My new Specialized Chisel Hardtail has a 750mm handlebar with 10mm rise, 6° upsweep and 8° backsweep. This seems to be similar to other current XC handlebars, but it's very uncomfortable for me. There is a lot of pressure on my thumbs, which leads to pain in my thumbs. I'd like to find a bar with more backsweep.

I found a couple of European brands with 12° backsweep, but at $108 or more (plus shipping), wow are they expensive!

I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks!

PNW Loam. 10 degree backsweep.

https://www.pnwcomponents.com/produc...40937819832397

Thanks for the tip!

I checked out the $69 aluminum Range bar, also from PNW, before posting here. Like the Loam, it has a 10° backsweep. I hesitate to get it, because I'm hoping to find something with more like a 12° backsweep. I also see that the minimum width is 740mm, and I'd like to shoot for something like 700mm. My 750mm bar feels like I'm pushing around a wheelbarrow.

I've been all over the Internet but somehow overlooked Salsa. I like the Salsa drop bars on my gravel bike but didn't think of them when searching for a mountain bike handlebar. To my surprise, they offer bars with 11°, 17° and even 23° backsweep.

https://www.salsacycles.com/collections/handlebars

You might want to check out Soma, too.

https://www.somafab.com/parts/handlebar

The Whiskey Scully is another option. It's available in aluminum or carbon.

https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...?category=4616

I use an Answer 20/20 carbon bar on one of my bikes, but that one isn't sold anymore. Answer was absorbed by Hayes, and Hayes shifted the name to ProTaper. Looks like there's a ProTaper 20/20 carbon bar, but it appears to have been discontinued.

Careful with some of those bars with a lot of sweep on off road bikes. The On One Mary bar and a couple knock offs were popular with the single speed crowd years ago before we broke a bunch of them. Then they magically disapeared from the market. I have been using a Surly Moloko Bar for a couple years on my Fargo. It is steel, with 30-some degrees of sweep. I chose it thinking that extra bar across the front may add a little rigidity. Bonus is, it has a place to store a bag full of snacks.

Renthal and a hacksaw

SQLabs has some good, albeit expensive and European, options.

Jones Bars give you 45° backsweep, but put you in kind of a weird stance.

I wound up getting OneUp carbon bars on sale for my XC bike.

I found several interesting options by searching for bikepacking handlebars, instead of mountain bike handlebars. For example, there is a good list in a Bikepacking.com article. (Scroll down for a list of bars.)
https://bikepacking.com/index/comfort-mtb-handlebars/

Nice resource. I'm not in the market for a handlebar currently, but I bookmarked that.