deanbean Posted May 23, 2012 Share Running 65 Hussefelt on mine, did Sani2C with that, including 8 1/2 hours day 2, found it fine. edit, I'm riding with a TALAS fork, so I shorten the fork on long steep hills, to get my front end down, otherwise it wanders a bit. Edited May 23, 2012 by deanbean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted May 24, 2012 Share went for the 70, not convinced. it seems very long. measured my current stem again and it seems more like a 50mm... maybe i should just trade this in on a 60mm then... I suppose I won't really know until I ride it though... Bike's still in pieces what you think CPT - should I give the 70 a bash, or go for a 60 instead? From my experience,initially having an 85mm on then dropping down to a 50mm... I did get used to the longer stem. It took about 2 weeks. Felt totally foriegn as both my other bikes are running 50's. After that 2 weeks I felt comfortable jumping the bike. Still felt uneasy on fast cornering where one uses countersteer. I found that as you straighten your inside arm to initiate the countersteer, the front wheel didn't behave as it should. It wanted to almost "flop" down, turning towards the inside of the corner. The lack of "directness" which a long stem causes feels pretty awful. It was pretty scary the first few times, but during that 2 weeks I managed to get used to it. However... after riding that stem for about 6 weeks, my shiny new one finally arrived. My first ride out on the 50mm was also freaky as I had become accustomed to the 85 (plus I'd neglected my other 2 bikes during that time period )... But here's the difference... it took me 90min to get used to a shorter stem. Just 90min to feel confident hitting corners hard and take 4m gap jumps. 90min to feel more at home on the bike than ever before. So yeah, you will get used to the 70mm... but you'll get used to the 60mm quicker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted May 24, 2012 Share Running 65 Hussefelt on mine, did Sani2C with that, including 8 1/2 hours day 2, found it fine. edit, I'm riding with a TALAS fork, so I shorten the fork on long steep hills, to get my front end down, otherwise it wanders a bit. Which talas are you running? a 32 or a 36? And what do you drop it to? I have a Talas 36 on my AM bike. It runs either 100, 130 or 160. I had it set on 100 by accident once and ended up kissing mother earth over a ditch jump (I wasn't used to the steeper head angle). But after you mentioned it... and when I think about it, I haven't ever dropped it down for climbs. Definitely something I should try sometime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockCoach Posted May 24, 2012 Share Just to add. Although I run the 80mm stem on the trail bike, I will be sure to go shorter when I get my AM bike sorted. About the adjustable forks. I have the U turn 150mm RS Sektor which I leave at 150 for most of the time even though the front can feel like it wanders a bit on climbs. But on the odd occasion when I dial it down to 110mm, man it changes the geometry so much hat the bike feels like a rocket on the flats and ups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanbean Posted May 24, 2012 Share Which talas are you running? a 32 or a 36? And what do you drop it to? I have a Talas 36 on my AM bike. It runs either 100, 130 or 160. I had it set on 100 by accident once and ended up kissing mother earth over a ditch jump (I wasn't used to the steeper head angle). But after you mentioned it... and when I think about it, I haven't ever dropped it down for climbs. Definitely something I should try sometime.I'm running a 32 talas, so I drop it to 100, that 36 is on my wish list, now that I have to replace my front wheel (badly taco-ed on Sani), I may get one soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer4Recovery Posted May 24, 2012 Share At the moment I have a Bontrager Race Lite stem (see pic) on my Fuel EX 7, and it feels like I am reaching too far for the bars, I want to get a shorter one. What would you recommend? 60mm-70mm and at what degree rise? Edited May 24, 2012 by FuelEX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesley_r Posted May 24, 2012 Share From my experience,initially having an 85mm on then dropping down to a 50mm... I did get used to the longer stem. It took about 2 weeks. Felt totally foriegn as both my other bikes are running 50's. After that 2 weeks I felt comfortable jumping the bike. Still felt uneasy on fast cornering where one uses countersteer. I found that as you straighten your inside arm to initiate the countersteer, the front wheel didn't behave as it should. It wanted to almost "flop" down, turning towards the inside of the corner. The lack of "directness" which a long stem causes feels pretty awful. It was pretty scary the first few times, but during that 2 weeks I managed to get used to it. However... after riding that stem for about 6 weeks, my shiny new one finally arrived. My first ride out on the 50mm was also freaky as I had become accustomed to the 85 (plus I'd neglected my other 2 bikes during that time period )... But here's the difference... it took me 90min to get used to a shorter stem. Just 90min to feel confident hitting corners hard and take 4m gap jumps. 90min to feel more at home on the bike than ever before. So yeah, you will get used to the 70mm... but you'll get used to the 60mm quicker thanks for confusing me more. but bear in mind - you went from 85mm to 50mm - quite a jump as cpt says I think I need to try it, and see how it works out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tubeless Posted May 24, 2012 Share 60 wes........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iwan Kemp Posted May 24, 2012 Share At the moment I have a Bontrager Race Lite stem (see pic) on my Fuel EX 7, and it feels like I am reaching too far for the bars, I want to get a shorter one. What would you recommend? 60mm-70mm and at what degree rise? From 100mm on that bike I'd go down to 80mm for now. I think it'll be a good "experimental" length. 7 or 10 Degree rise should be good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted May 24, 2012 Share At the moment I have a Bontrager Race Lite stem (see pic) on my Fuel EX 7, and it feels like I am reaching too far for the bars, I want to get a shorter one. What would you recommend? 60mm-70mm and at what degree rise? well... if you're wanting to do some more exciting riding, 60-65mm is a good middle-ground. As for rise... I would say 0deg... 5 at absolute most! Then... dop your stem so you only have 1x5mm spacer besteen it and your headset. Put another 1x5mm on top... and cut your steerer. Lowering your stack height will also do wonders for your handling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockCoach Posted May 24, 2012 Share At the moment I have a Bontrager Race Lite stem (see pic) on my Fuel EX 7, and it feels like I am reaching too far for the bars, I want to get a shorter one. What would you recommend? 60mm-70mm and at what degree rise? That is quite difficult to answer without seeing you on your current set up. If you feel you are reaching you obviously need to go shorter. While sitting on the bike on a trainer (maybe even with another pair of bars in your hands and a friend pushing against you). Try to feel how much you would like to bring the bars towards you and even the height which would be comfortable. You can then approximate to size and rise of the stem. Please remember that you have to make allowances for riser bars etc which may influence this approximation. It may take some trial and error to get your perfect fit. To all the bike fitters: this is the method I use specifically for getting comfortable on trail/AM bikes which is much shorter than the ideal XC set up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wesley_r Posted May 24, 2012 Share You guys have swayed me, trading it on a 60mm instead... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patches Posted May 24, 2012 Share You guys have swayed me, trading it on a 60mm instead... do it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beer4Recovery Posted May 24, 2012 Share well... if you're wanting to do some more exciting riding, .... Thanks for the info Crow, Patches & Slick!! Yes Patches, that is exactly what I want to do, I know it will never be a AM machine, but I want to take what I have and move it further away from XC and more to trail etc. So I will need some help in the future.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iwan Kemp Posted May 24, 2012 Share Thanks for the info Crow, Patches & Slick!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockCoach Posted May 24, 2012 Share Plus one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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