Bike Stem

sopas said:

Hello all,

I want to get a new 12-cm stem for my Trek bike. Currently, I have a 10-cm Bontrager Select OS stem with a 7º rise like this one:
bontrager.comenOpen ↗

My question is, would it be OK, if I get a stem with a diferent rise? I found this 12-cm stem on ebay but the rise is 6º and I am not sure.
cgi.ebay.comW0QQitemZ290255434816QQihZ019QssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItemOpen ↗

Would that fit on the bike?

Yes, it should fit ...

But, there may be some cosmetic issues which you may not like ... mainly, the EASTON stem you are looking at appears to be almost perpendicular to the steerer (minimal "flip-flop" ... I'm not sure how the seller figured out the ~6º rise) ... there is nothing wrong with that as long as you are aware of it before you buy it ... the forward extension will actually be different from what you might anticipate when compared with your current stem's forward extension.

Regardless, even after shipping to Spain, the price is right if you think it is what you want!

NB. The "stack height" for stems varies, and you may-or-may-not need to add a thin spacer to your overall stack.

BTW. If the 'new' stem is for a ROAD bike, then before you buy it, you may be able to achieve the additional 2cm of reach if you re-orient the bar (rotate it slightly) and/or adjust the position of the brake levers on the bars.

If the 'new' stem is for a MTB (sorry, I forget which bike you mentioned you have), it may be too lightweight (not robust enough).

I see. Yes it is for a road bike, the Trek 1.2.
Actually, I would be happy to adquire the same Bontrager stem model that I have with a 12 cm length but I can't find it. That is why I came up with that ESTON stem. I forgot to ask in the store earlier today if they had one. But since there are good deals on the internet I am looking around to see what fits me best.

My current stem is 10-cm lenght and I already rotated and lowered the handelbar 2 centimeters thus gaining some length, but since I have long arms I feel I would be much better with a longer stem.

Since the bike is relatively new, presuming the stem is still in good condition (cosmetically), the shop you bought the bike from may be willing to simply swap the 10cm stem for a longer one that they have pulled from another bike ...

So, the NEXT time you go to the shop with your bike (later, today!), casually mention that you feel a little cramped on the bike & that you wonder if there was any solution THEY wanted to suggest to you ... they might suggest swapping the current stem with a longer one ... that is actually commonly done, but I do not know what time frame most shops like to work within when fitting a bike to a rider ... certainly, the SAME SEASON should qualify, IMO.

Stem rise should not make any difference in terms of fitting it to your bike. I would also go to your LBS and ask them what they will offer you to swap it out for a new 120mm.