I have run these bars on all my bikes for quite a few years now. I have had no handling issues and I dont recall having any on the switch over from 42cm
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I’ve been one 40cm bars for most of my riding life, but recently (2 years ago) have switched to 38cm one. I feel that more comfortable.
One thing to always keep in mind, is that depending on your frame geometry, you may want to get a shorter stem length to offset the width of the bars. I’ve noticed that in a combination with a 100mm stem, the steering had become a lot slower. Going to a 90mm stem (I couldn’t find a 95mm one), fixed that.
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On road bikes I run 38s. I used to be on 40s, just because so those came with the bike but I never felt really comfortable. The 38s seem to fit my shoulder width. Bars are Deda Superzero alloy. The price is okay and I really like how they feel (Deda measures outside to outside so they are advertised as 40s but they are actually 38s…)
My gravel bike has 40s, non flared. I tried the flared 42 and felt horrible. My position on my gravel bike is pretty similar to my road bike so I think the difference from 38 to 42 was too big.
On my XC MTB (120 front, 100 back) I have cut the bars to 72 cm. I’m happy with that. When I still had my enduro bike I rode that with 72 cm as well, just felt really comfortable. I was somewhat of a journey to get there as I cut incrementally… but 72 gave me the most confidence.
I’m 172 cm (5,6?), so pretty small…
From a bike fit perspective, narrow handlebars = longer stem as bringing your hands in normally moves your body up slightly and thus the longer stem “fixes” that.
FYI
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