Hi there, I’m planning to buy a Brompton. Despite being about five foot four/five, I’m leaning towards the H handlebars. I’ve been test driving a friend’s M Brompton for a year and often find myself touching the handlebars with my palms rather than wanting to lean forward to grip them. I have short legs in relation to my height, which means I also have a long back/torso. Having briefly tested a H, I felt more steady on the bike but am aware this is normally recommended for tall people and due to the lack of aerodynamism it might be harder work. Would I be mad to buy the H model? TIA
Brompton H
- Thread starter IvoryJ
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
GM
Legendary Member
- Location
- North of the river
Hi, 
With your dimensions I would have thought the S type would have been more suited. If you're near a Brompton dealer I would try all the models out to see what feels right. Good luck, and welcome to the fold as they say. 
With your dimensions I would have thought the S type would have been more suited. If you're near a Brompton dealer I would try all the models out to see what feels right. Good luck, and welcome to the fold as they say. 
CopperBrompton
Bicycle: a means of transport between cake-stops
- Location
- London
Yep, best plan is to test ride all the bars and see which you prefer. Also, if you're willing to invest a bit more money, you're not limited to Brompton bars – personally I have some mountain bike ones that get the height to midway between the S and M bars.
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
There's no adjustment in the bars but there is some in the seat, so you can move it forwards/back a little which may help.
Fab Foodie
hanging-on in quiet desperation ...
- Location
- Kirton, Devon.
Test ride and buy what suits. If that’s H bars then great. As said, you can make some mods at a later date.
Last edited:
- Location
- The TerrorVortex
Agree with what others have said - it's too expensive not to try them all and get the right one.
Thanks everyone. I have been test riding and I think the H feels more comfortable and sturdy at first but I did seem to start getting a backache, my posture is terrible and far from upright. So I might be better with the M, I’ve had one of these on loan from a friend for a year and no issues overall, I just sometimes feel like I’m on a kids bike as my saddle has to be so low due to my short legs.
Kell
Veteran
- Location
- High Wycombe/London
You might find an M or S type with bar ends works better for you.
I'd be very surprised if you could get away with an H type at your height.
I'm just under 6 ft and bought an H type, but I did it with a plan in mind because I found the S type too low and the M type a little too high.
As mentioned above, I already had some low riser bars to fit to mine which put the height somewhere between an S type and an M type, so I never rode mine with the original bars.
ETA: you can start with an M type and fit low rise bars also, but I was worried about the fold. As the H type stem folds from higher up, it means their was less likelihood of the bar ends I wanted to fit catching the ground.
Also, the stems (used to) have different curves on them depending on the bar type originally fitted. My bike's three years' old now, and I'm aware they've made changes to stems and bars on newer bikes.
If you're near a Brompton junction, my advice would be to go and try them all - including the P type.
I'd be very surprised if you could get away with an H type at your height.
I'm just under 6 ft and bought an H type, but I did it with a plan in mind because I found the S type too low and the M type a little too high.
As mentioned above, I already had some low riser bars to fit to mine which put the height somewhere between an S type and an M type, so I never rode mine with the original bars.
ETA: you can start with an M type and fit low rise bars also, but I was worried about the fold. As the H type stem folds from higher up, it means their was less likelihood of the bar ends I wanted to fit catching the ground.
Also, the stems (used to) have different curves on them depending on the bar type originally fitted. My bike's three years' old now, and I'm aware they've made changes to stems and bars on newer bikes.
If you're near a Brompton junction, my advice would be to go and try them all - including the P type.
Last edited:
Kell
Veteran
- Location
- High Wycombe/London
What mine looked like according to the online builder:
What I did to it:
This last picture may (or may not) be useful as these may have all changed. But when I bought my bike, these were all the relative heights of the bars:
What I did to it:
This last picture may (or may not) be useful as these may have all changed. But when I bought my bike, these were all the relative heights of the bars:
