Good Grief Bikes' Nice Bar: Review

The Nice Bar from Good Grief Bikes

 Note: Guitar Ted purchased the Nice Bar at full retail for personal use and review from Good Grief Bikes. Good Grief Bikes has no input on this review and all opinions are Guitar Ted's.

I brought the Nice Bar up again last Friday in the FN&V and here it is! This is an "alt bar" with a nod to the past and which has a very unique look. 

What It Is: The Nice Bar is named after fixed gear rider Dave "Fixie Dave" Nice. Dave rides a lot of mountain bike trails on fixed gear bikes, and he's done Tour Divide on a fixed gear bike, so honoring him with a handlebar named for him is a nice gesture. 

The bar is crafted by Good Grief Bikes' Christopher Schmidt. Here is the link to the "About" page which has more details on Chris. Good Grief Bikes in Colorado Springs, Colorado is a small business and a 'one-man show' so you know who made the bar and that is kind of different in these days of Amazon/faceless retail. You either value that or you do not. I think it is an integral part of this handlebar and thus, this review, to include that the product is from such a source. 

For one thing, because it is made the way it is, each example of the Nice Bar will be a bit unique. Chris "flame-paints" and clear-coats each handlebar ensuring that no two are alike in looks. Added to that is the monster brass brazing of the extensions which makes for a noticeable contrast with the rich purples, teals, blues, and violets of the flame-painting. The bar is so striking in terms of aesthetics it seems a shame to cover any part of it! 

You can order this bar with different clamp sizes to accommodate different stem standards. I ordered a 31.8mm clamp section which Chris brazed on to the center section of the Nice Bar. No shims here! 

Here are the other specifications for the bar from the Good Grief Bikes' page for the Nice Bar:

•4130 Chromoly, brazed one at a time
•Flame-painted and clear-coated for a unique iridescent finish
•Clamp Diameter Options: 22.2 mm, 25.4 mm, 31.8 mm
•Forward Extension Length = 100 mm
•Rear Grip Extension Length = 185mm
•Backsweep = 34.5 Degrees

 Also, while it is not mentioned in the specs, I tested an old SunTour Barcon shifter and it did fit into the extensions of the Nice Bar. So, if you were thinking about running bar end shifters, that should work out with this handlebar.

Weight: The purpose of this handlebar is to withstand adventure cycling/bikepacking and allow for a comfortable, all-day riding position with multiple hand positions on tap for the rider to choose from. My intentions are to use it as a flat bar gravel alternative which I will get into in another update on this review. So, because durability is high on the design manifest here, you are not getting a lightweight handlebar with the Nice Bar. This example weighs in at 840 grams. That comps with a Surly Corner Bar, another ChroMo bar, which weighs approximately 800 grams with a separate shim.  The Velo Orange Utility Bar, another ChroMo steel bar I tested HERE, weighs in at 820 grams. 

The Nice Bar comes in various widths as well. I chose a 44.4cm width as that was the closest width to my gravel bars I run which are 46cm in width, generally speaking. I've no doubt that choosing  25.4mm clamp and going with the slightly narrower 44.0cm bars would have dropped the weight down to be pretty much the same as the Surly bar. But really, if you are buying this bar and heavily considering the weight of the thing, I think you are missing the point a bit. 

For example, Good Grief says on their site that they make bicycle frames, forks, and components for people to have fun using, " not to set land-speed records or worry about 5 grams of weight difference– but to ride and love and embrace the JOMO. (That’s the “joy of missing out”)."

 First Impressions: The package came in and I noted that Good Grief uses paper packing tape and that the box was cushioned inside with strips of crinkled black paper. Hmm.... Different, kind of fancy, and environmentally conscientious. Cool! 

The handlebars were striking and beautiful to behold in a kind of base, purposeful way. Not necessarily industrial, I wouldn't say, but pretty and "tool-like" at once. I liked the look and feel. The heft of the bar was reassuring in that I would not be afraid of using this bar for anything I would ride off-road around here. Tough looking handlebars but designed in a way that looks comfortable and appealing. 

The brazed on clamp section was a bit of the bar that I found amazing. I'd never considered that this clamp area could be addressed in such a manner. It's very unique. 

The width was spot-on for me, and the swept 34.5° extensions felt natural in my hands. I've tried the "OG" of this sort of design, which has 45° swept extensions and that seems like just a bit much, for me at any rate. This slightly less swept, but still dramatically angled, extension is much more to my liking as I have another handlebar with a similar extension sweep and I really get on with it. Of course, this is a very personal "fit" issue and subjective to each use case. You may like it as well, or you may not get along with it at all. My personal opinion is that most humans should be using a swept extension bar for the best ergonomics, but again, you are welcome to disagree.

Next: The Bike: I will discuss installation, set up, and what I have intended for this bike and for the Nice Bars.