Last week I finally got a "real" road bike. It's a carbon fiber and aluminum Trek with full 105 and clipless pedals. Got it used for $250. I figure that's a pretty good deal. My only complaint is that the stem (quill) is a bit too high for my liking, but it can't seem to go any lower. So I would like to buy a new stem, maybe one with a bit of a negative degree of rise.

The stem measures 4.75" center-to-center. The part that enters the headset area (I don't know what it's called) is about 7/8" in diameter.

Basically I'm just looking for some advice on buying a stem. I will probably just get one off eBay since I'm kind of cheap. Here are some pics of what I've got right now:







This is one of those stems that has to have the handlebar slid through it to get it out. Should it be fairly easy for me to get the shifter off? Also, is there anything I should be careful of when removing the stem?


Thanks,
Jonathan