Shorter stem or just flip it

superkenners

Hi,

I crashed last year and broken shoulder has healed badly and now I get quite a bit of back pain when riding so was thinking about shortening stem to get a bit of a more upright riding position which hopefuly will be a bit more comfy. I currently have 120mm and thinking more on the lines of 90mm. I was also wondering if an alternative (and cheaper) option might be to flip the stem. Current one is angled at 6degs i think so would be net 12degs I presume if flipped. Any ideas on how this compares to just running a shorter stem in terms of adjusting riding position?? Couldn't find much on net.

Cheers

rgliniany

its always worth a go just flipping it first..... then if its still uncomfy do the shorter stem and try both ways (ooooer missus) with tha one too..... ive had to mess around with my stems like that as i have a bad back.

desweller

It's a 5 minute job...just try it.

Assuming, of course, that it's not already pointing up.

superkenners

Yep, it would be very lazy not to just flip it. Will give that a whirl.

(I was hoping for some snazzy computer model that showed the difference I think)

amaferanga

3cm shortening of the stem is a lot, but more importantly it won't necessarily lead to a more comfortable upright position. You might just end up all hunched up and even less comfortable.

me-109

Try this:
http://alex.phred.org/stemchart/Default.aspx

bikeit65

A shorter stem will will put more pressure on your hands, i would try and flip your current stem first so you will be a bit higher which should relieve some pressure on your lower back.

drlodge

Yes, I would say better to first try higher than shorter.

zx6man

I also have back issues and actua;;y did both, as the frame is quite large so was stretching just an inch too far, so 120 to 90 was perfect. (both were flipped "up")

Sprool

I was struggling with my 110 stem in down position about 6 deg. I tried a 90mm stem but then felt really cramped up. Put the original 110 back on and flipped it up, but took off the bottom spacer and put it on top. So stem length is very similar reach only the bars are a little bit higher. It felt more comfortable for me, though I'd still like to try a 100mm stem at some stage.

superkenners

Thanks for ideas, that little stem model is quite nifty Me-109. Think I could do with a slightly shorter stem as well as a flip but guess going to 90 from 120 is a bit extreme, will see if my LBS is feeling generous and try and find the perfect length!

I suppose the more extreme solution is a bike fit but they seem pricey.

nicklouse

have a play with this http://alex.phred.org/stemchart/Default.aspx to see what is happening when flipping or changing angles etc.