Currently running the 44/52 bars that came stock with my Seigla which are hilariously oversized for me. Considering going down to 38/40 bars. However i also do quite a bit of light MTB (rooty/twisty trails, some rocks, no big features) and I’m a little worried about the loss of control.
Curious if others have made a similar switch and if you noticed any difference in handling either on trails or down sketchy gravel descents
The first thing I did when I got my newest mountain bike was chop 1.5 inches from each end of the bars. I’ve always preferred narrower bars, I’ve never felt a lack of control and conversely, I frequently appreciate how I can navigate narrower spaces. I didn’t notice much difference going from 42cm to 38cm on the drop bars, certainly don’t feel out of control. Go for it!
You should be fine. I raced a ton back in the day of no suspension, long long stems, and super-short bars. Now, as back then, tires and the right PSI, along with strong trail-reading skills seem to matter more than what width bars you have. Swap the bars and allow time to acclimatize and I’ll wager you’ll be fine.
I have a suspicion that the wide AF drop bars are actually making it really hard to turn the wheel when MTBing, have noticed i handle tight spaces much better on my narrower road bike bars. I guess we shall see!
I was just watching highlights of the 2025 XC season and I noticed that the bars the pros were using were narrower than in the past. Obviously I don’t have any measurements to confirm this, but I think the super wide MTB bars were a fad that has run its course.
Agree 100%. Wide has it’s benefits, especially for heavy DH. But for the rest of us, not so much. I lopped off 8cm off my MTB bars, and that was 8+ years back.
Moving this to Tech > Tech Help
Get someone to measure the width of your shoulders and buy bars based on that. I run 38s with minimal flare on my road bike and 40s with a 12 deg flare on my gravel bike. Don’t believe the industry hype: bars that fit are more important than bars that look cool.
Another vote of approval for narrower gravel bars, on 42cm and not wishing for any wider on descents and xc singletrack.
I will say contra the other old head xc guys that going from 660mm bars with a slammed 100mm stem to 780mm with an 80mm stem and some spacers was a massive increase in control and confidence on anything moderately steep or technical.
There’s probably no actual physiological basis for it but I feel like with a drop bar/’vertical’ grip I’m strongest and in the most control in line with my shoulders, but with mtb/’horizontal’ in a wider push-up/bench press stance.
I went from 44 to 42 (with 16-degree flare) on my drop-bar gravel bike. More comfortable, no noticeable loss of control. Agree that on a drop bar excess width doesn’t feel helpful.
With MTB technique has changed along with the equipment, so a significant change in bar width may require a technique adjustment.
I have an old hardtail set up full rigid for gravel. The flat bar is a 550. 
The wide bars, be they risers, flat or drop, are for stability on technical terrain. If you’re at speed and you have a lot of rocks and roots trying to knock you off your line, then it makes sense to widen the stance of your arms a bit so your big muscles in your shoulders and chest can actually do work. It should be harder to turn the bike with the wide bars, that is the point. Bars can be too wide if your reach is awkward or you have trouble getting into a proper attack position for technical spots or if you’re just desiring a more responsive handling feel.
At various times I’ve had drop bars with widths at the hoods from 36-44cm, and at the drops from 38-~50cm. The first day I rode the 44cm bars I noticed extra leverage (good), but also extra aero drag (bad); they came off almost immediately. The 38s were on my first serious bike, eons ago now, and were fine fully loaded on very rough dirt. Mostly I’ve been on bars ~40cm wide at the hoods, and am okay with 42cm on gravel but the extra aero drag on the road is perceptible, so I’m not convinced it’s worth it. Maybe 40cm at the hoods plus some flare might be the answer for me. Higher drops definitely help on nasty gravel descents IME, so less bar drop or else the hoods get too high. For MTB bars as long as all the controls fit I’m not convinced extra width helps, certainly not 800+mm, but YMMV.