Butterflies aren't for sissies.

The Replacement (see below) has been a fine commuting machine for several months now, but I found that the cockpit was a bit too short for road duties. The bar-ends provide some room, but at the expense of poor access to the controls. Enter the butterfly.


The butterfly, or "trekking", bar creates a continuous loop of hand-grabbing goodness. The horizontal sections simulate a straight mountain bar but are much closer than a standard straight bar would be. The loops are like having really long bar-ends which are small enough to mount controls. Most pictures I've seen have the controls mounted on the straight sections. But one of the reasons for making the switch is so that I could have my controls out where my hands would be - on the loops.

The pictures show my bars wrapped in a split inner-tube with a brief wrap of electrical tape to finish them off. This is just a temporary wrap so I can tweak the control positions. Once I have their final locations down, I'll upgrade to something with a bit more cush. I find that I spend a lot of time with my hands on the side sections or on the front. I may move the controls over to the side sections for a while. My hands seem to be happier over there.

I haven't used the straight sections for any riding as yet. If they don't prove useful, they may feel the bite of my hacksaw. Those using gripshifts don't have this option as there is no way to get a gripshift around the curve. With the straight sections removed, this bar is rather like a moustache bar. I'll tell you all about mine next time.