Originally Posted by
cqlink
Good eye on the stem. I'm pushing it. Is anything out there capable of safely giving me another inch or two?
Technically your Varsity is too small for you. That is a 22" frame and I can tell by the amount of seat post showing you should be riding at least a 24" frame. That alone would give you 2" more stem height and a lot more comfortable ride.
But if you just want to change the stem then there are several alternatives. One issue is that you will need a stem that fits a fork with a 21.1mm (0.833") steerer tube ID. There are such aftermarket tall stems available like
this one, however they are very heavy and IMHO not easy to look at.
The following picture shows your forged steel stem on the left and Schwinn's tallest '70s vintage alloy stem on the right, note that both are positioned such that the max. height lines are equal.
As you can see the stem on the right will gain you about 2" in handlebar height and 1" in reach as compared to your original. It also weighs half as much, saving well over half a pound in weight. There happens to be one of these currently listed on eBay (not mine):
Vintage 1972 Schwinn Quill Stem Sports Tourer | eBay
Note that specific alloy "girder design" stem came on '73 and later Varsity models with 26" frames, as well as on '73 and later Continental, Super Sport and Sports Tourer models with 24" or larger frames. They are fairly plentiful and turn up on eBay all the time.