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This question has been floating around in my head for a while, mainly because I don't know anything about grips (edit to resolve confusion:covers for the part of the handlebar you hold on to).
Are there different types of grips available for mountain bikes?
Do different types of grip affect handling or comfort?
Which grips you get for a mountain bike is mostly a matter of comfort and personal taste.
In terms of how they attach to the bike, there are grips that glue on and grips that screw on. They're exactly what they sound like. Locking grips (that tighten onto the bars with an allen key or a screwdriver) will avoid the grips twisting over time.
You can also get "ergonomic" locking grips. I had a pair of these and found them quite comfortable, and again, this is a matter of personal preference. (I also found that they reduced fine control just a little bit.) Some even come with smaller barends built-in.
Grips come in different materials. I've tried some rubber grips that have a tread pattern. They're quite grippy for when you need to hold on over rough ground. I found though they could be quite abrasive on my hands and that they could actually cause my skin to split.
I've switched to some dense foam (ritchy ergo grips) and they still feel grippy enough, but the material is softer on the hands.
Also, I'd recommend getting comfier grips and having thinner gloves rather than trying to get all of your padding in to your glove. It might be my personal preference, but I think this combination gives a better balance of both comfort and control.
About a year ago, I mounted Ergon GP1 on my standard bike (BMW cruise bike).
I'm more than happy with the feeling and comfort, so I recently mounted Ergon GC2 on my new MTB (Swissbike X5).
The bad Scandinavian winter weather has kept me from testing them, but the GP1 experience makes me think they'll perform as expected.
Last summer, my mother-in-law complained about numbness and pains in her hands when riding her MTB. I got her and my father-in-law ergonomic handle grips from BBB similar to the Ergon GP1 model.
My mother-in-law reported that the numbness was gone.
