The Technomic is great for fitting a bike that is not the ideal size. But even it has its limits. Whereas the usual problem is that many stems have a quill that is too short, the Technomic can actually occassionally be too long. On small frames with a short headtubes, I've once or twice found that the long quill of the Technomic bottomed out on the bottom of the steerer, actually leaving the bars too high, the opposite of the usual problem. Had to resort to cutting off a section at the bottom of the quill.
Regards,
Jerry Moos Big Spring, TX
Harvey Sachs <hmsachs@verizon.net> wrote: Frank Bibb wrote:
My 1981 Trek 610 is a little too large at 56cm and I have swtiched to a 50mm handlebar stem to compensate. However, it seems to make the steering a bit more sensitive than I like. While acknowleding that steering geometery is complex and handling is a subjective topic, does anyone have an opinion of how short a stem it "too" short? I need to balance the steering with the reach and buying new Nitto stems is getting expensive. ++++++++++++++++++++++ If you can beg, borrow, buy, or steal an adjustable stem, it makes this much easier. The vintage product of my era was the TTT model, which is great for stabbing knees. Earlier fans prefer the Major Taylor stems. Of course, neither is attractive if you're trying to work toward fitting the Nitto "Technomic" stem with the long shaft. FWIW, decades ago I made up an early adjustable stoker stem for tandems, just so we and friends could experiment.
harvey sachs
mcLean va.