04 February, 2021

The Next Generation Crazy Bars - First Look.

by Igor

Eight years ago, we released the first glimpses of the Crazy Bars. Immediately, they made huge waves in the touring and bikepacking communities with their 3-piece design, generous sweep, functionality with touring bags, and unique appearance. Since then, they have been a mainstay of our lineup, receiving tweaks with materials, tubing, stem clamps, and finishes. We even had a spin-off called the Seine Bar that was the Crazy Bar, minus the forward horns. We've used our experience with on-bike testing, manufacturing, community (thank you!) suggestions, and testing protocols and have designed a new iteration of the bars - and we're finally ready to release details about The Next Generation Crazy Bars!

Starting off, the bars have been widened to 780mm and the sweep has been reduced to a comfortable 35 degrees. This combo creates the perfect balance of leverage for out of the saddle climbs and natural wrist positioning for regular riding. Additionally, there is more room on the grip area for varied grip lengths and brake/shifter compatibility.

Accordingly, the horns have also been shortened to 110mm, but still retain the ability to mount bar end shifters. This allows significantly easier access to all of the positions without having to reach to the extremes of the bars.

We also introduced a bit of rise to the bars, 40mm. They're touring bars, so you deserve some rise.

They're MTB tested and will be available in bead-blasted silver and Noir finishes.

We'll also have the horn-less Seine Bar version, too!

We're expecting to have them in stock in June. We were hoping to have them earlier, but it seems that every step of the process was delayed due to raw material procurement and, you know, pandemic. We appreciate your patience. Keep your eyes peeled for more info when the time gets closer!

45 comments:

Evan said...

Exciting!

Velomann said...

Lack of rise is my one complaint about the current version. I'm really looking forward to these!

Lauren said...

Can we pre order?

Stevenator said...

What is the spacing between the horns?

Guitar Ted said...

Excellent! I would be interested in the hornless version.

Igor Shteynbuk said...

@Lauren,

We might do pre-orders when the time gets closer.

@Stevenator,

They are 42cm wide center to center.

-Igor

anniebikes said...

Gorgeous update. I like the new curvy look.

Adam said...

Will you make a 25.4 stem clamp version?!

Igor Shteynbuk said...

@Adam,

No, 31.8mm only.

Martin said...

All those "dorks" who mounted bar-ends on riser bars and inside their shifters in the past are laughing now :-)
These look great! (Though I think they're too wide for me.)

tntmoriv said...

Will the original Crazy Bars be discontinued, or will they remain available?

fraz said...

Woah, perfect. This is what I was looking for last year!

Anonymous said...

Glad that the sweep is reduced to 35 degrees, my favorite!

KevinH said...

I am interested in the Seine bar, to which I would add my own inner bar ends so that I could adjust the angle of the horns. The angle of the horns was a bigger problem for me than the sweep of the version 1 Crazy Bars. Maybe you should consider offering something like that as a production option.

Nelson said...

Great!

There will be a CrMo version?

c said...

2nd that!

Bobbehr said...

As always Velo delivers a product without the usual bike industry pretense or patting themselves on the back a hundred times. My pre-order will forthcoming. Thank you

teamdarb said...

Legit question. If anyone is sitting on an original steel crazy bar, give me a yell.

Reynard said...

Yas!

Unknown said...

They look GREAT; I have a build simmering on the back burner for which these would be perfect. Do let us all know when you start pre-orders; Excelsior!!

Korina said...

Gorgeous! I love the rise. Much too wide for me, but they sure are pretty to look at.

Slitemere said...

Shame there's no 25.4mm clamp version, many old skool MTB's that this could be fitted to come with a quill stem and 31.8mm clamp is rare

VeloOrange said...

@Slitemere- To get an MTB rating for the bar, we had to increase the stem clamp up to 31.8 mm. Even with our original bars, which were 25.4 mm, you still needed a stem with a removeable face plate to use the bar, as a quill stem would not fit onto the bars due to the horns.

Winnieontour said...

Wonderful! Just what I’ve been looking forward to because 45 degrees is simply too ‘swept back’ for my riding position. Can’t wait for June to rush at us, Would love to pre-order a set of these...please???

Anonymous said...

Many old school MTBs that Slitemere mentioned had quills with removable faceplates, like the bike that I'm looking at that's next to my door right now. So a quill stem can certainly fit onto the bars. But it's fine, 25.4 is definitely an older standard.

Anonymous said...

Been working from home for the last year, so no daily bike commute to keep me disciplined. For the last eight years I've been riding a cross frame with drop bars and nice brifters. Recently, splurged on a light weight e-bike to keep up with my wife on her e-bike. The new bike has straight handle bars. Elbow pain returned in a way that I hadn't experienced for ten years.. Guess I'm getting older. I'm looking forward to putting crazy bars on the e-bike and taking long rides.

Oldmustang said...

Understand that 45 degree sweep is too much for some folks and that’s cool, but 35 degrees is a non-starter for me. Will you also offer the 45 degree Crazy Bar perhaps with the new, shorter horns?

Sim1891 said...

Can't wait for June! Definitely need to pre order it!

SpencerVDS said...

Seriously hoping you'll release the Seine version in 25.4 !

Unknown said...

Can you let me know when I can order these? Thank you

Unknown said...

I can't wait, been waiting for the perfect touring bars!

fastfrancky said...

Can't wait to know if this amazing bar will join me and Blanche Neige (my fatbike) on the coming soon july bikepacking adventures !
Please let us know how and when pre-oder ! ;)

Unknown said...

Can you email me when the new next generation is ready to order, thank you! Carrie

VeloOrange said...

@ Carrie- if you go to the page on our site for the crazy bars, you can sign up to get notified when they come back into stock, via email.

Unknown said...

Signed up to be notified. If they're too wide they can always be shortened anyway.

Anonymous said...

Signing up to be notified on the "old" crazy bar's shop page will work for the release of the new one, right?

The Tams said...

I will definitely need to shorten these, and I am a bit bummed the bull horns are so far apart. Almost all bike stuff is designed for male averages - its no wonder fewer women get into cycling!
I am happy about the 35 and shorter bull ends though.
Has the clamp area width been tested with Ortlieb front bag mounts? Can you tell us how wide the flat part of the clamp section is?
Also, late June now and no go. When will you be getting them in? I am interested to check them out, but am in the UK.

Anonymous said...

Any update on availability or price? Thanks in advance.

Peter said...

Totally stoked on this update, really keen to get my hands on one (pun intended), as are my riding buddies. Please advise on expected arrival and dates of availability in the UK?

Anonymous said...

would also love to know where I could get this newer model in the UK. looks great with the sweep changes and rise!

Unknown said...

Extremely interested in these - UK based, can I pre-order?

VeloOrange said...

@ Unknown 8/9/21- We're not currently doing a pre order, but talk to any of our stockists in the UK and keep an eye out on the blog and social media for updates as to their arrival

Ryan C said...

Hi, I'm wondering how the grip length compares to the original. The OG is about 180mm (approximate because I didn't want to remove my grips for a more accurate measure).

Basically, I have a feeling the new total length of 780mm up from 666mm is gonna be too wide for my urban build so I'm wondering how much I could saw off and still have room for grips, shifters, bell, etc...

Marc said...

Hi, i'm living in France and quite excited about these bars. Will they be distributed in my country, by whom and by when ? I'd love to get them for early spring 2022 for à trekking tour...
Your advice is welcome !

CR0904 said...

In the picture with Purple bike, what is the stem lenght?