I’ve been using my Velo Orange Il Postino handlebar for a month or so now so I figured it was high time to share my views on what has turned out to be the bar that I’ve been looking for for a long time.
The Il Postino is Velo Orange’s take on a classic Italian city bike bar, named (by means of a contest on VO’s blog) by one if their fans. It’s that most rare of rare things; a bar with back sweep but without rise or drop.
I’ve tried a number of different bars over the years. Straight bars, riser bars, drops, north road bars and moustache bars but I’ve always had a nagging feeling of ‘not quite right’. Well folks, I’m pleased to report that the Goldilocks feeling is no more: I’ve found my perfect commuting bar.
Il Postino is 57cm wide and made from something or other series aluminium. Whatever it is has produced a nice stiff bar that doesn’t complain when a bit of body English is applied. It’s zero rise with a classic forward then backward sweep, the bar ends at a 25 degree angle.
For me, this width and sweep combination is perfect. The fore then aft sweep means that no stem changes are necessary and the 25 degree angle equates to my natural wrist position. (Dangle your arms down by your sides and you’ll see that the hands come to rest roughly in this position)
The grip area is spacious enough for generously sized grips and controls and the satin finish is very classy, accompanied by the subtle VO logos.
The comfort and control that this bar affords is excellent, with great leverage when climbing out of the saddle, less weight on the wrist and the elbows tucked in, unlike with straight bars.
The retro looks might not be to everyone’s taste but I find that they team well with old or new bikes. If you’re the kind of person who likes to festoon their bars with gadgets and lights there isn’t much real estate due to the double bends, but that’s not an issue for me.
There’s nothing I don’t like about these bars and a lot I love. After a month of daily use, there’s nothing I’d change about their design or finish. Teamed with Velo Orange’s model 5 sprung leather saddle, the bar has transformed my Ridgeback Flight into a fast, comfortable and (IMO) classy town bike, that’s lost none of it’s élan.
I’ve yet to ride long distance on them yet so can’t comment on whether the lack of a secondary hand position is an issue. However I can say that the position that these swept back beauties affords is very comfortable and I don’t find myself ‘searching’ for another hand position like I have in the past with all the other bars I’ve used.
I’d be keen to hear from anyone else using these or similar bars.
The Everyday Cyclist 
Hmm I currently use cheap north road bars with Cinelli Spinaci trekking extensions (http://bit.ly/TGv3Me) which is my best solution so far for commuting – I have a coaster brake hub which makes his seem a little less dangerous than it might with regard to accessing brakes. I lean my elbows on the north road bars when gripping the extensions, which stops the front end wobbling when pedalling hard… But I must admit I’ve never quite liked the sweep angle and rise of the north road bar, so the Il Postino could be a nice addition to my setup.
I like swept back bars on my city bikes, and I have two, currently: generic North Roads on my Raleigh Wayfarer three-speed and Civia Duponts on my Raleigh Crested Butte mtb conversion. While all my bars have “sweep”, they also have rise. I don’t know if I could handle no-rise, but maybe I’ll experiment at some point.
I’m using these on a hub-gear equiped ‘roadster’. There’s room for brake levers, the twist-shifter and Brooks ergons on the ends. The zero rise means it’s easy to achieve some aesthetically pleasing parallel lines. I’ve only done trips up to 20 miles so far but no complaints comfort-wise.