Bars rolled forward or back?

[needaride]

Hey fella's
Just looking to get some opinions and possibly theory behind the angle of the bars.. I ride Funn Full On 750's and have been tending to roll them back more and more and loving the feel. Got a few mates who ride them rolled forward though, and seen a few photos of the pro's riding their bars rolled forward.. Is there a theory behind it or is it purely riders choice of what feels good?

Cheers

 

[SideFX]

I know what you mean , rolling the bars back really lets you push through stuff , feels good and is great over jumps . Its more of an XC thing though . For dh if your bars arn`t forward enough you loose the benefits of the bars sweep .
Your bike will turn better with the bars in a more forward position i.e. 90 degrees there abouts , it just may take some time to get use to .
Try it out , roll through a berm with your inside arm straight and your bars rolled back . Then try it with the bars in a 90 d angle , then roll them forward a touch . In a more forward position the bike will turn sharply , quickly and the two tyres will tip in together .

 

[ferntreekid]

depends on how big you are and what feels good i think, i was running Gravity 800s on a M Frame, and rolling them forward gave me more room (i'm fairly tall). rolling forward also negates some of the sweep, again giving you more room. really though, it's down to what feels good for the individual...

 

[rstwosix]

Ever since my BMX days in the 1980's I've rolled my bars back (and also used wide bars, but that's another subject ). Back then, as now, the riders were divided into those who rolled back or forward. The idea with rolled back bars is to roll the bars back so they are the same angle as the fork. We thought this gave the bike the most natural feel - the bars felt flat across the top and the steering seemed to feel more direct. Now we're on MTB we still roll the bars back and use shorter stems than most folks. With the bars rolled forward they have an upward sweep at the ends and it feels awful to those who ride in the rolled back position. I notice in the latest Revolution mag that riders Josh Button and Brock Newling make a point of saying their bars are rolled back - we are not alone. There are 4 of us in our bikeshop - 2 of us roll back and 2 roll forward. Of course the rolled forward crowd like their bar position and some even claim it's the correct way. Wonderful world aint it.

 

[skwiz05]

grab two 30cm rulers, one in each hand. Sit on your bike. look at how your hands sit naturally (held just above the bars). Will help you decide what angle is most comfortable, then roll your bars into position to suit....

 

[nskz]

I find having the bars rolled forward quite awkward as they then have a lot of up sweep which I find uncomfortable on my wrists. I roll them almost flat - IE so there is zero or very little up sweep. Like said above it's horses for courses.

 

[evObda2]

Ever since my BMX days in the 1980's I've rolled my bars back (and also used wide bars, but that's another subject ). Back then, as now, the riders were divided into those who rolled back or forward. The idea with rolled back bars is to roll the bars back so they are the same angle as the fork. We thought this gave the bike the most natural feel - the bars felt flat across the top and the steering seemed to feel more direct. Now we're on MTB we still roll the bars back and use shorter stems than most folks. With the bars rolled forward they have an upward sweep at the ends and it feels awful to those who ride in the rolled back position. I notice in the latest Revolution mag that riders Josh Button and Brock Newling make a point of saying their bars are rolled back - we are not alone. There are 4 of us in our bikeshop - 2 of us roll back and 2 roll forward. Of course the rolled forward crowd like their bar position and some even claim it's the correct way. Wonderful world aint it.

+1
I come from the same background, racing bmx for years this is what feels most natural steering for me.

The only other thing is to consider where your wrists sit while you are in riding position. And this will depend on frame size and how big you are yourself.

 

[Big Bad Bretty]

Hey guys,

My two cents worth! I've been riding mountain bikes for 16 years and have always rolled my bars forward. It helps when your are 198cm and 105kgs and ride a medium sized demo 7. It opens up the cockpit and gives my legs more room. I also run a slightly longer stem at 65mm.

My son, who is 190cms and 80kgs, also rides a medium sized demo and runs his bars rolled back on a direct mount stem at 45mm.

It all comes down to personal preference and what feels comfortable for you.

Cheers Brett

 

[benji92]

I do agree with most people, bars rolled forward will defineatly enable you to pick up some added maneuverablilty, plus you will feel like you have more power hitting the berms. it might take a bit of time to get use to specially if you have done a bit of street ridin but give it a go and see how it feels.

 

[RMS116]

I roll mine forward. I have answer protaper 780's. I do it because thats how the bars on my moto are set up. Opens up the cockpit and gets you up in the "attack" position. I used to roll them back on my moto then my uncle who was in the racing scene with my cuz (his son) said roll em forward because it gets you up off the seat. He said if they are rolled back it has the tendancy to make you lazy.

 

[rstwosix]

+1
I come from the same background, racing bmx for years this is what feels most natural steering for me.

The only other thing is to consider where your wrists sit while you are in riding position. And this will depend on frame size and how big you are yourself.

Yes, rolled back sure feels the natural way for me. I guess the bottom line is some like rolled forward and others back. There are no rules or correct way - riders should try both ways and go with what they like.

 

[aceyone]

I roll mine forward. I have answer protaper 780's. I do it because thats how the bars on my moto are set up. Opens up the cockpit and gets you up in the "attack" position. I used to roll them back on my moto then my uncle who was in the racing scene with my cuz (his son) said roll em forward because it gets you up off the seat. He said if they are rolled back it has the tendancy to make you lazy.

Agreed.

I've played with rolling mine forward just a touch progressively over the summer... found that it opened up my upper body and got me up and over the bike, and helped get my elbows up and out rather than pinned against my sides. I felt like it helped me assume a more agressive attiude and better manoeuvrability (sp?).

 

[Staunch]

I've got mine rolled forward on my DH and DJ bike, most of my mates hate it but I just find like people have said it gets you more into the 'attack' position, and I feel more centered on the bike that way and feel like I have more control, and I can get my weight over the fork easier for cornering and stuff.
I guess it just comes down to personal preference, I just always set them up that way and didn't notice til my mates started complaining when they rode my bike

 

[fairy1]

I'm a forward roller as well, I can't jump a bike with the bars rolled back, it feels like you are lifting the whole bike and the bars feel bent downwards. I've got a tiny 5deg of backsweepwhich gets rid of the girls bike feeling of the trendy 9deg bars, it's great no one wants to ride my bike.

 

[BUSHPIG]

had my gravity 800s foreward for ages. now run the same angle as my forks and will never go back

 

[Kram]

I've been copping flack for at least 10 years for rolling my bars forward from just about every person who's ever jumped on my bike. The rolled back crowd are just as vocal as the flat pedal crowd about what is right and wrong. It's funny how many people do things because it's fashionable and all it takes is a couple of pros with a bee in their bonnet about what's cool and what's not and everone runs to jump on the bandwagon wether it suits them or not. Do what you like and f*$k the rest. But what the hell would a clipped in, bar forward roller know about riding?

 

[Ryan]

S. and I swapped bikes for a run in the bike park yesterday and we're two guys who would like to think we know a thing or two about bike setup.

Half way down we were both thoroughly disgusted and swapped back with a chorus of "Bleugh! What the fuck is wrong with you? How can you ride a bike like this?" etc.

Major point of contention; S. runs his bars rolled way back and I like mine pretty much vertical. Totally an item of personal preference in my opinion, no right or wrong way to run them. Unless you're S. or Kram, who are both totally wrong.

 

[S.]

S. and I swapped bikes for a run in the bike park yesterday and we're two guys who would like to think we know a thing or two about bike setup.

Half way down we were both thoroughly disgusted and swapped back with a chorus of "Bleugh! What the fuck is wrong with you? How can you ride a bike like this?" etc.

Major point of contention; S. runs his bars rolled way back and I like mine pretty much vertical. Totally an item of personal preference in my opinion, no right or wrong way to run them. Unless you're S. or Kram, who are both totally wrong.

I tried rolling mine forwards a bit after riding your bike and at the "vertical" position they just felt terrible, way too much pressure on the outside of my hands, so I rolled em back a bit again. They still feel noticeably higher than they did before though, so in a few months' time when I've saved up like $80 I'll get a new stem.

 

[needaride]

...Now we're on MTB we still roll the bars back and use shorter stems than most folks. With the bars rolled forward they have an upward sweep at the ends and it feels awful to those who ride in the rolled back position. I notice in the latest Revolution mag that riders Josh Button and Brock Newling make a point of saying their bars are rolled back - we are not alone. There are 4 of us in our bikeshop - 2 of us roll back and 2 roll forward. Of course the rolled forward crowd like their bar position and some even claim it's the correct way. Wonderful world aint it.

Funny you mention that about the Revolution article, thats what got me thinking about it...

Thanks for all the feedback, some helpful stuff there!

 

[rstwosix]

Yeah I've always rolled my bars back (much to the disgust of rolled forward riders who jump on my bike) soI found it interesting seeing that in the mag.