After having had one of those super light ITM stems break on me (no injury), I am getting less happy with my whole stem situation. I could go back to my Aluminum ITM Millennium stems (10 degree rise). I was also thinking about switching to the Easton EA70 stems (6 degree rise). The Easton stems are bit lighter (135 grams) than the aluminum Millennium stems (155 grams, I think), but they are no where near as light as the stem that broke (95 grams). For some reason I don’t trust that one anymore.
I am an over the hill, maybe 6.5 hour IM Lake Placid bike split, 155 pound on a good day kind of guy riding a P3.
Any opinions on these stems or others would be appreciated.
3 bikes - 3 syntace stems… they hold, aren’t terribly heavy, and are inexpensve.
Get a Ritchey WCS or Pro stem. They have gotten great reviews, and do exactly what they are supposed to do… Not that expensive either.
wilson
I agree with the Ritchey nod. The WCS stems can be run in an upright or “dropped” position and are extremely light. The price is right.
-SD
“3 bikes - 3 syntace stems… they hold, aren’t terribly heavy, and are inexpensve.”
i ride exclusively syntace megaforce stems. but not for long. i’m getting a new syntace stem, with a 2pc faceplace, not a 2pc stem, mind you, but a faceplace that has a left and right side, each with 2 bolts.
i saw this first at worlds toughest half, and it’s unbelievably light, like what you’d like to get from italy (but one is reticent because of experiences like those recounted in the original post.
my understanding is that this stem will retail for something in the $80 range, and i think you’d have to triple that cost to get a stem of equivalent weight. it’s syntace’s new stem.
and as for a stem safety goes, nobody does this better than syntace. other stem companies send jo klieber their stems for him to test on his machinery.
as i’ve said before on slowtwitch, syntace makes very nice aero bars, but what they REALLY make that leads the industry is stems. it’s both laughable and pathetic that syntace isn’t sold in at least equal quantities as ITM, TTT, cinelli and deda, and it’s only the follow-the-leader myopia of the LBSs that keep these other stem makers ahead of syntace in sales.
“3 bikes - 3 syntace stems… they hold, aren’t terribly heavy, and are inexpensve.”
I take that back… I have 5 - all mega force - all different sizes. I used to swap out my stems part way through the season as I lost weight… managed to avoid gaining this winter.
I don’t mind that it is a well kept secret. They are quick and easy enough to get from tri-zone!
Thanks guys. This helped a lot. ITM is history. One month and counting trying to get the warranty honored. I think they will eventually come through, but I guess they are too busy recovering from the Giro. Life is too short to wait.