Here's how stem length affects your steering speed

Let's run the numbers on how stem length affects steering speed! 🤓

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[EntropyOCD]

This information is literally life saving. After a road bump induced crash, I have learned to lower the tire pressure as low as possible. Now I will fit a slightly longer stem and wider drop bar.

[diederik]

Pokeball at 7:23 gotta catch all the stem lengths!

[gammaphonic]

I’ve effectively been using a 0mm stem for the last decade. I have a 50mm stem, but with butterfly bars that put my hands on the steering axis. I have only had that one set up for all that time so I have no basis for comparison, but it has never been even the slightest of issues for me. Works great in fact.

[timjohns]

Tim here again in ColoRADo. I am a pro mechanic and a bike nerd. Once again we’ll done. I stumbled on tour channel and I am impressed again. I will become a Patreon. Keep up the great work and keep the rubber side down.

[spikesoton]

Thank you for that. It explains why swept back bars without a forward offset were too twitchy on my MTB.

[Roedrik]

Thank you kindly for these uploads as of late, hope you are staying safe and looking forward to your touring impressions up in my neck of the woods!

[Adrian]

I seriously learn so much from these videos. Made me realize just how intricate bike design and optimization can be. I knew I didnt know much, but every time I learn something new I realize just how wide that knowledge gap can be. THANK YOU!

[johnhouston]

Brilliant sir! Alot of our brains work in this way and are needing presentations like this to really help make sense of it all while dialing in our rigs and this is just so very helpful. Thank you! ☮️

[duds]

Very good video and well explained. I’ve been looking for a video about how stem lengths could affect our riding, and this just answered all my questions. Thank you!

[harry.sekhon]

This is the most definitive, numbers backed, insight into bike stems. Off to change my bike's stem from 70mm to 50mm, which was already down from 100mm and compensate with wider bars for a more upright riding.

[Orbitsw]

Big fan of this video. Will take a while to digest all the content, thanks again for making this. Its going to help a lot on my conversion of an old mtb frame to a drop bar adventure bike.

[theadventurebiker]

7:24 - still here. Yup, I'm a massive bike nerd as well. Cheers

[philipjohncovill]

Very helpful. Thank you. You confirmed I made the right decision to a shorter stem. The original stem on my GoGoBest ebike GF750, was way too long bringing tha bars far away from me making my arms straight, elbows almost locked.

[a-mj]

When talking about Dutch Bikes you should mention that a lot of them have a Spring between the Fork and the Frame to counter the twitchiness and pull the fork straight

[mopar]

Thanks again Alee for your thorough explanation of Bike Tech. All this is so usefull for me, being a Signature Advisor @ Koga ( and Bike Nerd..). Looking forward for new a episode. Keep it up!

[g.d.]

Man, I just love your content! You answered a whole bunch of questions that have been swirling in my head for decades, and a whole bunch more I've never even thought about! I enjoy every one of your videos and have your books, too! Keep them coming!

[chod]

"if you're still here, you're probably a massive bike nerd like me"

Hey! Oh... yeah...

[seanmarshall]

these are very good videos, thank you for all the work you're doing

[robindegu]

this is just what i was looking for. thank you for this very comprehensive yet well worded explainer

[carlosflanders]

Weight distribution has an enormous affect as well as the figures you discuss. On my ustom steel road frame the designer started off choosing the fork offset and stem length for the application then designing the whole frame around that. He designed for a 120mm stem, I've run the bike with stems of 100-130 mm and 130 mm is by far the best for handling and cornering at speed. It's poor for commuting speeds and tight low speed manouevers at traffic junctions. ! like to run 130 for road racing and crits, 110 for cx and 90-100 for XC. Of course, reach and fork offset/trail play a part as well, but I always experiemnt with +/- 10 mm on each bike to get weight distribution right.