# is stem length 90mm too short?



## acid_rider (Nov 23, 2004)

if I have a 90mm (and flipped, +7 degrees) stem on my road bicycle and I also have 4 spacers under the stem to raise the handle bar height does it mean the frame is the wrong size or wrong geometry for my body proportions?

thanks in advance


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## DW4477 (Feb 4, 2005)

acid_rider said:


> if I have a 90mm (and flipped, +7 degrees) stem on my road bicycle and I also have 4 spacers under the stem to raise the handle bar height does it mean the frame is the wrong size or wrong geometry for my body proportions?
> 
> thanks in advance


I would say not neccesarily. It depends on your flexibility and whether you want more of a racing type position of more of a touring position. Have you ridden much? As you ride more and adapt you might be able to remove a couple of spacers.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Relativism*

Personal preference and flexibility make for huge differences in how much drop you have/need from the saddle to the bars. If you have large amounts of standover clearance, then perhaps your frame is too small, but the 90 mm stem length suggests not. That said, the answer could vary a lot depending on whether your frame is a 49 cm or a 61 cm.


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## acid_rider (Nov 23, 2004)

*thanks! More info.*

Thank you both. Yes, I am new, only riding ~18 months and done about 4000-5000 miles all up. I am 45yo male just over 5 foot 8 inches (173cm) height with ~83cm inseam. My back flexibiliy is poor, I can not touch my toes while standing up and bending over (reach about 1/3 or 1/2 of one foot from the floor is best I can do).

I have a 54cm Trek Madone 5.9 (2005). I consulted 4 different Trek shops and 3 said I needed 54cm and 1 said I needed a 56cm and all said I could ride either one with some modifications to stem and/or spacers. So I picked a smaller 54cm frame but due to saddle to bar drop and my lack of back flexibility I needed 4 spacers (~40-45mm in total) and an upward facing +7 degree 90mm stem. 

Everyone I consulted (shops and several experienced road riders) said that 52cm and 58cm were totally wrong for me so I guess I am between 54cm and 56cm sizes in Madone geometry? But I am worried that I picked the wrong size frame which is why I posted here.... But it sounds like I picked the best available for my dimensions and in my case 90mm is not too short a stem?

thanks


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## Grampy (Apr 6, 2003)

acid_rider said:


> I have a 54cm Trek Madone 5.9 (2005). I consulted 4 different Trek shops and 3 said I needed 54cm and 1 said I needed a 56cm and all said I could ride either one with some modifications to stem and/or spacers. So I picked a smaller 54cm frame but due to saddle to bar drop and my lack of back flexibility I needed 4 spacers (~40-45mm in total) and an upward facing +7 degree 90mm stem.
> 
> 
> thanks


Which is why Trek started making the Pilot series of bikes. Don't worry about your bike, it sounds like a good fit. Don't worry about the stem and spacers either, they just give you a more upright position.....ie: More comfortable. You've got a great bike..... enjoy.


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## acid_rider (Nov 23, 2004)

*thanks!*



Grampy said:


> Which is why Trek started making the Pilot series of bikes. Don't worry about your bike, it sounds like a good fit. Don't worry about the stem and spacers either, they just give you a more upright position.....ie: More comfortable. You've got a great bike..... enjoy.


Great! I went for a 30 mile ride this morning and it felt ok (the bike did, the rider was awful!). In fact I might go back to 100mm stem soon because I moved my saddle forward about 5mm to get more comfortable over the pedals. I like to spin ~90-95rpm and I feel I can do it better with my knee a touch in front of KOPS (~5-10mm?)

This brings me to the KOPS question.... After 15 miles I moved my saddle forward meaning my knee is now about 5mm in front of the pedal axle (cranks horizontal). The shop recommended to be ~KOPS or even better to be 5-10mm behind KOPS. But I do not feel overly comfortable with knee 5-10mm behind KOPS. What does it mean? Perhaps my saddle height was too high so I should have lowered it a bit and stayed on KOPS instead of moving saddle 5mm forward of KOPS?


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

*Fine-tuning is good.*

You're doing the exact right thing. After the bike is set up according to the numbers, good riders go out and make small adjustments based on what they feel. Initial fit settings, including KOPS, are no more than starting points.

One thing to consider: after you make a small change, give your body a week or so to adapt to it. Only then will you know if the change you made was good or not. Fiddling with the saddle or the bars every day is counterproductive.

As others have said: enjoy your bike!


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## Lifelover (Jul 8, 2004)

*Yes it is*



acid_rider said:


> if I have a 90mm (and flipped, +7 degrees) stem on my road bicycle and I also have 4 spacers under the stem to raise the handle bar height does it mean the frame is the wrong size or wrong geometry for my body proportions?
> 
> thanks in advance


Very much so!


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## DiRt DeViL (Jun 26, 2005)

I'm on the same boat, a couple of weeks ago I bought my first road bike after riding mtbs since 2000.

The guys at the shop hooked me on an 54cm Orbea Volata. Took it home and after 5 rides I felt too streched out. I consulted with the shop gurus and they suggested a shorter stem with more rise. I went to a 90mmx10d stem and still didn't felt right. Then added 1 small spacer to rise the bars a bit more and felt a lot better.

Last night took the bike to the shop for a fitting. After 2 hours of measurements, climb on, climb of, pedal, adjustments the bike finally felt a lot better.

Now all I need is to ride it for a while and get used to it.


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