Amidst this spring’s glut of e-bike news, there have also been several more affordable product announcements—some made to do one of the simplest, and most vital tasks in mountain biking: keep your hands in contact with the bike. First, OneUp launched the Goldstone grips, followed by SDG’s open-cored Thrice grip, and finally, Ergon dropped two new versions (and 7 new colors) of the stalwart GDH grip.

Because grips are super personal, it’s worth giving some context before I dive in. A small side-effect of my job is that I spend a bunch of time bumping from bike to bike in quick succession. And I’ve found that one of the most important parts of doing that effectively is getting my contact points right immediately. It’s hard to suss out how a bike descends if my hands are cramping up or slipping off the bars. I’m also pretty picky about my grips. On personal bikes, I prefer a push-on grip, my all-time favorite is Renthal’s Push-On Ultra Tacky. But, it’s impractical to glue and wire a set onto every bike that I review. So I try to find a couple of lock-on grip options that I get along with well enough to swap between review bikes and keep things consistent. I have size large hands in most gloves, but prefer a thinner grip. All three grips reviewed here meet that requirement, although, as we’ll get into, there are some substantial differences. 

OneUp Goldstone Grip Details:

• Diameter: 29-33 mm
• Features: Core cutout under thumb, Dual durometer rubber, flared outer ends
• Colors: 5
• Cost: $29.99

SDG Open Core Thrice Details:

• Diameter: 32 mm
• Features: Core cutout under palm, flared outer ends
• Colors: 12
• Cost: $32.99

Ergon GDH Details:

• Diameter: 30, 32, or 34 mm
• Features: Extra soft rubber, replaceable bar ends
• Colors: 7
• Cost: $44.95

Features

It’s 2026, which means every single bike component has to come with a healthy dose of “science” and features. I’ll rattle through each brand’s talking points, and then focus on the ones that I think actually matter.

OneUp usually doesn’t go overboard with the features, but this grip is festooned with them. Working from the outside in, it’s got a big outer flange (the biggest of the three) that uses a harder compound rubber for better durability. The top of the grip has a tessellated bulge to “fill the palm” while the bottom has ribs, angled for your fingers. The rest of the grip has a deep knurl, with a very sticky rubber, and there’s a cutout in the plastic core of the grip under your thumb, for, hypothetically, better damping.

I hate overly contoured grips, I want a sticky Costco hot dog of rubber, and nothing else. But the Goldstone grip has opened my mind. I was quite skeptical of that palm flair, especially since thicker and more shaped grips tend to give me bad hand cramps and more arm pump. However, the bulge completely disappears when I’m riding. I don’t notice it at all, in a good way. But I think it’s working with the rest of the grip to lock my hand in. I feel more secure on the bike (the outer flange is probably helping here) than while using any other lock-on grip. I don’t think I notice the thumb cuttout, but I do like how sticky the grip’s rubber is. It’s right on the edge of feeling “gross” like one of those little sticky hand toys that kids play with, which is just how I like my grips.

The SDG Thrice has a more familiar shape, with a quarter flange on the inside, and a smaller bar-end bulge than the Goldstone. It has a variety of grip patterns, with ribs for the thumb, grabbers for the fingertips, and a knurled pattern elsewhere. The real magic happens on top of the grip, under the palm though. There’s a large cutout in the inner plastic sleeve, so there’s more soft rubber between you and the bar, at the same overall diameter. SDG says this is to help with fatigue and damping.

Although they don’t share much of a visual resemblance, the shape in my hand reminds me most of ODI’s Elite Pro, which, to be clear, is a good thing. However, the Thrice’s rubber feels a little more plasticy. I’d call this the most “neutral” of the grips at hand. Most of its “innovation” happens under the surface, and will probably only be evident to a lot of folks over long, breaking bumped-runs.

Ergon’s GDH has been around for a few years, and it’s won a bunch of World Cups under Vali Höll. It’s been my default “review bike grip” since it came out, but I’ve always wished it was a little thinner. Luckily Ergon heard my pleas, and just released both thicker and thinner options, as well as a bevy of colors. The GDH is a middle ground in terms of ergonomic shape between the other two. It has some gradual curving swells, a cushy palm zone, and grippy finger molding. It also features replaceable hard plastic end plugs, along with a nifty little scale to help you line up the grip’s rotation.

In part because of its three thickness options, I think the GDH is the “safest bet” in this group. It’s got a fairly neutral shape, and you can dial in the diameter to your preference. It also strikes a nice middle ground in terms of rubber feel. It’s stickier, and more rubbery than the Thrice, but not quite as sticky as the Goldstone. And, for riders who lay their bikes down, the replaceable, hard plastic end caps make a big difference when it comes to long-term durability.

Riding Impressions

I’ll be upfront here: I did not “science the crap out of my testing process” here. All three grips spent time, back to back, on the Devinci Spartan, and then I’ve also run all three on various review bikes and e-bikes. Sometimes I ride with gloves, and sometimes I don’t. So all of these grips got both treatments.

It’s worth noting that all three grips are best installed with a few light taps of a rubber mallet to make sure they’re seated all the way onto the bar. The Ergon in particular can be deceiving.

The Goldstone feels the most locked in to me, with or without gloves. The combination of shape and rubber feel is hard to beat. I really notice that flared pommel on the outside, keeping my pinky fingers tight to the rest of my hand. It took me a little more experimenting to find the right rotation to line up the palm swell, but once I did, it disappeared. If I was buying new lock-on grips, I’d pick up a pair of these.

The Thrice definitely wins the “most-improved” award. I found SDG’s older grips to be cheap feeling and  basically unrideable, while the Thrice is a very capable grip that compares favorably to one of the most legendary options of all time. I did find that I preferred to wear gloves with the Thrice. I sweat a lot, and I live in a rainy place, so my hands are always wet, and I found the Thrice got a little slicker than the other options. But, on the flipside, I’ve had plenty of friends tell me that my ultra sticky grips are gross, so folks in that camp will really dig these. I also think folks who suffer from hand pain or fatigue will appreciate the thicker palm rubber inside the plastic cutout.

The GDH is the easiest to recommend. It’s a really neutral grip, and the option of three sizes opens up its market. I was happy, but not in love with the regular version, but the “thin” version is right up there with my favorite grips. I’ve also had great luck with long-term durability, and the replaceable end-cap will help these keep running strong.

For Now

My favorite thing about bike grips is that once you find a pair that works well for you, you can just ignore the rest of the noise. But, if you find yourself looking for a new favorite to wrap your hand around, the new Ergon GDH, OneUp Goldstone, and SDG Thrice all offer compelling propositions, with their own distinct personalities.