Bussiness cycles doesn't sell any cheap stems though. The lack of adjustability without compromise comes with the fact that as soon as you start raising the stem above it's maximum instertion there is a dramatic decrease in stiffness. With a threaded you can both move the stem up and down the steerer tube(at least till you cut it) and switch out stems cheaply to try new positions. While this isn't as easy as moving a threaded up and down you never end up with a wet noodle becuase of the stem/steerer tube connection.

By 26mm I was really getting at the lack of 31.8mm options.

Eddie the clamp is just barely above the headset he could have easily gotten that position with a threadless or if he has already switched to threaded he could have gotten a flat one that would have been alot stiffer.. Especially because that deep drop is probably pretty close to the minimum insertion line.