Mountain bike grips can be underrated until you lose grip when you're riding. Then you suddenly appreciate them. Or you feel aches in either hand or maybe even suffering from arm pump? That's when you know you need to consider upgrading your mountain bike grips. What happens when you have big hands? What are the best options for you? Below we'll be taking a look at the best mountain bike grips for big hands and considering what makes them the best.
What you should be looking for in mountain bike grips and what it takes to be the best. We've also put together a buyer's guide for finding the best mountain bike grips so do have a look!
Should You Change Your Grips To Suit You If You Have Big Hands?
Any new bike you buy isn't likely to have the best grips fitted.
Initially, this may be fine, however, over time, you may start to experience hand fatigue, numbness, and sore wrists. Not ideal.
Searching for handlebar grips when you have big hands can be more difficult than first imagined.
Bike grips are a contact point so having the right type of grip can change your enjoyment level on your ride.
If you have big hands you may find that you can't get your full hand around the grip if the grip is too small - this is one of the main reasons why you should change your grips to suit large hands.
Not having your full hand around the grip can lead to a lack of control, numbness in the hand, and potentially sore wrists.
Narrow grips are great for small hands but not so much for large hands. They simply don't provide the comfort you need out on a ride. You can't grips sufficiently.
Kitting yourself up with grips best suited to larger hands will see that you're much happier when out riding!
Benefits of the Right Sized MTB Grips for Larger Hands
Having the right bike grips for your hand size is important, let's firstly look at the benefits!
Reduce Hand Fatigue
Getting the right size mountain bike grips will mean that you're going to get the right amount of support. Your hands will be able to relax more and feel less fatigued.
Comfortable Position
This benefit can almost be applied to anything. If something fits you well, it's comfortable. That's the same principle with mountain bike grips. MTB grips that are correctly sized will allow your hand to rest comfortably and give you that super soft feeling - even without gloves!
Improved Bike Control
Feeling like you're in control when you're riding is important, right? Using the best mountain bike grips you can find will allow you to get a tighter grip, meaning you can control your bike more easily.
Slide-on Grips vs Lock-on Grips for Those with Big Hands
Grips come in two different styles, slide-on, and lock-on grips.
Slide-on grips have been the best choice for riders with big hands for a long time. Not always by choice, largely because that was what was available in large sizes!
Lock-on grips use a locking collar to keep the grip in place, this is incredibly secure.
Pros of Lock-on
- Easy installation
- Can readjust using an Allen key
- Grips the best for a lot of the riders - making them feel very safe and comfortable
Cons of Lock-on
- They tend to usually weigh more than slip-ons
- Don't always fit carbon fiber bars
Slip-on mountain bike grips are very simple in the way they work. To install them, you literally slip them onto the bar.
Rather than being kept in place with a clamp, slip-ons are in place by using friction. As they need to be slipped often, they are often made from rubber or other soft materials.
Pros of Slip-on
- The lightweight option, saving around 50g
- Affordable MTB grips
- Very compatible with every bar
Cons of Slip-on
- Slip-on grips can be tricky to remove and install
- Can slide around occasionally
How to Choose the Right Mountain Bike Grips if You Have Big Hands
Choosing the best mountain bike grips for large hands can be difficult so carry on reading so you know what to look for!
Material
Rubber is often used to make MTB grips. It's strong, flexible, and gives enough cushioning to make it comfortable when out on the trails.
Silicone foam grips will often provide you with more cushioning so if you spend long days in the saddle, then this might be the way forward.
Bar Plugs
Whether you buy them separately or they come with the bike grips, make sure you fit bar plugs to your grips!
Their purpose is to protect your MTB grips from damage and they work really well!
Shape & Length
Grips for big hands need to be longer in length than usual grips. That goes without saying.
Anything above 135mm will work be the best grips for big hands as you should be able to get a solid grip at this length. Though you can go as long as 150mm, the design itself provides the best options of grips for big hands.
Our Top 6 MTB Grips for big hands
We've selected the best 6 mountain bike grips - here are our thoughts!
1. Wolftooth Fat Paw 135mm
These handlebar grips are designed for the ultimate comfort for riders and they deliver in bucket loads!
The dual-density silicone compound gives your hands a break as it acts as a fantastic way to dampen any vibrations.
Diameter wise, it comes at 36mm, this is the largest and fattest grip.
Being able to use handlebar grips without gloves is always nice and the Wolftooth comes with super tacky texture so they're always nice and comfortable.
One welcomed surprise is that these MTB grips are easy to install. This isn't always the case with slide-on grips. Not only that, these Fat Paws come with bar end plugs.
So if you're after mountain bike grips that will give you a comfortable ride, minimal vibration, then these handlebar grips may be ideal for you!
Pros
Cons
With a diameter of 34mm, comfort on your ride is a clear priority for ESI.
Diameter is important as this is what is going to reduce the vibration and shocks for you. The less you will experience of these, the less hand fatigue you'll experience, so you'll be able to ride for you longer!
One thing that really stands out about these ESI grips is that they support the whole palm. Again, it's this support that is essential to your comfort.
As they are 'extra chunky', it spreads out the pressure evenly. The grip on the ESI Chunky is fantastic, giving you great confidence when you're taking on the trails. They give you a great sense that you and your MTB are one - bike harmony if you will.
Installation is easy and flexible with the ESI Chunky. They have a lot of give in them so you are able to work with them, rather than against, which can sometimes be the case with MTB grips!
You can have these grips on in about 10 minutes - pretty good going!
Pros
Cons
A brand that goes hand in hand with grips for large hands and our first lock-on grip style.
Lock-ons are great, they're secure and keep their position, whatever your throw at them.
These MTB grips are dual lock-on and the end caps are fully integrated- a really nice touch that should prevent any damage to them should you unfortunately crash.
The super tacky rubber compound feels like it will grip you no matter what, yet it's soft rubber so feels lovely underhand.
Even in wet conditions, you still feel like the grips won't loosen their grip on your hand.
Shock absorption is also taken care of in the design of these mountain bike grips. There is a dainty ribbed texture pad where your palm sits, taking the pressure from your palms.
These grips are a good size at 135mm in length and 35mm in diameter.
This may only be a small consideration but these MTB grips come in a range of colors, something not often found with other bike grips.
It's these extra touches, like the extra padding around the palm area, color choices, etc, that give Fifty-Fifty a good name. They are good at what they do and these are some of the best mountain bike grips for large hands you can buy today.
Pros
Cons
4. ESI Chunky
Another one from ESI, offering something a bit different.
The ESI Chunky weighs in at 60g so lightweight. Hey, just because you need big grips, shouldn't mean you can't have lightweight stuff too!
At 32mm diameter, the chunky isn't quite as large as the Extra Chunky but still very much larger than your standard MTB grips. It doesn't skimp in terms of comfort either, these grips are comfortable and very solid!
Knowing that your grip will remain good no matter what the weather is, well, it's pretty essential. These grips work brilliantly in all weather, keeping you firmly in your riding position.
Although a small, not so important fact for some but these MTB grips look fantastic! It's not often you can say a grip is nice looking so it's quite a treat.
Pros
Cons
5. Ergon GA3
These MTB grips use an ergonomic design to help prevent numbness...and they genuinely work!
Mountain bike grips that give you support where you need it most. That's exactly what you get from these Ergon MTB grips.
Every aspect of these handlebar grips has been thought about, shock vibration is minimized as the core is double-butted, reducing the amount of hand fatigue you experience.
One unusual feature on MTB grips is that the Ergon GA3 is that there is UV protection built into the rubber. This makes it incredibly durable as they're unlikely to dry out and crack under the sun, which is never ideal!
These mountain bike grips are single clamp lock-on style, there is an aluminum lock ring to keep everything in place. However, this can be adjusted to give you a custom fit, everybody holds their bars differently so this is a good feature.
Ends caps can breakthrough use, it's just something we riders have to get used to. Ergon has made sure that their end caps are replaceable so at least you can swap them out easily should you need to!
Lock-ons are sometimes not compatible with carbon frames, this can be one of their downsides. Not in the case of these grips. They are suitable for all handlebars.
The diameter of the grip is 22.2mm so whilst not the biggest, certainly grips for big hands.
Pros
Cons
These grips from Lizard Skins are beautiful. Let's get that out of the way first. Looks-wise, they are the best we've got here.
The design is inspired by Steve Peat and that can be seen on the grips themselves - very stylish done.
The Lizard Skin grip comes in at 130mm so very much in line with our other choices and is a lock-on design.
Meaning that it will be incredibly secure, as will you when you're riding!
Pros
Cons
Conclusion
That's it! Those are our top choice for bike grips. Which one is our favorite?
The ESI Extra Chunky is a superb option we feel, giving you a high-end grip that you can feel the quality throughout.
It's soft in the hand but gives you confidence that you're not going to lose grip and end up away from your bike - that's a big thing!
That's exactly why these are our best mountain bike grips for large hands! Which mountain will you climb next?