Love handlebar deep dives. They're maybe my favorite component to swap around on my builds, but it's hard to commit to to buying a new pair without first hearing someone's firsthand experience with them. Each has its own feeling of human-to-bike connection. Appreciate the video!
I love this look. I have a 95 GT Palomar that I fitted out with Fairdale MX Bars (I bought them over Sunrise bars because of price) and an Odysee stem.. It's a budget friendly alternative low rise BMX bar ($60aud vs $160AUD for Surly Sunrise) with less up and back sweep and a slightly higher rise. 90s mtbs feel great with low rise bmx bars. I grew up riding BMX in the 90s/00s, so naturally they feel like a BMX cruiser with gears.
Interesting. I run Nitto Bullmoose bars on my CrossCheck and tell everyone how well they soak up chatter vs. the aluminum bars on there before. Literally my favorite bars for rigid bikes.
I wonder if you could increase compliance by cutting out the moto cross bar. Might affect strength but I wouldn’t be too worried-could be a fun. Love the vids!
I tried the Surly Sunrise bars. I'm no weight weenie, but they are very heavy. So much so, that I felt it affected the handling of the bike. I also found them brutally stiff and harsh. Off they went. Replaced with Hunter Smooth Move High bars. Very similar dimensions, and quality Nitto aluminum. I agree with you on upsweep, too. Highly underrated.
I put a set of these on my trek multitrack 700. They’re awesome for cruising around. I’m going to move them to my old trek 950 once i get the panoracer tires and my hand is no longer broken. I got these all because of the trash or bash build video. Fell in love at first sight.
I ran Sunrises on my Kona Fire Mountain for a while before I came to a similar conclusion about the harshness of steel bars. I switched them out for a set of titanium bars with similar specs (but no crossbar) and have found it to be much more comfortable on long rides.
I considered these bars on my GT and Nishiki builds. I ended up with the Cheat Code Bars by GT for my GT, which are a built taller but nice for riding around the city and the MX Fairdale's for the Nishiki.
Great video! I really like the setup you have with bmx stem and surly bar. I like the Nitto bullnose too so ill decide between the two. The bar really suits the style of the rockhopper and it looks a very nice build all over.
Oh yeah, I forgot... I just got my first mountain bike back. My actual first mountain bike. 1992 Trek Antelope 20.5". (I bought it in '95, gave to my sister in '95, and she just gave it back) I tried the Sunrise bars and they weren't anywhere near tall enough. Given my bullfrog stance, to get the grips level with the saddle, I'm using a profile quill adaptor raised up 30mm, generic 70mmx35°stem, and S&M S.A.C. cruiser bars that are 6.37" rise. I need to send you some pictures somehow. People just don't understand how hard bike fit is for long legged dudes. 😅
Surly Sunrise bars are fantastic. Sizing me: never just ask "how tall are you?" because that's only half the story. I'm 6'1" on a proud day but my inseam is 35.5". I'm a bullfrog. Looooong legs, short torso. My saddle comes way up, my bars have to come up or my grips are at my knees. Short torso means short reach. My optimal reach and stack would be around 465-470 reach with 670+ stack. I have been running Whiskey Milhouse handlebars on my Stache and Ragley Big Al since I built it. (Milhouse is nearly identical to the Sunrise, just carbon and 1/3 the weight) I had the Sunrise on my Ripmo AF until I decided to put my prototype Carver Titanium klunker bars on it tonight. Carver still sells the production version but there's no upsweep, so I hate the production version. That's what they initially sent me and I called them out on it so they sent me their only prototype. My bars have to be super tall just to be level with my saddle. Yes, Eric... the Surly bars are harsh. They are thicker steel and have a cross bar so they don't flex. Whiskey Milhouse is more forgiving. Carver Titanium is half way between the two. There are so many bars out there similar. Berm Rover is very similar but in titanium. Oddity Odmone pricey Wilde Cardinal $130 Mone Lite Bar $300+!! BTCHN Hi Riser and Ti Riser are similar without the crossbar. Same with the Hunter Smooth Move. Ahearne Uprising is slight taller with more sweep. Similar to the Stooge Junker 83, Junker 100 and Velo Orange Klunker. Dude, there are so many more, too. I should build a database.
I put some massive ProTaper ebike bars on my '90s rigid bike. 810mm, 3 inch rise, 50mm stem. It feels completely different to the old straight XC bars! I've also tried a Ritchey Kyote 800mm but it somehow feels too big.
IMO you did this review well. I really like getting real life experiences of kinda odd conversion choices especially regarding ride feel and ergonomics. Every time i see the grouch I ask myself whether the effective reach with this bmx stem isn‘t a little short. I guess it is the width of these bars that makes it fit fine. Currently, I run my '95 Trek 970 with it’s original 130 mm stem, a 580 mm nearly straight flat bar with long-ish bar ends and a substantial saddle to bar drop. For short trips into town and gravel riding it works well enough.
If you like those, try the 100mm rise Cannondale Cruise Control. Alloy, not as stiff as those overbuilt cromo bars, but also less weighted due to the higher rise. By the way the rise also means you won’t miss the inch and a half of width per side that you aren’t using most of the time anyway.
Great review. I was torn between these and the fairdale. I went with the latter and couldn’t be happier. The 28” width feels right since I’m 5’7” and was used to riding 24” syncros bars on a late 90s mtb. I have a nuke proof 780mm (30.7”) riser bar on my ss gravel bike that eventually cause discomfort in the hands and wrists. Handlebars, like boobs can get too big.
I once had the sunrise bars for an older bike of mine to try and fix the fit a bit, but ended up selling the bike and getting a properly fitting salsa Journeyman.
Bars do look cool and those bmx stems look even better. Somewhere around 1964 I put high rise steel "monkey bars" on my single speed Murray. No cross bar so one day while pulling away in a spirited manner and pulling on the bars they folded inward. Loved them alot but learned a lesson in metallurgy and force. Can't have everything I guess.
If I'm replacing a quill integrated riser and stem on an old trek 800 would I need to buy a threaded to threadless adapter for the new bmx stem to attach to as well?
GT actually makes some "cruiser" bmx style bars with 7" of rise or so in the OG style 2piece and 4piece if you're going for a more faithful look, fyi. depending on your height it could pair great with a front load stem and the low front end of the 90s frames.
All right, this post is going to make me sound super old. In regards to Steele handlebars being harsh. I would say from my experience that Steele has a really wide range of potential in regards to flex. all growing up I ran a true temper chrome Molly flat handle bar on my mountain bike. I would say it felt decently flexing and when I swapped to a aluminum handlebar it felt more harsh than the true temper bar did. Then I got into BMX and had a set of hooder high bars by S&M. Crazy harsh! They felt so stiff! But they were also super thick steel and heat treated. I am currently running a set of surly open bars on a retro modded 90s mountain bike. And those are super Duper flexible. I have never ridden a handlebar that flexes that much and it is also chromemoly steel. Love a good discussion.
I got this exact same bike but mine has a sloping top tube. Going to try these bars but I’d have to cut them down for our local rides as I’d be collecting pine tree trunks and dog walkers with that width bar. Love these videos keep them coming .🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼🤙🏼
You gotta have those bars on a heavy bikes. Think of sprung / unsprung weight. Chromo bars do flex a bit more than aloy but you only feel it when you have some weight pulling back towards gravity. Love these bars
Hey, I commented on Instagram, thanks so much for reviewing! I'm sold. I'm hoping to find a used set, because I'm cheap, but will prolly end up buying a new set. Love your content. Adding a little riding time like you usually do makes a product review video way more watchable. Thanks man!
Sweet bars I want more rise but my stem is 35mm. I thought of running an SE BMX stem that will do and fit my steerer but it might look off on a late specialized rockhopper? Only one way to find out.
Steel bars are noticeably stiffer and less forgiving. These style of bars with their moto inspired cross bar will make them even more stiff by preventing them to "bend" in the middle. On another note, I run my bars in a similar fashion, I roll mine forward in a way to make them feel more comfortable in both seated and standing positions. All my friends tend to run theirs more "level" which feels weird to me. When it comes to drop bars, I run them slightly up with the hoods positioned higher on the bar. I don't get in the drops as much as I ride with my hands on the hoods. It is a preference thing for my individual comfort.
Absolutely agree the Sunrise is super harsh! I have the Nitto Bullmoose too and find it better, but yeah, still harsh. I think in both cases it comes down to the extra bracing from the crossbar/bullmose style. But not all steel bars are equal, I have a steel Wald bar, 8038GB w/ 1" clamp dia. and that one is more comfy, springy, almost bouncy, than any 31.8 aluminum bar I've tried, great for cruising pot-holy streets. Check out the Worm bar for another comfort steel bar- or the Moth bar if you really want to get back-sweepy!
I sold my Sunrise bars. Wanted to love them, but just not quite enough sweep for me. Wish I had cut them down and tried it narrower and seen if that would have helped 🤷♂️
I have a pair of Surly Sunrise bars, also got them used, already cut down to less than stock (idfk, like, 750 or something), and yeah, can confirm they're harsh, even when riding really plush suspension (2003 shiver single crown). This is probably exacerbated for me because they're not the stock length, so not as much leverage, but the position is great! Surly could definitely use sightly lighter gauge tubing.
I have this bar on my Trek Marlin with a Sunday BMX stem. The bike is far from original and is more of a urban/bike packing style. 2.5” hookworms, rigid fork and lots of racks.
One might think this video would sell some handle bars but after the past couple vids riding this bike I think I will replace my smoke and dart with gravel kings on my 90s MTB. Also with the bull moose and cross bar handle bars, I believe they have less flex due to the construction. The stiffness may be due to material as well. Love the content dude, we would e friends if in the same zip code lol
steel cross braced BMX bars with the 28.6-22.2 clamp (amazon) on my GF 97 giant Sedona with the Rockshox Indy.. pretty rigid feel. similar appearance to those surly but unknown yard sale find for $5
I have the monē oddmonē bars, which similar to those surly bars, and they are quite stiff. I love the geo of them, but they are definitely stiff. I think the crossbar had a lot to do with that. I want to throw some esi grips or something like those on amd see if that helps. I previously had some carbon bars on this same bike, and those had a noticeable amount of vibration damping compared to aluminum or steel bars on that same bike.
I also have Sunrise bars and they feel really stiff, maybe not as stiff as the Nitto Little Nick i have on another bike. I have ordered a 22mm moto bar similar to the Sunrise but without the linkage to compare.
So Eric looks like you’re running these at the full 820mm width and you didn’t cut them down? My full suspension MTB trail bike has 780mm bars and those seem super wide and I have a set of sunrise bars on order for my 91 rockhopper and was considering cutting them down but maybe not now?
Bar material does affect the amount of bar flex. I haven’t really run into any issues with bar flex as all of my bikes except for one have aluminum bars. So my bikes are relatively consistent from one another. The one bar that I am running that is steal is on my Palomar which is super duper narrow. I would have to think that there is very little flex. That rides definitely a lot more harsh. I think the bars add to that. No leverage from width and also steel. That’s probably why it rides a bit harder
I don't know how much this will add to the convo, but I have an 80's steel road bike with steel drop bars and the whole ride seems harsher than my modern-ish mid 2010's alu road bike with carbon bars. it probably doesn't help that the bars on my steel bike are significantly thinner (smaller diameter) than the modern bars and so my hands have less to grip, but I definitely feel far more road buzz on the old bike as compared to the newer one.
The whole point of a BMX handle bar is no compliance! Steel bars without a bridge piece are a little more flexy but if you really want flexy bars try bamboo, though that may be too much compliance for single track.
l am looking at getting this bars for townie myself as like the rise and the sweep.. as right now I have mini apps now. oh yes the bike is a cruiser bike
I think it's just that you've only ridden stiff steel bars? Surly actually mentions in the description for their open bar that they designed it intentionally with some flex in it, and so I don't think harshness in inherent to steel bars. But the crossbar on the sunrise (or any BMX bar) is specifically there to beef up the bars so they can have a large rise without flexing on hard impacts, and I'm not sure about the bullmooses but I bet the integrated stem kinda design results in a stiffer bar? I mean they were originally designed like that so they can have tonnes of leverage for trail riding so I think it makes sense 🤷♀
Had a pair of these… harsh to the point of not being suitable for mtbing. Rocky utah double track would cause my hands to go numb, when the same track felt like butter on my aluminum handlebars. The middle brace doesn’t help.
Seaside Ca. Hi l Just Want to Say the Sea Otter Classic is Here I 5/8 min there i’m in the making of a conquer soon maybe next year when it’s done ride it to the event like I said it’s only 5 to 8 minutes from my house. We get people all over the world for these races. If you ever check out Monterey Bay is a beautiful area. A lot of trails, I grew up in Sand City being a miss Fitch kid like Dennis the Menace I’m 64 years old and maybe I’ll enter the race for men event so I used to race BMX bikes when I was a boy and mini bikes so please if you ever make it out this way check it out and you’ll have fun
There's a smorgasbord of components out there and I would go broke trying them all out 🤔 that would be fun but your reviews heip preserve the funds for my wife's dotage 😂
Don't listen to the naysayers, Eric. Raffle it if you want to! It's your bike! Raffle it off and trust that your obsessive tinkering instincts and good taste will find you some other frameset to turn into a star.
Look like plain old overpriced motorcycle motocross handlebars to me. Been building clunkers for decades with essentially the same bars, but cheaper and in colors.
