CADEX’s new gravel bar centers around natural hand positioning for better comfort on long rides, one-piece carbon layup for tensile strength, and intentional shaping for compliance.
CADEX wants its new GX handlebar to perform when the road is rough and the steeps are steep. When you plunge down a big hill, hammer into the flat, then lean into a big climb, your connection to your bars and how well you can use them are critical.
So the brand built the purpose-driven gravel bar for precisely that.
The drops show a generous 16-degree flare and 5-degree outsweep to facilitate better control during descents and sharp corners. D-shaped bar tops with a 5-degree backsweep allow a more natural wrist angle (and, therefore, relief on every joint up the chain) to ease fatigue and pain on long, rattly rides.
And CADEX looked to make transitioning between positions easier with a short reach (70 mm) and drop (115 mm).
The GX is a single piece of carbon fiber — no bonds anywhere should mean there’s less flex than you typically find in a three-piece bonded bar. CADEX says it used high-tensile-strength carbon “only where needed” to keep weight down but create a more resilient structure. And D-shaped tubing on the bar tops should allow some compliance and could even improve your grip.
The bar weighs a modest 190 g in a 420mm width and comes in sizes from 400 to 460 mm. And you can hook it up with Shimano Di2 at the bar ends thanks to built-in compatibility.
“With the new CADEX GX handlebar, we upped the fun factor a notch,” said Jeff Schneider, global head of product for CADEX. “The result is a confidence-inspiring bar for rowdy descents and loose corners that doesn’t compromise performance or comfort.”
The clamp diameter is 31.8 mm. CADEX makes all four sizes of the GX gravel bar available today. No MSRP information was available as of this writing.
