Greetings All from Texas!! I just bought a Panama Jack and love it, I think the looks are fantastic, as well as the built in amenities like cooler, adjustable rear rack and bottle opener. I bought it because I wish to take off the weight I put on over the holidays (15lbs!!!!) and thought bike riding would benefit me.

After the first ride home, I thought to myself "Boy is my ass sore!", BUT I honestly have not really ridden a bicycle in about 30 years either (I'm 44). Yesterday I went to Academy and replaced the stock seat with a memory foam seat and the ride is better.

Now I am wanting to change the default handlebars as the ones that it comes with are fine for around the neighborhood cruising, but I am riding my bike about 11 miles each way to/from work and find that they are a bit narrow and would like some bars a bit closer to me and farther/angled out.

Are beach bike handlebars the same girth normally? I've had many motorcycles and typ[ically they come with 1 inch bars, im not certain what bars will fit on my Panama.

Could someone recommend a set of handlebars that would bolt right to a Huffy Panama Jack please?

Comfortable is such a personal question. I am afraid I have no better answer than to start throwing money at what is not working for you until you find what works.

Bars were at one time pretty standard at 7/8 inch, same as most motorcycles made outside of the USA used to wear, but that is no longer true - same as for Motorcycles. All kinds of variations, but I would guess that bike to have 7/8 bars, but you really need to measure, or have a local bike shop (LBS) make a reccomendation.

A 22 mile commute is probably longer than most people would make with that bike, but if it works for you, then it works. That bike would more typically be used for short errands and cruising - lots of social stop and talks. If you ever do switch to a more purposeful commuter after riding that Panama Jack 22 miles a day for a while, you will end up very strong and will surprise yourself how fast you are on something like a road bike or a purpose built commuter.

Welcome to the forum, and enjoy the heck out of that bike, eh?

Thank you for the advice Auldgeunquers, I do realize that this bike was never intended for such a long ride as it is only a 1 speed, but I really dig the looks and in the long run my body will only get stronger as I get more used to riding. I am ordering a rack bag for the bike and will go to a local bike shop to see what bars are available for my Huffy. I take the access road for my ride to/from work, it's 11 miles each way and hilly at times and boy do my legs feel it lol. I also bought a 2 piece rain suit, one of the reasons for the bike rack bag and so I am on my way to losing the weight.

Yeah, uh, your bike's bas are 1" diameter at the center, where the stem clamps down on them. They're 7/8" in diameter at the grips and controls. That's basically the standard for cruiser handlebars. As for recommendations, well... the HPJ's bars seem pretty wide and swept back to me, but I basically log onto BFs to promote Wald handlebars these days, so I'll toss this link up: Amazon.com : Wald Steel Handlebar #898 3" 28" 1' Chrome : Riser Bike Handlebars : Sports & Outdoors 28" wide, plenty of backsweep, under 20bucks, made in the USA.

Thank you for the link, these are the bars I'm looking for.

Nice!

Surreal, thanks again for the link to those bars, I just placed the order for my rear rack bag and the bars from Amazon, should be here in a week or so. Will update once I have them installed.

Congrats on your bike purchase and hats off to your commute on that bike! You are a rare one who rides a bike like that that far. IF you keep your caloric intake in check, you'll burn through that 15 lbs. in short order.

A few thoughts from a guy who rides beach cruisers long distances (40-100+ miles), though as stated earlier it's a very personal thing.

1) Get some bicycling shorts- you'll be glad you did. The slight padding helps a little, but their primary job is wicking moisture away from your body. You'll find a huge increase in comfort especially at those distances and effort required for that bike. I prefer the standard short type ones, not the smooth hip hugging hardcore biker look. Wicking t-shirts are also more comfortable than standard cotton.

2) Over the several bikes I own I prefer a slight forward posture especially for higher speeds and longer rides on my 3G Isla Vista. The swooped back bars are great for slow speed cruising (it is a cruiser afterall) but if you're battling winds or climbing hills you'll tend to lean forward or stand up and it's near impossible to peddle the bike comfortably with your arms beside or behind you so the Isla Vista shortened swooped bars seems to be perfect for my style of riding. I really notice a difference when I ride a bike with bars that are longer.

3) At some point that seat might need to be changed. Don't scrimp on the seat as it's the most important thing to your comfort. In the beginning I bought a $50 seat for a $25 bike because I knew if I hated the seat I wouldn't ride the bike. It worked, I'm still riding bikes 3+ years and almost 14,000 miles.

4) On longer rides on a bike like that, tire pressures are critical, more so for comfort as in making the overall journey more enjoyable. Make sure they are maxed out (I often run a little over) and check them weekly. Keep the chained lubed well.

5) Hand grips at some point. Keeps your hands from getting numb which isn't common on a cruiser but at that low of a price point keep in mind you may need a new set sooner than you think.

Enjoy the bike and the commutes to work, they're a great eye opener in the morning and relaxing in the evenings.

Thank you HB, I plan on getting some wicking shirts as well as padded shorts when the weather clears up a bit here in south texas, at the moment it is raining almost every day or drizzling for hours. my bars and rack pack just arrived yesterday and I already installed them, the memory foam seat I bought at academy is wonderful compared to the stock seat and I really like the way is now as compared to when I first brought her home its all about making the bike fit me and reflecting what I want and intend to get out of it so I cannot be happier with how she has turned out. I will try to post some pics tomorrow sometime of how she looks now. thanks again for the advice!

P.S. What seat did you buy?

"P.S. What seat did you buy?"

Don't remember, some huge gel padded thing, my tush was tender back then! It's on the wife's bike now, it's too big for long distances and high speeds (spinning) as the seat gets in the way. I have a smaller (probably medium size) gel seat now but I seem to like the gels in general. I think the new one is Velo but doesn't have the tender bits cut-out like it should. Picked it up at the local swap meet for around $25 new.

Photos attached. Photo on the left is early Jan. 2015, she rolled over 10,000 miles! Great bike for Free. Photo on right shows seat from top. It's still a bit large for the kind of riding I do but it works. Very comfy.

Glad you got your stuff. HBCruiser posted some decent advice, but we gotta remember that how bikes are set-up, especially the ergos, are going to vary according to rider preference and terrain. Folks commuted on bikes with upright, swept-back bars over great distances for about a century now; it works great for some, not so much for others. My commute is shorter (@12miles round trip to one job, and 6miles round trip to another), but I most often make it on a Worksman that weighs about 6trillion pounds, and it has the Wald 867 "Scout" bars...basically, a narrower version of the bar Ruben bought. Works fine for me, and I get off the saddle for standing efforts pretty frequently...

Just ordered the CatEye Velo 7 cycle computer as opposed to having the app on my phone, it's all I need and can't wait to get it on, I will post pics tomorrow of the PJ.

Good lookin bike!

Ok, finally here she is, I still need to adjust the seat but only just today have i had any time. Have not received the CatEye Velo 7 but that's in the mail.



Wider handlebars, new gel memory seat, lights, rack pack (needs adjusting as well) and she is dirty as the weather here is awful for the moment and I simply have not had time or been a bit lazy/tired after work so I just put her up wet.

Normally I dislike walmart cruisers Due to the short wheel base and cheap looking equipment... but in all honesty I love how your bike looks! I think that's an awesome ride. Enjoy putting miles on it, it's addicting to ride these bikes (mine has somewhere in the range of 4500 miles)

I have to agree with suncruiser, the Walmart bikes often look like toys but your's is really nice. Way to go. I think the front bag and rear rack make it look longer and more appealing to the eye.

Nice choice on the Velo 7, I have the Velo 9 (which I believe just adds the hokey how much carbon you saved). I plan on getting a Velo7 for another bike that needs a speedo. Nice big numbers, very reliable.

surreal- haha so true! "Folks commuted on bikes with upright, swept-back bars over great distances for about a century now...". I understand and noted "for my style of riding". Maybe it's because this is my first bike I've ridden so much, I certainly wouldn't have guessed I'd do 10k+ miles on a bike, but I really struggle on other bikes with bigger bars. I started to ride the bike that fell into my lap, if I'd started out with bigger bars maybe it'd be the other way around! At slow speeds I love the big bars but for me when I start to push it they get in the way.


Keep it fun and you'll keep clicking off the miles!

Thanks for the compliments everyone, I went out for a short cruise today and loaded the bag with a couple of beers since it is insulated. Had a fun little 90 minute cruise and 3 beers later I rolled her home and washed/lubed her. Cant wait for spring to get here as the weather is still off and on.