Possibly a Dumb Question: Shallow Road bar=Longer Stem?

Triathlon Forum
1

I’m building my wife’s road bike up and I got a great deal on a FSA carbon road bar that’s shallow.

If she usually uses a 90mm stem, would I need to go longer to accommodate the shallow bar?

Thanks!

2

Maybe I’m missing something…wouldn’t a shallower bar bring the hands closer to the seat, meaning a longer stem to equal the same reach/torso position?

-Physiojoe

3

Oops, you’re right.

4

Is the bar shallower in reach or drop (usually shallow refers to drop)? In the case of shallow drop bars, no difference in stem would be needed, since you want to fit for the hoods position (which is independent of drop), and degree of drop in the bar should be based on personal preference and flexibility.

5

I’m building my wife’s road bike up and I got a great deal on a FSA carbon road bar that’s shallow. If she usually uses a 90mm stem, would I need to go longer to accommodate the shallow bar?

Not a dumb question.

Assuming the drops on the new bar are both shallower and shorter, the answer is kind of yes and no.

Depends on how she fits (before you put the new bar on) on the hoods vs. in the drops. If the drops were a stretch for her before and the on-the-hoods position was fine, leave the stem alone. But if the drops were good for her and the on-the-hoods position was a bit more upright than she preferred, then definitely adjust with slightly longer stem.

6

Most shallow bars I’ve seen are shorter in the drop with the same reach as comparable bars. A few years back I bought a women’s specific carbon bar from Specialized that was shorter in both reach and drop, so be aware that option is out there as well.

7

Depends on the bars and how she likes to ride. The 3T ergonovas for ex have both a shorter reach and shallow drop and I did go with a 1cm longer stem to accomodate.

Are you going with the shallow drops because of smaller hands mostly? Does she road/crit race? My guess is she will probably like the slightly shorter reach anyway.

8

I got FSA K-Force compact bars, which looks like they have both the shorter reach and more shallow drops.

She just likes to ride centuries and such. Well, before she got pregnant anyway…

Looks like I’m gonna keep the same stem and see how she likes them.

Thanks for the input, everyone!