Redshift Top Shelf Handlebar

The Redshift Top Shelf Handlebar is the core of the company's Cruise Control system comprising bar, grips and tape, optimised for all-day comfort and control over rough surfaces. Featuring a unique 'double bar' construction that affords more space to mount accessories, bags or adjust height, it's a great choice for adventurous, fit-challenged or touring cyclists.

> Buy now: Redshift Top Shelf Handlebar for £139.99 from Redshift

I rode the 50mm rise, 47cm width version of the Top Shelf, a 509g bar that is obviously heavier than similar-width options because of the extra section of bar. Redshift isn't looking to make the lightest bar here, with the use of T6061 alloy a reliable middle-of-the-road compromise on strength, price and weight.

What you get with the Top Shelf can best be thought of as a riser-drop bar (like the Genetic Driser-16 I reviewed a while back) on steroids, which includes a 25.4mm section across the top and 120mm of clamping space. In this case, the 'rise' between your stem and the bar adds 50mm in height. There's also a 70mm version if you need more lift.

Or you could think of it as a normal drop bar with a 25.4mm centre section, with an extra section of 31.8mm bar extending below which gives about 80mm of clamping surface for lights or bags.

The Top Shelf comes in four widths: 44, 47, 50 and a whopping 53cm.

If you're familiar with Redshift's Kitchen Sink bar, the Top Shelf shares the sweep, flare and drop DNA. They should feel the same, height for height.

So firstly, the Top Shelf can add a lot of height without resorting to a super-steep stem or a load of extra spacers – if that's even possible because of a cut-down steerer. It will appeal to those needing a more elevated position because of age, injury, or a change in riding style – like commuting or touring versus faster, more aero-oriented riding.

For new bike purchases the Top Shelf could make an otherwise unviable-fitting bike into your next ride. Most bike designers are younger and fitter than your average two-wheeling bear, whereas many cyclists are older, frailer and less able to hold bent-over positions because of a lack of core or arm strength. That Redshift has made what looks to be a very successful product because the bike industry isn't making the bikes people need is a salient lesson for brands – stop being so youth/fitness/speed-obsessed, and make drop bar bikes that everyone can ride without aftermarket costs incurred. Rant over. For now.

This being a gravel/touring-orientated bar, there's a 25-degree flare, which on this 47cm version measures 585mm at the end of the drops. I love flared bars for the control they afford at speed over rough surfaces, slowing the steering and increasing leverage, minimising the impact of large hits on my (oft-poorly) chosen line through trail topography.

That 585mm width is pretty close to that of my go-to gravel bar, the fabulous Ritchey Venturemax Comp XL at 615mm. At £50 the Comp XL is nearly a third the price of the Top Shelf and roughly a mobile phone lighter. The Comp XL has a 24-degree flare and slightly shallower drop and reduced sweep – all of which adds up to feeling pretty close to the Top Shelf, with a generously-ergonomic 7-degree sweep on the tops and 110mm drop.

Setting up

Redshift has provided a load of markings on the bar to get your hood and stem setup just right. There's no channel for cables, but I like positioning them under the tape as a ridge for my first finger joints to wrap onto, so that's not an issue for me.

A critical factor to bear in mind is that your brake and shift cables have likely been trimmed to fit your current setup. So if you're looking to get more lift out of the Top Shelf you might well need all new cables, including hydraulic lines and a bleed if you run hydro discs. This is a factor in any change of effective bike fit and not a fault on the Top Shelf, just something to bear in mind.

Extra space

The standout (and patent-pending) feature of the Top Shelf bar is that 120mm of clamping space (on our test model – others will vary) for accessories that fit at least 25.4mm pipe. Whether it's for lights, computers, phone mounts, bells, aero bars or whatever, that's a lot of space normally taken up with stem or bar tape.

Speaking of which, that's one logical trade-off – you're limited on your inward tape wrapping, unless you get really creative and wrap around the welded join with the lower bar section. It's unlikely that anyone buying a Top Shelf will want to do a super-close arm tuck, as having hands free there would mitigate mounting anything useful. That said, if you need the extra height but not the mounting space, you could wrap all the way across the centre as a secure grip area.

Bags of appeal

A key target audience for the Top Shelf will be bikepackers wanting to use a handlebar bag, either soft or hard-mounted. The main problem with soft bar bags is how they get tangled up with your brake and shift/dropper cables as they exit the bar tape and transition into your frame ports or cable stops. This is such a hassle and cause of head tube wear marks that a number of companies make accessories specifically designed to hold bags free of the cable nest. If you've strapped your bar bag to the top section of the Top Shelf, chances are it will sit naturally out from the cables, and not require any additional managing.

Another option is that you suspend your bar bag off the lower section, leaving the top free for lights and such.

Or, if you don't need the rise in height, you could clamp on the 25.4mm section and use the lower part for bags. The options are many and varied.

Experimenting with my collection of bar bags, some combinations worked better than others, much depending on how and where the buckles were positioned and where they would need to feed through the gap under the bar. Some buckles were just too fat to fit in the gap between stem and bars. If you've yet to buy any, check out our guide to the best bikepacking bags.

If you buy the Top Shelf and really can't get it to work for you, Redshift offers a 90-day risk-free return-shipping-paid policy and a lifetime warranty. That's some confidence right there.

Super comfortable

The Top Shelf is part of Redshift's Cruise Control system, including its super-comfy Drop Bar Grips, Top Grips and the Really Long Bar Tape. Throw in its ShockStop Suspension Stem and you could splash £450 on the front of your bike. But oh, how supremely comfortable the ride would be over the very worst of surfaces.

> How to make your bike more comfortable – check out our 14 tips

As mentioned, for the last few years the Venturemax XL has been my happy place for rowdy, fast gravelling. I've learned (the hard way) how to afford a bit more room when snaking between close trees, so wide is my friend. I found the Top Shelf bar's combination of drop, flare and sweep to be spot on for my sort of riding, and am hard-pressed as to whether I would want to go back to the Venturemax XL. I know it would be lighter, and I love the ergonomic bump in the drops, but the Top Shelf has me intrigued about the luggage options for this autumn's bikepacking season once The Midge are dead and the nicer bothies aren't hoaching with hoi polloi.

Value and conclusion

This is a unique and patented design, so functional comparisons are difficult. If you don't need the lift but want the bar space, the Kitchen Sink mentioned earlier is an option to consider – though that's more expensive at £150.

If you don't need the extra bar space but want some lift, there are cheaper options, like the Driser-16 I mentioned earlier, now £54.99, and the Driser 4-10 Dave reviewed recently, which is £49.99 – but you only get 20mm or 10mm of extra height in those cases. 

Yes, the Top Shelf is relatively expensive, heavy and lacks features like ergo drops or cable channels. But what price comfort, ease of luggage fitting, or having the additional bar lift that may simply not be possible with spacers or stem? If these are the boxes you need ticked, the Top Shelf is a very good option, well worth checking out.

> Buy now: Redshift Top Shelf Handlebar for £139.99 from Redshift

Verdict

Unique way to get your riding position higher and free up space for luggage or accessories