Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Creaking stem

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NAES
08-30-08, 05:50 PM
The stem on my Sputnik just started creaking and I'm at a loss as to where its coming from. I checked all the bolts and none were loose. The last thing I want is for this thing to fold up on me.

Easton 1 1/8 carbon fork with aluminum steer tube
Easton road stem
Azonic risers
Aheadset

Any ideas? NAES

jerseybmx
08-30-08, 06:07 PM
The stem on my Sputnik just started creaking and I'm at a loss as to where its coming from. I checked all the bolts and none were loose. The last thing I want is for this thing to fold up on me.

Easton 1 1/8 carbon fork with aluminum steer tube
Easton road stem
Azonic risers
Aheadset

Any ideas? NAES

is ur stem carbon?? if so tacx carbon paste on the threads

if not, take everythign apart and clean the crap out of everything... like ud eat off of it. then lightly grease all ur threads, and torque everyth evenly.

make sure ur steer tube and bar clamp area are not ovalized as well from overtightening.
bradenCBC
08-30-08, 06:16 PM
What clamp diameter is your handlebar, stem? If you are running a 24.5 bar with a 26.0 stem this can cause come creaking. Did you ever have a drop bar in this stem?

Take out and grease all the bolts weather or not they are tight.

Have you changed anything on the front recently?

radicalevan
08-30-08, 06:27 PM
how sure are you that it's your stem?
NAES
08-30-08, 07:49 PM
Pulled it all apart, cleaned the crap out of it all with brake cleaner and scuffed the joining surfaces with #000 steelwool, light film of grease and blue locktite on the bolts.

Stem is aluminum and so are the bars. They were both new so they hadn't been mated up to any other stem/bar combo.

So far everything sounds good. We'll see in a few days I suppose.

Thanks all, NAES