Ultimate by nature, but not ultimate by price, the £74.99 Mount Zoom Ultimate Carbon handlebar is perfect for racing and very good value.

Mount Zoom is a component brand started by top endurance racer Ant White, with a focus on well designed lightweight products that don’t cost the earth. The brand has gained a loyal following in the UK in recent years and the Ultimate Carbon handlebar is one of their flagship products for good reason: it’s light, well-made and exceptional value for money.

The Mount Zoom Ultimate Carbon handlebar certainly lives up to its name. There are two main versions, the Ultralight (580mm wide and 94g light) and the Bar End Friendly version we’ve been testing, which measures 640mm and weighs just 116g on our scales.

There are also 25.4mm centre versions of both bars, and there’s a 640mm version of the Ultralight as well as Bar End Friendly in 580mm width, so you’ve lots of options.

You might expect such a lightweight handlebar to have a top-drawer price, but £74.99 is pretty damn good when you look around at the competition.

In current company 640mm is a bit skinny for anything but racing, but racing is what this handlebar is intended for. There’s more than enough width for threading through narrow tree-lined singletrack and elbow-to-elbow start line shenanigans. If you’re put off by the width, Mount Zoom does offer wider and fatter bars that still barely bother the scales.

I fitted the bar to my Santa Cruz Tallboy 29er (a bike I use for everything from racing to trail riding) and I’ve been highly impressed. My first concern was the narrowness, and I’ll admit it did take some time to retune my brain; I haven’t ridden such a narrow bar in a while.

Throw yourself into the lactic acid hell of a race though and it all makes sense. Some locations like those used for the Gorricks, my local cross-country series, are typical in their tight and narrow layout and it was there that the 640mm width really came into its own.

They’re great for racing then, but should trail riders be interested? I had initial concerns that such a light bar might struggle when the trail gets tough and physical but I was happy to find it managed well. Okay, so there is a slight degree of flex when really shifting into obstacles but that is to be expected of such a light handlebar. It was within acceptable limits, and importantly gave me the confidence to not have to adjust my riding style.

The attention to detail is good and the handlebar is well presented. It’s made from 3K carbon fibre with cleanly cut ends and there’s a roughened area at the bar end clamp area and central section. The bar features markers for lining up in the stem and cut marks for trimming its width.

Racing is where it’s at for this bar though. Looking to shed a few grams for your setup? Look no further.

Mount Zoom do offer wider and fatter bars so if trail riding is your thing, check out the Mount Zoom range on their website. They released a 740mm riser bar recently made to the same standards as the Ultimate that will satisfy burlier riders and riding.

Verdict

If you want the very lightest, look no further than the Ultimate. An astonishing bit of kit.

Pros

Very light
Great price

Cons

Narrow
Some flex

Price: £74.99

More information: Mount Zoom Ultimate Carbon bar

What Mount Zoom says about the Ultimate Carbon handlebar

The Ultimate cross country bar. Plenty of width & length options to pick from:

Ultralight Bar

Standard 580mm length
25.4mm – 85g / 31.8mm – 94g

Wider (cut to preference)
25.4mm x 640mm 97g / 31.8mm x 640mm 112g

Bar End Friendly Bar

If you use bar ends, choose these “bar end friendly” bars with a few grams extra support at the ends.

Standard 580mm length
25.4mm – 89g / 31.8mm – 98g

Wider (cut to preference)
25.4mm x 640mm 101g / 31.8mm x 620mm 110g / 31.8 x 640mm 116g

Additional features:

10mm measurement & centre line dividers to aid in brake/shifter placemen
3K carbon construction
6° bend / o° degree rise

No rider weight limit. Thoroughly tested (100k stress cycles) & on the race circuit.