140mm Stem

ssk2

Just had a proper bike-fit done and thought the height my frame is right, my body's geometry means that I need a longer stem than the one already fitted.

I have a 110mm Spesh stem, that came fitted on my Allez Sport. My question is, do people have any recommendations on a good 140mm stem? Are all stems built alike, or are there some brands I should avoid?

Many thanks!

Down the Road

Q1 How tall are you?
Q2 what size bike?
Q3 Were you exceptionally long in arms and torso?

ssk2

Down the Road wrote:

Q1 How tall are you?
Q2 what size bike?
Q3 Were you exceptionally long in arms and torso?

1) 5'10
2) 54 frame
3) According to the bike-fit, yes! Especially in the torso, apparently I'm much 'longer' than the average male of my height....

Down the Road

A2 54 was always too small for 5'10
A4 not keen on 140 stem on a 54 as handling badly affected. and this would tend to mean you should be on a 58 with a 120 which seems very strange can you PM me the basics of your drawing?

I would be very angry with whoever sized me on that bike.

ssk2

Down the Road wrote:

A2 54 was always too small for 5'10
A4 not keen on 140 stem on a 54 as handling badly affected. and this would tend to mean you should be on a 58 with a 120 which seems very strange can you PM me the basics of your drawing?

I would be very angry with whoever sized me on that bike.

The bike-fit was professionally done, by a reputable company that has been around for a while and aside from wanting slightly more reach at the front end, I've been delighted by the fit. My knee issues have cleared up and I'm riding better than ever

I don't know what to say really...

ShutUpLegs

ssk2 wrote:

Down the Road wrote:

A2 54 was always too small for 5'10
A4 not keen on 140 stem on a 54 as handling badly affected. and this would tend to mean you should be on a 58 with a 120 which seems very strange can you PM me the basics of your drawing?

I would be very angry with whoever sized me on that bike.

The bike-fit was professionally done, by a reputable company that has been around for a while and aside from wanting slightly more reach at the front end, I've been delighted by the fit. My knee issues have cleared up and I'm riding better than ever

I don't know what to say really...

What was altered to clear up your knee issues?

ssk2

ShutUpLegs wrote:

ssk2 wrote:

Down the Road wrote:

A2 54 was always too small for 5'10
A4 not keen on 140 stem on a 54 as handling badly affected. and this would tend to mean you should be on a 58 with a 120 which seems very strange can you PM me the basics of your drawing?

I would be very angry with whoever sized me on that bike.

The bike-fit was professionally done, by a reputable company that has been around for a while and aside from wanting slightly more reach at the front end, I've been delighted by the fit. My knee issues have cleared up and I'm riding better than ever

I don't know what to say really...

What was altered to clear up your knee issues?

Combination of saddle height, fore-aft and slightly angle adjustment, as well as correct cleat alignment (in conjunction with analysis of my knee problem).

rollingthunder

Not a great fan of mega long stems as can lead to handling issues, but I know a lot of pros use them.

I'm 6' 3.5" tall and use a 120 stem on 4 bikes and a 130 on the other. No problems at all.

I'd go for a solid / chunky stem if you're going for that 140 length.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Deda-Zero-100-Roa ... 0486593008

designman

Wow 140 stem, the handling won't be very safe.
I would have got a bigger sized frame, 54 is too small for a 5'10" person.
Ive just ordered a Trek 6.9 SSL frameset and I'm 5"11" and gone for the 58cm with a 100mm stem.

ssk2

designman wrote:

Wow 140 stem, the handling won't be very safe.
I would have got a bigger sized frame, 54 is too small for a 5'10" person.
Ive just ordered a Trek 6.9 SSL frameset and I'm 5"11" and gone for the 58cm with a 100mm stem.

Do you mean literally unsafe, rather than twitchy?! :shock: That's a touch worrying....

To be honest, I could go for a 130mm - the 140 was 'optimum', but the 130 would help stretch me out!

Any particular ideas for a 130 either?

ChrisSA

FSA OS-190 or similar. Cheap, sturdy.

lifecyclist2010

Easton EA70/90 stem tried and tested...but to be fair unless your knuckles scrap on the floor i agree with the other guys on here i would size the bike up with a shorter stem.

Saddle height, and position over cranks and angle are basics to correct, and even cleat angle is not too difficult to adjust...or by speedplays...they rock

Hudster

I don't think a 140mm will be 'twitchy', quite the opposite. It wasn't long ago that 120-140mm was normal. If you go for a larger bike, you might not be able to get the right height of stem, there are lots of pros who use bikes which seem far too small to stay low.
I'd say try it and see how you get on.

Pokerface

designman wrote:

Wow 140 stem, the handling won't be very safe.
I would have got a bigger sized frame, 54 is too small for a 5'10" person.
Ive just ordered a Trek 6.9 SSL frameset and I'm 5"11" and gone for the 58cm with a 100mm stem.

54 ISN'T too small for 5"10 at all. Really depends on the rider. In fact, 54 is ideal for many riders of that size.

I also have a Madone 6.9 and am 6 feet tall. And it's a 56 so your 58 could be too big. Or it could fit you just fine.


To the OP:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/pho ... -r3/168188


Boonen uses a 140 stem. Try telling him it's unsafe :roll:

mrdsgs

i'm 5'10" and ride colnago (C-T) horizontal 54cm frames, fizik arione saddles with colnago or campagnolo seatposts (fairly standard layback) 170 or 172.5 cranks (31" inside leg). Stems on all 8 of my road bikes (!!!) are 110mm.

Shape of handlebars can have a significant impact on reach to levers when on hoods or drops, as can handlebar angle/tilt/positioning of levers. ie, if you tilt the bars up/back a bit or raise the levers up the bars, you are effectively shortening the reach or vice versa if you want to avoid an overly long stem.

General rule of thumb, in your "normal riding position" relaxed, hands on hoods, if you look down at your front hub it should be obscured by the handlebars.

mrdsgs

mrdsgs

i'm 5'10" and ride colnago (C-T) horizontal 54cm frames, fizik arione saddles with colnago or campagnolo seatposts (fairly standard layback) 170 or 172.5 cranks (31" inside leg). Stems on all 8 of my road bikes (!!!) are 110mm.

Shape of handlebars can have a significant impact on reach to levers when on hoods or drops, as can handlebar angle/tilt/positioning of levers. ie, if you tilt the bars up/back a bit or raise the levers up the bars, you are effectively shortening the reach or vice versa if you want to avoid an overly long stem.

General rule of thumb, in your "normal riding position" relaxed, hands on hoods, if you look down at your front hub it should be obscured by the handlebars.

mrdsgs

designman

Pokerface wrote:

designman wrote:

Wow 140 stem, the handling won't be very safe.
I would have got a bigger sized frame, 54 is too small for a 5'10" person.
Ive just ordered a Trek 6.9 SSL frameset and I'm 5"11" and gone for the 58cm with a 100mm stem.

54 ISN'T too small for 5"10 at all. Really depends on the rider. In fact, 54 is ideal for many riders of that size.

I also have a Madone 6.9 and am 6 feet tall. And it's a 56 so your 58 could be too big. Or it could fit you just fine.


To the OP:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/pho ... -r3/168188


Boonen uses a 140 stem. Try telling him it's unsafe :roll:

Lance Armstrong is 5'10" and rides a 58cm with 120mm stem - I guess its different for everyone.

Zachariah

Also Cancellara uses a 140mm stem (on a bike frame that many shops would probably say is too small for someone his height). Go figure.

designman

Cancellara is 6' 1" and according to the frame sizing on Treks Website he is using the right size frame which is 58cm.....

Height 6'2" Road Size 56/58/60

Pokerface

designman wrote:

Cancellara is 6' 1" and according to the frame sizing on Treks Website he is using the right size frame which is 58cm.....

Height 6'2" Road Size 56/58/60

It just proves what I said - two riders (one 5-11 and the other 6-1) can both ride a 58cm frame. There's no set formula for deciding frame size based on height alone.

designman

Im 5'11" but unfortunately a 56cm was too small for me, the seat post was not long enough, so my LBS advised me to go for a 58cm with a smaller stem... And thats the new 6.9 ssl.

Pokerface your lucky that you can fit on a size 56cm, thats what I wanted.

ssk2

Thanks all for the rather stimulating debate in my absence!

I have to say that I do enjoy riding my 54 and haven't yet felt 'too big' for it. I've spoken to my LBS and they are letting me take my bike in, have them fit a 130 and a 140 stem and take them both for a test ride before deciding. Can't ask for fairer than that.

Lessons learned as a newbie:

1) Sizing is totally subjective
2) Your LBS really is a wonderful tool!

Ciclicasati

Was just about to say, I am trying a 130mm 3t ARX pro stem at the moment but I think I will resort to the 120mm. Would sell it to you to try if you fancy a 130mm cheapish. Plus it’s almost the exact stem that big Thor Hushvod uses so it will make you faster.

Ciclicasati

Was just about to say, I am trying a 130mm 3t ARX pro stem at the moment but I think I will resort to the 120mm. Would sell it to you to try if you fancy a 130mm cheapish. Plus it’s almost the exact stem that big Thor Hushvod uses so it will make you faster.

timtak

I am very confused by stems. When one searches for long (140mm) stems on ebay and equivalents, one finds that there used to be
a lot of 140mm stems of the V type and others using non oversized bars. It seems to be have been okay in the past to have a long
downwards pointing stem, but not these days. Have we got cleverer or fatter? I am not road bike racer thin, but these days, thanks
to my road bike, I can use the drops. However, my drops are shorter, seat to bars, than the horns of my bars. My drops are way down low. My drops are more than 15cm lower than the horns of my bike. When using the drops I find it more difficult to use the brakes. There are two in-the-drops positions (1) letting oneself rest on the lower part of the U, (2) holding onto the forward facing part of the U. In the latter position the brakes are really easy to use, but I find this forward facing hand position difficult. So, I would like my horns to be lower.

But why is it hat in the past, there were loads of long low stems, and now 140 is "twitchy"? Is it really the case that 140 is twitchy or is it rather the case that people have got fat?

The only time I have experienced "twitch" when using a long stem is when I was braking on a decline. Generally, the longer the stem the easier it is to turn (basic mechanics). But when you brake hard on a down hill then the vibrations of the front wheel brake can cause more instability, perhaps, if you have a long stem because the longer the stem the more the vibrations effect your pressure on the brakes. Or maybe not.

I am just not understanding the modern preference for short stems, and higher angled stems, and I am wondering whether it is not just because we are fatter these days.

I am 175. I have a 54cm frame. I want to get down long and low. I am considering a 140mm stem. At the moment I have only a 140 on my commuter bike because it has 1 inch bars, and long stems for 1 inch bars are cheap.

Well anyway, low V shaped quill (?I) stems and the non-oversized stems are in abundance on ebay because?

Have we found out that in fact, long low stems are unstable? Or have we just got fat?

I am thinking of purchasing a -30 degree 140 stem.

on-yer-bike

All this stem stuff is confusing. Pros like long stems on the smallest frames they can get away with. I read that Cube designers say that they have designed their frames so that the pro no longer has to resort to a long stem to compensate for his small frame. They think its better for handling to have a shorter stem. Looking at a Paris Roubaix race from the seventies all the riders were much more stretched out than todays pros with longer frames and long stems. Then Ive heard that for riding in a Peloton a long stem is better because it makes the steering slower…

on-yer-bike

mrdsgs wrote:

i'm 5'10" and ride colnago (C-T) horizontal 54cm frames, fizik arione saddles with colnago or campagnolo seatposts (fairly standard layback) 170 or 172.5 cranks (31" inside leg). Stems on all 8 of my road bikes (!!!) are 110mm.

Shape of handlebars can have a significant impact on reach to levers when on hoods or drops, as can handlebar angle/tilt/positioning of levers. ie, if you tilt the bars up/back a bit or raise the levers up the bars, you are effectively shortening the reach or vice versa if you want to avoid an overly long stem.

General rule of thumb, in your "normal riding position" relaxed, hands on hoods, if you look down at your front hub it should be obscured by the handlebars.

mrdsgs

I have a Trad Colnago, Im the same height, but mine is a 56. I have 33.5" legs so a 54 would be too low at the front as I have 20 mm of spacers + headset. Im using a 120mm stem. All Italian Colnagos around this size have similar reach, in fact the 54 may be longer than the 56. Most 54s would be too low at the front for me except maybe a newer Cervelo or a Roubaix. I would have thought that Cancellera and Armstrong's frames are not stock sizes.

napoleond

I ride a +17 140mm stem on my track bike. it's fine.

Slo Mo Jones

I know I'm repeating but want to add my two pence.

54 is not too small for someone 5'10". Specialized's own sizing chart suggests it might be suitable.
I'm same height and ride a 54, used to have a 55 but found it a little too big so erred on the side of smaller for the new bike. Although also thinking of gettinga slightly longer stem - am just 31" inside leg so reaching ever so slightly for the hoods.

I don't know where this "twitchy" point comes from about longer stems. They'll be less twitchy if anything.

pkripper

I'm 5'10" and 54cm is bang on for me (I've used Felt, Spesh, Van Nicholas, Scott, Giant).

As long as the back end fits, the front is personal preference.

drlodge

Small stems can be twitchy, long stems are the opposite. I see no issues with a 140 stem.