ok so I have been thinking again.
on most road bike the width of the bar I am sized to is either 42 or 44 cm i just checked 6 mtb or hybris type bars and they are all 65 to 68 cm one was a small 62
flat bars are way wider. i was under the impression that the bar ends were to approximate the location of hoods. some peoepl recommend mounting them on the inboard side of the grips.

how many people cut down their flat bars (or riser bars whatever) what is the space between your bar ends if you use them.
mine at the end of my bars so probably 60 ish

I don't care for WIDE bars, so I took a tape and went thru several FLAT bars to find mine, approx. 24 inches from end to end. I don't have long arms but didn't want to have to "cut" bars so I took the time to find the exact bars I wanted. I have both egro grips and bar ends so my cockpit is "compact" but it makes the steering quicker which I like.

Now road bike bars would be tough for me, I always like the "randoueer(sp?)" type bars better than a "mace" type racing bars on my 80's touring bikes. I don't know if you can even get that kind of bar today, hope so as I might just talk myself into a "drop bar touring bike", this Spring.

Practically speaking there's no way bar ends could be placed at 40-44CM wide on a flat bar bike. My experience riding both is that drop bar width is a compromise. The tops of the bars are narrower than the ideal position but it's worth it because it places the brake hoods in the ideal position which I ride 80% of the time. I tend to like narrower bars on my hybrids but there's a limit to how narrow you can go and still be able to fit the brakes and shifters. One of the reasons I don't like bar ends is they feel way too wide to be comfortable. If I was to cut the bar down enough that the bar ends were comfortable then the normal position on the grips would be too narrow.

I think MTB's have wider handlebars because riders use them as leverage when climbing and navigating difficult terrain. The wider the bar, the greater the leverage. At least that is what I've concluded after researching handlebars for my own hybrid. Road riders are trying to minimize their aerodynamic profile for greater efficiency. Different bars for different goals.

I tried mounting bar-ends inboard of my grips and controls and it didn't work. I was basically trying to put aero bars on an MTB and it just didn't work well. The controls got in the way and the "Feel" was just awful. I ended up just taking the bar-ends off.

If I reach a point where I'm riding fast enough and far enough to worry about efficiency, I'll do a drop-bar conversion or just get a new bike.

Well this is exactly what I was thinking. my bar ends are to wide. but the grips seem ok.
if I move them inbound of the grips and grip shifters I probably would need to move them 6 or so inches/ so it would be
grip /shifter/bar end brake stem brake /bar end/ shifter grip.

Then the bar ends just move in 10 to 15 cm per side. this would put them at 40 to 30 cm wide (assuming i stat at 60 cm) that's too narrow.


if the red bar below is a handle bar and the leftmost to the fourth are standard bar ends. short long, long bent, long curved. does anyone make one on the right. that would give people more flexibility to make the bar ends, less ended.

maybe something like this, without the pads, cut to length if needed.

maybe all you need it he clamp an the 'L' par of the bar

corwin1968 is correct on his analysis on why MTBers use wider bars. I have since converted my DS 8.4 back to just road use and the wider 75cm bars/7cm stem just isn't practical for road use. PERIOD. Aerodynamics, body positioning, cornering just doesn't translate technique when applying to the road when using MTB techniques. So, after all the mods i did to the DS 8.4 to get it to handle awesome on teh dirt, it is back to a longer stem, super narrow bars(60cm).

Wow. I've been riding a 58cm bar on my Jamis for years. I'd feel like I was welcoming the world into my arms on a 75cm bar.

Humm, I LOVE my "extended" bar ends on both my flat bar hybrids, I use them a LOT when going up hills to lower my body position, I kinda think of them a "pursuit bars" like on a track bike. They also give me two more hand positions the really help on a longer rides, LOL, I guess I'm just WEIRD!

I mounted my bar ends inboard of my grips because I wasn't using them at all out on the ends. I also thought they were simply way too far apart. Inboard of the shifters, they are more like the hoods position on drop bars, especially since I have my bar ends leaned forward quite far. I love the bar ends in this position and use them probably 60% of the time over the actual grips.

I've actually been thinking of cutting my bars and grips down just a bit to make them a bit narrower. I can't move the controls inboard any farther on this bar, which is why I would have to cut the grips.

I need to take a newer, updated pic of how it is now, this one is rather old.

the typical bare metal tubular bar ends that you see everywhere are fairly useless.

there's a few reasons for that. one because they are bare and offer no cushion, they feel too hard. two because they are too thin to hold onto very comfortably, unless you have child size hands. and because they are bare metal they offer no grip which means they are slippery which is not a good thing when your hands are sweaty. so they have a very poor grip.

so having some good ergonomic bar ends make all the difference in the world. ever since I got the Ergon GP3 I have been using the bar ends on them all the time.


I dont have a picture of them on my bike available at the moment but here's one I found on the internet. the bar ends have a good size and thickness and a very firm grip. they are super comfortable.

Unless you wear cushioned cycling gloves, as I always do.

part of the equation is that on drop bar, road bikes both the shifters and the brakes are normally out at the end of horns rather than mounted on the bars directly. That simply enables them to be more narrow. Then, one of the primary concerns with a road bike is wind resistance and being able to tuck the hand and arms inside the body helps to decrease wind resistance and increase speed -- the holy grail of road racing.

When comparing road bikes to mountain bikes everything comes down to one thing: SPEED. So, in road bikes there are a very few things that drive the design: aerodynamics, rolling resistance and weight. In the quest for speed, not much else matters...

On a road bike, a wide handle bar would push the arms outside of the body, increase wind resistance and slow down the bike.

^^^ Yep that's right. To get more aerodynamic your elbows need to be able to drop down (or put hands down on drops, or both). Any time your palms are oriented vertically, as when gripping bar ends, your elbows can drop down. But your hands and elbows are still pretty far apart with bar ends on the ends of the bars. With bar ends inboard of the grips, your elbows and hands can be about shoulder-width apart while allowing the elbows to drop down as you get into a more aero position.

I think that depends on the type of bar. My trekking bars from XLC are, at 585mm, a tad wide as trekking bars go, but when I have my hands on the sides or the far corner elbows, it actually turns my elbows inward.

I cut mine down these days, since they ship pretty long. About 62cm wide, so about 58cm between barends, I reckon.

You can put grips on barends. I find I like being on the barends more than on the flats for long rides, so I put my controls on the barends. This is a pic of early fitment stage. I now have an interior pair of barends also, but not for my hands, rather to lash my sleeping bag to for dirt road touring rides.


Controls on the barends by Lester Of Puppets, on Flickr

A-Ha, found a pic of bike in touring trim:


P5170149 by Lester Of Puppets, on Flickr

My road bikes have 42cm drops, my MTB and hybrid 56cm flat bars. I tried a 48cm sawed off flat bar and it was OK, but couldn't use inboard bar ends, so went back to the 56. I really like inboard bar ends.

LOL, my useless bare bar ends, have a nice "knurled pattern" on them so the GRIP is just great, thanks and have a most excellent day!

now this is a bar end. I want to get these for my folding bike.
they're made my Giant for about 15 bucks a pair.

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-in/...ck/1182/42522/

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-in/...er/1182/42523/

sure you can wear gloves in cooler weather. but its too hot for gloves in summer. I think a front fork suspension may help relieve some pressure on your hands also.

hmmm what? I wear finger-less cushioned gloves with a rigid front fork in 100-degree weather, and my hands are no worse off than without them (except that they don't go numb with the gloves on, and it's easier to grip the bar ends). They still get hot, and they still get sweaty, either way.

I got back into cycling the first of May this year, and have worn my gloves on every single ride, over 350 miles, since then.

I'm gloveless unless it's below about 50° F outside, but different strokes for different folks...

Exactly. My hands are much more comfortable after many miles with padded fingerless gloves, even in scorching hot weather.

Before I got the gloves, I was always trying to shift my hands and fingers around on my grips due to soreness and numbness in my palms. It was quite uncomfortable.