Mountain Biking - dumb question: what are bar ends FOR?

I see them on all sorts of mountain bikes, but are they bash guards? or handle bar extensions?

thanks

extra hand position for climbing. think bullhorns on a fixed gear.

extra hand position for climbing. think bullhorns on a fixed gear.

ok thanks

I never see anyone actually HOLDING them is why I asked,...makes sense tho.


rubber side down and stuff like that :D

climbing leverage ONLY, climbing leverage ONLY, climbing leverage ONLY, climbing leverage ONLY

http://www.freewebs.com/wheelthingshop/IMG_0026.JPG

edit: climbing leverage ONLY

edit2: hope this picture works

Bar ends make cornering sluggish due to the added weight.

Side benefits: Less painful tree clips (with the long ones) or more painful tree clips (with the short ones)

Side note: Automatic 10 point deduction for mounting barends on risers. :p

I used to ride flat bar with bar ends, but now on the XC rig I ride flat bar sans bar ends. I had horrible control on them so they sucked for technical climbs. The protected my hands from trees a few times but more often then not they got stuck on branches and whipped me around.

Its all about fashion. It was all the rage to shorted bars back in the day. To make up for the lack of leverage that shorter handlebars created barends were added. Today long bars are no longer a faux pas, and bar ends are disappearing.

I put some on "back in the day". I found they not only afforded more hand positions, so I was less likely to get sore hands on long rides, but when I was climbing and using the bar ends my front wheel was less likely to come off the ground - I don't know why, but I'm sure of it.

I recently built up a new mountain bike to get back into it after a decade of only road biking. I didn't put bar ends on the new bike. After a couple of rides I realized that was unacceptable and I bought some. You might not like them, but I find them indispensable.

Bar ends make cornering sluggish due to the added weight.

Not if you get a set that's as light as a sheet of paper. :D I used to have some short Ti barends on my KHS back in the '90s and they were great for climbing. They also seemed to make riding a wheelie easier, though I'm not sure why.

chavs (uk peasants) like them pointing straight up. why i have no idea, but i doubt they went & bought them separately.

true about fashion i only had them 'cos pro racers did. never really needed them, but they are handy for masochistic climbing pain lovers.

If you don't live in an area where the hills are steep enough to make bar ends useful, you might ask what they are good for.

I live in an area where there are steep hills, and I find them useful. Even when I'm riding back home on the road, I can get a lower and more comfortable position on them.

People who say they catch brush do not know what they are talking about. If anything, they protect my hands, but they never snag anything.

Some of my friends do not use them, but here's the funny thing: They don't care if I do, and I don't care if they don't, because "fashion" is of absolutely no importance when you have been riding as long as we have. I have been riding MTBs since 1978, when mountain bikes were pre-cool and if you had one, it was hand-made.

I started riding XC in '93. I also ended up racing a lot of XC, straight bars with bar ends which for me were essential climbing tools. My first FS build 3 years ago included 1" risers w/no bar ends. I have tried to get used to them- move my thumbs onto the front/tops of the bars; grip out at the ends of the bars as if there were bar ends there. Well, I still miss those damn bar ends. I DO still have straight bars w/bar ends on my hardtail. But I keep thinking how helpful it might be to just go and add at least some stubbies on my FS. God forbid, would the fashion police come after me if I were to be seen with bar ends on my risers? Isn't that like way UNCOOL? Fashion doesn't mean much to me, either.

I'm with Charlie on the snagging issue. As long as I have been using them, it just has never happened to me- I think for some folks it's a 'perceived' issue. I also like the bar ends when I have a long fireroad or pavement to travel on.

People who say they catch brush do not know what they are talking about. If anything, they protect my hands, but they never snag anything.



Thats a bit of a blanket statement....

Forests in NE have tons upon tons of brush, open areas seem rare compared to my brief experiences on the west coast and because of all the brush I have been snagged many many many many many times. Painful snags. So yes, I do know what I am talking about: Riding for me in my area, they do snag plenty.

Thats a bit of a blanket statement....

Forests in NE have tons upon tons of brush, open areas seem rare compared to my brief experiences on the west coast and because of all the brush I have been snagged many many many many many times. Painful snags. So yes, I do know what I am talking about: Riding for me in my area, they do snag plenty.

This is true. I remember snagging mine once back when I used them. It also managed to shift my rear gears to the smallest cog (Rapidfire Plus). I'm still not sure exactly how that happened. :D

When I got my Rush it had wider bars than I was used to so I was catching them on trees all the time. I put on some bar ends and they helped me bounce off the trees instead of getting hung up. Yes they do snag on brush, but I find them more helpful than not as they usually allow me to bounce off of things (more often than snag). This winter I moved to a narrower flat bar so I don't know if they'll still be useful for that.

I keep them on the bike because I have bad wrists and need the hand position changes to keep my wrists from getting sore. They're also nice on the road for giving a more comfortable reclined position.

I started riding XC in '93. I also ended up racing a lot of XC, straight bars with bar ends which for me were essential climbing tools. My first FS build 3 years ago included 1" risers w/no bar ends. I have tried to get used to them- move my thumbs onto the front/tops of the bars; grip out at the ends of the bars as if there were bar ends there. Well, I still miss those damn bar ends. I DO still have straight bars w/bar ends on my hardtail. But I keep thinking how helpful it might be to just go and add at least some stubbies on my FS. God forbid, would the fashion police come after me if I were to be seen with bar ends on my risers? Isn't that like way UNCOOL? Fashion doesn't mean much to me, either.

I'm with Charlie on the snagging issue. As long as I have been using them, it just has never happened to me- I think for some folks it's a 'perceived' issue. I also like the bar ends when I have a long fireroad or pavement to travel on.


I have 1 inch riser bars on my FS with singletrack barends on them and they work great. I would say 80%of the people that say you'll catch tree's go by what they read and not experience. I've NEVER wrecked from hitting a tree and I've had chucks of bark inside the grooves on my barends from hitting trees. You can click the KHS link in my sig to see the barends. I also trimmed my risers down to 25in. I couldn't imagine riding without barends.

I like my barends.
Thread closed.

keep bar ends on road bikes where they belong.

keep bar ends on road bikes where they belong.

Wrong

Those bars on a roadbike are drop bars. And for the occasional triathlon or time trial you can mount those aero bars on and for a more aero position.

keep bar ends on road bikes where they belong.

They belong on road bikes? Ooo I'd like to see a pic of that. It really would be interesting!

One of the fastest Roadies in town here, does a lot of traing and commuting on a Giant Sedona with slicks on it.
It has approximately the same geometry as a compact road frame, and he installed a big chain ring,
the size of a pie plate on it. What really stands out, (other than a guy on a mountain bike in a paceline)
is the fact that he has bar ends and aerobars on it. If you saw the bike and didn't know any better,
you would think "man what's that guy thinking".

Did you happen to get a pic? I honestly would like to see that. That would be cool. *trying to imagine how that would look* :)

They're best used for hooking on to trees while trying to ride fastly between narrow passages. At least that's all mine ever did.

For hooking into trees and killing yourself.
You'll want to take them off, experience speaking here.

If you catching a barend on trees then you need to ride better and miss the tree all together. Don't blame the barends for catching tree's your in control of the bike, well your supposed to be but I"m guessing your not and blaming the bike for your poor handeling skills.. LOL

If you catching a barend on trees then you need to ride better and miss the tree all together, don't blame the barends for catching tree's your in control of the bike, well your supposed to be but I"m guessing your not and blaming the bike for your poor riding.. LOL

Your comment is too stupid to respond to... well, I guess I just had to.

Your comment is too stupid to respond to... well, I guess I just had to.

I guess the truth hurts HUH???? Ride around the trees....;)

If you are anything like a friend of mine, you'll use your barends to impale various parts of your body in a humerous manner. He once flipped them pointing down for an alternate handgrip and promptly stabbed his knee after hitting a rock the wrong way. If you are not at all like him(and I suggest you chose this route) you'll use them for powering up hills and having multiple hand posistions. I personally don't use them.

I have been riding and racing my my single speed mtb with barends for ~8 years and couldn't imagine being without them. Great for leverage in the tight twisty singletrack of northern new england and essential for the many hills (especially on the single speed).
I have hooked them (Cane Creek Ergo II) a few times but each time was my own fault because I wasn't paying close enough attention or I misjudged a turn. It is definitely a rude awakening, but the same thing would have happened with or without barends.

If you catching a barend on trees then you need to ride better and miss the tree all together. Don't blame the barends for catching tree's your in control of the bike, well your supposed to be but I"m guessing your not and blaming the bike for your poor handeling skills.. LOL

Its not always trees sometimes its the whacky underbrush. Trails around here are very clingy and some spots its not about picking a line to avoid the plants, its about picking a line to hit the least amount. Bike handling has little to do with it.

I see them on all sorts of mountain bikes, but are they bash guards? or handle bar extensions?

thanks

They're to keep your beer from falling off the end of the bar :p

If you hook a bar end on a tree and crash then you probably were in for a wakeup call anyway, even if you hadn't had the bar ends.

Wrong

Those bars on a roadbike are drop bars. And for the occasional triathlon or time trial you can mount those aero bars on and for a more aero position.

I know aero-bars, i was thinking more of the bar ends you see on the dep. store "road" bikes. My basic point is simply that other than maybe fireroads and XC, bar ends just arent terribly helpful, and on tight singletrack perhaps even dangerous.

I have stubby ones as I am primarily a roadie . . . and I typically ride 10 miles+ to get to the trail. Bar ends allow you to get longer lower and your hands are in the alignment that roadies are used to. I cannot comment if they help or hurt on the trail. I will say that they are no where near as popular as they were when I had an MTB 15 years ago.

I know aero-bars, i was thinking more of the bar ends you see on the dep. store "road" bikes.

No you weren't

If you hook a bar end on a tree and crash then you probably were in for a wakeup call anyway, even if you hadn't had the bar ends.

Trees maybe, but brush? Unavoidable.

There's a stark difference between between trees and brush. If you're hitting trees you have a problem. If you're hitting brush I can't see you could fall off.

There's a difference between hitting brush and ending up in brush...


:eek:


*flashbacks of bad experience*

italicsssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There's a stark difference between between trees and brush. If you're hitting trees you have a problem. If you're hitting brush I can't see you could fall off.

Makes sense about the brush. When I had the wider bars on my bike the bar ends actually helped me bounce off trees (they're canted inward so the tree would just deflect off, unless I got it really wrong and hooked it, which I never have). Never had a problem with brush since the brush around here isn't so thick as to really grab you.

Now that I have the narrow bars on the bike I may not need the bar ends for bouncing off trees but I probably will keep them just because of my bad wrists which get sore if I don't change hand positions periodically.

I can only once remember snagging a grape vine with these bar ends. The turn-in seems to avoid other snags. These are Control Stix, circa 1993. Very light. I really like them for climbing.

http://i237.photobucket.com/albums/ff107/russiet/3-23-08_055_resized.jpg

I found that they worked really well at making a batman type turn. You know, when he sends out the cable so that he can whip around a corner. Unfortunately, it wasn't the plan really. :lol:

I love bar ends. The new short stubby ones, the old aluminum goofy ones, or the fancy carbon models. The fact that they are not fashionable make me love em all the more!

If you don't like bar ends, or if "fashion" is important to you, don't use them.

I use bar ends, I have used them for years, and I can safely say that THEY HAVE NEVER CAUSED ME TO CRASH. People who blame bar ends for their crashes would find another weak excuse if they didn't have bar ends to blame.

I have crashed a lot of times, and it is rarely the equipment that is at fault.

http://www.glasswolf.net/misc/trek2.jpg


mine, for whatever it's worth, with bar ends, and I still love to gaze at it when it's sitting in the garage or my bedroom when there's 4' of snow outside.
(I don't winter ride right now due to the transplant.)
I like my bar ends. "ergo" stubbies, alu on carbon bars. they work great for additional hand positions/climbing, and haven't hooked anything with them yet.

http://www.glasswolf.net/misc/trek2.jpg


mine, for whatever it's worth, with bar ends, and I still love to gaze at it when it's sitting in the garage or my bedroom when there's 4' of snow outside.
(I don't winter ride right now due to the transplant.)
I like my bar ends. "ergo" stubbies, alu on carbon bars. they work great for additional hand positions/climbing, and haven't hooked anything with them yet.


You could at least give that rear derailer a brake during the offseason.

Grocery bag holder.

You could at least give that rear derailer a brake during the offseason.

Actually it's been above freezing here lately. Warm enough to ride that one.