You are correct: it was ride altering for me. It was the difference between being able to finish some DH runs without stopping at all vs having to stop 1-2 times to let my hands cool down. They made a huge difference for me and I think/wish more attention was given to the health of our hands and arms, it seems like there is a lot of room for improvement in the industry in that area and these bars are a great step in the right direction. I particularly love solutions like this that allow you to tune your suspension for control and your cockpit for comfort.
I don't find the elastomers to be a deal killer, obviously since I bought and kept the bars :) As I said, minor complaints, but there are some downsides to them.
My riding experience started a few years ago, so I don't have any expertise when it comes to elastomer forks of yore. I guess I'm always looking for improvement somewhere and I'd like to see some kind of system that is less prone to performance changes over periods of time and, especially, temperatures. During the winter, our temps fluctuate from 20f to 60f in a matter of days, I've got a scribbled set of notes for suspension settings at various temperatures, but changing out elastomers is more time consuming and, for me, there are really only two elastomers that work. The others are too soft or too firm, to a pretty dramatic extent, so performance is inconsistent.
I'd love to see some kind of small air spring and damper built into the center of the bar, but I get that's a huge R&D task and one that has it's own set of downsides. I guess my comments were less a knock on these bars, because they make a huge difference, and more of just some things for potential owners to be aware of. I didn't shy away from them due to the elastomers, I wouldn't tell anyone not to buy them because of them, but there are some things to be aware of when they are used. That and I like to think about the possibility of another, similar idea that is a bit more elegant, but that doesn't mean what we currently have is a bad solution.
Feb. 21, 2020, 9:03 p.m. - Shinook
You are correct: it was ride altering for me. It was the difference between being able to finish some DH runs without stopping at all vs having to stop 1-2 times to let my hands cool down. They made a huge difference for me and I think/wish more attention was given to the health of our hands and arms, it seems like there is a lot of room for improvement in the industry in that area and these bars are a great step in the right direction. I particularly love solutions like this that allow you to tune your suspension for control and your cockpit for comfort. I don't find the elastomers to be a deal killer, obviously since I bought and kept the bars :) As I said, minor complaints, but there are some downsides to them. My riding experience started a few years ago, so I don't have any expertise when it comes to elastomer forks of yore. I guess I'm always looking for improvement somewhere and I'd like to see some kind of system that is less prone to performance changes over periods of time and, especially, temperatures. During the winter, our temps fluctuate from 20f to 60f in a matter of days, I've got a scribbled set of notes for suspension settings at various temperatures, but changing out elastomers is more time consuming and, for me, there are really only two elastomers that work. The others are too soft or too firm, to a pretty dramatic extent, so performance is inconsistent. I'd love to see some kind of small air spring and damper built into the center of the bar, but I get that's a huge R&D task and one that has it's own set of downsides. I guess my comments were less a knock on these bars, because they make a huge difference, and more of just some things for potential owners to be aware of. I didn't shy away from them due to the elastomers, I wouldn't tell anyone not to buy them because of them, but there are some things to be aware of when they are used. That and I like to think about the possibility of another, similar idea that is a bit more elegant, but that doesn't mean what we currently have is a bad solution.