Raising height of the handlebars.

[darth vadar]

Help needed please.

I have a flat bar road bike (and I also suffer with a bad back.)

I think I would benefit from raising the handle bars a bit to make it a more comfortable upright ride.

But, it seems I can't raise the height of the handlebars with this bike.

Somebody told me that I can buy an adaptor sort of thing that will do the job and raise the height of the handlebars.

Is that correct ?

What should I be looking for? What is it called? And, finally, how much do they cost ?

Phew !!

Thanks.

 

[accountantpete]

For threadless steerers you need a Steerer Extender - about £10.

 

[billy1561]

I raised my bars with a stem riser by approximately 2 inches and maybe brought them an inch nearer which helped with a more relaxed ride position.

Also added aero bar grips for added comfort

 

[screenman]

Are you having treatment for your back, I find most people I know do not ever do enough stretching exercises. This means cycling can sometime be uncomfortable in a lower position. How comfortable are you in the saddle as raising the bars will put more pressure on that part.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

I just used a rising stem to move mine up by about 2"

http://www.bbbparts....stems_bhs25.php

 

[Angelfishsolo]

I just used a rising stem to move mine up by about 2"

http://www.bbbparts....stems_bhs24.php

Out of the options suggested this is probably the best one. Just ensure that you buy one with is the same length or shorter than you existing stem

 

[abo]

+1 on the stem thing. If you want to try a riser bar then if you paypal me a fiver I'll send you one. I bought it on a whim and it has sat on my work desk (...) doing nothing since. I've got a stem too but it is only a 2-bolt stem so is a bit pants. It'll give you a feel for it before you go out and spend though?

 

[darth vadar]

Thanks for the tips and advices.

Sadly, I've had a bad back for years and leaning forward just that bit extra is much less comfortable that when using my hybrid which does have a more upright riding position.

At my age, comfort is the thing, and as I am never going to qualify for the TDF or race around at 100 mph, a relaxing comfy ride is all I ask for !!

My LBS have offered me some advice too and said I can try some of their bits until I find the right one.

Thanks again folks.

 

[abo]

My LBS have offered me some advice too and said I can try some of their bits until I find the right one.

cool, LBS to the rescue

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Thanks for the tips and advices.

Sadly, I've had a bad back for years and leaning forward just that bit extra is much less comfortable that when using my hybrid which does have a more upright riding position.

At my age, comfort is the thing, and as I am never going to qualify for the TDF or race around at 100 mph, a relaxing comfy ride is all I ask for !!

My LBS have offered me some advice too and said I can try some of their bits until I find the right one.

Thanks again folks.

Great news about the LBS .

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

i used a threaded headset converter to raise my bars about 3 inches (on one pompino frame xl). it's rock solid. it's a work around but only cost a tenner.

the quill fits into the steerer tube, you can go as far as 4 inches (min insert line), then stack up loads of spacers and fasten the a-headset as normal.

 

[ColinJ]

You might find that your cables are too short if you raise your bars significantly.

I just flipped the stem over on mine which is the simplest and cheapest change you can make. My cables were just long enough to do that.

 

[Rohloff_Brompton_Rider]

You might find that your cables are too short if you raise your bars significantly.

I just flipped the stem over on mine which is the simplest and cheapest change you can make. My cables were just long enough to do that.

yep i had to replace my cables, but only got 2 so not too bad

 

[Monsieur Remings]

This may be slightly different again but my experience with a bad back arrived when I bought my new bike. I too, flipped the stem and also changed the stem length (in my case from 110mm to 100mm). In terms of my own back pain another dimension was the positioning of the saddle aft or fore (?)

All of these above I tried but I never brought up the height using a stem riser, instead opting to flip the existing one. I also found that when the handlebars were nearer to me (fore position on saddle and 100mm stem) that when I flipped the stem upright, it became too close, almost too scrunched up which again played on my back. Lots of options to try and best of luck.

 

[Shut Up Legs]

I just used a rising stem to move mine up by about 2"

http://www.bbbparts....stems_bhs25.php

Same here, and it works fine for me. I haven't got a bad back, but I'm tall, so got fed up with leaning so far forwards.