Raising handlebars on a threadless stem...
 

Hey, folks. Hope you'll forgive me for being a newb to this, but I have a question about my Diamondback Sorrento I got from my brother for cheap. I got a tune up and had the derailleur replaced. After riding it a couple times, I noticed that on the roads the handlebars were too low causing my back some discomfort. However, on trails I didn't notice this as much if at all. I looked into it, and unfortunately there's no simple solution to quickly raise the handlebars to a more comfortable position for road riding. I suppose the term for the system I have is a threadless stem... I did some googling (yes, it's a word!) and saw some people discussing adjusting adjustable stems... will these work well in giving me more height, and will it stand up to both road and trail use? If so, how do I figure out which one will work for my bike?

Also, will I potentially have to get longer brake cables and how much of a pain in the arse would this be to do myself?


Thanks for tolerating my idiot questions, guys.


Here are some pictures of the setup...
http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/6655/img0193yg.jpg

http://img690.imageshack.us/img690/6299/img0194pl.jpg

An adjustable stem will work and allow you to place the bars higher than you now have them and a decent one should serve for both road and trail use. It's hard to tell for certain from the pictures but your current cables look long enough to allow a reasonable amount of height increase.

There are a couple of options. I've installed lots of these.
http://cyclebabac.com/en/our-store.h...ategory_id=105

Depending on how much slack you have in your cables, you may need to replace them. More times than not, only the front brake cable needed replacing.
Another option I have not tried is this one.

http://cyclebabac.com/en/our-store.h...ategory_id=105

I'd like to try one as it has quick release adjustment feature.

that is one uber beefy stem. give an adjustable a try.

Your cables look good for the height you have,
But, yes,
when you add a stem raiser, and shift the bars upward,
You will need longer cables and housing.

Too Much PIA? Delegate.. leave the bike at the shop and have them do it.

One problem I can see is that your current stem is fairly short. Most adjustables are quite long. Or at least longer than your current stem. The extra length will open up the cockpit which will cancel out some of the rise in the bars. It'll also change the way you ride the bike off road by moving you more forward. This makes it harder to get your weight back for descents and for kicking out the front going off small jumps.

So a lot will depend on how you ride. For myself I'd start by trying to find a similar length stem with a higher rise angle. But a lot depends on how well the bike fits you. If you're trying to ride a frame size that is actually too small for you then you're trying to compensate by extending the seat post. That'll make the reach to the bars low. For starters how tall are you and what size is the frame?

Higher riser bars would work too.

I'm 6'2" and measuring my bike frame it looks to be 51.5cm or so. I'm sure this is pretty small for someone my size, but I don't really have alot of money to throw down on a newer bike at the moment. I'm just trying to make do with what I have. As I said, the only time I really feel any discomfort is when I'm riding taller on roads. Trails are pretty decent as for as comfort goes tho.

I guess what I should be asking is... what's the most cost effective and simple option to go with...

You might like to try something like north road handlebars. These tend to have around a 7cm rise and are also swept back, placing you in a more upright position. The hand grips are in a very comfortable position, and you can slide further forward and grip the front curves for a more 'aero' position if necessary.