New Qu-Ax Q-handle

Piece_Maker · January 28, 2015, 6:46am

Well, here it is, the moment we’ve all been waiting for!

Got me a bubble-wrap envelope through the door today. Mum thought it was a pannier rack… Even when I started assembling it she kept asking me if it’s a bag-rack. No clue why!

The bar’s a bit longer than I was expecting. The whole thing is about 52cm long (The stem that attaches to the seatpost is a 5" one, and the U-bar is about 40cm from the bar-ends to the apex of the loop). I haven’t tried messing about with the adjustability yet, I basically just set it to maximum length and ‘more or less straight’ from the seatpost, and well, I took a quick test-ride and it felt great, so I dunno if I’ll be adjusting it much anyway.

Annoyingly, the T-bar from the stem is slightly too wide, so my knees tapped it every now and then. Not sure if this is something I can learn to get over, or if I’m gonna have to take it down on the seatpost a bit (Or even do as they suggest and use it as a seatpost clamp).

Next annoyance, and I’ve noticed this with a few Qu-Ax products now, is that the bolts for the stem are fairly small, so its hard to find an allen-key long enough to really give them a good tighten. I suspect I’ll be checking that before every ride for the next few weeks, as those four bolts are where the angular adjustment is so I REALLY don’t want those to fail. But the whole thing feels really solid, so it might not be a problem!

I really like the U-shaped bar. Even as a handlebar-noobie, I found I could use all the different spots on it to grab onto, which bike riding has taught me is important. Keep your hands moving about, that way they don’t fall asleep!

The weird rubber foam noodle that goes round the bar was REALLY tight. My mum recommended I soak it in hot water to make it expand, which allowed me to (slowly) slip it on. It moves around a bit, but hopefully once it dries out it’ll cling on a bit better. Otherwise I might just tape it down using some leftover gorilla-tape from my failed tubeless experiment

The whole thing feels really light, in fact I don’t even feel the weight when riding (After hearing stories on here about bars making people fall face-forward, I got worried!).

Quick video (Probably gonna have to wait till it finnishes processing, nice one YouTube!):

EDIT: Didn’t realise that picture would be rotated. It’s not rotated on my computer, so god knows what happened there. Turn your heads over!

Piece_Maker · February 4, 2015, 8:01am

Alrighty I’ve had the bar a week now, and I’ve got an annoyance with it that I can’t seem to get rid of.

The T-shape the loop clamps to? It’s too wide. It rubs the inside of my legs no matter where I put it. Can’t cut it down, because the loop bar clamps are welded to it, not like I can slide them in a bit!

I did try mounting it low-down (As a seatpost clamp) But this resulted in the bar being, well, too low. I like the positioning of having it far out front, and on the same level as my saddle - this gives a good forward lean for powering down.

It’s not a major rub, I just sort of feel it. It doesn’t really bother me, but I’m sure eventually it’s gonna wear through my pants!

Killian · February 4, 2015, 4:25pm

Have you been riding it every day?

Piece_Maker · February 5, 2015, 6:35am

Yeah pretty much - the first day I got it I didn’t because of the snow/ice, but after that yeah

Killian · February 5, 2015, 10:02am

Hmm. Never mind then.

davejh · February 5, 2015, 10:57am

Do the end caps look like they are removable.

If they are you could probably lose a couple of mm from the end by removing them. It may also be possible to file it back further (although you would need something to smooth or cover the result).

Little clearance issues like that are really annoying…

LanceB · February 5, 2015, 7:03pm

This is disconcerting. Out of curiosity, is it better (or worse) if it’s shifted up, right under the seat?

Piece_Maker · February 6, 2015, 4:45am

I’ve not played with the height THAT much - Just moved it up and down the seatpost, and the problem occurs everywhere. I don’t want to put it too low as then I’ll lose some length, but I suppose I’ll have to ‘for science’

Daphne · March 8, 2015, 1:30am

This is why I took the handle bar off after a few rides. To me it’s VERY anoying. I feel it all the time (inside of my legs). Next time I’ll buy the Kris Holm handle bar.

CyberRider · March 8, 2015, 6:04pm

Not sure it will make much difference, but you realise you can reassemble it with the loop bar brackets above the t-bar stem rather than underneath?

And then maybe angle grind off the lower outside edges so your legs aren’t nudging a corner.

Also, any chance you could measure the width of the t-bar (cross bar)?, I’m thinking of getting one. cheers

Piece_Maker · March 12, 2015, 2:36pm

The annoying thing is, the brackets are pretty much the same width as the T-bar bit. Shaving the ends off would probably gain you 2mm at most.

The T-bar is 4" across.

And yepp, I have it arranged so the T-bar is on the bottom now (as opposed to the pictures from earlier). It’s made the rubbing a bit less annoying (You’re rubbing a slightly rounded surface as opposed to an edge) but not gotten rid of it. I really want to try bringing it down a lot further, but I’ll have to mount it onto the seatpost clamp location to go any lower. Plus I like the hand position of it right now, so it’s sort of a toss-up between a nice hand position and annoying leg-rub (which only really happens if I wear baggy pants anyway).

Sorry for the potato photo, my phone has no flash

Vertigo · May 17, 2015, 1:39pm

Piece Maker, do you still ride with this handle?

Piece_Maker · May 18, 2015, 5:00am

I do! And the foam noodle is getting ripped to shreds with my constant UPD’s. I’ve even scratched the metal underneath it Might have to replace the foam with something a bit tougher at some point.

It’s still completely solid, zero flex on the handle iself. The T-thing still gets in the way if I wear baggy pants. I’ve wrecked a water bottle from a UPD that fired the bottle out the front of the handle and straight into the ground, as it was mounted on the seatpost stem part, aiming forwards Think I’ll be investing in a Camelback of some sort, as bottle cages cause me nothing but trouble.

Macavity224 · May 18, 2015, 11:29am

Yes. This. I lasted maybe 3 muni rides before I couldn’t stand having to stop, unbuckle my bag, take it off, take my gloves off, get a drink of water, put it all back…etc., so I broke down and bought one.

I’m going to say it: the Camelbak may be one of the greatest inventions of all time.

Piece_Maker · May 18, 2015, 12:23pm

On my 29er i just attached a bottle cage to the frame, so it’s pointing upwards with my seatpost:

And on the 36er I attach it to the underside of the Q-Handle, as the seat tube/post is too short to fit a bottle in (At least, being able to get it back out again…)

Both setups end up with a bottle flying through the air upon a UPD. I busted my bottle by cranking up a hill and failing to crank hard enough - I fell forwards, my handlebar hit the floor, and my bottle fired out, smashing the lid up. They both allow me to drink while riding (With a bit of practice in the case of the 29er setup) so that’s not a problem though. Still getting a backpack though - I tend to take an extra 2 water bottles in the backpack to refill the frame one, so I still end up getting the bag off to sort all that out!

To be fair, I got that bottle from a pound shop (And I think I got 2 for my pound…) so I’m not exactly crying over it. But I don’t really want it happening again on a ride where I actually need to keep sipping it!

Vertigo · May 18, 2015, 5:54pm

Thanks Piece Maker. I’m starting to use handle bars. Just wondering about all the different ones available. It’s been kind of difficult for me to get use to the weight in the front. I can mount and dismount (usually) but it feels awkward.

juggleaddict · December 16, 2015, 11:56am

has anybody used this as a touring rack? Seems like it would be a perfect platform for a bag mounted on the top and bottom. Plenty of adjustment. I know there was some issues with it being too wide, but that shouldn’t be a problem with it mounted backwards.

Eric_aus_Chemnitz · December 16, 2015, 11:22pm

Yes, Pankeoirat has, see here: http://unicyclist.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1648051#post1648051

Piece_Maker · December 17, 2015, 5:45pm

Toilet roll? Are German roads that scary?

To keep this thread on topic - I’ve been using this Q-Handle for a while now, and I’m starting to see some major glaring issues with the T part of it. I’ve destroyed more than one pairs of pants on it now, just because my legs naturally rub against the T bit as I pedal. For now, I’ve slammed the bar as high up as it’ll go so it basically sits flush with the bottom of my saddle, and that’s helped a fair bit, but it’s still there and I can still feel it as I pedal.

Aside from that, the handlebar has remained epically solid and I still love the shape. I’ve had a bit of trouble finding a front light that’ll work well on it (I need a bright headlight for my commute as some of it is unlit), because not all of them mount in a way that allows them to be parallel with the bar they’re mounted to, and I managed to smash a light attaching it to the leading tip of the handlebar and UPD’ing at high speed

juggleaddict · December 18, 2015, 7:26am

no helmet mount? I’ve found that the cheap chinese LED lights put out 700-1000 lumens and can be had for around 30 bucks. The batteries are definitely sketch, but it’s been working well for me so far this winter. Hey, you never know when toilet paper may come in handy : P I mean, I would think a towel would be more appropriate, but whatever floats your boat.