Could this be the ultimate drop bar for a tandem?

[iandusud]

https://www.pnwcomponents.com/products/the-coast-handlebar

[sg37409]

Because of the width you mean ?  I've never felt the need: Dabbled with some wide 'bars (titec H-bar hellbent) and soon reverted to normal drops.

[iandusud]

Because of the width you mean ?  I've never felt the need: Dabbled with some wide 'bars (titec H-bar hellbent) and soon reverted to normal drops.

Yes the width but also the shallow drop and short reach. I really like drop bars because of the choice of positions and I ride 90% on the hoods. However I do tend to feel a bit too upright on the tops and also lacking control because of the narrow width in this position. I rarely use the drops but I do use them on fast descents but it can get a bit tiring being so low. These bars might just be what I need.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

As a wide-hipped captain, the 47cm Profile Stoker bar is the minimum width handlebar that my stokers can use. Even then, thick full finger gloves rub on my thighs. Drop bars are pretty meaningless for most stokers as few use the drops even 5% of the time.

As captain, I don’t like or need really wide drop bars, despite being 182cm tall. The max width for me is 46cm and I am agnostic regarding 44 or 42cm. Then again, I captained a track tandem with 39cm steel bars, the same as on my track solo.

I’ve done 2 x PBP on tandem with very deep 44cm drop bars (Cinelli JTC), allowing an aero position on the drops (headwinds and descents) and a very comfortable position on the hoods but plenty of opportunity to sit up on the tops to ease my back. Really shallow and short reach drop bars means there isn’t enough variation in my position for riding long hours comfortably.

[iandusud]

As a wide-hipped captain, the 47cm Profile Stoker bar is the minimum width handlebar that my stokers can use. Even then, thick full finger gloves rub on my hips. Drop bars are pretty meaningless for most stokers as few use the drops even 5% of the time.

As captain, I don’t like or need really wide drop bars, despite being 182cm tall. The max width for me is 46cm and I am agnostic regarding 44 or 42cm. Then again, I captained a track tandem with 39cm steel bars, the same as on my track solo.

I’ve done 2 x PBP on tandem with very deep 44cm drop bars (Cinelli JTC), allowing an aero position on the drops (headwinds and descents) and a very comfortable position on the hoods but plenty of opportunity to sit up on the tops to ease my back. Really shallow and short reach drop bars means there isn’t enough variation in my position for riding long hours comfortably.

It sounds like you've got your ideal set up. As I get older (61 now) I find the drops are a bit much for me. I could raise the bars but then I feel I would be too high. I suppose my comment about a short reach is much to do with be less flexible these days too. I used to use deep drops many years ago but have found compact bars to suit me much better these days! BTW I'm thinking about the 48cm version. 52cm is a bit too radical!

[The French Tandem]

I'm quite tall and wide, and I use the same 44 cm drop bar on the tandem (captain) and on my solo. Never felt the need for a wider bar on the tandem. Stoker use a 47 cm  bull horn bar, as LWB mentioned above. She would probably feel more comfortable with a narrower bar, but then my hips wouldn't fit.

A

[fuaran]

There's plenty of shallow, flared, wider drop bars available now. They are becoming quite fashionable for gravel/bike packing.

On-one Midge is a cheap option.
Or a list here. https://bikepacking.com/index/gravel-bars/

[iandusud]

There's plenty of shallow, flared, wider drop bars available now. They are becoming quite fashionable for gravel/bike packing.

On-one Midge is a cheap option.
Or a list here. https://bikepacking.com/index/gravel-bars/

Hi, I'd already looked there funnily enough but most gravel bars seem to be excessively flared making them wide in the wrong place in terms of better leverage when riding on the hoods, which is where I ride 90+% of the time. The PNW Coast appealed to me precisely because they are wide at the hoods. 

[Joe.B]

Athough they haven't been fitted to the tandem yet I've recently been trying Koga Denham Bars on my Surly LHT. The bull horn section of the bar is terrific and feels just like being on the hoods while the flat bar section offers superb off road control.  My only complaint is that they are (for me anyway), a little too wide, I haven't done so yet but will probably cut 20mm of each side.

https://www.cyclingabout.com/koga-denham-bars

[iandusud]

Athough they haven't been fitted to the tandem yet I've recently been trying Koga Denham Bars on my Surly LHT. The bull horn section of the bar is terrific and feels just like being on the hoods while the flat bar section offers superb off road control.  My only complaint is that they are (for me anyway), a little too wide, I haven't done so yet but will probably cut 20mm of each side.

https://www.cyclingabout.com/koga-denham-bars

I've had a look at various alternative bars but finding some thing that gives a forward position whilst being able to brake and change gear is limited. One option would be short bullhorns with bar end shifters.

[sg37409]

Athough they haven't been fitted to the tandem yet I've recently been trying Koga Denham Bars on my Surly LHT. The bull horn section of the bar is terrific and feels just like being on the hoods while the flat bar section offers superb off road control.  My only complaint is that they are (for me anyway), a little too wide, I haven't done so yet but will probably cut 20mm of each side.

https://www.cyclingabout.com/koga-denham-bars

These look superb.  Sadly I don't have a bike suitable for those. 

[L CC]

I'm quite old skool in my taste and both those new fangled things look fugly-as to my eye.

Our brevet tandem is set up as per the French and LW&B. The racing tandem has drops, but only because we haven't changed them yet. Stoker bars are as narrow as we can get while still getting the pilots muscular thighs in.

[phil653]

Our stoker bars were molished from cheap bullhorns sold on e-bay for fixies. But given that they were far too narrow as delivered, some none too gentle action involving a bench vice and a long bar resulted in flaring them out to 50cm width at the ends, giving enough space for my, er, shall we say 'adequate' hindquarters.  However, my most frequent stoker, Mrs653, found the forward lean excessive. At her request, they're now mounted facing backwards, omafiets style, so she can sit more or less upright, as the rear toptube isn't long at 58cm. Captain's bars are drops, and I ride mostly on the hoods so captain and stoker adopt very different upper body postures and I'll admit it does look a bit mis-proportioned in photos. I run On-one Midge bars on my audax bike.

[Joe.B]

I run On-one Midge bars on my audax bike.

In my quest for better off road control on the Surly I tried a set of those myself, freebe from a colleague who didn't get on with them.

Unfortunatly they didn't work for me either, couldn't get the hoods position right and although I don't ride on the drops very often I couldn't get that position at all right.