Flipping MTB stem
 

I've heard people talk about flipping stems before but I never paid much attention to it. I don't know what kind of bikes it's done on or any of that stuff. I'm currently setting up my MTB for road riding until I can get my road bike in full working order. My stem has a crazy high angle on it and I hate having my handelbars so high up so I was thinking of flipping it upside down. I don't know if this is even something I can or should do or if the angle is just going to be too much so I figured I would ask..

Flame on..

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/7...dlebars0kz.jpg

http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/7...lebars25ur.jpg

http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/5...02000nq.th.jpg

That can be flipped. Because it has a lot of angle, the difference will be pretty substantial. Before getting into that, do ensure that you understand how threadless headsets (fork bearings) work, because once the stem is removed from the fork, your fork bearing may go out of adjustment. If in doubt, ask the bike shop to kindly flip the stem for you.

Here's Park Tools' info on headset removal, installation and adjustment. http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=65 For your purposes, look at the adjustment stuff.

You might want to be careful flipping that. That would drop it a LONG ways. Another thing that you could do would be to move the spacers from under the stem to on top. It will leave an "ugly" stack above it, but it looks like you could drop the bars between 1 and 2 inches that way.

Again, make sure you can adjust a headset BEFORE you take it apart.

God bless!
Wayne J.