride ours quite flat but I have seen some very odd angles on other pretzel bar users.

some don't like them but that means you can pick a set up off ebay with patience though you can pick up a new set cheap enough.
Cyril Haearn
Posts: 15215
Joined: 30 Nov 2013, 11:26am

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by Cyril Haearn »

Looking forward to trying them out and adjusting them
Racing bars were ubiquitous back then
Can't understand straights with only one hand position, that must be fatiguing on longer rides
Entertainer, juvenile, curmudgeon, PoB, 30120
Cycling-of course, but it is far better on a Gillott
We love safety cameras, we hate bullies
Vorpal
Moderator
Posts: 20700
Joined: 19 Jan 2009, 3:34pm
Location: Not there ;)

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by Vorpal »

I got some butterfly bars used off someone on the forum some years ago. I put them on my hybrid, which is now used as a winter bike. I like them very much on that bike.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
User avatar
pjclinch
Posts: 5470
Joined: 29 Oct 2007, 2:32pm
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by pjclinch »

Cyril Haearn wrote:Looking forward to trying them out and adjusting them
Racing bars were ubiquitous back then
Can't understand straights with only one hand position, that must be fatiguing on longer rides


Hand positions are only really relevant if you're leaning on your hands. The more upright the riding position, the less weight on the hands. Of course, it's also the more wind you catch and the more weight on your saddle, so you'll go slower and have a number bum if you do a tour sat up straight. That's certainly been the case when I've done it because that was the bike I had (a hired Dutch opafiets or my Brom).

When I use my straight-barred Moulton for long(ish) rides (anything properly long I'll use the 'bent, which solves weight on hands and aero very nicely) I use the bar-ends a lot, even though I have it set more upright than most trad British tourers, and certainly more so than road bikes. But to some degree it'll be personal physiology and adaptation: people used to riding all day on straight bars because that's what they've always done will wonder what the fuss is about, but if I'm in any sort of crouch it'd kill me. My limit on my old drop-bar tourer was about 100km, at which point neck and wrists told me I wasn't having fun any more.

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
User avatar
mjr
Posts: 20308
Joined: 20 Jun 2011, 7:06pm
Location: Norfolk or Somerset, mostly
Contact:

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by mjr »

pjclinch wrote:Hand positions are only really relevant if you're leaning on your hands. The more upright the riding position, the less weight on the hands. Of course, it's also the more wind you catch and the more weight on your saddle, so you'll go slower and have a number bum if you do a tour sat up straight. That's certainly been the case when I've done it because that was the bike I had (a hired Dutch opafiets or my Brom).

Then IMO it's been set up wrong or your core strength isn't enough to support such a leant over position. Weight should almost all be distributed between saddle and pedals, with just enough weight on the bars to control the steering, and this doesn't vary by position. Occasionally, one may choose to lean on the bars to steady the front end over rough surfaces, but not always.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
All the above is CC-By-SA and no other implied copyright license to Cycle magazine.
User avatar
pjclinch
Posts: 5470
Joined: 29 Oct 2007, 2:32pm
Location: Dundee, Scotland
Contact:

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by pjclinch »

mjr wrote:Then IMO it's been set up wrong or your core strength isn't enough to support such a leant over position. Weight should almost all be distributed between saddle and pedals, with just enough weight on the bars to control the steering, and this doesn't vary by position. Occasionally, one may choose to lean on the bars to steady the front end over rough surfaces, but not always.


Up to a point, Lord Copper. We've evolved to be upright, and even while I can hold myself up with my core muscles in a crouch with very little weight on my arms I have to make a conscious effort to do it and I'm more comfortable if I don't have to bother with all that and can either sit up straight or lie back. And if I have to do it for 4+ hours I am in the realm of Not Having Much Fun with at least one set of supporting joints/muscles out of core, shoulders, wrists or neck complaining. I can't sit comfortably on the ground without a back support for long, maybe I'm just Crap in this respect...

NL, with a well deserved reputation for wind, is dominated by bikes where you sit up straight. I suspect they'd have twigged if there was no downside to a crouch.

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
User avatar
mjr
Posts: 20308
Joined: 20 Jun 2011, 7:06pm
Location: Norfolk or Somerset, mostly
Contact:

Re: Butterfly / trekking handlebars - opinions please

Post by mjr »

pjclinch wrote:NL, with a well deserved reputation for wind, is dominated by bikes where you sit up straight. I suspect they'd have twigged if there was no downside to a crouch.

Indeed and it's another way that the UK's racing-dominated cycling marketplace serves us ill - but note that I was also objecting to the suggestion that one has a numb-er bum on a roadster/Dutch bike than a racer. The weight should be shared by the saddle and pedals about the same in both cases - the lean means it's a different angle onto the sit bones so it's not exactly the same but that's not often important.

Of course, riding laid back spreads the weight more and a mesh seat can reduce the sweating, but those bikes are usually much more expensive than even a good roadster.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
All the above is CC-By-SA and no other implied copyright license to Cycle magazine.
Post Reply