Is there any real reason to choose risers over another handlebar? With the exception of saweet barspinz I cannot find one thing they are good for. Anyone with risers want to give me a clue as to why you chose them over everything else?

I'm going to take a stab at this and guess that it is because different people have different tastes. They like different riding and hand positions.

Just a guess. I ride bullhorns.

Risers provide more reach and sweep variability than flat bars by rotating them. Using the same stem, you can get a couple of centimeters of reach and many degrees of wrist positions just by rotating them.

Risers are also generally heavier duty than flat bars which are usually made for the weight conscious XC MTB market.

What different hand position does it offer? The one hand position it has is available on just about every other bar, with the exception of track drops.

That's kind of a ridiculous question...

Because there are bar positions you can get with a riser that are extremely difficult to achieve with a traditional stem and road bar setup.

Because some people don't use any part of a road bar other than the flat portion on top.

Because some people are more comfortable on a narrow bar.

Because some people like being able to cut their own bars to their preffered width.


Not quite rocket science.

Not really. I have ridden risers on friends bikes and they are considerably more comfortable for that given "straight forward" hand position than being on the tops of drop bars or bullhorns, since they don't start curving right where the sides of your hands rest.

They sweep back at different angles. Pick one that's comfy.

Also, when you rotate riser bars in the stem clamp it gives you height and reach adjust-ability you don't get with bullhorns or drops.

Some prefer a more heads up riding position. Also, it can be argued that they offer better shock absorption.

I don't think it is ridiculous at all. I thought that the one position you get on them was achievable with other bars. Maybe I was wrong. You answered the question, but you kinda came off insulting. Thanks for the help . . . I guess

Gotcha. But most people I have seen chop them down so far that the curving wouldn't be an issue

Yeah, that is a good point. However, road drops tend to sweap forwards whereas risers generally sweep backwards, towards the rider. I just find that position much more comfortable when compared to riding on the top of road drops.

Alright, cool. This has been fairly decent info, but since I spend about 1% of the time on my bike with my hands across the top, risers are definitely not for me. Glad to see that there is some reason to ride these bars, even if most of the ones I see look ridiculous to ride. Thanks.

Sorry, I misinterpreted your question as being the standard troll against riser bars we typically get here. And also, I'm a bit of a ******* in the morning.

Which, realistically, shouldn't be an issue when you're doing barspins/wheelies/whatever. Not really a ton of stress there, especially when they're cut down to the stupidly short lengths that I see so often.

This is pretty much spot on, but I'd question the shock absorption aspect of it. You probably just feel less front end rumble because more of your weight is on your ass instead of your hands. It's probably also worth mentioning that if you're properly fitted to your bike, you shouldn't really need a ton of height and reach adjustability.

Good point.

They are perfect for flat roads, low gear inches, and slow speeds.

Plus, you sit more upright, so that chicks can see your perfect face and SWOON.

gives the rider a more upright position.... and imho without hoods, because your arms are usually wider than on the top of the drops.... you have more "leverage" while climbing

Unless I'm misunderstanding you, this is just asinine logic. Who climbs on the tops of the drops? This is like saying that a burger is better than a steak because if you eat raw steak you could get sick.

i have a chopped easton riser[very mild rise] on my langster and will be dashing that for something that provides more than one hand position.

logic? who told you about that? logic doesn't exist...it's a myth...logic makes Baby Jesus cry...now never speak of it again...

i mean, unless i'm in the drops going up hills.....

i dont have hoods on my deda pista drops or anything so it's either climb at the flattest portion nearest to the stem or go into the drops....

while using my risers my arms are wider spread and based on math.... i would take a gander and say that it will allow you a lil more leveredge while climbing particularly "swaying" back and forth out of the saddle

Which is why you shouldn't use track bars on the street. Get road bars with levers and climbing is much much easier.

It's a sad world when people say that 18" risers are good for climbing.

that's what my road bike is for ....

If you have a road bike, then I'm sure you know how worthless those little shorty risers are for climbing.

If you're really part of the MTB bar camp, the most logical thing to use would be a flat bar with some bar ends. But then you're encroaching on bullhorn territory, so you might as well just get those.

I don't understand what you mean by this. Your road bike is good for climbing so you shouldn't set up your fixed gear to be good for climbing as well?

I have a super conservative business suit at home, so it's totally fine for me to walk around town in a skintight shirt that says "BAR ****." It's certainly more practical than just hopping around in my pasties.