Decrease Seat to Bars Vertical Distance (Trig Check)

Can't help with the trig, but if the angle of the stem increases and the length stays the same, not
only will the bars come up, but they will also come closer. So if you want the same overall reach
you will have to get a longer stem.

"Tom S" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My bars are about 1 inch too low for my preference and I want to decrease the vertical distance.
(OK, I'll admit I'm getting older and have lost

some

Quoted message said:

suppleness.) In order to save time on installing and removing (possibly) numerous stems, I
thought I'd try to remember some high school trig. Here was my approach: My current stem is
installed with a 7 degrees up angle, 130mm (5.2 in length). If I install a new 17 degree stem
with the same 130mm length,

the

Quoted message said:

rise towards the bars of the stem should be 0.95 inches. TAN(&😉= y/x; x=5.2 in

Did I commit any glaring errors in the thought process?
--
Tom S

Tom S said:

My bars are about 1 inch too low for my preference and I want to decrease the vertical distance.
(OK, I'll admit I'm getting older and have lost some suppleness.) In order to save time on
installing and removing (possibly) numerous stems, I thought I'd try to remember some high school
trig. Here was my approach: My current stem is installed with a 7 degrees up angle, 130mm (5.2 in
length). If I install a new 17 degree stem with the same 130mm length, the rise towards the bars of
the stem should be 0.95 inches. TAN(&😉= y/x; x=5.2 in

Did I commit any glaring errors in the thought process?

It's too late to do trig. Save yourself some time:

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Mark Hickey Habanero Cycles habcycles.comhabcycles.comOpen ↗ Home of the $695 ti frame

"Tom S" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My bars are about 1 inch too low for my preference and I

want to decrease

Quoted message said:

the vertical distance. (OK, I'll admit I'm getting older

and have lost some

Quoted message said:

suppleness.) In order to save time on installing and

removing (possibly)

Quoted message said:

numerous stems, I thought I'd try to remember some high

school trig. Here

Quoted message said:

was my approach: My current stem is installed with a 7 degrees up angle,

130mm (5.2 in

Quoted message said:

length). If I install a new 17 degree stem with the same

130mm length, the

Quoted message said:

rise towards the bars of the stem should be 0.95 inches.

TAN(&😉= y/x;

Quoted message said:

x=5.2 in

Did I commit any glaring errors in the thought process?
--
Tom S

To be picky, if you want vertical distance you need a sine function, not tangent. A 13cm stem angled
7 degrees up from the horizontal will put the bars 0.1219*13 = 1.58cm above the horizontal. A 13cm
stem angled 17 degrees will put the bars 0.2924*13 = 3.80cm above, for an increase of
2.22cm......

That said, there's not a hell of a lot of difference between sine and tangent for small angles -
tan(17) is 0.3057 - so you're close enough.....

As someone else pointed out, the bars will also move closer to the seat - use the difference in the
cosines of the two angles multiplied by the stem length to calculate how much closer

Tom S said:

My bars are about 1 inch too low for my preference and I want to decrease the vertical distance.
(OK, I'll admit I'm getting older and have lost some suppleness.) In order to save time on
installing and removing (possibly) numerous stems, I thought I'd try to remember some high school
trig. Here was my approach: My current stem is installed with a 7 degrees up angle, 130mm (5.2 in
length). If I install a new 17 degree stem with the same 130mm length, the rise towards the bars
of the stem should be 0.95 inches. TAN(&😉= y/x; x=5.2 in

Your calculations are most likely correct, if the angles you mention are relative to the horizontal
plane. If you buy a stem that is marketed as +- 6 degrees, for example, it means that the rise with
a 72 degree head tube is actually 24 (18+6) or 12 degrees (18-6). Also, as was mentioned, a stem of
the same length at a higher angle brings the handlebar slightly closer also horizontally.

-as

From one Tom to another one. I'm 73, try a $19.95 3" stem extender and then you can get the height
you want and stay with the same stem. It worked for me. Old age is tough; but, the alternative is
worse. Keep riding.

Tom

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"Grenouil" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

To be picky, if you want vertical distance you need a sine function, not tangent. A 13cm stem
angled 7 degrees up from the horizontal will put the bars 0.1219*13 = 1.58cm above the horizontal.
A 13cm stem angled 17 degrees will put the bars 0.2924*13 = 3.80cm above, for an increase of
2.22cm......

That said, there's not a hell of a lot of difference between sine and tangent for small angles -
tan(17) is 0.3057 - so you're close enough.....

As someone else pointed out, the bars will also move closer to the seat - use the difference in
the cosines of the two angles multiplied by the stem length to calculate how much closer

Or, eyeball it.

🙂

Bill "rotate dem risers" S.

Thanks to all responders, greatly appreciated. New stem on the way.

Tom

--
Tom S "Tom S" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My bars are about 1 inch too low for my preference and I want to decrease the vertical distance.
(OK, I'll admit I'm getting older and have lost

some

Quoted message said:

suppleness.) In order to save time on installing and removing (possibly) numerous stems, I
thought I'd try to remember some high school trig. Here was my approach: My current stem is
installed with a 7 degrees up angle, 130mm (5.2 in length). If I install a new 17 degree stem
with the same 130mm length,

the

Quoted message said:

rise towards the bars of the stem should be 0.95 inches. TAN(&😉= y/x; x=5.2 in

Did I commit any glaring errors in the thought process?
--
Tom S

RE/

Quoted message said:

Old age is tough

"Old age is not for sissies..."
-----------------------
PeteCresswell

RE/

Quoted message said:

Anybody that says "I'm not gettin older, I'm getting better", I think I want to punch them.

And there were people like Jacques Cousteau who maintained that they didn't feel any different at,
say, 65 than they did at 20. I remember when I heard that thinking "Jacques, baby, you've been
laying around on that boat too much all these years. If you'd been pushing any kind of envelope,
you'd sures notice the diff..."
-----------------------
PeteCresswell

Damn! I left my machinery handbook and trig tables at work!!

May you have the wind at your back. And a really low gear for the hills! Chris

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