Easton MonkeyLite DH Bars?

SXtrailrider · Sep 22, 2006

of course it is durable for DH use hence the name the monkeylight DH bar

rodrigodh · Sep 22, 2006

how much is it?

davep · Sep 22, 2006

It is expensive $110. It is VERY strong as long as it does not get a deep scratch and you do not over-torque any clamps (do you have a torque wrench?). Something as simple as a brake lever (with a burr etc) twisting could cause a failure.

Just ask yourself if you are willing to replace it (toss $100) if something happens.

speed racer · Sep 22, 2006

davep said:
It is expensive $110. It is VERY strong as long as it does not get a deep scratch and you do not over-torque any clamps (do you have a torque wrench?). Something as simple as a brake lever (with a burr etc) twisting could cause a failure.

Just ask yourself if you are willing to replace it (toss $100) if something happens.

Exactly my remarks. I use(d) them on both of my bikes, a Turner RFX, and a Demo 8. The one on the RFX is fine, the one on my Demo 8 took a nice nick after a wreck at a DH race and due to the above statement I had to remove for fear of failure. Easton has a crash replacement warranty, but it is only 30% off of full retail, which they have listed at $140, which makes your replacement cost pretty much the same price you paid to begin with. So, I love them and I hate them. The dampening they offer feels great, the chance of failure is less than aluminum only if there aren't any burs, torque is correct, etc.... BUT, aluminum will bend, carbon will snap. So, your choice. I won't use Carbon on my DH bike anymore because of that. I am keeping them on my trail bike though until something happens and I'll reevaluate at that time. FWIW!

davep · Sep 23, 2006

I was looking for a bar at the begining of the summer and I will not ride anything less than 28" for DH. I also wanted a decent weight and a very low rise as the 888 is tall. I ended up with a FUNN 'full on' bar. It is 28+" wide, only 30mm tall, 5.5 degrees upsweep and 8 degrees back, and weighed 290 grams.

It was THE best that I could find in an exhaustive search for aluminum bars, and they are $45 - $50.

Kevin · Sep 23, 2006

Been using the Moneylite DH bar for 2 years now on the DH and 4x bike.
I love the rise and sweep of the bar thats the main reason I like them over the normal bars tht Easton makes.
Just dont over tighten clamps and they are fine.
I do however change the bars every year, the one from the DH bike switches to my 4x bike (which I only use for maybee 4races a year) and the one from the 4x switches to the XC bike which doesnt see nearly the abuse of a DH bike so Im pretty sure it will hold up fine.
I just buy one new one every year (as I would do with an aluminium bar) and put the new one on my DH bike.

Benton · Sep 23, 2006

I've run easton carbon bars for the last 3 years. I've had two easton bars during that time, an XC riser on my hardtail, and a DH riser on my DH/All mountain bike. Both bars have taken the kind of abuse that would have caused an aluminum bar to bend. I do take a piece of sand paper to all the bits that clamp onto the bar before I put them on for the first time to remove any burs or sharp spots. Never worried about torque settings, but I tend to keep my controls just a little loose so they slip instead of breaking in a crash.

I've smacked the DH bar into a tree at speed pretty damn hard. Thought for sure I'd damaged the bar because it knocked the lock-on grip clamp off the bar. The bar was just fine. They're light, they dampen vibration a little bit, they look cool, and they won't get bent out of shape. Theoretically they could just snap I suppose, but I haven't had any problem with them yet, and Easton really tests the hell out of these bars. I would definitely run them. But bike weight is important to me.

Heath Sherratt · Sep 23, 2006

I have so many scrathes and crap on my bars it's a miracle they are still alive but I have had them for two years and had some horrendous crashes on them. They work great and I am swapping them out to my single speed to replace them with new ones on my DH rig. They're great.

SteezyWeezy · Sep 24, 2006

i am curious to run carbon, but at that price, not too curious

Kntr · Sep 24, 2006

SteezyWeezy said:
i am curious to run carbon, but at that price, not too curious

Dont do it. Carbon bars are like Rice Crispies.

SNAP.... your bars are in two pieces
CRACKLE....you hitting the ground
POP.... your bones breaking

Some are lucky enough to not break carbon bars. Not me. I broke mine after a month of riding and Easton sent me (2) EA70s for free. Carbon bars have a better feel to them as they decrease small vibrations into your hands. If you are looking to save weight, they are only 20-30 grams lighter than the EA70s or Pro Tapers.

I have a buddy that goes pretty big (15ft+ drops) and has been running the OS FSA carbon bars and he loves and trusts them. He is using them as a FR bar and I dont think that is very safe IMO. I hope he never breaks them.

Kntr · Sep 24, 2006

driftsrfun said:
it seems that lots of pro teams and riders dont have problems with them, maxxis/ turner, cody warren..

where did they break? where your bars to tight? what were you riding?

They are great race bars but I was using them as FR bars. No they were not over tightend. I keep my brakes and shifters a little loose so they will turn if I crash. Im not going into the story. Do a search the older EC70 bars have been discussed many times. The newer ECs look awesome and from what I have heard are much stronger. The way I look at it, why run them when you can run the EA70 bar that is 20-30g heavier and will PROBABLY bend before they brake.

davep · Sep 24, 2006

driftsrfun said:
it seems that lots of pro teams and riders dont have problems with them, maxxis/ turner, cody warren..

where did they break? where your bars to tight? what were you riding?

And they replace their bars whenever they want. If had an unlimited supply, I would run them to. I replace my bars often as ther is just too much risk if they break at the wrong time. It is alot easier to kick down $30 - $50 than $100 - $150. I wont run carbon bars on my road bike for the same reason. Replacement cost is TOO high and at best you save 40grams (some carbon bars are HEAVIER than aluminum).

There are LOTS of products that are made and then marketed via team riders (among others) that are not an improvement. As an example, there used to be a quote from an engineer at Easton saying that 31.8 bars were an inferior product. To get the same strength as the 25.4 bars, they had to make the 31.8s heavier. They made the product only because the un-informed consumer demanded it.

Kntr · Sep 24, 2006

I ran the 05s.

Kntr · Sep 24, 2006

I went from the EC70 28" to EA70 27" and couldnt tell the difference. A 1/2" on each side is not much.

davep · Sep 24, 2006

driftsrfun said:
why cant they make 28'' ea 70s

YEA!!! Any bar can be cut! I would try 29" if i could find them...

Go to a moto store, bars come in many many diferent lengths, rises, and bends. Almost every pro has his own signature bar. Mtb companies don't offer squat when it comes to bars. Very frustrating.

xc skier · Sep 25, 2006

Quote from Honda site: Greg had changed to a wider handlebar, the Easton Havoc, and found this helped him in those sections where he knew Sam would be fast.

Does anyone have more info about this upcoming Easton Havoc handlebar? 28" wide perhaps?

Spunger · Sep 25, 2006

Kanter said:
I have a buddy that goes pretty big (15ft+ drops) and has been running the OS FSA carbon bars and he loves and trusts them. He is using them as a FR bar and I dont think that is very safe IMO. I hope he never breaks them.

Well the great thing about alum. bars is that they well fail (IE.BEND) well before they will ever sheer off. Carbon bars (or any carbon part really) won't bend but rather snap clean off. I know bars and seatposts are really good at that.

Not to say Carbon bars/seatposts don't have their place, they do, but it's not in the DH/FR world. You see pro's running carbon stuff for one they are most likley sponsored by a company and if they have a part break they just toss on a new one, and they are at that point where every little bit counts. As someone who buy's his own parts I'd rather run stuff that is more "fail safe" then bling. In the case of bars alum. is my only way I'll ride.

It's always tempting, but you gotta think about how bad a crash would be at any speed if the bars gave way. I'll take a bar that will bend anyday over one that'll just snap.

wydopen · Sep 25, 2006

im running em but im not really digging the rise..too tall...the sweep feels nice though

numerik · Sep 25, 2006

You won't understand, but check out the photos...http://tabla.mtb.si/viewtopic.php?t=47481&highlight=easton

It happened to a guy (lightweight, about 65 kg) in a practice run, final jump on a Orange 224. The bar was completly new, and correctly fitted on a stem.

Answer from Easton:
First off I would like to say that I am glad that you were not seriously hurt.

My apologies for taking so long to get back to you, I have been out of the office on Holiday. Even though you have sent a clear photograph of the bar it is imposable for me to tell you what, if anything is wrong with the bar. Is it possible that you would send it too me at Easton? We would gladly compensate you for the bar and your shipping expense. I would also like to know what type stem you were using. If you used a toque wrench, and if so how many Newton meters you tightened your stem. I would also like to mention that we test our bars in production on a daily bases and we also test all of our competitors. We know where we stand compared to the other products on the market, and we know that we have a fantastic product. We stand behind our product 100%, and we will work with you to set things right.

Chuck

Udi · Sep 25, 2006

If you need the extra width then fair enough, but if not I don't think there is much sense in running them. They only come in 2" rise according to the site, and weigh 225g.

My EA70 1" rise (27"/685mm wide) bars weighed 232g (only 7g off the CNT!), and EA50's in the same setup weighed about 262g.

I like lower bars personally and 27" is plenty wide for me, but the bigger advantage is that you can put a few shuttle scratches on them and not really care - and also know that they will bend before they break.

ridiculous · Jul 9, 2007

Damn, mine just got here and now im scared to run them. Performance bike was having an online sale so i got em for $69 with 25 cent shipping. Looks like they might still have them.

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=24013&item=50-5288&slitrk=search&slisearch=true

edit: crap i posted on the linked page and not the actual thread from this year. Sorry

Easton MonkeyLite DH Bars?

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