In order to stay in total control of your ride, you’ll need all the features and functions on the handlebar of your Jetson bike to be situated so that they’re easy to reach—and you’ll need your handlebar to stay in that position through every bump and turn.
To adjust your handlebar so that it’s ergonomic for you—and to secure it in that spot —you’ll need to familiarize yourself with the handlebar clamp. Let us help.
Understanding handlebar clamps
The handlebar clamp is located atop the handlebar stem and holds the center of the handlebar in place. That clamp needs to be tight to ensure that your handlebar doesn’t shake, slide, or spin underneath your hands while you’re holding on. If your handlebar is slipping around atop the stem, tightening that clamp should solve the problem.
The fact that the clamp is not permanently fixed is a good thing: Being able to loosen it (and in some cases, “open” it) allows you to rotate the handlebar forward or backward to put certain functions in an easier spot to reach. After re-orienting the handlebar, just re-tighten (or “close”) the clamp.
Why adjust?
Not all bikes are the same—nor are all riders. We’ve all got different heights, arm lengths, finger lengths, and preferences, and to get the best ride you want a bike that’s suited to you. That includes the handlebar, which is not only used to steer but also serves as the control center for lots of bike functionality.
Handbrakes, for example, should be angled off the handlebar at a height that’s easy for your fingers to grasp. Buttons, switches, and bells should be reachable by your thumbs, as should thumb throttles on e-bikes. And LCD screens or indicator lights that live on the handlebar should be angled upwards so that you can see them easily when you’re seated.
Any of these functions that are fixed onto the handlebar (and can’t be independently adjusted) will move up or down if the handlebar is rotated forward or backwards; think of the rotation, too, as bringing some “closer” or moving some “further away.”
To adjust handlebar angling, the general overview is:
- Open and/or loosen the clamp
- Spin the handlebar forward or backward on top of the stem until the handlebar components are positioned as you’d like them.
- While holding the handlebar in that place, close and/or tighten the clamp
Let’s dive into the details for each bike model.
Clamp functionality
How to loosen/open or tighten/close a clamp depends on the clamp. Jetson bikes and e-bikes have one of two kinds:
- Those with a lever to “open” the clamp so that you can make quick and easy adjustments to the handlebar rotation.
- Those secured tightly by hardware that need to be loosened manually in order to make adjustments.
Let's dive deeper.
Lever-control handlebar clamps
Handlebars on the following Jetson e-bikes have a lever on top of the clamp that pull up to “open” the clamp and keep the clamp “closed” when in the down position.
- Axle
- Bolt, Bolt Pro, and Bolt Up
- Haze
- J5
- J8
- LX10
- Arro
To open the clamp so that you can make handlebar adjustments, lift the lever up; the clamp will widen, leaving space for the handlebar to rotate. After you’ve found the best position, just close the clamp by pushing the lever back down.
If the clamp is loose and the handlebar is not secure, you can tighten the clamp by using your fingers to rotate the nut on the underside of the clamp (opposite the lever) clockwise.
Important: Do not over-tighten the nut. Over-tightening can prevent the lever from opening and closing easily.
Hardware-secured handlebar clamps
Clamps on other models are secured only by hardware; in order to make handlebar adjustments on these, you will need to loosen the hardware, which will ease the clamp’s grasp on the handlebar. (There’s no need to remove the hardware altogether; loosening it will create enough space in the clamp for the handlebar to rotate to a new position.)
To tighten the clamp just tighten the hardware. Here’s a list of which Jetson bikes have hardware-secured handlebar clamps, with details on which hardware it is and what tool you’ll need to use on it.
- Adventure and Arrow - 4 bolts that can be loosened and tightened by an Allen key
- Journey- 2 bolts that can be loosened and tightened by an Allen key
- Light Riders – 1 nut on the underside of the handlebar clamp that can be loosened and tightened by a wrench
All set? If you need assistance with handlebar stability or adjustment, reach out to us; we’ll help you get a grip on it. Or, you can tap into our network of knowledgable service partners for local, hands-on assistance.