Good afternoon!
I am looking for some thicker grips to help with hand pain from a surgery, years ago.
I have read good things about the Ergin GA3 grips as well as the Supracush grips from Deity.
Anyone have experience with either of these grips?
I am open to other recs as well!
Thanks!
by JonBonJ88
25 Comments
Get the ergon gdh grips, they’re thicker in the middle part
i have the ga3 ! they are nice, but they arent really thick or soft. I did had some pain in the palms and with the ga3 i dont have it atleast.
I love my GA3 grips I put them on every bike!
Titanium handlebars… game-changer for me
Trail One Hell’s Gate. I had no idea how great they were until I tried the Ergon GA-2 which hurt the outsides of my hands so bad. That, or some Wolf Tooth foam grips.
I think you are fighting the symptom not the problem. Hand pain can be bad body position or bad bike fit.
Not sure where and when you exactly experience hand pain but I might also be a good idea to look at your fit. I had some discomfort in my hands creep in on longer rides, mostly while paddling, I found that reducing the reach while seated helped a lot as it put less pressure on my hands.
The simplest way to achieve is to slam your seat more forward if you could or bring the stem/bars higher. The are also gloves that have extra padding for support and comfort.
Don’t get grips to fix hand pain. Fix the cause, which is lightly bike fit or setup.
Tire pressure is extremely important for comfort, followed by suspension setup. I cannot overstate the importance of suspension service with comfort either.
Bike fit as well, handlebar roll, stem length, saddle to bar drop, and saddle setback all effect the weight and weight distribution on your hands.
Changing the grips is a great option if you know everything else is as dialed as it can be.
I use the ergons, not for thickness but the palm ‘wedge’ kelps keep my wrist in the right position to avoid paid.
The ergon GA3 offer more support which could solve your problem but it could just be that your position on the bike is too far forward and thus putting more weight on your wrists
Personally the only thing that dealt with my hand pain and arm pump was slowly teaching myself to stop gripping the bars so tightly and not running lock-on grips.
Regardless of how much of the plastic core the manufacturer cuts away it still sends vibrations and chatter back to your hands, I’ve been running Renthal ultra tack push-ons for ages, stick them on with the renthal quick dry grip glue and they never move around, best grips I’ve ever used.
I’ve gone through probably 20 different sets of grips in 2 years trying to find a solution, tried multiple models from ODI, LizardSkins, Ergon, DMR, Deity, Supacaz, Burgtec and Raceface before giving up with lock ons and going back to push-on grips. The renthals are insanely good with or without gloves.
I was an Oury purist when it came to cushy grips. Them thangs was the shit.
so, step one is bike fit. Your arm -> wrist -> hand should be in a straight line when you are riding. If your wrist is bent at all you are putting pressure on it which will cause numbness or pain.
now….if after playing with bike fit you are still having pain, I recommend getting a pair of rev grips. They are tunable and “float” over the handlebars on bushings. Every single part is replaceable, so you buy once and then if something wears out you can buy just that part. In the long run it is no more expensive than replacing your grips when they wear out and they really make a difference on your hands. I use rev grips and carbon handlebars on my hard tail and I can hit technical trails all day with no pain or numbness.
I don’t like the Ergons.
The diameter is kind of thin (30-32mm, small vs large), the rubber isn’t all that soft, and the wings only really provide support in a single position. On a MTB where you regularly go from seated to standing, it’s useless half the time.
I haven’t used the Deity grips, but I love the very similarly sized (33.5-34mm) ODI Rogue grips. The thicker diameter is a lot more comfortable to hold on to, the super-soft rubber gives great grip and helps with vibrations, and it’s the same no matter your position. Sure is a whole lot more comfortable for me than the thin stock ones.
Diety megattack grips are fat and soft. I love them but I have big hands so they aren’t for everyone
I have some carpal tunnel from a work injury, and a strip of quality PT tape from the inner elbow up the forearm to the wrist has helped with cramping, tingling, and loss of sensitivity on technical downhill. Keep it under a long sleeve jersey for security and enjoy the ride!
I live the SupraCush, but I have big, (XXL gloves) bony hands. They help with my hand pain, but I think body position is still more important. Get some weight off your hands with higher bars, shorter stem or seat forwards.
I had hand and wrist pain from my bars being too wide. So i also suggest focusing on fitting your bike to your body first and foremost.
I have Carpal Tunnel issues in my left hand (had a CT release in the right already!) and the Deity grips have helped quite a bit.
I upgraded from the Supracush grips to their even bigger Megattack grips, even more comfortable.
Haven’t used the Ergon but I haven’t found the Deity to be too cushioned. I get hand pain from grips being too soft, too soft can get you to squeeze too hard since you don’t feel secure. The Deity weren’t even a nice balance, they were just stiff and uncomfortable. Ended up swaping for a basic set of cannondale grips for cheap.
I had pain in my hands and wrists, but going from 780 width down to 720 as well as higher rise bars made it go away. Other comments are correct, this most likely stems from a riding position problem.
When the ergon grips came out (a while ago) a bunch of people I rode with went out and got them. About half *loved* them. The other half got carpal tunnel. lol
I just got deity supracush grips and they’re fantastic, but I don’t think they’d help with hand pain. The ergo grips might help a bit if it’s wrist pain, but maybe try something like ESI chunky grips if you want something that’ll cushion your hands more
If it’s hand pain I say supercush, if it’s wrist pain do the Ergons. I love my supercushes and will probably never change.