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Is it a good idea to get a carbon stem? |
i am looking to upgrade basically half my bike before race season and a new stem is part of that package. i was liking the Bontrager Race XXX Lite Carbon OS stem to replace my bontrager select. is it worth it to go carbon? the mechanic at my shop says he would rather have a strong stem than a light one. how likely are these things to break? im only using for XC racing, trail riding, and road. Carbon stems, for the most part, have gone through the learning curve and are just as reliable and strong as the others. Earlier models were the "lab rats" and a few horror stories circulated about people riding with handlebars not connected to the bike after the stem catastrophically failed. MTB-specific stems will take all the abuse you can give and not fail. The question is if it is worth it. You won't see a drastic reduction in total bike weight. The biggest contribution would be a stiffening (less flex) in a good carbon stem. Most aluminum stems that are stiff are usually overbuilt and therefore heavy. Your mechanic is right, strong is better than light. But in the case of carbon fiber, you'll get both. Go for it. the mechanic was right, screw carbon man. ok if you are def. going to use carbon riser bars then you have to be REAL careful not to overtighten the stem onto the bars or youll warp or crack the bars. Personally i have a Ritchey WCS stem and it rocks just fine. if your bike is mostly carbon, then go for the upgrade... if your bike is mostly aluminum, steel, or titanium, then don't bother... the weight difference will not gain you anything. They DO break, your mechanic is right. Even if it doesn't break, they degrade from use and require replacement regularly. Don't mess with carbon stems especially since you are mountain biking. 26 years in the industry Maybe a little over your budget, but Thomson X4 are light and strong. I don't really like carbon, don't think there will be a noticeable weight difference, and you're just risking something in the rare case of a crazy crash. I'm with your mechanic. Ask George Hincapie about carbon stems (and his was a road bike - only last year). Weight savings in the stem is Negligable, so I'm as most of the others above stated, stay with metal for now. Aluminum or Ti even. I'd rather see you one place behind than on your face coming down a rocky descent. |
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