Renthal Carbon Vs Aluminum

storm.racing
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storm.racing

Out of curiosity... why do the majority of Renthal athletes ride/race the aluminum bar? Seems as though there is a good solid split between carbon vs aluminum still in general but for Renthals specifically, aluminum seems to be the go to. 

 

Also curious because was looking at getting my wife some new 760 bars (currently on 780 Enve DHs and too stiff). One Up 760s are out of stock and remembered that Renthal makes the lite in 760s. Didnt know if Renthal Carbons are just too stiff or what the lowdown is.

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SlipperyWhenDry 7/9/2025 6:45am
7/9/2025 6:45am

I've had the same question for a while and haven't been able to find an answer either! Would be curious to see if anyone has any input here.

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Kusa
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Kusa 7/9/2025 8:27am
7/9/2025 8:27am Edited Date/Time 7/9/2025 8:28am

I personally did not like how flexy carbon bars are (One Up v1), especially for hard riding (enduro racing) where I needed to point the bike into a specific direction or when getting out of the corners, or sprinting. Aluminium bars (Renthal, in my experience) fixed that. They made the riding more precise.

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carlinojoevideo 7/9/2025 8:58am
7/9/2025 8:58am

Personally, I found the carbon rental too stiff. I also hear that some riders would rather the aluminum bar bend in a crash situation versus carbon could just snap. At least they can finish the run with a bent bar versus broken.

Some Great info from a handlebar comparison that bike rumor did.

https://bikerumor.com/does-handlebar-compliance-make-a-difference-faction-bike-studio-blind-test/

Screen Shot 2025-07-09 at 8.57.01 AMScreen Shot 2025-07-09 at 8.57.22 AM.png?VersionId=ODu2Cbu2FJd6Odw
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Buckets Up
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Buckets Up 7/10/2025 10:52am
7/10/2025 10:52am Edited Date/Time 7/10/2025 10:54am
Kusa wrote:
I personally did not like how flexy carbon bars are (One Up v1), especially for hard riding (enduro racing) where I needed to point the bike...

I personally did not like how flexy carbon bars are (One Up v1), especially for hard riding (enduro racing) where I needed to point the bike into a specific direction or when getting out of the corners, or sprinting. Aluminium bars (Renthal, in my experience) fixed that. They made the riding more precise.

This is interesting.

I haven’t ridden Renthal bars in ~12 years, but when I did, I found the aluminum ones to be incredibly (too) flexxy.

Granted I was running them on a dirt jump bike, but I only kept them on for a few weeks. The amount of flex you could feel pumping up a jump lip or skatepark transition was disconcerting and distracting.

If the current AL Renthals are unchanged, I can’t imagine riding them on a hard charging enduro bike.

EDIT: these were the 31.8 versions

john_likes_bikes 7/10/2025 3:56pm
7/10/2025 3:56pm

I ran OneUps carbon bars for a while and really liked the feel, but carbon was a pain. Having to pay super close attention to clamp torques and worrying any scratch/damage could lead to a break. I swear any time I crash there's some damage to the bars and carbon once slightly damaged is a much bigger role of the dice than aluminum. I tried the Renthal aluminum and they were just as comfortable, cheaper and easier to deal with. 

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