handlebar setup?

I recently swapped from stock KTM Neken to Pro Taper EVO Henry/Reed bend and it helped some. I ride with full width.

You really got to find what works best for you, which can change. Remember Carmichael on the Honda with bars that weren't good for anybody, yet he still made it work, somehow.

Meg claims sweeping give her arm pump too, i think you're onto something OP

I think it’s more about my lever positions, than the bar bend.. for whatever that’s worth

AJ565 wrote:

I recently swapped from stock KTM Neken to Pro Taper EVO Henry/Reed bend and it helped some. I ride with full width.

I looked at the KTM SXF OEM handlebar and it has 54mm sweep.The EVO Henry/Reed bar got 57.Glad it helped you I will try two handlebars next week, one with 56 and one with 65 sweep. will be interesting.

What I have found is that Twinwalls or Pro-Tapers Fuzion bars have very minimal flex which beats the crap outta my arms. Especially later in the day when braking bumps and chop hardens up. I run Pro-Taper Evo KTM High bend. I like a bar that is pretty flat and straight. Otherwise I feel like I am riding a beach cruiser. On my 450, I went from stock Yamaha bars to Pro-Taper Fuzion bars, Unlocked Fuzion Bars, and now the EVO bars and I feel these are the best for me.

AJ565 wrote:

I recently swapped from stock KTM Neken to Pro Taper EVO Henry/Reed bend and it helped some. I ride with full width.

mx4all wrote:

I looked at the KTM SXF OEM handlebar and it has 54mm sweep.The EVO Henry/Reed bar got 57.Glad it helped you I will try two handlebars next week, one with 56 and one with 65 sweep. will be interesting.

I tried to run them +1 forward and it moved me to far forward on the bike and I was having some issues in turns on a sand track when I need to be back some. I set them in the neutral 0 position and have been happy since. I went with the sweep I had because I didn't know how drastic of difference it would be, I think a little more would still fit me just right.

Speeddemon73 wrote:

What I have found is that Twinwalls or Pro-Tapers Fuzion bars have very minimal flex which beats the crap outta my arms. Especially later in the day when braking bumps and chop hardens up. I run Pro-Taper Evo KTM High bend. I like a bar that is pretty flat and straight. Otherwise I feel like I am riding a beach cruiser. On my 450, I went from stock Yamaha bars to Pro-Taper Fuzion bars, Unlocked Fuzion Bars, and now the EVO bars and I feel these are the best for me.

I've seen other members talking about the twinwall being solid and doesn't flex but Renthal advise was to remove the crossbar and it would flex a lot more so I will try that too.

Been looking for a pair of used PHDS mounts, maybe going to try that if I still get armpump/sore with the new bars.

Why would handlebars affect blood circulation issues?

Look how the Goat ran his bars, Worked for him.

mx4all wrote:

I've seen other members talking about the twinwall being solid and doesn't flex but Renthal advise was to remove the crossbar and it would flex a lot more so I will try that too.

Been looking for a pair of used PHDS mounts, maybe going to try that if I still get armpump/sore with the new bars.

I was thinking the same.Just to saw the cross bar.I guess should be fine?

kb228 wrote:

Why would handlebars affect blood circulation issues?

They wouldn't, but depending on your height, body build, and riding style, handlebars with bends and sweeps that don't compliment those things may make you hold on tighter or put your body in the wrong position on the bike.

The bars that I loved on my '16 YZF450 were swapped to my '17 SXF450 and my arm pump increased dramatically. After rotating them multiple ways with no relief, I went back to the stock Nekens and arm pump went back to "normal".

On my 2012 KTM I swapped out the stock bars for Pro Taper Windham bend. Moved the clamps up and flipped. Helped quite a bit for me.

kb228 wrote:

Why would handlebars affect blood circulation issues?

try moving your bars forward 5mm and do a moto in race pace, you will most likely get armpump. So offcourse different bars and setups affect you in different ways, some will give you armpump and some wont.

In general, the more fwd you have your bars the easier or quicker you get armpump.

Try set the bars in line with the forklegs so you can draw a straight line from center of foels, through the bars.

If you still get armpump, role them back 1mm at a time

In my opinion a lot will depend on how tall you are (read:how long your arms are).

I used to run the twinwall 997 which is probably the most popular bend and it has a lot of sweep. I'm 1m87cm and always felt cramped with those bars. Now I run bars that came stock on 2016 KTMs, which have something like 10-12mm less sweep than the 997s and feel a lot better.

To sum up, I don't think sweep directly relates to having more/less armpump but I do think the length of your arms relates to the amount of sweep that feels comfortable to you. Most motorcycles seats/handlebars/footpegs are built for people that are around 175cm, so if you're not around that height, I would evaluate the controls on your bike to see what's possibly causing the problems.

Speeddemon73 wrote:

What I have found is that Twinwalls or Pro-Tapers Fuzion bars have very minimal flex which beats the crap outta my arms. Especially later in the day when braking bumps and chop hardens up. I run Pro-Taper Evo KTM High bend. I like a bar that is pretty flat and straight. Otherwise I feel like I am riding a beach cruiser. On my 450, I went from stock Yamaha bars to Pro-Taper Fuzion bars, Unlocked Fuzion Bars, and now the EVO bars and I feel these are the best for me.

This. Twinwalls gave me killer armpump.

aees wrote:

In general, the more fwd you have your bars the easier or quicker you get armpump.

Try set the bars in line with the forklegs so you can draw a straight line from center of foels, through the bars.

If you still get armpump, role them back 1mm at a time

I agree with aligning the bars with the forklegs. I’ve had some great luck with Mika Metals RV/Stewart bend. How tall are you? I’m 6’2” and have previously used the 997 bend (figured they would be great because I’m tall) but I ended up hating them. Anywho, have you tried lowering or raising your levers as well? That’s helped me quite a bit once I’ve found that sweet spot. Additonally, make sure to breathe!

Anyone friend Flexx bars? I am considering them for my TC250

my crap renthal copies were great flexed like shit, shame they bent like shit too!...

Straight, low and forward!

You don’t want much sweep, the more sweep, the more your elbows are tucked into your sides.

mx4all wrote:

How does sweep affect arm pump?

I ve got the twinwall 994 ktm high with just 40mm sweep now.. been struggln with some armpump lately. Figure I should try a handlebar with more sweep maybe. Maybe 54 or 65 sweep. I remember reading an article about this a few years ago and according to it you should gain strenght and lessen the risk for armpump with more sweep.
Anyone got any experience testing different sweeps?

And have you got any ideeas on how wide bars you suppost to have? Are u guys shoppn your bars ends of or do you ride them full width?

Imho, get those levers up. This helps you ride bike on the seat further. The more forward your riding position, the more you are using your arms and not your legs.

I always rode with 7/8th Renthal MC bend which I believe is now the 996 Reed bend. It’s about as flat and little sweep as I can find. I also run my levers just below parallel to the ground, if you are looking at the bike from the front the lever only blocks the bottom half of the grip. I know a lot of people comment and say how can I ride like that, but it feels the most natural for me in the attack possition, like braking into corners. Works for me, but I have I have shattered my left elbow and right wrist so maybe that’s why I have adapted to that l.

Renthal McGrath bend, aligned with the forks. Look at any of mc's bikes and that was my setup. Not sure if it was good or not bc I never tried anything else but it sure looked good! I'm 6'1 and lengthy so I don't cut on them any. Had a spare setup for woods with a bit cut off, bark busters and clutch ready to go for a quick change.

loftyair wrote:

You really got to find what works best for you, which can change. Remember Carmichael on the Honda with bars that weren't good for anybody, yet he still made it work, somehow.

My choice RC bend !

Fitting almost perfectly in the middle of the Renthal range of bends, The RC Bar bend is one of the most popular amongst all bends.

Popularised by Ricky Carmichael during his time at Pro Circuit Kawasaki and American Honda. This bar has been adopted by many top level riders since, including MX2 World Champion Jeffrey Herlings.

Specs:
https://www.renthal.com/shop/rc-sehandlebar

I think this is the same as the Windham ProTaper ???

kkawboy14 wrote:

Straight, low and forward!

You don’t want much sweep, the more sweep, the more your elbows are tucked into your sides.

Until you lean the bike over then it helps.

I like this handlebar setup.

No arm pump. At all.