brucem76 Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Hey guys - I'm 195cm tall on an xl frame (should be an xxl frame, but SA doesn't really bring these in) - it's obvious to me my handlebars are too close (hands get numb while riding, can't get my wrists in right position as there's not enough space) How do I work out how much longer I should make stem, and how long is too long (I assume at some point I start introducing other problems?)
s14phoenix Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 beg or borrow a stem from a fellow hubber? What stem you have now and what seatpost? setback seatpost can help if you don't already have one. I have a 1.92m 140kg friend riding XL with 100mm stem as he removed a 120mm which was on the bike. so 120mm, 130mm all should be ok... also have you tried wider bars? what bars you got now?
BBN Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 I would advise you to go for a proper bike setup otherwise you will spend money and time trying endless options! Get your seat position correct first before you play around with short stem/wide bars or long stem/narrow bars, etc. I would think an XL frame is plenty big enough at 1.95m.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Hey guys - I'm 195cm tall on an xl frame (should be an xxl frame, but SA doesn't really bring these in) - it's obvious to me my handlebars are too close (hands get numb while riding, can't get my wrists in right position as there's not enough space) How do I work out how much longer I should make stem, and how long is too long (I assume at some point I start introducing other problems?)Firstly - how wide are your bars?
Maniac Merv Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Also Depends on what kinda riding you do ? Get yourself a 50 - 60 mm Stem and 760mm wide bars !! - and then tell me how awesome those technical downhilsl are
brucem76 Posted February 3, 2015 Author Posted February 3, 2015 Firstly - how wide are your bars?720mm
Wolfie1 Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Hi Bruce If your hands go numb then you might be pushing to hard on your bars. (to much weight forward)you can try and lift you stem by adding 5 to 10 mm spacers under and see if that works. Cheapest option.... You might be stretched so shorten stem by 10mm second option My 5cents
brucem76 Posted February 3, 2015 Author Posted February 3, 2015 Firstly - how wide are your bars? Bars do make a lot of sense - I feel like I have to curl my hands in slightly to hold my handlebars... but a jump from 720mm to 760mm sounds very minimal - 2cm on each side?
Amberdrake Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 I am 192cm I ride an XL with 800mm bars ( spank 777 ), 70mm stem and Reverb dropper. I am busy experimenting with a bit shorter bars and I am finding the 20mm shorter is a slight amount more comfortable But ill see where I end before cutting. I hated the longer stem on my bike(120) and went down to a 90mm. I feel a lot more comfortable with the 70 however.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 720mmEISH!!! Way too narrow for you, dude. Get a set of the Rapide 780mm bars, before you do anything to your stem. Someone your height shouldn't be on anything narrower than that. And they're CHEAP!!! http://rapide.co.za/product/rapide-rise-r-780-9/ Seriously. Change that, then see how it feels, then change stem later if necessary.
EmptyB Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Bars do make a lot of sense - I feel like I have to curl my hands in slightly to hold my handlebars... but a jump from 720mm to 760mm sounds very minimal - 2cm on each side? Have you done a proper bike fit/Ergo fit?
brucem76 Posted February 3, 2015 Author Posted February 3, 2015 I am 192cm I ride an XL with 800mm bars ( spank 777 ), 70mm stem and Reverb dropper. I am busy experimenting with a bit shorter bars and I am finding the 20mm shorter is a slight amount more comfortable But ill see where I end before cutting. I hated the longer stem on my bike(120) and went down to a 90mm. I feel a lot more comfortable with the 70 however. Helpful, thanks. So maybe I start by putting some 800mm bars on my 100mm stem (which will definitely be too big/long as a combo), trying that, then cutting back on stem length, and then cutting a bit off the bars if need be?
brucem76 Posted February 3, 2015 Author Posted February 3, 2015 EISH!!! Way too narrow for you, dude. Get a set of the Rapide 780mm bars, before you do anything to your stem. Someone your height shouldn't be on anything narrower than that. And they're CHEAP!!! http://rapide.co.za/product/rapide-rise-r-780-9/ Seriously. Change that, then see how it feels, then change stem later if necessary. Thanks - very helpful - something felt wrong for sure, cool to have someone confirm that my bars are way out....
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Bars do make a lot of sense - I feel like I have to curl my hands in slightly to hold my handlebars... but a jump from 720mm to 760mm sounds very minimal - 2cm on each side?It makes a very big difference, trust me. Even going from 760 to 780 is quite a big difference. I'm 6ft dead (180) and I'm running 780's on a 40mm stem.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Have you done a proper bike fit/Ergo fit?He needs wider bars before that. Ergo / bike fits generally focus on stem length only. If you have a short bar it'll throw out a longer stem requirement, which is a huge no-no for MTB.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted February 3, 2015 Posted February 3, 2015 Helpful, thanks. So maybe I start by putting some 800mm bars on my 100mm stem (which will definitely be too big/long as a combo), trying that, then cutting back on stem length, and then cutting a bit off the bars if need be?Cut back on stem before bars, mate. You're a big boy - you need wide bars. But first - get the bars, and test. If still wacky, then get a 70 / 80mm stem and try from there. Should work out nicely, and then you're almost in the sweet spot ito bar / stem combo
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