Frustrated: Should I go back to threaded?
#1
Thread Starter
Newbie

Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 26
Likes: 7
From: San Francisco, CA
Bikes: vintage Italvega fixed conversion, vintage Fuji fixed conversion, KHS Aero Track frame, old Motobecane 10 speed, fixed (!) Bridgestone MB-0
Frustrated: Should I go back to threaded?
Hi,
I recently bought a KHS Aero Track with a threaded fork converted to threadless. The (crappy) threadless stem has a seriously aggressive angle which doesn't suit my street riding and looks pretty stupid turned the other way around. I was talking to the guys at the bike shop about a stem with little or no drop but it was looking like I'd have to drop around $80 for a short (>=90) threadless stem in silver...
This is leading me to consider going back to threaded but it's unclear to me what the advantages and disadvantages are beyond aesthetics. I don't want to spend a whole lotta money right now, especially since I'm not sure exactly what's going to work for me in the end. Make sense?
I guess that's about it. Is seems threadless usually gives you more options but I'm feeling limited by it for the moment. I have cheap 25.6 bars on the bike now but I just ordered some Nitto 26.0 bars.
Thoughts? Thanks in advance.
I recently bought a KHS Aero Track with a threaded fork converted to threadless. The (crappy) threadless stem has a seriously aggressive angle which doesn't suit my street riding and looks pretty stupid turned the other way around. I was talking to the guys at the bike shop about a stem with little or no drop but it was looking like I'd have to drop around $80 for a short (>=90) threadless stem in silver...
This is leading me to consider going back to threaded but it's unclear to me what the advantages and disadvantages are beyond aesthetics. I don't want to spend a whole lotta money right now, especially since I'm not sure exactly what's going to work for me in the end. Make sense?
I guess that's about it. Is seems threadless usually gives you more options but I'm feeling limited by it for the moment. I have cheap 25.6 bars on the bike now but I just ordered some Nitto 26.0 bars.
Thoughts? Thanks in advance.
#4
#8
Might help if you post a crappy cell phone pic of your current setup. There are plenty of short threadless stems out there in the $20-30 range.
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This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
This is Africa, 1943. War spits out its violence overhead and the sandy graveyard swallows it up. Her name is King Nine, B-25, medium bomber, Twelfth Air Force. On a hot, still morning she took off from Tunisia to bomb the southern tip of Italy. An errant piece of flak tore a hole in a wing tank and, like a wounded bird, this is where she landed, not to return on this day, or any other day.
#9
Thread Starter
Newbie

Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 26
Likes: 7
From: San Francisco, CA
Bikes: vintage Italvega fixed conversion, vintage Fuji fixed conversion, KHS Aero Track frame, old Motobecane 10 speed, fixed (!) Bridgestone MB-0
Thanks for the input so far. My post was a little random. I'm digging my new frame but I haven't sorted out the stem and bar situation yet, hence the frustration.
The way I understand it, a threaded stem gives me more options for height, but less for horizontal length, etc. It's unclear to me how complicated it would be to go back to threaded since I'm running threadless now (like, do I need a new headset?). With my current threadless setup I have to do a bit of guessing as to which stem will suit me best since the LBS hasn't been much help.
What about an adjustable stem? This one is pretty cheap which makes me wonder:
https://www.ebikestop.com/kalloy_adju...tem-SM4015.php
I'd be interested to see some links for the IRO stems. I haven't found much in my searches.
Thanks! Just trying to sort this out. Maybe I'll try posting a photo to show what I'm up against.
The way I understand it, a threaded stem gives me more options for height, but less for horizontal length, etc. It's unclear to me how complicated it would be to go back to threaded since I'm running threadless now (like, do I need a new headset?). With my current threadless setup I have to do a bit of guessing as to which stem will suit me best since the LBS hasn't been much help.
What about an adjustable stem? This one is pretty cheap which makes me wonder:
https://www.ebikestop.com/kalloy_adju...tem-SM4015.php
I'd be interested to see some links for the IRO stems. I haven't found much in my searches.
Thanks! Just trying to sort this out. Maybe I'll try posting a photo to show what I'm up against.






