Originally Posted by
Brian Ratliff
Before you buy a stem, decide your bar. If you go with a "compact" bar, like the ergonova's, you'll need a longer stem to get the same hand position in the drops as you get with a more classic bend bar. Bar type goes a long way toward determining stem length and angle.
+1,000,000
I use Rotunda pros and when on the drops I am waaaaaaay down there but that is for a sprint only (the whole bike was built around crit racing/sprint). The stem was chosen based on the criteria of the rest of the bike. Like Brian said start with where your hands want to be then build it backwards.