# Are there any Specialized stem spacer guidelines?



## trekroadie1.5 (Oct 20, 2010)

I'm going to be building an Allez Race frame up this winter but I can't find any guidelines on what Specialized requires for stem spacers. I'm only asking because I now own a Trek Madone and Trek states you must have at least 5mm of spacer under the stem with an aluminum steerer and I believe 5mm under and 5mm over on a carbon steerer.

I can only find where Specialized says you shouldn't have any spacers above the stem once you are fitted correctly to the bike.

Do they have a minimum requirement below the stem for safety reasons?


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Below is an answer to a similar question submitted to Spec:

Tarmac SL4 Pro - Slam the Stem?
Hank Jan 17, 2013 07:56PM PST

Can you slam the stem on a Tarmac SL4 Pro, or is a spacer required between the top cap and stem?

Thanks for answering these questions. It's very much appreciated.


1 Community Answers
Best Answer
Robert Lofgran Jan 18, 2013 09:45AM PST

There should be the headset top conical spacer or cap, but other than that you can run the stem without any other spacers.


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## roadworthy (Nov 11, 2011)

Not really. Even the whole spacers above the stem not being permissible can be debated. Most of the bikes I have owned I have ridden with spacers above the stem and my Roubaix is no exception.
The whole issue of permissible spacers and stress concentrations and failure probability is very rider specific. If you are 170 lbs and athletic, not much to worry about. If you are 250 and can bench press 300 lbs, then you are a candidate to be focused on spacer stack. Specialized has to design their bikes for a broad spectrum of riders and why they take the precautions they do within their guidelines.
HTH.


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## tednugent (Apr 26, 2010)

There's no spacer in between the stem and top cap on my Secteur...

maybe I would go check out a Spec dealer and check out their bikes to confirm what it comes from the factory


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## trekroadie1.5 (Oct 20, 2010)

Thanks for the replies. One more question. I'm pretty sure it won't be an issue, but is it ok to use as Zipp Service Course SL stem on a carbon steerer? I've seen pictures of pro bikes with this combo, but I was reading that Specialized prefers you to use a stem with more surface area.


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## roadworthy (Nov 11, 2011)

trekroadie1.5 said:


> Thanks for the replies. One more question. I'm pretty sure it won't be an issue, but is it ok to use as Zipp Service Course SL stem on a carbon steerer? I've seen pictures of pro bikes with this combo, but I was reading that Specialized prefers you to use a stem with more surface area.


You'll be fine with the Zipp stem. Zipp is a quality mfr and does a lot of development testing to stay in business and out of court. Further there is nothing inherently weak about Specialized carbon steerers. If anything, they are more vigilant than other bike mfr's having lived through a recall with some carbon steerer failures. I like the Spesh expander btw...it is a good reinforcement to the ID of the steerer. Most important thing is stem bolt torque. If you are ham fisted or don't know what 5 N-m's feels like, then use a torque wrench. Too tight or too loose stem steerer bolts will increase stress on the steerer.
A suggestion is...if using an alloy or carbon stem, always use carbon paste on your handlebar clamp. This promotes high resistance to handlebar twisting when sprinting in the drops with to spec stem clamp face bolt torque. Also recommended to use a torque wrench and incrementally increase torque for each bolt until you hit spec for even clamp load.


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## trekroadie1.5 (Oct 20, 2010)

roadworthy said:


> You'll be fine with the Zipp stem. Zipp is a quality mfr and does a lot of development testing to stay in business and out of court. Further there is nothing inherently weak about Specialized carbon steerers. If anything, they are more vigilant than other bike mfr's having lived through a recall with some carbon steerer failures. I like the Spesh expander btw...it is a good reinforcement to the ID of the steerer. Most important thing is stem bolt torque. If you are ham fisted or don't know what 5 N-m's feels like, then use a torque wrench. Too tight or too loose stem steerer bolts will increase stress on the steerer.
> A suggestion is...if using an alloy or carbon stem, always use carbon paste on your handlebar clamp. This promotes high resistance to handlebar twisting when sprinting in the drops with to spec stem clamp face bolt torque. Also recommended to use a torque wrench and incrementally increase torque for each bolt until you hit spec for even clamp load.


Thanks for the advice. I work in the auto industry so I'm a firm believer in torque wrenches. On my last build I used a torque wrench for everything. I can't wait to start my new project.


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