Bar and Stem Advice

fat_homer

Hi All,

I'm sure this has been asked before but i've not managed to find the answers i'm looking for so here goes.

I'm looking to upgrade the bars and stem on my 08 Cube Ltd. Pro, which are both Easton EA30, the bar 635mm low rise and the stem 105mm 6deg. I find my current riding position to be reasonably comfortable so would like to keep something similar.

The bars i've been looking at are Ritchey Carbon WCS low rise 660mm and the Ritchey WCS 4Axis stem, as i think they should both offer a good upgrade and weight saving, both have pretty good write ups, and they look good!

Now my question is do i go for the sightly shorter 100mm stem to compensate for the wider bars, or will i be better off going for the 110mm stem?

Thanks for any help!

GHill

It's hard to tell as the cockpit is definitely a personal thing. Generally I would personally think about shortening the stem if I was widening the bars. Do you have a good LBS that might help you out with trying a few different sizes?

RealMan

If youre comfortable with what youve got, stick with it. Changing bars and that will save you maybe 100-200 grams max?

However, can recommend the ritchey carbon rizer (not the low rizer). Get them off ebay new for £50.

Id go for a thomson stem myself though.

dave_hill

RealMan wrote:

If youre comfortable with what youve got, stick with it. Changing bars and that will save you maybe 100-200 grams max?

That said, changing the bar/stem combo can have a mahoosive effect on the way the bike feels and handles.

My Giant VT had 660mm low rise bars and a 105mm stem when I bought it. It now has 710mm wide, 50mm rise bars and a 70mm stem.

The steering is sharper and more precise, I can ride further in comfort and I don't feel like i'm going to get pitched over the front on tricky descents.