Arm Rest

[kenhardwick]

While riding my Silvio, my arms seems to rest on the handlebar ends. Not that comfortable so decided to do some experimenting by adding a pair padded arm rest. Had a pair of arm rest from a aerobar so decided to use them. Temporarily mounted them using steel ring clamps.
Just did a 10 mile test ride. Seems to be fairly comfortable and also appeared to have more control of the steering. Will have to put in more test miles !

Also, need to look for a better mounting solution. Maybe something that will mount into the inside of the handlebar. Any suggestions?

Anyway...below is picture of my mounted padded arm rest. (Please excuse the cursor pointer in the pictures)

 

[Charles.Plager]

Hi Ken,
Nice idea (and thanks

Hi Ken,

Nice idea (and thanks for the pictures). I'm just a little worried that if you make your bike too comfortable, you'll fall asleep while riding...

Cheers,
Charles

 

[randyspann]

Don't worry

Don't worry, Ken, you won't fall asleep: you have room for a coffee cup holder. Just in jest! I like your idea.

 

[John Dorlon]

handlebars

I had some wrist discomfort when I first got my Silvio. I noticed that my wrists were bent as I was holding the brifters. I fixed it by changing the angle on the handlebars so that the bar ends were parallel to my forearms as I was riding. Before that, they were more level with the ground. It made a big difference. If you haven't experimented with different angles of your handlebars, you might want to give that a shot too.

Speaking of handlebars but not really related - I recently discovered that when I want to pedal hard, I can keep my elbows squeezes in against my sides, and hold the bar ends. It keeps the steering 'locked', and it seems like a good way to counteract the pedal steer effect when I am pushing hard.

-John

 

[John Tolhurst]

plus one on that post John:
-

plus one on that post John:
- keeping seeking better adjustments, because your body is adjusting and the optimum is therefore shifting

 

[kenhardwick]

an "Ah-ha" moment

First of all, thanks for everyone's comments/feedback. I have been carrying a allen wrench so that I can make adjustements to handlebar position while out riding. As per JohnD, parallel to my forearms seems to work best.

Not totally happy with the arm rest I had mounted yesterday (especially not happy with my mounting solution), I took them off today.
After I did that, I decided to install a pair of Mirrcycle bar end mirrors...not so much to use the mirrors but to use the stem to keep my wrist/hand from sliding off the handlebar.

So, while out riding this afternoon, I had an "Ah-Ha" moment..."why not adjust the Mirrcycle so that the mirror faced upward and use it as a arm rest." And, since the Mirrcycle bar end mirror mounting unit is very adjustable, one can change the positioning easily.
And, of course, if that works out, one could easily add a little padding on top of the mirror.
I stopped and re-adjustment my mirror so that my arm rested on top of it. Felt pretty good and provide good arm support. Also, was able to slide my hands from the top hood down to placing my hands on the brifters fairly smoothly.
Plan to add a little padding on top of the mirrors and get some more "testing" miles.

 

[John Dorlon]

it's hard to tell from the photos but

Hey Ken,

It looks like the reason that your arms want to be outside the bars is because your brifters are positioned low and outside. (Sounds like baseball). The way your wrist is bent in that photo is similar to what caused my initial wrist discomfort. My wrists were bent a different way though.

When I am holding the handlebars with a few fingers on the brifters, the meaty part of my side of hand between the pinky and wrist is what's resting on the bar ends (maybe an inch up from the bar ends). I don't need anything to keep my arms from 'falling off' because they just don't want to go there. I think if you move your brifters, you won't have that problem anymore.

It's hard to capture their exact position in a 2d photo, but I took a few. I hope they help.

-John

 

[kenhardwick]

Thanks-John

Thanks for taking time to post and providing the pictures. Will work on moving my briefers so that I have a more comfortable,secure location.

 

[John Dorlon]

you're welcome

If you want any more photos from any particular angle, send me a private message. I'll be happy to send you some.

 

[Charles.Plager]

For what it's worth, if you

For what it's worth, if you take more pictures for Ken, post them here too. I think things like this can help a lot of people...