cccorlew

Sometimes buying new bike junk is really fun. This time it's just pointing out how little I know....

I'm just a tint tiny bit cramped on my new bike. The cockpit is 2 cm shorter than my last bike. No big deal, but why not aim for perfect?

So I'm thinking I'll get a slightly longer stem. 120 from the current 100 I'm guessing.

What a ton of choices and prices. Does carbon smooth the ride? Is it worth it? What brand? What's a reasonable weight? Should I go to 110, 120 or 130?

And many have a different rise, and some have different ways to measure that rise, and I'm not sure what would be best... Just search 120 in the stem section of eBay and prepare for overload.

Should I buy the all and try them, then sell the rejects? That might only cost me as much as my bike. Should I just guess and get a 120? But even then, which?

Or, maybe I should just push the seat back 1 cm, live with it and stop obsessing.... but then I might be kicked of BF for being rational....

stonecrd

Messin with the seat is the wrong approach, the seat needs to be optimized for your legs not your reach. I think carbon stems are not worth it they only look marginally better in the bling dept and you don't really save anything in weight. If you liked your last fit and it is 2cm different then the move to a 120 would fix it and stick with the same rise you are use to. Richey, ITM they are all good.

Hermes

Seat adjustment fore and aft is critical to power production and knee health. Reach is less critical.

Is the effective top tube the same as your old bike?

Edit: Small changes can effect your back so changing things incrementally is better than wholesale changes.

soma5

I'd get a Thomson in your situation. It is beautifully made and respectably light. Make sure your saddle is optimally placed with respect to the pedals and measure again. I don't think that the material of the stem will be noticeable as a factor in the ride quality, except insofar as it is not stiff enough when you are really hammering or if it breaks unexpectedly due to being under-engineered for weight savings... Your handlebars will probably affect your comfort an order of magnitude more.

-soma5

cccorlew

Great input.
I'm pretty happy with my saddle position in respect to the cranks. At least it feels good, and I've not injured myself.
This top tube is a hair shorter than my last, so maybe I'll spring for a stem. 2cm doesn't seem like a big leap.

I currently have a Ritchey WCS. I gotta admit that Thomson has a nice look. And at least on eBay it isn't tooooooooo much money (compared to carbon!)

stapfam

Don't know the Thompson- but know the reputation and the prices. Getting a longer stem by 20mm is not going to affect the handling in any way but the rise and quality will affect you. You did leave the stem a bit long didn't you?

On the OCR I wanted more rise and longer- But by how far on each. I had a variety of stems on the other bikes but like you- I went with a 20mm extra length, and a 10 deg rise. Providing you have that extra stem length- I would go with the angle you have now but longer. Then space up or down or even (Using the roadie term now) FLIP THE STEM.

Us mature riders do like to have the bars higher than the acne covered youngsters that want to look the business. Or Do We? On the OCR- I have the bars at saddle height. On Boreas- it is 3" below the saddle. The TCR is only 2" below the saddle and it feels high. That bar will be going down.

cccorlew

Yeah.. Figuring out angle is hard. Thomson Elite X2 Stem comes in 10 or 17 degree.

I'd go LBS, but I don't think out here in the sticks my LBS will have a box of different lengths and raises that I can try...

stapfam

17 will give you a high rise- or if flipped- put your head between your knees.

maddmaxx 

Ritchey WCS is nice stuff. So is Thomson. So are the lower numbers of FSA (like FSA 120) or the upper numbers of Easton like EA70. One of the most important things about stems is the quality of the hardware. Will the threads last. (If you a fiddler like me, how many times can you reasonably expect to be able to take it apart and retorque it before thread failure) Will the hardware sieze or worse, rust?

There are some new "golly gee whiz" ideas in stems that seem to make sense at a gut level sort of feeling.
I like opposing clamp bolts at the steering tube (why......I don't know, it just seems right) and I really like the new bias cut openings in the back of the stem that are something other than straight up and down. (why.......get an empty toilet paper roll, coax a groove in it from end to end and squeeze. Did it collapse. That's why I like the bias cut.) I also like 4 bolt face plates.

Just some things to think about...........................

buddyp

this would be my choice:

https://www.excelsports.com/new.asp?p...jor=1&minor=22

98g and less than $100.

Or I have a TRUVATIV XR, Black, 110mm, 82/95 Deg, 11/8" that I bought and couldn't use -- its a 31.8 and I needed 26.0 -- I'll make you a great deal on it!

maddmaxx 

Crank length? Stem length? Exactly what part of the movie industry in California are you attached to?



Edit: There was a Big Paulie post here before he tried to hide it by deleating it......

George

Order all the stems you want and find the one you want and then sent the other ones back. Just a thought.

Big Paulie

Sometimes it's best to let things go...

Big Paulie

I live in the San Fernando Valley...

maddmaxx 

If only I'd hit the enter key faster..........trapping it for all time.

Big Paulie

The PM's are piling up in my mailbox...mostly with women begging for an audition in the adult film trade.

So, I should clarify my earlier remark...

I produce and distribute a series of videos called "Squirrels Gone Wild." The market is a bit flat at the current time, but things should pick up with the snow melts and the little furballs come out of hiding and head for the DVD rental stores.

Here are some frame grabs from last year's production:

maddmaxx 

Ah yes.............Silicone Valley...........

cccorlew

This is so 50+ meets Jr. high....

Which is not to say it's a bad thing.

Long deKlein

Corrected, based on pics from subsequent post.

BluesDawg

17 degrees will give you the traditional flat stem reach when paired with a 73 degree head tube angle.
10 degrees would be a 7 degree rise from flat.
+1 for Thomson. Great prodicts and great people just a few miles up the road from me. Ronnie Thomson, the founder of the company passed away recently. A sad day for many in central Goergia. But the company continues in the good hands of his son and the other employees.

https://www.mvillebikes.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=236

https://www.dirtrag.com/blogarific/di...reciation-day/

maddmaxx 

I'm sorry............it was all sort of a hare brained idea.

I did like the squirrels though.

Uh youse guys got a mug named Big Paulie here. Me and the boys at the union hall wanta have a word wit him.

gpelpel

Curtis,
If you are interested and don't mind a drive to Lafayette, I have a slightly used 120mm FSA OS-115. I had to switch to 110. The OS-115 is one of the lightest aluminum stems at 140gr. The front part is carbon. It's a good looking stem.
Usually sells for $60 to $80 on e-bay, you can have mine for $35.
It's a stem for 31.8mm OS (oversized bars).
Georges

Big Paulie

Back to the original topic...

I think an 11CM stem made out of aluminum is the way to go. It will give you a bit more room, and the material will be fine in terms of weight and feel. No need for carbon until you find the eact length and angle you like. And even then, it probably won't make any difference. Alloy is fine.

EDIT: Someone once told me that Eddie Merckx thought 11CM was the best length stem in terms of natural handling...of course, if 11CM equals good fit for the rider.

stapfam

Change country and pricing to US and take your pick

https://www.probikekit.com/display.ph...dlebar%20Stems

The site was down earlier on so couldn't check but plenty of choice.

wagathon

If the cockpit is cramped by 2 cm, then I'd say get a stem with an additional 2 cm of reach; and, if the stem his some rise, then you need >2 cm of stem length to get the net effect of 2 cm of additional reach--but then you'll be a little higher (because of the rise)--so, you might need to decrease the amount of stem rise or your handlebars may end up higher than you want.