Worth Swapping Stem? Fit of Bike.

[fespo276]

I bought my first road bike, a Cannondale 600R, 54cm. Love it! Waited too long. Anyway, the bike fits well, but the reach is a bit long. Not sure if I am just used to riding mountain bikes or what. Anyway, the stem is "100 mm", or 10cm. Most of the stems I have seem are 8, 9, or 10 cm. Would I see much of a difference going to an 8cm? Can I go shorter? Also, I rotated the handle bars "up," raising the hoods, which seems to have shortened the reach as well. Feels good. However, the bottom the handle bar is not horizontal anymore, but pointing more towrd the rear hub. Is this OK? I heard even if the frame is too large by 2 cm, you can make any bike fit by making other adjustments. What besides stem length? I seem to have my seat as far forward as it can go. Thanks.

[daveornee]

Originally posted by fespo276
I bought my first road bike, a Cannondale 600R, 54cm. Love it! Waited too long. Anyway, the bike fits well, but the reach is a bit long. Not sure if I am just used to riding mountain bikes or what. Anyway, the stem is "100 mm", or 10cm. Most of the stems I have seem are 8, 9, or 10 cm. Would I see much of a difference going to an 8cm? Can I go shorter? Also, I rotated the handle bars "up," raising the hoods, which seems to have shortened the reach as well. Feels good. However, the bottom the handle bar is not horizontal anymore, but pointing more towrd the rear hub. Is this OK? I heard even if the frame is too large by 2 cm, you can make any bike fit by making other adjustments. What besides stem length? I seem to have my seat as far forward as it can go. Thanks.

Pick the stem that fits you.
Extension, rise, and safe amount of adjustment all will make a difference.
Quill stems are getting harder to find, but good ones are still available. Remeber, if you go with a non-horizontal (different than 73 degrees) part of the rated "extension" dimension goes into making the bars higher. You will want to get the saddle positioned for best combination of ergonomics, safety, and power generation. After you know where the saddle is positioned, you can decide where to position the bars.
It is OK to rotate the bars as you describe as long as you are comfortable with them in the drops as well.

[ian-m]

Originally posted by fespo276
I bought my first road bike, a Cannondale 600R, 54cm. Love it! Waited too long. Anyway, the bike fits well, but the reach is a bit long. Not sure if I am just used to riding mountain bikes or what. Anyway, the stem is "100 mm", or 10cm. Most of the stems I have seem are 8, 9, or 10 cm. Would I see much of a difference going to an 8cm? Can I go shorter? Also, I rotated the handle bars "up," raising the hoods, which seems to have shortened the reach as well. Feels good. However, the bottom the handle bar is not horizontal anymore, but pointing more towrd the rear hub. Is this OK? I heard even if the frame is too large by 2 cm, you can make any bike fit by making other adjustments. What besides stem length? I seem to have my seat as far forward as it can go. Thanks.


Moving your seat all the way forward is not the way to shorten your reach. You should get the saddle in the right position for peddling first- although you may need to fit a shorter stem to make your saddle tesing easier.

Your biggest problem will be to find the correct saddle position (ie height AND forwards / backwards on the rails). Once this is fixed, you should select a stem length that gives you the riding position that you want.

Changing from a 100 to an 80 stem will make a big difference. You could go shorter if you have to, but if you need 70 or less, it probably means that your frame top tube is too long. However, if you have to change to a very short stem to feel comfortable on the bike that you have already bought, it's better than riding round in the wrong position with a "normal" stem. Note that a very short stem will make the steering feel quicker or "twitchy".

Don't forget that you can also change the spacers under the stem to raise & lower the bars (this depends on the length of your steerer tube though). Higher bars effectively equals a shorter reach.

The position of both the bars and the hoods on the bars can make a big difference. You can rotate the bars to any position you want - most people have the "drops" angled upwards, like yours are now. I came from Mtb flat bars & bar ends, so I have the sides horizontal and the drops very angled ... but that's unusual!

It might help to take all the handlebar tape off, then just secure the cables with some old electrical tape. Go out riding, take the Allen keys and keep adjusting the hoods / bars until you are comfortable. Take out different stems if you want to compare them too. This took me many weeks, not just a few rides. I used some old bar tape round my main hand positions, just to make it a bit more comfortable - but keep the cables on the outside of the bar tape, so you can move them about while testing. It looks awful but it lets you chose the position YOU want.

I found this site useful:

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

... Jump down to "Saddle Height". Don't get too distracted by crank length at this stage - as you've just bought them!

[gclark8]

I agree with the above on saddle position, regardless of bike type, set it first in relation to the crank.

As you are coming from a MTB to a road bike, I am doing the same, do it in stages. Try a setup with flat bars first, 580 wide, maybe on the MTB then on the road bike, to get used to a lower position.

I deciced on a Flat Bar Bike as my first road bike (Felt SR81), it is something I have to get used to, the lower position than the MTB. Later I will add Aero bars to the flat bars as my balance improves.

Hope this helps
cheers
George

[lokstah]

I'm just chiming in; the advice here is generally right on the mark in my opinion. Fespo, a centimeter or two difference in stem length is actually a strikingly noticable thing -- nothing matters more than fit when cycling, and the position of your handlebars is a hugely important and precise aspect of a good fit.

You may want to consider finding a shop you trust (the one you bought the bike from, maybe?) and ask for a fitting. The shop you bought the bike from should do it for free; any other won't charge you much. If you've got doubts about exactly what you need, it may be worth the time and money. Good luck.

[Doctor Morbius]

Yes it's definitely worth swapping out your stem if the current one isn't a good fit. The previous posters are correct in that you don't want to simply move the saddle foreward to compensate. That'll screw up the angle of your pedal stroke. Your hips and the line from your knee to the ball of you foot should be the first thing that gets "fitted" on a bike. This will keep from screwing up your knees. Sell the old on on ebay to cover the added expense.