putting a stem riser on a carbon team boardman?

tomot262

Hi,

I am currently doing the cycle to work scheme through halfords and am looking at getting a carbon team boardman. I did a number of sportives last year on my hybrid bike and am looking to get a sportive bike.

I have had lower back problems in the past so am looking for a road bike with a more relaxed style. I have been advices towards a roubaix but cannot get one on my scheme and boardman bikes seem to be the best bikes through halfords. I sat on a boardman today on the recomended size for me and although it looks a great bike it felt to outstretched and uncomfortable. I tried flipping the stem but it was still uncomfortable. The man in the shop recommended getting a bike stem riser to give me a more relaxed upright position. Have people got any advice or experience of putting stem risers on road bikes? i know to people reading this putting a rising stem on a carbon road bike may seem like sacrilege! but any adivce would be appreciated,

thanks

Tom,

nicklouse

if the steerer is alloy no probs. but i would look at higher rise and shorter stems first.

but TBH sounds like a flat bar roadbike would suit better. will you ever use the drops?

elderone

See if you can find a giant defy.These are made for comfort and ideal for what your looking for.I have a Defy and also a boardman road bike and the boardman is a lot racier.

spanner239

tomot262 wrote:

Hi,

I am currently doing the cycle to work scheme through halfords and am looking at getting a carbon team boardman. I did a number of sportives last year on my hybrid bike and am looking to get a sportive bike.

I have had lower back problems in the past so am looking for a road bike with a more relaxed style. I have been advices towards a roubaix but cannot get one on my scheme and boardman bikes seem to be the best bikes through halfords. I sat on a boardman today on the recomended size for me and although it looks a great bike it felt to outstretched and uncomfortable. I tried flipping the stem but it was still uncomfortable. The man in the shop recommended getting a bike stem riser to give me a more relaxed upright position. Have people got any advice or experience of putting stem risers on road bikes? i know to people reading this putting a rising stem on a carbon road bike may seem like sacrilege! but any adivce would be appreciated,

thanks

Tom,

Tom,

In my experience a lot of the stores have not got the first clue about the right size bike for you and in some cases will just tell you that the one they have in store is the "recommended size". Did you have the opportunity to try the next size down if the one you tried felt too stretched out?

No amount of messing with stems will correct a size that is fundamentally wrong in the first place. The stem riser advice is just rubbish, get a bike that fits you in the first place. If this means paying for a fitting somewhere else and buying at Halfords based on this data then do that.

night_porter

Whilst a smaller bike may bring the bars closer to you horizontally it will almost certainly put the bars lower and will probably not solve your problem. However if you are buying a bike through Halfords they will order in any make for you to buy on the ctw scheme. The problem will be that you will almost certainly be paying full retail price for it.

I have to agree that advising someone to buy an uncomfortable bike and add a stem raiser shows that the sales person doesn't have your best interest at heart.

owenlars

No amount of messing with stems will correct a size that is fundamentally wrong in the first place. The stem riser advice is just rubbish, get a bike that fits you in the first place. If this means paying for a fitting somewhere else and buying at Halfords based on this data then do that.

Spot on you wouldn't countenance compromising on shoe size would you. It is exactly the same with bikes. Make certain you get one that fits. Get the right frame and use the adjustable stuff (saddles height, stems etc) to make micro adjustments.

tomot262

Thanks for the advice, will try and see if i can order a defy through halfords,

Tom,