New stem

jim453

I'm a bit stretched out on my bike and want to put a shorter stem on it.

What effect is this likely to have on the way it handles?

It's a hard tail stumpy, if this matters.

supersonic

In a word yes. The shorter stem will take some weight off the bars, reduce leverage (but at the same time changing how the bars arc) - this overall can end up feeling like a lighter and quicker steering front end.

WHat bike is it, and what stem do you have on at the minute?

jim453

I reckon it's about 120mm.

It has a good bit of rise too.

Bike's a stumpy comp 07.

Bike's a large I think, it's on the big side of the right size. I'm fairly tall though, 6'3''. Actually I never used to have any bother with the size of it and used to think it was perfect.

However, I've not ridden it for 18 months as I've been riding roads exclusively in that time and have got so used to the feel of my road bike,which is a 58cm trek.

I dunno, maybe I should just leave it. It's bugging me though.

cavegiant

It is a personal preference thing, some people like short stems (both wifey and I run 4cm) some like long.

It'll make the front wheel more twitchy and respond faster, give a bit more control, and make the bike feel more lively.
seems win win to me, hence the short stem.

supersonic

I would drop down to 90-100mm to start (if you decide to change!)

But first, ride some more trails. Hardtail stumpies have pretty steep head angles, and naturally steer quick.

d3matt

I changed my stem from a 100mm to a 70mm and very happy with the result. While the change isn't dramatic at first, its a big enough change to notice the difference and you're constantly reminded as you ride. I feel my riding as improved too and did so within a couple of rides with the new stem.

BG2000

d3matt wrote:

I changed my stem from a 100mm to a 70mm and very happy with the result. While the change isn't dramatic at first, its a big enough change to notice the difference and you're constantly reminded as you ride. I feel my riding as improved too and did so within a couple of rides with the new stem.

Same here, just went from 110mm to 70mm and very happy. At first I was concerned it may be too twitchy, but it's not. And the whole 'arc' of the steering feels more consistent. I found with a longer stem it was more stable in a straight line, but seems to lurch from side to side when going round tight bends. With a shorter stem, I don't get that - it just feels smooth and more stable no matter where I'm pointing the front wheel.

If you change down to a 70mm stem, you might feel like your bars are next to your knees though...perhaps you'll need to get some 2" rise wide bars to compensate a bit.

Maybe you can borrow some different length stems to experiment ?

hainman

im on a genesis core 20 and its still the original stem but was thinking of going shorter but i ride a variety of places from hills to cycle path to trail centres.what im wondering is will the shorter stem make steep decents and drop offs easier,scarier harder or more fun.
cheers craig

Anonymous

BG2000 wrote:

d3matt wrote:

I changed my stem from a 100mm to a 70mm and very happy with the result. While the change isn't dramatic at first, its a big enough change to notice the difference and you're constantly reminded as you ride. I feel my riding as improved too and did so within a couple of rides with the new stem.

Same here, just went from 110mm to 70mm and very happy. At first I was concerned it may be too twitchy, but it's not. And the whole 'arc' of the steering feels more consistent. I found with a longer stem it was more stable in a straight line, but seems to lurch from side to side when going round tight bends. With a shorter stem, I don't get that - it just feels smooth and more stable no matter where I'm pointing the front wheel.

If you change down to a 70mm stem, you might feel like your bars are next to your knees though...perhaps you'll need to get some 2" rise wide bars to compensate a bit.

Maybe you can borrow some different length stems to experiment ?

This is what I did, changed from a 110mm stem and lo-rise bars, to a 80mm stem and hi-rise bars, massive diference, feel less stretched out and more in control.

Just one thing to check though is that with what ever combination you go with your knees won't hit the bars when clibing out the saddle. With my new combination my knees miss the bars by 1cm, if I'd gone with a 70mm stem or lower rise bars they would hit my knees.

Deputy Dawg

hainman wrote:

im on a genesis core 20 and its still the original stem but was thinking of going shorter but i ride a variety of places from hills to cycle path to trail centres.what im wondering is will the shorter stem make steep decents and drop offs easier,scarier harder or more fun.
cheers craig

When I went for a shorter stem (50mm from 100mm) I found it made the descents a bit more controlled due to my weight naturally sitting further back & the quicker steering helped too. The downside was when going uphill the front wheel could lift allot more easily.

It was a big jump though on a frame that was already a touch on the small side. I recon 70 - 80mm would've been just about spot on.

u05harrisb

might seem like a stupid/obvious idea, but have you ever looked at your saddle position? i couldnt really reach "propperly" onto my flat bars and i never changed my setup on my bike i got in january and have put 500 miles on so far, turned out the saddle was all the way back so i moved it forward nearly a whole cm and now i get the bars perfectally just a thought its was a ureka moment for me

BG2000

RichardSwt wrote:

With my new combination my knees miss the bars by 1cm, if I'd gone with a 70mm stem or lower rise bars they would hit my knees.

Yes, that is one drawback. I do find myself positioning my body back a bit on steep climbs, to stop my knees hitting the brake lever clamps. And the whole position seems to put more strain on my lower back while climbing. I'm actually temped to get knee pads just to give me more confidence in sprinting up climbs - then my knees can bash into the bars and stem all they like !