I have heard a great things about D-Fuse Giant's handlebar (how it improves comfort greatly). But unfortunetaly they do not sell them separately. So the question is: are there on market a good alternatives to this handlebar? With a great bit of flex. Gravel specific ones.
With any luck, Giant will make them available once they ramp up production. I've been waiting for someone to engineer a carbon bar like that, but have been using aluminum bars in the meantime (3T Ergosum), since most carbon bars are simply too stiff. Don't believe the hype about vibration damping, it's utter BS when it comes to carbon handlebars, particularly for off-road use where you're taking larger hits than you do on the road. You need some flex in the bars, period.
It seems to me that carbon bar technology is large still where carbon frames were 5+ years ago when the emphasis was entirely on stiffness. Hopefully the D-Fuse bar is an indication that carbon handlebar technology is finally starting to catch up with carbon frame technology.
No, it's not just an aero bar. It's designed to provide some flex in the downward direction, but resist flexing when you're pulling upward on it. The idea is to provide a degree of compliance when hitting bumps, but remain stiff when you're out of the saddle and putting the power down. This is a long overdue design shift that should lead to much better-performing carbon handlebars.
Is it really a carbon handlebar? From the press release I read that in general there are both aluminium and carbon variants of D-Fuse handlebars and there is no direct statement that gravel version is a carbon one. The reason I am asking is because to be honest if you push hard an aluminum handlebar you will feel some flexing. I am assuming that new Giant handlebar flexes a little bit more and in direction I am most interested in...
I checked and they make both aluminum and carbon versions. Although they're not for sale separately at the moment, a quick check on their site shows that pretty much every other bar they make is available, so it's reasonable to assume that the D-Fuse bars will be, too.
Yes, Al bars typically do have a degree of flex, which is why I use them. Well, that and the fact that they're typically 1/4 to 1/3 of the price of carbon bars.
