The comfort of narrow handlebars.

[TobinHatesYou]

I have a question about narrower bars and stem length. Basically, do I have to compensate for narrower bars with a longer stem? I'm guessing I'd have to compensate for half the bar width, so going from a 42 to a 40 would require a 10mm longer stem. I'm also a little worried about knee to elbow interference as I already have some with 42cm bars.

It's not going to be a noticeable difference going from 42cm to 40cm if you think about it. You're creating a triangle using your arm length as two sides and the third side is 10mm. The reach difference is going to be a fraction of a millimeter.

Now if you go from 44cm to 38cm, then you might consider changing stem length, but even then it depends on your shoulder width and whether you can roll them forward, drop or shrug them.

[spartacus]

I went from 42 to 36 on my commuter road bike and kept the same stem. Don't feel like I need to go longer. Bar reach affects this too.

[toshi]

Something I've noticed is that while manufacturers will list bars as available in 36cm widths, distributors/retailers don't seem to offer them. Example: Pro PLT Compact Ergo Alloy.

Has anyone seen this particular bar in stock anywhere, in 36cm?

[stalkersk]

Something I've noticed is that while manufacturers will list bars as available in 36cm widths, distributors/retailers don't seem to offer them. Example: Pro PLT Compact Ergo Alloy.

Has anyone seen this particular bar in stock anywhere, in 36cm?

IMO, it's market related, I need to soruce them from germany, locally no option to get anything under 40/42 from shimano.

[Mortecouille]

Prime Primavera 36cm are back in stock.

I'm interested, but bothered by the absence of flared drops.

[vgcl]

I am coming from 44's, can't decide whether to just go for the 38's straight away or be "reasonable" and do the 40's.

Same here. I'm 1.88m (6'2") and measure around 40-41cm between shoulder bones. 44 fells huge, my wrists twists a lot outwards to compensate. Seems that my most natural position is bending my elbows a little, with my forears pointing inward, bringing my hands closer together.

What you did end up getting? How was the experience?

[Tifosiphil]

Prime Primavera 36cm are back in stock.

I'm interested, but bothered by the absence of flared drops.

That's what made me go for the 38cm in the alloy and I just tip my hoods in 1cm each side to make it 36cm

[Edopizzo]

I have changed from a (38 hoods, no flare, 75mm reach) Deda Zero 1 compact round bar to a (36 hoods, 40 drops, 102mm reach) Pro Vibe Aero Pursuit and 2cm shorter stem. I feel like the difference is huge as the aero bar is much more comfortable in the aero hoods position as it's flat so it doesn't hurt the forearms and the 2.5cm reach increase helps because the contact point on the forearms is much closer to the elbows compared to the previous bars when in aero tuck. Also I've turned in the levers so the tips are 30cm apart but it's 40cm at the drops so it's still manageable in sprints and descents.
I think the biggest aerodynamic improvement an aero bar can offer is not the airfoil shape but the ability to rest the forearms on top of them for longer. I also believe aero bars should have a reach above 100mm so there is less leverage on the forearms when in the aero tuck, only penalty will be the necessity to run a shorter stem. Also with longer reach flare and front-sweep are necessary for sprinting to not strike the tops with the forearms.
Only Speeco makes a one piece barstem with similar dimensions, even Pro doesn't offer these bars in carbon. I think that more manufacturers will make long reach aero bars in the future

[NordicSal]

I am coming from 44's, can't decide whether to just go for the 38's straight away or be "reasonable" and do the 40's.

Same here. I'm 1.88m (6'2") and measure around 40-41cm between shoulder bones. 44 fells huge, my wrists twists a lot outwards to compensate. Seems that my most natural position is bending my elbows a little, with my forears pointing inward, bringing my hands closer together.

What you did end up getting? How was the experience?

Sorry I never saw your question. I ended up getting Aerofly II in 40 cm. I am really happy with it, if anything I would wanna try narrower, but it's working very well for me. I am 1.98m and measure maybe 42 between my shoulder bones (really really skinny though)

[loudtiger]

just picked up some 38cm specialized bars off ebay to try. i've used 42cm bars the last 10 years so it'll be interesting to see the difference. that said my fixed gear does use 40cms. if these work out i'll look for a nice carbon bar to switch to. currently using FSA SL-Ks.

[Weber]

Hi All,

Any budget-friendly 36 c-c with flare?

[TobinHatesYou]

Hi All,

Any budget-friendly 36 c-c with flare?

Zipp Service Course SL 70 and SL 80 have 4deg flare/outsweep.

[Weber]

Hi All,

Any budget-friendly 36 c-c with flare?

Zipp Service Course SL 70 and SL 80 have 4deg flare/outsweep.

Thanks, I searched extensively and it seems to be the best value for money the SL-80.

Some that I found more or less in the range of 100-200 usd were the FSA OMEGA, fsa sl-k, ROSE Race Attack GF Aero drop bar.

[jlok]

Hi All,

Any budget-friendly 36 c-c with flare?

Zipp Service Course SL 70 and SL 80 have 4deg flare/outsweep.

Thanks, I searched extensively and it seems to be the best value for money the SL-80.

Some that I found more or less in the range of 100-200 usd were the FSA OMEGA, fsa sl-k, ROSE Race Attack GF Aero drop bar.

Same conclusion here. Pretty happy with the SL-80 36cm. 247g if my memory's is correct.

[trackflack]

Hi All,

Any budget-friendly 36 c-c with flare?

Prime do a pretty cheap 36cm