Are your bars LOWER or HIGHER than your saddle?
- Thread starter BurlyShirley
- Start date
On my trail bike... my bars are the same height as my saddle. I keep my saddle a bit lower than I probably should for best pedaling... if I raise it up for full (or near full) leg extension, it gets in the way when I shift my weight around. Keeping it slightly lower has proved to work best for me as I hate stopping to lower the saddle.
On my roadie, my saddle is slightly higher, and I have no problem with numbness (stock el-cheapo saddle).
On my roadie, my saddle is slightly higher, and I have no problem with numbness (stock el-cheapo saddle).
My handlebars are at least 2" below my seat..Anything higher just sucks..for me.
re: the myth of 'full leg extension'...i've noticed the TdF roadies don't even come close to full leg extension on their bikes...
fubar5 said:
:looney: 
uch: 
....:trophy_br (anyone need a signature?)
For me its not so much a matter of high bars, but a low seat.Ciaran said:
I find that if I do the "put your heel on the pedal with a straight leg" manouver for setting my high seat level, my knee doesn't get anywhere near straight when pedalling.narlus said:
mtnbrider said:
fixed man. Pretty good stuff eh?
I was just thinking...
Since my bars are just a bit higher then my saddle at rest, I bet when Im actually ON the bike, the bars are a bit lower due to sag/travel used in the fork.
Did you all take that into account?
Since my bars are just a bit higher then my saddle at rest, I bet when Im actually ON the bike, the bars are a bit lower due to sag/travel used in the fork.
Did you all take that into account?
On the dh bike, bars low as possible....no spacers, integrated stem, low-rise bars.
The nose of the seat is just about level with the stem, but the back of the seat is a bit lower, because I run my seat tilted back a bit. I almost never sit down, but if I do its in a flat section where its just as fast to sit and spin and save your legs a bit. I like to be more aggresively leaned forward when I ride downhill, and if your bike has a low bottom bracket, anything but a super low front end will make the bike feel weird in my opinion (kind of like you are standing inside of the bike too much)
The seat is a selle italia SLR knockoff with ti rails
on the 4x bike, I run one very thin spacer under my stem, but my seat is very low (basically slammed) because there is no need to sit down. If I go ride xc with it, ill run the seat a couple inches higher then bar height.
on the street bike the seat is much lower then the bar, I run a single spacer under the stem, and 2.5'' rise bars. Anything lower in the front end feels a bit weird with the really low axle-crown 60mm jumper. Cornering or front wheel traction also really isnt an issue on the bike, so higher bars and a spacer make the bike feel a little better
The nose of the seat is just about level with the stem, but the back of the seat is a bit lower, because I run my seat tilted back a bit. I almost never sit down, but if I do its in a flat section where its just as fast to sit and spin and save your legs a bit. I like to be more aggresively leaned forward when I ride downhill, and if your bike has a low bottom bracket, anything but a super low front end will make the bike feel weird in my opinion (kind of like you are standing inside of the bike too much)
The seat is a selle italia SLR knockoff with ti rails
on the 4x bike, I run one very thin spacer under my stem, but my seat is very low (basically slammed) because there is no need to sit down. If I go ride xc with it, ill run the seat a couple inches higher then bar height.
on the street bike the seat is much lower then the bar, I run a single spacer under the stem, and 2.5'' rise bars. Anything lower in the front end feels a bit weird with the really low axle-crown 60mm jumper. Cornering or front wheel traction also really isnt an issue on the bike, so higher bars and a spacer make the bike feel a little better
Thanks for all that, but Im not interested in DH, Street, etc. as I mentioned in the first post. What Im trying to do is sort of get my bike set up in an ideal position based on how the majority of people ride, just to see if Im comfortable with it.A.P said:
Cool if you just felt like sharing though.
i run a good bit of drop. meaning that my bars are quite a bit lower than the nose of my saddle. this is on all of my bikes with the exception being my cross bike. even with that bike though i still have more drop than most ppl run on any of their bikes. got long arms.
I've got a full squish, so I assumed sag was basically the same front and back. But yes, I did think about that.BurlyShirley said:
My seat is at least one to two inches higher than my bar.
Most people have setups like this because of climbing and it being easier to keep the front end on the ground.
Not me though, I am just a freak about a low bar height.
I like my bar low for cornering. On my trail bike, I use a
Thomson 0 degree rise 70mm stem and a one inch rise bar.
I have spacers over my stem in case I want it higher, but I don't.
Most people have setups like this because of climbing and it being easier to keep the front end on the ground.
Not me though, I am just a freak about a low bar height.
I like my bar low for cornering. On my trail bike, I use a
Thomson 0 degree rise 70mm stem and a one inch rise bar.
I have spacers over my stem in case I want it higher, but I don't.
my bars are always higher... short inseam and i either go off or jump everything on the trail....nothing like a full lenght seat tube but for the big climbs allmost the same height
neaky:When climbing my seat is raised up to about bar height and then i drop it for the descent.
true, not fully locked out, but you know what i mean.mtbtom said:
i'm probably guilty of running my saddle lower than what is optimal, but i do like the flexibility of being able to move around the bike and not get jabbed w/ a seat to the sternum. plus, you ever try to bunnyhop w/ a high seat? ugh.
Yeah on my trail bike I am always torn between wanting max extension and wanting room to move around. Even now that I run a gravity dropper I fiddle with the taller position on different rides. So for example if it's got lots of technical climbing I will run it slightly lower, but if the climbs are all fire roads it will be higher.narlus said:
And yeah by "max extension" I mean a slight bend in the knee with my heel relatively level when clipped in. Enough to use all of my leg muscles without rocking my hips to prevent locking out my knees.
exactly, but a lot of the TdF riders don't appear to have that position.OGRipper said:
maybe they are getting really tall, though...there also seems to be a lot more seatpost showing on their frames than i recall.
then again, i could be way off. i've not followed much road racing at all.
When riding offroad, I run my seat a little below 'optimum'. The climbs and descent are relatively short and stopping to adjust my seat height 20X a ride would suck.Andy Pruitt said:
On Xc bikes I have run 3" of drop for nearly a decade.
Any less and there is not enough weight on the front wheel on the flats and climbing and the bike oversteers and gets stuck in holes. Any more drop than that and my herniated disc really acts up, and the bike handles like poo in technical sections.
I run 2cm of drop on my main road bike. Other road bikes have had more drop due to shorter top tubes and steeper seat angles
Handlebar height is obviously a factor of fork length. And optimal handlebar height from a handling persepective is in a defined zone that is pretty much related to fork length, top tube length, bottom bracket height and the riders center of mass. The location of the center of mass. The "zone" is different of different types of bikes due mostly to the handling requirements and the arc in which the riders center of mass moves.
So I basically run the same handlebar height on my 5" travel trailbike, even if I only have an inch of drop, as my center of mass is farther back and higher up, and my fork is about 4" longer in the crown-axle measurement... That make sense to anyone?
Any less and there is not enough weight on the front wheel on the flats and climbing and the bike oversteers and gets stuck in holes. Any more drop than that and my herniated disc really acts up, and the bike handles like poo in technical sections.
I run 2cm of drop on my main road bike. Other road bikes have had more drop due to shorter top tubes and steeper seat angles
Handlebar height is obviously a factor of fork length. And optimal handlebar height from a handling persepective is in a defined zone that is pretty much related to fork length, top tube length, bottom bracket height and the riders center of mass. The location of the center of mass. The "zone" is different of different types of bikes due mostly to the handling requirements and the arc in which the riders center of mass moves.
So I basically run the same handlebar height on my 5" travel trailbike, even if I only have an inch of drop, as my center of mass is farther back and higher up, and my fork is about 4" longer in the crown-axle measurement... That make sense to anyone?
Not really but it sounds like it's working for ya.SuspectDevice said:
About even when i have my 36 dialed down lowest in the travel, which is where i usually ride it. A little higher when i have the travel maxed.
Doesn't really matter too much higher or lower, because if you compensate by either sitting on the front tip of your saddle for short steep ascents, and way behind for dh. Of course different bikes geometry will dictate a better feel leaning for one or the other even on trail bikes which are supposed to be a compromise for both. So beyond any advantage the more important factor in choosing how you set up your cockpit should be based on comfort. The body does the riding not the bike.
Specialized has a cushion you sit on to get properly fit for saddles. This is why your junk falls asleep is that the points of your ass bones need to elevate the bung zone to keep all that circulation flowing. Getting out of the saddle in a standing climb once in a while helps "a little" as well. But get fitted for the correct sized saddle regardless of brand....
depends on the trail for me... on my trailbike, pretty much level... occasionally if i have some climbing to do i raise the seat a couple of more inches... i never go for the full leg extension this tho... i can t corner well with the seat up that high... i m happy to sacrifice a bit of pedaling efficience for improved cornering...
on my new trail bike (nomad coming soon i hope) i ll definately run a GD or maverick post...
on my new trail bike (nomad coming soon i hope) i ll definately run a GD or maverick post...
i'm pretty much the opposite. i'll drop my seat out of necessity on a trail or descent that's hairball. And it's true you lose the ability of carrying alot of speed around corners by being able to severly lean the bike into it. But i still carry good speed and a good lean with having the seat high.partsbara said:
You have to have bend in the knee, riding fully extended will put strain on your knees. And having your seat dropped too much will do the same as well as lose pedalling efficiency. But ultimately i've found that dropping the seat down just a few inches works just fine when you want to open it up or play around. This is all in terms of XC riding of course...
this is good actual mountain bike talk
p1ss offBurlyShirley said:
yes, indeed it is....
piss on 
wax on wax off... you re good at ittequiladougrox said:piss on
wow. bastardized quickly.
it s tequila doug rocking again...BurlyShirley said:
on my fully rigid bianch SS i run the seat a good few inches higher than the bars...Toshi said:the full extension will save your knees. either they have bionic knees or the team doc drops a little narcotic into the epo shot...
fwiw, i run my seat higher than my bars on my xc bike, but it's full rigid so ymmv.
I climb with the seat above my bars. Get to the top and the seat goes all the way down.
I run bars and saddle about the same height, on my trail and freeride bikes. Since I have some short legs (5'9", with 31" inseam), I get good extension without having to have the seatpost very high. With just a slight rise on the handlebars the front wheel has problems staying on the ground.
Intense 5.5: 90mm 6 degree-rise stem, low-rise bars, 515mm fork
Kona Coiler: 70mm 0 degree-rise stem, mid-rise bars, 545mm fork
Intense 5.5: 90mm 6 degree-rise stem, low-rise bars, 515mm fork
Kona Coiler: 70mm 0 degree-rise stem, mid-rise bars, 545mm fork
uphill: about even
downhill: seat way low
downhill: seat way low
On my XC hardtail: bars are lower by quite a bit. Nearly a roadie set-up.
On the FS/DH bike: about even, although it depends on how I set it up. If I'm riding XC on it, the bars may be slightly lower, although not as low as the HT. Set up for DH, bars and seat are about even, with a 90mm stem. My roadie roots showing...
On the FS/DH bike: about even, although it depends on how I set it up. If I'm riding XC on it, the bars may be slightly lower, although not as low as the HT. Set up for DH, bars and seat are about even, with a 90mm stem. My roadie roots showing...