Wow, thanks for the considerable insight, everyone! I really appreciate the assessments, personal histories, preferences and the rest.
I'm currently running Albatross bars but find I most often ride in the forward position of the bars, in front of the brake levers. It's nice to take the full upright position to change the grip and riding posture but I'm finding it is my least favorite grip. I do love the look of the bars, can't deny it and won't try to hide it. The bike I have now is a little big for me, I can *just* stand over it. Not much seatpost showing (similar, perhaps, to the too-big Sam that Grant wrote about in one of the readers). When I first bought it there were some 45cm drops installed, the widest I'd tried to that point. I thought they were pretty groovy and almost felt great. But the stem was way too long and I had become possessed of the idea of trying out Albatross bars. Of the big bars out there the Nitto/Crust Shaka bars have my attention. As others have mentioned the cost and time involved in a swap is considerable. Thanks again to everyone for sharing. On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 4:56:04 PM UTC-5 ryan.merri...@gmail.com wrote: > I have a Crust Towel Rack bar on a cyclocross bike. I like it, but I have > gradually moved my bars on most of my bikes over to Albatross bars or > Bullmoose bars because I prefer mtb brake levers. > > The wide drop bar really is comfortable and allows a lot of control of the > bike in grass, mud, and rocky terrain. The wide tops are almost like riding > a short flat bar > and when in the drops you really get a lot of control. It has been my > experience that you really have to use a really short stem to make these > bars comfortable though. On the Crust Towel rack, I find the bends of the > bar to be quite comfortable and don't get any wrist or hand pain. > On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 12:57:43 PM UTC-6 john...@gmail.com > wrote: > >> The difference between ultra-wide drops and wide MTB bars is that wide >> MTB bars have been mainstream for a while now. Pretty much every MTB I see >> these days has >> very wide bars. Shops sell them and are able to help with setup. Other >> riders can also advise. Here in the EU at least, ultra wide drops are still >> a bit niche. You need to go online >> to get them, and to get advice on them. I am the only person near me who >> rides with them, and my MTB friends think I'm weird. So I had to do my own >> experiments with setup and ergonomics, and I can't really be sure I'm >> getting things right, apart from the feedback my arms, back and wrists give >> me. I'm glad I didn't give up on wide drops after some initial weirdness, >> but it took some patience to find the right ones. YMMV. >> >> As for alt-bars, a lot of those seem very similar to older designs like >> the German stuttgarter or French Toulouse bar that people have been riding >> for decades, so they are not entirely new territory. >> >> The main benefits I've found to wide drops for off road are, first, mud: >> I seem to get less bogged down in muddy sections with wider drops, and, >> second, steeper, fairly technical climbs. Riding a steep climb in the drops >> gives me a more confident grip than either flat bars or barends, and more >> leverage than narrower drops. I'm not exactly a 'gnarly' rider by an >> stretch of the imagination. I have no idea if wide drops would be a good >> idea for drop-offs or other more extreme riding. >> >> On Wed, 6 Jan 2021 at 19:30, Ben Miller <ben.l....@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> I like Collins point with one correction: "The main point I think is >>> that *handlebars* are kinda like saddles." >>> >>> As a person who loves drop bars but has always hated how narrow they >>> are, I love the recent developments. I own the Crust Towelrack (v2 - Full >>> size at 670 mm) and the Crust x Nitto Shaka bar (520 mm). Wide drop bars >>> are great for really maximizing different hand positions (so many!) This is >>> my main reason for liking them. I heartily disagree with anyone who >>> questions their ergonomics, even a little. The Nitto Mustache is 515 mm, >>> the Rivendell Albastache is 555 mm, and the Riv Billie 580 mm, and the >>> Bullmoose 670 mm! And modern MTB bars are even larger. No one complains >>> about those being based upon "ergonomics that haven't been tested >>> properly." >>> >>> Personally, I have never liked alt-bars (Albatross, Bullmoose, etc), >>> though I love the look of them. But that is me! If you want a wide bar and >>> like not having drops, get some alts. If you want a narrow bar and drops >>> you're all set. And now, if you've been jonesing for a wide bar with drops, >>> you're time has come! I don't think there is much mystery to it. Yes you >>> can fit a larger bag, but too me that shouldn't be a reason to get >>> handlebars (though it is a nice benefit to wide bars). I'm also middling >>> about the off-road aspect. I've never felt like 440 mm noddles provided too >>> little leverage for a bumpy trail, but maybe I'm not shredding the gnar >>> hard enough?? >>> >>> A couple of final thoughts: I think the Shaka bar strikes pretty much >>> the prefect balance for me, so much so I bought another pair just the other >>> day when Crust came back online. The Towelrack, although still really >>> *really* good, have a few drawbacks to me compared to the Shaka: >>> Aerodynamics - yeah, yeah, I'm not overly concerns with *Aero* or >>> anything, but you do pay a bit of penalty here, coasting down a descent in >>> which your buddies speed past you without pedaling is just something that >>> is going to happen compared to normal drops, even the Shakas (which I don't >>> notice this with). Now compared to Alts, it's probably better, so if your >>> decision is between the two, it's maybe a no-brainer, but something to >>> consider otherwise (Basically I don't want to put them on a pure road bike) >>> Clearance - They are *wide; *be prepared to have to think a lot more >>> about navigating some situations. On the open road this isn't a problem, >>> but tight singletrack or urban bike infrastructure can suddenly become a >>> bit more challenging. I think this may be more of challenge with wide drops >>> compared to alt or MTB bars due to your hands being a bit more exposed due >>> to the positioning, even though they are just as wide. Or, i dunno, maybe >>> my bike handling skills are junk and I got away with narrow bars? Again I >>> don't have this issue with the Shakas as much >>> Different pressure points - Not really a big deal, but do be prepared to >>> get callous in different spots. I notice that using Towelrack tends to give >>> me callouses inbetween my thumb and forefinger, whereas with normal drops I >>> get them more on the base forefinger and middle finger. >>> >>> In short, handlebars are very much a personal preference and wide >>> dropbars aren't any different; they are *not* a panacea but I also >>> don't think they are just a "trend." They are probably best for folks you >>> like a lot of width for different hand positions and also want to maximum >>> their reach on their bike compared to alt bars. >>> >>> On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 9:37:00 AM UTC-8 André P wrote: >>> >>>> I mounted Shaka 31.8 clamp bars to my Hillborne in late 2019. I just >>>> took them off to put back on the original Noodles I got with the bike back >>>> in 2014. I personally feel like I have my Rivendell back after swapping >>>> back to the Noodles. The factors that I list as negatives might however >>>> might be exactly what some folks are looking for! >>>> >>>> - Too upright, I got a shorter more upright stem as went with the usual >>>> recommendation. It just put me too up and out in a way that's not the same >>>> as a nice wide mountain bike bar. >>>> - Too stiff, I had the Shaka's in 31.8 with a steel Nitto stem of some >>>> variety. I think the flexy cockpit is a feature of Riv's that shouldn't be >>>> undercounted. It provides a lot of that feeling of smoothness on dirt >>>> (maybe, who knows). >>>> >>>> On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 7:50:29 AM UTC-8 Collin A wrote: >>>> >>>>> I'll add my little tidbit after trying 2 different wide (560 at the >>>>> drops, 48 to 50 at the hoods) not Super-Wide drop bars. The main point I >>>>> think is that the wide drops are kinda like saddles - find one with a >>>>> shape >>>>> that you like because everyone will tell you something different. I also >>>>> don't think its better than any particular setup, just something >>>>> different >>>>> that may fit your needs better than typical drops or flat bars. >>>>> >>>>> Key Points to make it work (I think): >>>>> Shorten your stem >>>>> Know what flare you like (for me, 15-20 is perfect for rough stuff, 12 >>>>> is the max I go for road). I think more flare the wider you go is >>>>> important, but massive flare on the narrower side is kinda weird >>>>> Get levers that work well braking from the hoods if that's your thing >>>>> Be open to adjusting your whole cockpit - saddle tilt, setback, bar >>>>> height, angle, etc. >>>>> >>>>> Benefits: >>>>> It feels great when you have a set of bars that works with your body >>>>> position and riding style. >>>>> I definitely feel like I can throw the bike around a bit more when >>>>> going down fun single track compared to narrow drops >>>>> Gets me out of the wind (at least mentally) compared to flats >>>>> Gives room for big bags >>>>> You are "on-trend" >>>>> >>>>> Cons: >>>>> Expensive to do the switch if you don't have the parts (new long bar >>>>> tape that is sometimes hard to find, shorter stem, drop bar parts, etc.) >>>>> Takes a little bit of getting used to and fiddling with cockpit setup >>>>> Shifting can be a bit of a bear to setup - will need longer cables if >>>>> doing bar ends and most modern bar shapes have tight curves >>>>> >>>>> Hope this helps, >>>>> Collin, in Sacramento >>>>> >>>>> On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 at 4:34:50 AM UTC-8 eric...@gmail.com >>>>> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> Big, wide drops seem to be everywhere these days, even here in the >>>>>> group! I've noticed some for sale and others used in builds. Rather than >>>>>> read through another dull review in some unfamiliar corner of the >>>>>> internet >>>>>> I wanted to see if anyone in the group could share some firsthand >>>>>> experience. How does it feel running those > 50cm drop bars? >>>>> >>>>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to a topic in the >>> Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this topic, visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/topic/rbw-owners-bunch/kC4yFtKAmzc/unsubscribe >>> . >>> To unsubscribe from this group and all its topics, send an email to >>> rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com. >>> To view this discussion on the web visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/eae4017b-f65a-42c0-afc7-0ec08fe07d9cn%40googlegroups.com >>> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/eae4017b-f65a-42c0-afc7-0ec08fe07d9cn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. 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