Riser bar advice needed for a 2019 Levo

[Andy A]

Hi guys my wife Linda feels that her stock bars are a bit low, looking at the Levo specs it says the bars are 27mm riser bars so to get a better height would 40mm be better, I know she would have to try them but I assume that 40mm would be 13mm higher than the stock ones!

She has the 3 spacers under the stem that came with the bike so to get a bit more height what sort of stem would I get or would the bars on their own do the job ok, and has anyone done something similar with their 2019 Levo as there are so many different stems etc I haven't got a clue

Renthal do a 40mm riser at 800mm wide is it ok to cut them down to 780mm as that is the width she has now?

Any advice much appreciated

Thanks

 

[levity]

Hey Andy,

Handlebar rise, up- and back-sweep are all rider, bike and condition dependent. You just have to spend time tweaking the setup to find what works best. The shop where you purchased your wife’s bike should offer to help adjust things and/or swap a few parts out to improve fit for her.

Did you check to see if the stem on Linda’s bike is mounted with the rise up and not down? Flipping a 6° rise 60mm stem will change the rise by about 12mm (and reach by about 5mm).

A simple thing you can do is to rotate the bars in the stem. Rotating them forward will raise them some but will also increase the upsweep, reduce the backsweep, and lengthen the reach a bit.

Another thing you can do with her current bars is to cut them shorter. 780mm seems wide for an average sized woman who rides with average aggressiveness. Shortening them to 750-760mm would make the reach a bit shorter and allow her to sit a bit taller.

... Renthal do a 400mm riser at 800mm wide is it ok to cut them down to 780mm as that is the width she has now?

It’s fine to cut most bars down, and many have markers near the bar ends showing where to cut for different lengths.

I hope those Renthals only have a 40mm rise - 400mm would be more appropriate for a Harley motorcycle.

 

[Andy A]

Hey Andy,

Handlebar rise, up- and back-sweep are all rider, bike and condition dependent. You just have to spend time tweaking the setup to find what works best. The shop where you purchased your wife’s bike should offer to help adjust things and/or swap a few parts out to improve fit for her.

Did you check to see if the stem on Linda’s bike is mounted with the rise up and not down? Flipping a 6° rise 60mm stem will change the rise by about 12mm (and reach by about 5mm).

A simple thing you can do is to rotate the bars in the stem. Rotating them forward will raise them some but will also increase the upsweep, reduce the backsweep, and lengthen the reach a bit.

Another thing you can do with her current bars is to cut them shorter. 780mm seems wide for an average sized woman who rides with average aggressiveness. Shortening them to 750-760mm would make the reach a bit shorter and allow her to sit a bit taller.



It’s fine to cut most bars down, and many have markers near the bar ends showing where to cut for different lengths.

I hope those Renthals only have a 40mm rise - 400mm would be more appropriate for a Harley motorcycle.

Haha oops it was 40mm is it a case of undoing the stem and seeing if it goes up a bit higher? there are the three spacers that came with the Levo as standard, I was looking at the Nukeproof riser bars which are 38mm rise which is 11mm more than she has now!

Thanks for taking the time to reply

 

[Galion]

I installed a 780mm S-works DH Carbon bar, 3.8 rise, solved my numb hands and shoulder aching problem

 

[atcspaul]

I had these on my stumpjumper, they made it very comfortable DEITY HIGHSIDE 760 HANDLEBAR /// 80mm RISE

 

[levity]

... is it a case of undoing the stem and seeing if it goes up a bit higher? ...

No, No, No. It's easy to do right, but also easy to do wrong. And doing it wrong could have bad consequences!

Please have your shop or a knowledgable friend show you how to do this - insuring that you have enough spacers, setting the headset bearing preload by tightening the top cap, and only then tightening the stem bolts.

Check out this Park Tool guide and video to understand the process -

Stem Removal & Installation: Threadless

 

[Levo-Lon]

My wife has a riser stem on her Levo.
60mm rise ,about £25
And I've cut her bars to 700mm
She is short in the torso so this works well for her.

Lots sell them in different height angle ect
Just check for correct bore as this one is a 25mm not 31.6
Here BBB HighRise MTB Handlebar Stem BHS-24

 

[Andy A]

Thanks so much for the replies I do think her bars need cutting down as she had a 2016 Haibike and the bar width on that was perfect but I can't remember how wide they were and I can't find it online ?

 

[Levo-Lon]

Thanks so much for the replies I do think her bars need cutting down as she had a 2016 Haibike and the bar width on that was perfect but I can't remember how wide they were and I can't find it online ?

Probably around 720mm
Levos are 780mm so very wide for a female or short Male as a rule .


I have Renthal alloy 20mm risers cut to 740mm, with a 45mm stem.
I'm 5'8

 

[Andy A]

Probably around 720mm
Levos are 780mm so very wide for a female or short Male as a rule .


I have Renthal alloy 20mm risers cut to 740mm, with a 45mm stem.
I'm 5'8

Ahh thanks for that information so the Levo bars are a fair bit wider then is the stem you have a Renthal as well and at 45mm is that much different to the standard stem on the 2019 Levo?

 

[Levo-Lon]

Ahh thanks for that information so the Levo bars are a fair bit wider then is the stem you have a Renthal as well and at 45mm is that much different to the standard stem on the 2019 Levo?

An educated guess on the haibike bar.


levo bars are wide.
I think standard stem on my 2019 bike is 45mm but my new bars are the 35mm clamp so needed the 35mm stem.

I did try a 50mm 60mm but 45mm is perfect with the 740 width.

Its something to play about with as reach and height make a big difference to comfort, but can change bike feel and how it handles.