Needed some wider bars last year when I finally conceded that as the rest of the world was on silly wide bars, I should try something wider than 685mm, so bought some VGC 711 Sunlines off a friend in good nick. Fitted them, and they felt ace.
Then a few months later, I fitted a much larger volume front tyre, which jacked the front up a bit, and made the front end feel too high with 19mm rise bars. So started thinking about some lower rise, or even flat bars.
Now fast forward a bit, I sell a couple of bits, find some Sunline 762's (which I [i]will[/i] cut down of course) cheap on CRC for £25 and... Well...
I now have some 762mm wide (or 30" in old money!) flat bars on my full sus XC bike, and they feel bloody marvellous! Just fitted them this afternoon, thinking "I may as well try them before I trim them down to 711 like the last bars" and, well... Don't think I'll be bothering to trim them any time soon! 😳
Unless of course they really cause an issue on my local trails, but they feel sooooooo nice...
I have a pair.
Awaiting payment in the basket! Looking forward to trying them out.
They're a lovely shape them, just feel right in the hand. Too wide for my taste but a great bar I reckon.
You're not wrong Northwind. Used to be a big Easton fan, then Raceface. Bought some 2nd hand Sunlines, and to be honest wouldn't use another brand now out of choice, I love the shape... We'll see how long I can put up with the ridiculous width for the time being.
I must be even worse then.... Just got the nuke proof warhead 800mm wide ones. Which tbh will be getting cut down.... Probably..... 
Edit....
I did look at the sunlines, just wanted the matching stem and couldnt find it...
I've got V1's on both bikes, frikkin awesome
I have Sunlines on all my bikes. I took a lot of flack from friends because I wouldn't cut them down, but I think they are great as they are. I've only hit the occassional tree since fitting them!!!
wacky bars FTW
[url= http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6150/6015748582_ba7df62df4_o.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocketdog/6015748582/ ]every good ride needs one[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/rocketdog/ ]rOcKeTdOgUk[/url], on Flickr
My money is on the short bar backlash in 15 months.
not till we get the wrong side of 850
We're already there - and then some........
http://superstar.tibolts.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=72&products_id=532
I went for raceface atlas am 725 thort they where wide but got use to them
and wish I went for the 780 now! I've only ever had one bad bar clip which was at ae forest two
trees at the end of a black section!
wacky bars FTW
Have tried a couple of sets before, really didn't get on with them at all. I know they suit some people, but they're not for me.
My money is on the short bar backlash in 15 months.
I've got a pair of heavily swept 640mm wide flat bars kicking about in a cupboard, should I need to be at the front of that fashion too! 😉
Those Superstar Yardstick bars are bloody ridiculous... A Yard? Really...? A whole 36 bloody inches!!! Most MX bars are only about 800-820mm iirc...
Your shoulders ain't that wide mboy, do you just ride one handed everywhere? 😀
Hows collage??
collage = loads of pics?
I had 760s on one bike and 640s on the other and whenever I was riding the 640 and I took my hand off the bars I would miss the end when I put my had back down. That hurt a few times.
Oh and as for clipping trees with wide bars, I have done it a few times and I did a silly little one just before christmas that buggered the nerves in my hand. I still have no feeling in my little finger or the side of the one next to it.
I_Ache so wide bars on one bike make you crash both your bikes? I'm in! 🙂
cynic-al - MemberMy money is on the short bar backlash in 15 months.
I'll agree with this. In all the years i rode MX/Enduro I saw bar widths go up and down like a brides nightie.
In real terms it makes f all difference. Where one has an advantage it also has a dissadvantage to the other in a different area.
Ride what feels right for you and your local trails.
Almost as funny as the flatbar craze. Flatbars and a shitload of stem spacers? Just stick with risers you fashion victim. 😉
Tracker that about sums it up. I'm still sold on them tho. I have 750s on the second bike now. I found plenty of other ways to crash bikes before wide bars. However wide bars help with a few of those but create new ways to crash. I will always crash but at least with wide bars I have more control. It's all good.
In real terms it makes f all difference. Where one has an advantage it also has a dissadvantage to the other in a different area.
Totally... Hardly gonna make me a shitload better rider all of a sudden, they do [i]feel[/i] nice to me though!
Ride what feels right for you and your local trails.
This is the bit that might see me cutting them down sooner or later. They're replacing the 711mm Sunline V1's I had off you SSStu.
Almost as funny as the flatbar craze. Flatbars and a shitload of stem spacers? Just stick with risers you fashion victim.
Again, I totally agree. I actually prefer the look of risers, it's just that on my Maverick, with its integrated stem (and no stem spacers) I still felt the front end was marginally too high (which it kind've is for an XC bike what with a 6" fork and all), so I'm trying the flat bar approach... It's the next probably solution to positioning on the bike that's going to make your eyes bleed, probably going to swap my inline Thomson for a layback one, then run it back to front to bring the saddle forward a bit! 😛
I bought some Sunline V1's at 760mm. Felt daft. The Niner 711mm ones feel too wide. Going back to a nice flexy 25.4 carbon low rise 685mm tomorrow.
If anyone's intrested in the V1's they are silver, emails in profile.
Literally bolted in a stem & ridden up the street before going back in the box.
Every now and again I take out one of the stepsons' bikes with 640mm bars...I used to run these (Answer Pro Taper) on my size large Enduro...
There's no going back - unless of course I suddenly wake up tomorrow with the skills and testicles of John Tomac, in which case you'll see my Enduro running drop bars.
750mm minimum for me now. Anything else feels weird. Then again I have monkey arms and am 6'3.
Almost as funny as the flatbar craze. Flatbars and a shitload of stem spacers? Just stick with risers you fashion victim.
From a pure engineering perspective, you could make a stronger / lighter bar if it didn't have a couple of bends. I.e. a straight bar and higher stem / more stackers would be a more sensible option. It's just it looks kinda funny to a lot of people, so the MTB industry has settled on risers. I'm not sure who the real fashion victims are 😉
Your shoulders ain't that wide mboy, do you just ride one handed everywhere?
Hows collage??
One handed everywhere indeed, I need a spare hand for throwing things at other people I ride with, or for grabbing their brake levers at every opportunity naturally! 😉
College is great cheers, enjoying it loads. VERY busy man right now though, but we must sort a ride out some time as it's been a while!
Anyway, did a 4hr ride today on the bike, and can confirm the bars feel bloody awesome! I was slightly more aware of them when going through some tree lined singletrack than the 711 wide bars they replaced, but to be honest, once you're past a certain width anyway an extra inch or two is hardly going to make that much difference clearance wise. If I can't get through it with 685's (and some gaps I couldn't on a couple of trails I've ridden), then it's little consequence running hugely wider bars quite frankly... But the new position and width felt awesome to ride with.