bloody hell theres so much choice!

I’m building my first cx bike (it will be on the race side of things rather than touring).

26mm clamp? 31mm?

shallow drop? ergo?

this caught my eye but its got quite a drop of 160mm but its nice and wide.
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/HB3TMU-44-258/3ttt_mutant_black_handlebar___44_cm___258_mm_clamp
dont really want to spend more than £20

I use Deda Zero 100 bars. I think they’re quite costly new but I bought them 2nd hand for about £20. Good shape, they’re a compact design. FSA do cheap compact bars, have a look on Planet X, they always seeem to have cheap FSA stuff for sale.

Salsa Cowbell, cheaper version is 26mm, pricey one is 31.8mm, various widths available. They have a slight flare so you can ride in the drops without bashing your wrists.

EDIT: Cheapest is £35 tho.

Salsa Bell Lap every time. May be more than £20 though…

I used to ride a 26mm on my mtb without problems – some say they are stronger?

so its just about if you prefer the beefier look of a 31.8mm

+1 for Salsa Bell Lap

http://www.bikester.co.uk/272956.html?_cid=1_3_2_2111_2135_2309_272956_&c=18#racing-bike-handle-bars-moto-ace-bell-lap-cross-handlebar-26mm-b

I’ve got the 46cm width on my ‘cross bike. They feel very wide on the road, but are great off-road, loads of leverage.

the salsa bell laps sound good!http://www.charliethebikemonger.com/salsa-bell-lap-bars-993-p.asp

I think wiggle are doing some zipp bars that look very nice for half price at the moment, worth a look.

The new cowbell has only 126mm drop compared to the 144mm of the Bell-lap and has flat tops. Suppose it depends if you like ergo/anatomic or round bars…

Salsa Cowbell

It is normal to go slightly wider than you would for a road bike. I have 44cm bars on my CX bike, although would probably be 42cm or so on a true bike.

I use 31.8mm simply because it means I can swap stems around with my other bikes if I ever fancy it in future. No real difference for the average ride between 31.8, 26mm etc IMHO – go with what suits.

I have Ritchey WCS alu bars which are good value, especially if you can get them second hand. It is hard to tell what you will like, so maybe just pick up a secondhand pair of something and see how you get?

Bell laps are pretty deep and long reach…I run these
http://salsacycles.com/components/cowbell_3/

these look great and good price too http://www.wiggle.co.uk/zipp-service-course-handlebar-shortshallow-bend/

Like the looks of those cowbell bars.

I use a 100mm stem with a bar that has 90mm reach and I’m happy with it.

if I want a shallow drop bar with only 70mm reach would I need a 120mm stem to get the same reach?

or am I missing something?

Nice bars those Zipp’s, looked at them when I bought my 3T stuff. Very good at that price too. Try and get the stem to match as well.

i’ve always fancied truing the salsa bell laps, but as because of the 3 peaks rules i’ve stayed away.

i found the widest/best price bars i could find were bontragers. on my oldest bike i have the VR radius on a normal stem, but i prefer the anatomic racelites with OS (on a thompson road stem).

bontrager also do/did a cross specific bar, but only on the smaller stem.

zipps carbon bars are lovely btw, have them on my roadbike with matching stem.

why cant you have bell laps in the 3 peaks?

I really like planet x strada compact for road and cross. The flat bit is now and wide with tight bends ontobthe huds, so I can space my hands quite nicely on the tops.

I love the Pro PLT bar (about £26 reduced at ribble) it’s very light, springy and looks like a normal road bar with a very compact drop so works well on road rides too – the ends extend a bit more than normal compacts so it works well if you ride in the drops a lot. I went for 44cm version with some fizik microtek tape and it feels brilliant. Much better control at the CX races this year than my old ‘anatomic’ bars.

Cheap as chips too!

i’ve always fancied truing the salsa bell laps, but as because of the 3 peaks rules i’ve stayed away.

i think your ok as long as they’re not over 50cm wide