DMR Deathgrip and Renthal Lock-On Grips Reviewed by Top Member Reviewer and Jenson USA Award Winner 3

Every month we award the Top User Reviewer with a little prize. This month Jenson USA pitched in another $100 gift card! Vital member captainofass took home top honors in May after writing a few solid reviews. Here are two of his best:

DMR Deathgrip Grips - "Coming from BMX I have always been a fan of mushroom style grips but found them lacking grip for mountain bike riding and there was never really a locking version either. The Deathgrip combines a mushroom, diamond and waffle style grip to create a grip that is just a pleasure to hold.

As a gloveless rider these instantly appealed with only an inside locking collar and a mushroom style pattern toward the inside of the grip. The outer two thirds of the grip are a diamond style pattern with a waffle design on the underside for added grip when things get rowdy. The compound is really soft and the grips are quite forgiving over small bumps and vibrations. The locking band is pretty wide and uses a 3mm allen and I never had an issue with grips slipping.

I ride with no gloves and never had an issue with these getting sweaty even on the hottest days. I also ride with my hands right over the outside of the bars, so I found these supremely comfortable with no outside locking collar. From a comfort, grip and style perspective, I think these are the best grips i've ever bought and I have them on several bikes. 

The only negative is durability. Generally the grip wear well but perhaps a little quicker than some other grips I've used. This is pretty normal for a soft compound grip and a worthwhile trade off in my opinion. The only real issue is the outer edge (bar end area) wears pretty fast, as this was the main contact of the grip and my hand I found that the bar end quickly began to peel away from the hard plastic core. This left the outer edge of rubber flapping around a bit which moved about under my hand. This issue is pretty common with single collar grips though and given the low price and incredible comfort and grip of these grips when their new it's a worthwhile tradeoff. 

I highly recommend these grips to anyone but they definitely need to be changed every 2 months or so to keep them feeling fresh. " - Read the full review»

Renthal Lock-On Grips - "I had heard a lot of good things about Renthal's ultra tacky compound and wanted to give them a try but didn't want to commit to using the push-ons with glue. So I decided to give their lock on version a test. I got the black Ultra Tacky compound, half expecting them to last about 2 months before falling apart.

However, I've been proved wrong. The grips are now coming on to a year of use and they are no were near as worn as you would expect. I would easily guess they have another year of use in them maybe more.

The best thing about the grips is that because they are so soft, they have fantastic damping properties. I noticed in the months after fitting the grips that my forearms were becoming less fatigued on the same descents without changing anything on my suspension or tyre pressure. Due to the softness of the compound your hands have this small cushion they can basically float on. It's nothing like throttle grip, it's way more subtle than that because they feel exactly like a normal grip and at the same time they don't. Just on this alone I would recommend them to anyone who is having this issue but has their suspension and tyre pressures set just so!

The grips do have a few issues though. First, riding gloveless isn't great in these because they are just so soft. Your fingers and palms stick to the grip once you're holding on, so you have to unwrap your hand at the end of any descent to un-stick your fingers. 

The second issue I've found is the outside collar. Basically, because the compound is so much softer than other grips, your hand sits a bit lower when the grips are pressurized by your weight and you can feel the collar more than you'd like in some situations. But with most of my gloves on I don't feel this anymore have just learned to make sure my hand is actually in the middle of the grip.

Overall these are great grips and I tend to keep them until they start to fall apart and then replace them with the same ones. If Renthal could come out with these grips with no outside collar and just grip (like DMR Deathgrips) they would be perfect and I hope it's coming for the future!" - Read the full review»

Want to be in the running for June's award? Review the parts you use in the Vital MTB Product Guide and keep an eye on the Top Reviewer leaderboard. We'll announce the winner in early July.