Cycling UK Forum

I got into MTB in probably mid 90s when they were just becoming all the rage.

I see in the intervening quarter century they are now shunned.

Is there any practical reason for either their use or descent from popularity?

In other words did they have any practical benefit even when they were trendy and/or is there any valid reason not to use them now?

For reference my bike I want to make it a hill climbing specialist. I have read bar ends are specifically good for this, that was the original idea I remember too. Is there anything to that or was it just hype? I seem to recall them helping somewhat to pull up hills but was no expert and may have just been the cool factor that made me feel like they were working.

Are the benefits negligible or worth adding? I see they are still used on modern touring bikes so some people must find them of some use?

For reference my bike has the classic flat MTB bars of the time. Not the newer wise risers of today. I specifically asked the seller to put the original ones back on if he had them as the images showed risers. I had read an article that flat bars are better for hill climbing and just generally prefer the cycle.

I always fit them to any flat bar that can take them. They are simply and obviously useful for hills and head winds and just different hand positions. Can't see why wouldn't fit them.

djnotts wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 8:57am I always fit them to any flat bar that can take them. They are simply and obviously useful for hills and head winds and just different hand positions. Can't see why wouldn't fit them.

Not obvious to me, can you explain what the advantages are for hills?

Pulling on them, just like hoods on drops?

djnotts wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:10am Pulling on them, just like hoods on drops?

Don't know what those are but I guess the sticky out bits on the brakes drop bars.

Also regarding shape is there much to be gained beyond the simple straight ones?

I remember I had big L shaped ones in the 90s but I am not sure if there was much benefit to the other angle beyond the 90 degrees of the initial attachment.

Might they offer different riding positions?

Jonathan

Jdsk wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:14am Might they offer different riding positions?

Jonathan

They might yes.

My experiments with way too many not-drop handlebars tell me (and it might be different for others) that a fairly 90s-MTB setup, with flattish bars, not too wide, and big bar-ends, is the least bad “not swept back” setup.

It gives plenty of hand positions and wrist orientations, and a pretty decent climbing stance. After recommendations from many here, I found the best to be Ergon GP5, because they are nice and big, and have a multitude of hand positions.

But ….. there are disadvantages, of which the ones that make this setup “not perfect” IMO, are:

- on the bar-ends, it’s difficult to be in control of the brakes, not like being on hoods on a drop-bar;

- they catch on passing shrubbery, which is a serious issue if you ride narrow towpaths and narrow woodland paths (to be fair, the hoods on drops can sometimes get caught too).

My wider conclusion about not-drop bars is that even the best of ‘em don’t cover as many “use cases” as a set of slightly wide drop-bars, with shallow, slightly-flared drops, but that probably isn’t what you want to hear.

biker38109 wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:20am

Jdsk wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:14am Might they offer different riding positions?

They might yes.

How about trying without and with and seeing which you prefer?

Jonathan

Nearholmer wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:22am My experiments with way too many not-drop handlebars tell me (and it might be different for others) that a fairly 90s-MTB setup, with flattish bars, not too wide, and big bar-ends, is the least bad “not swept back” setup.

What is a swept back setup?

But ….. there are disadvantages, of which the ones that make this setup “not perfect” IMO, are:

- on the bar-ends, it’s difficult to be in control of the brakes, not like being on hoods on a drop-bar;

Shouldn't be an issue if using mainly for climbing though eh?

- they catch on passing shrubbery, which is a serious issue if you ride narrow towpaths and narrow woodland paths.

I had thought of that, worse than shrubbery would be horrible to catch on a tree branch and be whipped around! However I do not ride 'downhill' or such that this would be an issue. If I did venture I would be very cognizant of that and probably going fairly slowly. I suppose the 90s bars, being much narrower, would be less of an issue than the wide ones of today.

Spend a tenner and find out. Could theorise about it ad nauseam.

If you use the bar-ends only for steep climbs, the brakes issue isn’t important, but once I’d fitted them I found I was using them as the default, and it became annoying having to go to the main handgrips every time I was on the flat or downhill.

A lot of people really like the “flat + GP5” combo though, so don’t only take my views into account.

“Swept back” is where the hand position on the bar is to some degree pointing backwards. They come in all sort of angles, from a few degrees, to the full ninety degrees backwards, so parallel to the crossbar, on old English Roadsters and Dutch bikes. These are what I’ve got on the “flat” bike currently, and they are fairly extreme sweeps, 70 degrees iirc.
Extreme sweeps have their pros and cons too, of course!

I also always fit them to straight bars - as well as giving another hand position I can lean forwards to put more weight over the front wheel if standing up when pedalling up a hill, or I can be a little more aerodynamic when sitting on the saddle and riding faster.
To reverse the question, why not fit them?

I have also found that in very hot weather that bare alloy ones can help keep my hands cool.

Jdsk wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:22am

biker38109 wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:20am

Jdsk wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:14am Might they offer different riding positions?

They might yes.

How about trying without and with and seeing which you prefer?

djnotts wrote: ↑18 Sep 2024, 9:35am Spend a tenner and find out. Could theorise about it ad nauseam.

But how about colour of bar ends? Most of mine are black, and that seems to coordinate quite nicely with many of the HPVs.

What do others use?

Jonathan

Colour? Match bars or steerer or forks or frame, obviously! Or any 1, 2, 3 or all of those. We'll leave cranks and rims out else it all gets just TOO complicated....