Easton Havoc 35mm carbon bar & direct mount stem.

Last year Easton launched a new bar size, 35mm, that was designed as a wider bar that wouldn't fail due to the extreme forces downhill riders put on them.

770mm+ sized bars in 31.8mm clamp size had been on the market for several years, but few had managed to jump to 800mm without beefing up the bars to be able to survive a season of riding.

Made from the proprietary EC90 carbon, the Havoc 35 Carbon bars come in at 225 grams for an 800mm width and the larger diameter standard. The angles on the bars are 9º back, 5º upsweep with a 20mm rise, for a low, light bar.

The Havoc 35mm direct mount stem comes in at a super low 110 grams, with two positions (45/50 mm) and a negative rise of 5mm. The point was to keep the stem as low as possible without having any fitment issues with the stanchions. The Havoc direct mount is available in two colour choices: orange or black.

I have have been running this setup all summer and it has worked quite nicely. The bars have a slightly different feel from aluminum ones and this is the first time I have gone to a full 800mm width (closest I have gotten was 777mm previously).

I have been running the stem in the 45mm position, although frankly it is hard to notice a difference between the two settings on the big forks. On one set of forks that I tried them on I needed the 50mm setting so that there was enough clearance to actually fit them around the dials on the tops of the stanchions.

Did I notice if the carbon bars gave less fatigue than aluminum ones? No, sorry I didn''t.

Did I notice the stem flexing laterally because it is a two piece design? No, sorry i didn''t.

In a testament to a good design, the setup felt very similar to what I was riding before, but while being lighter & stronger than the 31.8mm versions. Claimed stats are : 15% stronger, 21% stiffer & 8% lighter than the 31.8 carbon Havoc.

Retailing for around $160 for the Havoc Carbon bars & $100 for the stem the cost of increased strength and weight savings comes at a premium, but isn''t far off of what others are charging. For reference, Chromag''s BZA carbon 35mm bar retails for: $160 and the Chromag direct mount 35mm stem is: $170.

Opinion: Wider is better, especially on a downhill bike, and to go wide you need to run a thicker clamping surface, so logically the 35mm makes the most sense for bike bikes.  Get some.

Website:
http://www.eastoncycling.com/en-ca/dirt/components/bars/gravity/havoc-35-carbon
http://www.eastoncycling.com/en-ca/dirt/components/stems/gravity/havoc-bolt-on-35