Easton obviously think we’re a bit short of different ‘standards’ on our bike cos they’ve just announced another one…

To be fair to Easton this new 35mm bar size won’t cause the kind of compatibility problems that we’ve seen other new standards cause, it’s more a case of you go for it or you don’t. So why the need for a bigger bar clamp diameter? Well, it’s really the same reason why we went from 25.4mm to 31.8mm, it’s all about strength, stiffness, and weight…and the width of the bars we are running. Back in the old days when we were running what would now be deemed super skinny bars a 25.4mm clamp was fit for the job. Then we got wider and the need for a bigger (31.8mm) diameter arose, and now according to Easton we’ve hit the point where we need to step things up again.
Previous Havoc bars were already 750mm wide but Easton were getting endless requests from riders to produce an even wider bar. They thought about making an 800mm wide bar with a 31.8mm bar clamp but they weren’t happy with the compromises that it would have meant for the weight and strength of the bar, hence why they decided to try going for a bigger bar clamp, and hey presto they end up with the lightest and strongest bar that they’ve ever produced, despite it also being the widest by some margin. 220g for an 800mm wide bar is insanely light, but Easton seriously reckon that the carbon version is the strongest bar on the market. Even the aluminium version comes in at a pretty featherweight 300g.
Enough of me telling you about the benefits though, here it is from the horses mouth…

http://mpora.com/videos/uITTWcjc2

Of course a 35mm bar is no use without a stem that’ll fit it, but Easton have that covered for both a regular 1 1/8″ fitting or direct mount. The former weighs in at 190g whilst the latter is just 110g. Both only come with 50mm reach, but you get a choice of black or orange finish. As with all other Easton stems they use ‘Top Lock Technology’ which involves you fully tightening the top two bolts first. Easton have kindly made another video to explain why…

http://mpora.com/videos/lKdJZRt99

Here’s an idea of what you can expect visually, but basically apart from the direct mount stem it all looks pretty similar to the previous Havoc kit…but with a bigger bar clamp!

Uk pricing is still to be set but by the sounds of it you should be able to get your hands on this stuff within the next month or so, and we reckon the prices should be fairly similar to the current skinnier versions. Oh, and if you head on over to the Easton Facebook page and click ‘like’ you’ll be in with a chance of winning a Kona Entourage kitted out with all the Havoc kit…and a free trip to Whistler during Crankworx where you’ll also be able to hang out and shred with Easton rider Graham Agassiz. Quite some prize.

Finally, if you’re left wondering how Easton know that these products are as strong as they claim they are then check out this little video of their in-house testing facility. If you can put as much stress through a bar as those machines then I take my hat off to you.

http://mpora.com/videos/tCvf2tGcs