changing the stem

cath mack said:

I have recently bought a Trek 520 which I am delighted with. As I am a 5ft 3in female The bike is smallest size - 48cm. Currently whilst I am reasonably comfortable riding this bike I think it would be slight improved with a shorter stem.
The stem currently is a bontrager race stem 17 rise 130mm.
Can anyone recommend a shorter stem. Is the rise important. Is replacing the stem something I can do myself or is it a return to bike shop job.🙂

If the bars are the correct height, then the rise is OK. A lower degree of rise will lower the bars. A shorter stem will bring the bars closer to you, however, they will also be a slight bit lower (probably not enough to really notice compared to the difference caused by bringing the bars closer). Most models of stems are readily available as short as 80mm, some models even as short at 50mm.

You certainly can switch it yourself, but going to a shop may allow you to try a few different sizes on your bike before you buy. Ideally the shop would have an adjustable stem that could be put on your bike temporarily to trial a few different positions to see what works best. Keep in mind though that any change in position will take a bit of time to adjust to.

John M said:

If the bars are the correct height, then the rise is OK. A lower degree of rise will lower the bars. A shorter stem will bring the bars closer to you, however, they will also be a slight bit lower (probably not enough to really notice compared to the difference caused by bringing the bars closer). Most models of stems are readily available as short as 80mm, some models even as short at 50mm.

You certainly can switch it yourself, but going to a shop may allow you to try a few different sizes on your bike before you buy. Ideally the shop would have an adjustable stem that could be put on your bike temporarily to trial a few different positions to see what works best. Keep in mind though that any change in position will take a bit of time to adjust to.

Thanks for the advice. I will go back to the shop where I bought the bike and get them to try a couple of different stems for me.

Cath

cath mack said:

Thanks for the advice. I will go back to the shop where I bought the bike and get them to try a couple of different stems for me.

Cath

That stem length of 130 sounds a little long to me. You should have the shop measure your arm length, torso and inseam. Then, given the frame size they can help you dial in the correct stem length. My guess will be about 100 mm or 10 cm.

Here's a link to an MS Excel file that is sometimes helpful for quickly getting a side-by-side comparsion of the effect on horizontal reach and vertical rise for stems of various length and rise angles:

http://www.hammerheadbikes.com/docs/stemcalculator.xls

Fox Farm said:

That stem length of 130 sounds a little long to me. You should have the shop measure your arm length, torso and inseam. Then, given the frame size they can help you dial in the correct stem length. My guess will be about 100 mm or 10 cm.

Thanks for your help

I have now been back to the shop and got them to fit a 90mm stem with an 40 degree rise which I find more comfortable

Cath