Tuning Your Flexx Handlebars
Think of the Flexx Handlebars as independent suspension for your hands. All the movement of the bar is articulating near the plane of the front suspension for the most natural feel possible. You should never feel a properly set up Flexx Handlebar move (unless you’re pushing on it, on the stand), it should feel similar to a traditional handlebar on the track/trail but you should notice substantially less abuse at the hands and upper body throughout the ride. That’s not magic, that’s years of testing and development at play. That’s our philosophy. That is why the Flexx Handlebar feels like a traditional bar on the bike. That is why your suspension will feel like it's working better. And that is why you will not feel the handlebar "moving" while riding. Which leads us right into our philosophy on abuse reduction.
Our philosophy has always been to minimize the abuse as naturally as possible. You shouldn't feel your bars move while riding, correct? We agree, but there are a lot of benefits if you do it right, and that’s where our philosophy comes in. The fact that our handlebar travels in the same plane as the suspension is not by accident or oversight, it’s by design, in an effort to maintain traditional characteristics. Click HERE to learn more about our philosophy.
With that said, let’s dive further into tuning the Flexx Bars to get the best performance.
There are two areas of adjustment with the Flexx Handlebars.
1. Elastomers – We have 4 different stiffness elastomers. Consider this the “tuning”
2. Elastomer nut – You can run the nut anywhere from 2-5 threads. Consider this the “fine tuning”
It’s worth testing with the different elastomers to see how capable the Flexx Handlebar is and to see what works best for you and your preferences. Within each elastomer you use, you have some tunability by tightening or loosening the elastomer nut. By tightening the elastomer nut (say to the 5th thread) you’re compressing the elastomers and making the initial hit on the bar more stiff, so you’ll feel more vibration from the bike and more chatter from the terrain. If you loosen the elastomer nut (say to the 2nd thread) the bar will be able to absorb more of that vibration and chatter before it reaches your hands.
One cool way to feel the difference that 2-5 threads can make on the elastomer nut, tighten one side of the bar down to the 5th thread, and tighten the other side to the 2nd thread. No close your hand into a fist and slam the outside of your palm on the grip of the handlebar. You’ll feel a noticeable difference in abuse reduction from one handle to the other.
Compression Elastomer Color Break Down:
Red - Hard
Yellow - Medium
Blue - Soft
Green - VERY Soft, great in our Low Bar and Mini Bends.
Rebound Elastomer Color Break Down:
Red - Hard
Yellow - Medium
We want to reiterate that between the elastomers and elastomer nut, you can make the Flexx Bar as soft or as stiff as you’d like. Watch the videos below to get a better idea of tuning the Flexx Bar.
Elastomer Nut - 2nd Thread (Soft)
Elastomer Nut - 5th Thread (Stiff)
