I'm a complete newbie to this forum. I recently had a 1995 Orange P7 stolen which had been lovingly restored about 10 years ago and was my pride and joy. I've just bought another P7 frameset and want some general advice about handlebar sizes: Is there any good reason not to fit a 25.4mm bar these days? There are plenty of decent 25.4 bars on the second hand market and it would be more in keeping with the age of the bike. However I notice that there has been a size increase over recent years to 31.? Was that done for safety reasons?
MTB Handlebar advice.
- Thread starter Barney484
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I tihnk there are a couple of reasons for 31.8: you can get a stiffer bar with the larger diameter and thin the wall a little - this trend was driven by road bikes. On MTBs the bars have got longer. However none of these things make a 25.4 bar any worse or unfit for service. Personally I'm quite happy with 25.4.
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I tend to be wary of older alloy bars that I don't know the history of, especially for a bike that is intended to be ridden.
Granted, I'm a big lad who is particularly fond of my teeth and rugged good looks, but it is worth bearing in mind. Especially bars that have clamp marks where the stem, brakes and shifters have been.
Granted, I'm a big lad who is particularly fond of my teeth and rugged good looks, but it is worth bearing in mind. Especially bars that have clamp marks where the stem, brakes and shifters have been.
