Handle bars Thorn Nomad

[KDean]

What handlebars are you using & what have you tried & didn't like ?

[JohnR]

Not a Nomad, but my favourite handlebars are these https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/handlebars/510-humpert-ahs-basic-sport-handlebars-cw-comfort-barends-254mm-clamp-silver/. However, the listing states "This product is rated to Humpert’s safety level of 2. This means it is suitable only for use on hybrid/trekking bikes that have a combined rider and luggage weight of below 100kg." which means they are considered to be less suitable for a heavily loaded bike. My bars have been modified to include both these https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/handlebar-tape-grips/black-humpert-ak102-grips-for-ahs-premium-ahs-basic/ (much more durable than the foam supplied with the bars) and these https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/handlebar-tape-grips/ergon-gp1l-anatomic-grips-nexusrohloff-large/ to give two very comfortable hand and body positions (a) using the Ergon grips with access to the brakes and gears and (b) a more aerodynamic position with hands on the front part of the bars.

[mickeg]

My Nomad Mk II, on that model Thorn strongly recommended upright position bars which I refer to as flat bars.  And that model was not made in a S (short top tube) version.  But I bought a slightly smaller size frame in size M so that I could use drop bars which are my strong preference.  I use the drops in headwinds.

I do not recall brand or model of the bars, two photos attached.  Note that I am using the Hubbub adapter to mount my Rohloff shifter on the right bar end position.  Using the Thorn 55mm Accessory T Bar to lower my handlebar bag mounting.  I have new tape on the bars in second photo.

[PH]

I like the Ergon GP5 grips and bar ends, I've had them on most of my bikes for at least the last 12 years, they're now pretty much the default on new Thorns, I was using them for a few years before that.
Then, whatever bar puts those in a suitable place, for me that's a pretty standard straight bar, no more than a 5 degree bend.  I think the current Thorn bars are about that.  I do sometimes wonder if I might benefit from a slightly wider bar, but I have too many cycle barriers to fit through every week which would be awkward with anything wider.
I'm not sure you're going to get any useful information from this question.  People, inc me, can only tell you what they like and maybe what they don't.  They, like me, may have tried a few before finding that, but then stopped trying anything else.
What I do know is that a lot problems associated with poor bar set up are actually caused by some other element of bike fit. If you get the rest of that perfect, there's probably* a fair range of acceptable hand positions, if you don't, then no amount of messing with the bars will solve it. There's a fair difference in reach between my bikes, I think around 5cm from the largest to smallest, I notice this when I change bikes, but it's forgotten within the first few miles.

* I only say probably in case there's someone who it doesn't apply to, though I'm doubtful there is.

EDIT - My hand position while cruising on flat bars with GP5's, is closer to mickeg's photo on drop bars than anything I could achieve with JohnR's flat bars.

[martinf]

Again, not a Nomad, but I trialled 3 different handlebars on my old mountain bike before ordering my first Thorn. This was a Raven Tour, less extreme than the 2012 Nomad, but still designed to carry heavier loads than the more recent Raven tour.

1 PH's setup of fairly straight bars with Ergon grips and bar ends.

2 A similar setup to MickeG, compact drops and (finally) Rohloff shifter on a hubbub adapter at the bar end.

3 What I call "sit up and beg" bars and others call "North Road" bars. These have the ends of the bars angled back, so the hand position is somewhat similar to riding "on the hoods" on a drop handlebar, or on the first part of the bar-ends on setup 1. Except that the hand position is much closer to the saddle, so my back is much more upright.  Thorn's "comfort" handlebar puts the hands at an angle in between "sit up and beg" and "straight" bars.



I gave setup 1 a long trial (more than 1,000 kms). But I prefer setup 2, as this gives me 1 extra position (hands down near the bar ends) that is sometimes useful for strong headwinds, and, with the auxiliary brake levers I fitted, I have access to the brakes in the other 3 positions I use most.

The "sit up and beg" bars worked well with a wider, sprung saddle, and a relatively upright position. With increasing age I may eventually move to this type of handlebar, which is currently on a visitor bike used for short trips on a fairly small island. But at the moment I prefer a more aerodynamic position with my back inclined about 35-45°.

I tried a setup similar to JohnR's a few years ago on my old mountain bike, but I preferred setup 1 until I converted that bike to drop bars for use as a "heavy tourer" before getting a Thorn.

A few years ago I felt that the low position on "ordinary" drop bars was now a bit too low. So I moved to compact drop bars, where the drop is not so much, and the position of the hoods is closer to the straight part of the bar.

[j1of1]

Got rid of Thorn's handlebars and replaced with Jones H-Bar.  No problem using same cables (without modification) for brakes or Rohloff.

[il padrone]

I have been using flat bars with long bar-ends for nearly 30 years. On the Nomad (2011 build) I have Thorn's 10-deg sweep flat-bars using Ergon grips with the long bar-ends (GP5). I have been quite happy with this set-up for the past 11 years, and only change has been that my seating stance has slowly crept upwards, resolved with a new fork with longer steerer, and more recently a steerer extension.

[SteveM]

I have swapped out the Thorn flat track bars (which are good) for the Koga Satori Dunham bars.  Wider and with more sweep and bullhorns to replicate the ‘riding on the hoods’ position.  Great bars.

[Andre Jute]

North Road Bars are more versatile than one might think at first glance. They easily accommodate any position from fully upright to fully aerodynamic, from parallel to the road for comfort to perpendicular to the road for a flat back. I know because I set my personal, truck assisted* ton-up record on a Royal Dutch Gazelle Toulouse, the quintessential Dutch commuter bike, complete with North Road Bars, normally used in a near-upright position. That's the only thing I changed, the inclination of the bars.

All you need to free the North Road Bars for adventure is an adjustable stem, and Gazelle's premium bikes come (or came, a quarter-century ago when I bought the bike) with their exemplary toollessly adjustable Switch stem, capable of adjusting the handlebars from the heady heights of commuting to so low, the handlebar grips are level with the top of the tyre. For a flat back you turn the North Road bars in the stem so that the grips point nearly perpendicularly at the road. It takes three seconds to set the bars low, and another three seconds to set them back in the normal position for a middle-aged hedonist; very useful for cycling into a headwind.

I'm aware of the dangers of residual stress injury in my hands, which is why I have North Road Bars on all my bikes. I just don't know anything else as ergonomic as correctly fitted North Road Bars, meaning with the grips not parallel to the road but pointing down at about 30 degrees from horizontal, which sacrifices some of the height gained by North Road Bars. I can't remember when I last had numb hands or needles in my hands on a ride, or even felt the slightest discomfort in my hands.

BTW, the Denham handlebar mentioned in a post above is conceptually a North Road Bar turned upside down and with aero bars attached.

[DIAGMONKEY]

I don't have a Nomad, but I use the Denham bars on my heavier duty bike. I find them comfortable. Coming from a drop bar bike they felt very wide initially but i have got used to them. Having a few different hand positions is nice, especially the hoods like position. 

[dsim]

I used to have Koga Denham bars on my Nomad, but the grip length is too short and you have to cut quite a lot of an Ergon grip if using a Rohloff shifter.

I replaced it with a Velo Orange Crazy Bar V2 and the grip length is much longer, only need to cut a small amount off the Ergon grip and my hand doesn't sit partially on the shifter like it did with the Koga Denham bar.

The Koga Denham grip length is measured from the centre of the "horn" extension, while on the Crazy Bar V2 it is measured from the most outward edge of the "horn" extension. This makes it look like they have a more similar grip length than they actually do.

At 780mm total width, the Crazy Bar V2 is very wide though, but I like not having my hand resting partially on the Rohloff shifter.

[j1of1]

I have a Thorn Nomad Mk II...replaced "comfort bars" with Jones H-bars.  Couldn't be happier!