Titanium Stems

Back by popular demand, the general all-things Road forum!

Moderator: robbosmans

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Anyone here have experience with titanium stems?

I am looking into swapping my Cinelli Grammo for a Merlin, 3TTT, ITM Krystal or Ibis stem.

The reason is that I find the Grammo too flexy even though I love the way it looks.

Anyone know if the others mentioned are stiffer? Could this be my bars rather than stem? (Cinelli Eubios 42cm)

Yes I am aware Al or Steel would/could be much stiffer, looking to stick with Ti.

If anyone has a stem mentioned above I am interested.

Many thanks. :beerchug:

bm0p700f
in the industry
Posts: 5777
Joined: Sat May 12, 2012 7:25 pm
Location: Glermsford, Suffolk U.K
Contact:

by bm0p700f

Flexy grammo really. I have a 130mm frammo quil i am not light and it is not flexy. You cannot easily seperate bar flex from stem flex but your bars are not the stiffest you can have.i ise ritchey logic bars with my grammo. Also what problem does a bit of flex actually cause, none is the answer.

I have a problem flexy combo a 3ttt alien stem 135mm and a deda 215 46cm bar. Now that has flex.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Thanks for your input.

I am well aware that flex does not influence power transmission. More of an aesthetic/comfort side of things...

It is a personal preference and I am absolutely aware of that. I much prefer stiff. My opinion is that from a biomechanical perspective my confidence in my bike is much higher when I can get out of saddle and sprint feeling absolutely no deviation in the frame or bars, which translates into more focus and better performance (again, not due to an increase in power transmission, simply from a mental/focus perspective). Stiffness allows me to focus on stuff other than being surprised by how much things are bending... :mrgreen:

In that case, would upgrading to carbon bars with a comparable or same diameter increase stiffness? I would assume so, just checking.

Many thanks :D

User avatar
Kayrehn
Posts: 1775
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2011 6:06 pm

by Kayrehn

Moots? For that price they could be everything you ever dream of wanting in a stem. (If it isn't, it'll be the most overpriced stem you ever bought)

User avatar
toiyuet
Posts: 174
Joined: Wed Dec 14, 2011 2:47 pm
Location: Hong Kong

by toiyuet

Ibis looks like jewellery , little bit of flexy;
Seven Cycles is really stiff, even it isn't the stiffest option.

Image

Image

User avatar
tommasini
Posts: 1460
Joined: Sun Nov 02, 2003 6:48 am
Location: Central USA
Contact:

by tommasini

If you are talking about traditional quill stems.....

Coming off 120/130 cinelli and 3T aluminum stems I found the ibis TI to be a VERY equal replacement.

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Seven looks really nice, must be quill stem though unfortunately. I will look into Moots, although I recall having a hard time identifying any that were 1" steerer size.

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Well if anyone has a quill Ibis for sale I am interested, send me a pm.

kode54
Posts: 3740
Joined: Tue May 23, 2006 9:39 pm

by kode54

provo wrote:Seven looks really nice, must be quill stem though unfortunately. I will look into Moots, although I recall having a hard time identifying any that were 1" steerer size.



you can always get an adapter to put a modern stem on a quill type fork.
- Factor Ostro VAM Disc
- Factor LS Disc
- Specialized Aethos Disc
- Sturdy Ti Allroad Disc
- Guru Praemio R Disc

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Kode54 would there be a significant advantage to switching?

Forgive my modern bike stuff ignorance.

Thanks.

User avatar
wheelsONfire
Posts: 6280
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 8:15 am
Location: NorthEU

by wheelsONfire

You wouldn't want a ti stem for it' stiffness. Then you'd simply go for an alu stem.
For looks or you'd take a carbon.
I have 17 stems and of these one is titanium and probably the softest
Bikes:

Ax Lightness Vial EVO Race (2019.01.03)
Open *UP* (2016.04.14)
Paduano Racing Fidia (kind of shelved)


Ex bike; Vial EVO D, Vial EVO Ultra, Scott Foil, Paduano ti bike.

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

As stated in OP I am aware of that fact. Thanks though. :beerchug:

If someone can convince me that a threadless adapter and a carbon stem is significantly better than a titanium quill stem I am all ears. :noidea:

provo wrote:Yes I am aware Al or Steel would/could be much stiffer, looking to stick with Ti.

11.4
Posts: 1095
Joined: Tue May 23, 2006 4:33 am

by 11.4

You may have to get a quill stem made for you at this point. You're throwing money away if you conceivably will ever have to sell it because there's virtually no demand any longer. That's the big reason to go threadless. Plus you'll have thousands of options in threadless without going custom -- no need to go carbon, but you can get good used titanium, all kinds of aluminum, etc.

A Nitto threadless adapter generally works as well as a straight threadless setup. Last time I had one it added a few millimeters to stack height (I don't remember precisely how much) but not bad. It isn't obvious once installed. There are some alternatives out there, but the Nitto is probably the strongest. You do add a little weight with the extra piece of hardware but you're saving on the stem so you might make it a wash.

I've had a couple Grammos and they weren't overwhelmingly stiff, but then quill stems tend not to be quite as immobile as threadless anyway. I've seen a few too many Grammos break in use. Overall, there's a lot more sophisticated engineering in most threadless stems than there are in older quill stems. The Eubios bars are stiff but brittle; again, they come from a period when manufacturers were slicing weight and the components got a little easy to crack.

I think you're probably overthinking this a bit. If what you have works, go with it. For a threaded-steer frame, your bike likely looks better with a more classic stem.

provo
Posts: 11
Joined: Sat Feb 18, 2017 7:49 am

by provo

Thanks for the input 11.4, I mostly agree. I have no experience with threadless headsets and so was truly curious to hear from users whether they were stiffer or not. The fact that you have experience with the Grammo is good to know, I will consider a threaded to threadless converter in the near future... I have always agreed with this statement by Sheldon Brown though (not sure how respected he is on ww I am new here sorry): "While traditionalists may bemoan the change, it appears that the move to thread- less headsets is inexorable, since they offer so many advantages to the manufacturer — and even a few to the rider."

I am inexorably a "traditionalist"... :wink:

For now another user has kindly offered to sell me an ITM Krystal and I will try that out to see if any increase in stiffness is observable.

Here is another perhaps unanswerable question: the ITM Krystal appears to be constructed quite similarly to the Ibis titanium quill stems I have seen... Does anyone know if the main post of the ITM Krystal is bored out of solid stock as well? Looking at the top, even the quill bolt seat is nearly the same as on the Ibis stems. :noidea: Is it possible to determine wether a tube (of any metal) was made from bored solid stock or extrusion/roller mold without conducting destructive tests (just curious here from an engineering perspective)? Is there a significant and easily measurable change in elastic deformation between the two?

Thanks for all the input everyone! :beerchug: :beerchug: :beerchug:

bm0p700f
in the industry
Posts: 5777
Joined: Sat May 12, 2012 7:25 pm
Location: Glermsford, Suffolk U.K
Contact:

by bm0p700f

There is enough demand for wuills still.

Factory 5 do a nice alu quill that takes a 31.8mm bars. Those will be alot stiffer.

by Weenie


Visit starbike.com Online Retailer for HighEnd cycling components
Great Prices ✓    Broad Selection ✓    Worldwide Delivery ✓

www.starbike.com



Post Reply