Butterfly Bars
05-20-05, 01:11 PM
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Butterfly Bars
I hear tell the Dutch like these, but they are not common in UK, and a Google on "Butterfly Bars" or "Trekking Bars" returns little of interest in UK.
What will these Butterfly Bars do? I have found
https://www.wallbike.com/oddsnends/synergic.html
or these HB-400 bars?
https://www.kalloyuno.com/bike-handlebars-03.htm
The Dawes https://www.dawescycles.com/dawes/kara-kum.htm
seems to have butterflies, but the picture is not clear, I have not seem them in the flesh, and I am looking for a much less upright cycling position than taht bike is set up for.
At 55 years old I am getting back into cycling on a Trek 800 (Straight Bars) to which I have fitted city tyres. The immobility of my hands I find a big limitation. As a teenager I had a Falcon with drops - I used the bike mostly for commuting so rarely got right down.
I have been considering buying a Trek 1000c or a Ridgeback World Horizon to which the LBS will fit an adjustable stem and bar top levers. I plan to keep the bars fairly high - at least initially.
But maybe Butterfly Bars are the answer for me? If I spend a lot of time on the bar tops, extra brake pulls are an asset, but I would still have to go to the hoods for a gear change - unless I have bar end shifters.
My Falcon 40 years ago had traditional shifters - bar end shifters seem a little more convenient if you have drops but don't get right down often, but I still find the idea a little odd.
Can anyone advise me on options, suppliers, and point me to informative webpages?
I want to use the bike for general and enjoyable cycling and as a fitness aid. I want something lighter and faster than my Trek 800.
What will these Butterfly Bars do? I have found
https://www.wallbike.com/oddsnends/synergic.html
or these HB-400 bars?
https://www.kalloyuno.com/bike-handlebars-03.htm
The Dawes https://www.dawescycles.com/dawes/kara-kum.htm
seems to have butterflies, but the picture is not clear, I have not seem them in the flesh, and I am looking for a much less upright cycling position than taht bike is set up for.
At 55 years old I am getting back into cycling on a Trek 800 (Straight Bars) to which I have fitted city tyres. The immobility of my hands I find a big limitation. As a teenager I had a Falcon with drops - I used the bike mostly for commuting so rarely got right down.
I have been considering buying a Trek 1000c or a Ridgeback World Horizon to which the LBS will fit an adjustable stem and bar top levers. I plan to keep the bars fairly high - at least initially.
But maybe Butterfly Bars are the answer for me? If I spend a lot of time on the bar tops, extra brake pulls are an asset, but I would still have to go to the hoods for a gear change - unless I have bar end shifters.
My Falcon 40 years ago had traditional shifters - bar end shifters seem a little more convenient if you have drops but don't get right down often, but I still find the idea a little odd.
Can anyone advise me on options, suppliers, and point me to informative webpages?
I want to use the bike for general and enjoyable cycling and as a fitness aid. I want something lighter and faster than my Trek 800.
05-20-05, 01:42 PM
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Nashbar has thier own take on these also
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This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
05-20-05, 02:09 PM
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I had the same problem finding a comfy position after moving from drops to straight bars. Butterfly bars may provide an answer as they do offer a variety of hand positions as well as accomodating mountain bike type brake levers which are powerful and easy to operate. I don't like them myself but others swear by them. After years riding on the hoods it took ages for me to come up with a position on straight bars which duplicated this position. For me the answer was to cut down the bars to my shoulder width then to fit them with bar-ends in a more or less horizontal position. I wanted the upward curving shape of the hoods and unforunately I couldn't find bar-ends which gave me this. I ended up making my own bar-ends from the curved section of an old pair of drop bars and screwing and aralditing them to a pair of clamps taken from another pair of bar -ends. I then padded and taped these to give a comfortable platform for my hands and have ended up even more comfortable than on my drops.
I would imagine that WIGGLE would have these on their website and if you Google that or "www.sjscycles.com" you should be able to have a look at a pair of butterfly bars. Good luck!
I would imagine that WIGGLE would have these on their website and if you Google that or "www.sjscycles.com" you should be able to have a look at a pair of butterfly bars. Good luck!
05-22-05, 04:58 AM
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I've been running trekking bars for a few months now. I find that they really only offer one more usefull hand position over straight bars with bar ends. Being in the U.S. I purchased the Nashbar version. They are just as hard to find here as evidentally they are in the U.K. I find them to be extemely comfortable having experienced no hand or wrist numbness after thousands of miles. On drop bars I tend to ride on the hoods and tops most often. The shape of the "hooks" for want of a better term, on the bars I purchased is close enough to the hoods position on drops. I'm sold on them and am going to purchase another bar from Nashbar for future use on another bike.
Another option you might consider is some handlebar similar to the old Raleigh "North Road" handlebar. There are some good aluminum versions of these bars available now in a variety of widths. I have also found these to be surprisingly comfortable.
Brian Daniels
East Nassau NY
Another option you might consider is some handlebar similar to the old Raleigh "North Road" handlebar. There are some good aluminum versions of these bars available now in a variety of widths. I have also found these to be surprisingly comfortable.
Brian Daniels
East Nassau NY
05-22-05, 10:28 AM
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I'm 59 now and find that I don't bend to well anymore either. So on my trails bike I put these on....
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
Just enough drop for some but I turned them over "upside down" and find that they are just right when
installed in an adjustable stem. I got the height and hand position that I find very comfortable. I did
not wrap them instead I put on hand grips and MTB stuff fit right on. Now my hands are in a natural
position instead of leaning on them all the time.
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
Just enough drop for some but I turned them over "upside down" and find that they are just right when
installed in an adjustable stem. I got the height and hand position that I find very comfortable. I did
not wrap them instead I put on hand grips and MTB stuff fit right on. Now my hands are in a natural
position instead of leaning on them all the time.
05-22-05, 01:00 PM
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Recommended reading for all cyclists - Cyclecraft - Effective Cycling
Condor Cycles - quite possibly the best bike shop in London
Don't run red lights, wear a helmet, use hand signals, get some cycle lights(front and rear) and, FFS, don't run red lights!
shameless POWERCRANK plug
Recommended reading for all cyclists - Cyclecraft - Effective Cycling
Condor Cycles - quite possibly the best bike shop in London
Don't run red lights, wear a helmet, use hand signals, get some cycle lights(front and rear) and, FFS, don't run red lights!
05-22-05, 02:13 PM
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Originally Posted by Tightwad
I'm 59 now and find that I don't bend to well anymore either. So on my trails bike I put these on....
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
I didnot wrap them instead I put on hand grips and MTB stuff fit right on. Now my hands are in a natural
position instead of leaning on them all the time.
https://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?c...eid=&pagename=
I didnot wrap them instead I put on hand grips and MTB stuff fit right on. Now my hands are in a natural
position instead of leaning on them all the time.
Brian Daniels
East Nassau NY
05-23-05, 06:18 PM
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Originally Posted by cyclistbrian
I was wondering about these bars myself. Are you using SRAM shifters? I thought they might be too narrow in diameter to use MTB brake levers and shifters but evidentally not.
Brian Daniels
East Nassau NY
Brian Daniels
East Nassau NY
03-08-06, 05:41 AM
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I use butterfly bars as well and I think their great. Here's my setup,
and
Mine are made by Modolo, https://www.modolo.com/ in Italy and they say that they invented the design. There called Yuma's and they have a whole range of them in different styles and sizes. Mine are the smallest at 50cm wide and are the standard design.
Check the website and see who your UK distributor is and order some.
Regards, Anthony
and
Mine are made by Modolo, https://www.modolo.com/ in Italy and they say that they invented the design. There called Yuma's and they have a whole range of them in different styles and sizes. Mine are the smallest at 50cm wide and are the standard design.
Check the website and see who your UK distributor is and order some.
Regards, Anthony
03-08-06, 12:05 PM
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Originally Posted by Labarum
I hear tell the Dutch like these, but they are not common in UK, and a Google on "Butterfly Bars" or "Trekking Bars" returns little of interest in UK.
. . . . But maybe Butterfly Bars are the answer for me? If I spend a lot of time on the bar tops, extra brake pulls are an asset, but I would still have to go to the hoods for a gear change - unless I have bar end shifters.
My Falcon 40 years ago had traditional shifters - bar end shifters seem a little more convenient if you have drops but don't get right down often, but I still find the idea a little odd.
Can anyone advise me on options, suppliers, and point me to informative webpages?
I want to use the bike for general and enjoyable cycling and as a fitness aid. I want something lighter and faster than my Trek 800.
. . . . But maybe Butterfly Bars are the answer for me? If I spend a lot of time on the bar tops, extra brake pulls are an asset, but I would still have to go to the hoods for a gear change - unless I have bar end shifters.
My Falcon 40 years ago had traditional shifters - bar end shifters seem a little more convenient if you have drops but don't get right down often, but I still find the idea a little odd.
Can anyone advise me on options, suppliers, and point me to informative webpages?
I want to use the bike for general and enjoyable cycling and as a fitness aid. I want something lighter and faster than my Trek 800.
First off, Wiggle stocks butterfly bars, though I think they call them something else. They are also only 15 quid! "ITM Multiposition Handlebar (Black)" is what is says on my order.
Second, on my bike I had bar-end shifters so I got some thumb shifter adaptors from St John Street Cycles. I was given a pair of mtb style brake levers, and that was it, all set!
Here is a thread discussing the transformation:
Converting to Butterfly Bars
03-08-06, 12:27 PM
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My motivation for changing to these bars is that I have short arms! To sit in the hoods, I was nearly folded in half! Even with the shortest stem, I wasn't comfortable. I am much more comfortable since I changed the bars. I got a fairly upright, short stem with an open face. I am also very keen on the super padding I put under the bars: 2 sets of Fizik bar gel pads wrapped in tape. I don't like my grips, and will change them. I find the larger diameter of the padded portion of the bars is most comfortable, and the grips are a disappointment in comparison.
Here's a photo:
Here's a photo:
