Stems- carbon or aluminum?
 

so I will probably eventually go to a 40cm bar on my Anderson from the 42 currently on there.. probably go with a carbon bar (maybe Specialized) due to trying to cut down on road buzz (I think that makes sense, right?)..

so, the question is if there is any reason to get a carbon stem other than cool points? bike has external routing, so no need for fanciness there.. would a carbon stem make enough of a difference vs the increased price?

Additionally, what are folk's thoughts on using a set of bars with a little bit of flair on a road bike?

did a search on here and Google (searching "Paceline forum") and found nothing of consequence.. ;)

I think what you wrap your bars with and how you wrap them will make more of a difference than your choice of stem material.

Easton EA 90 stem. Alloy, I think the hardware is Ti or stainless because it's non-magnetic, and it comes with a computer mount. I have one on my gravel bike so I'd say it is durable.

Aluminum stem. kalloy 7 is basically the same weight as length and costs less than $30. It isn't an impressive brand or model, but it is consistently light and reliable. I have read comments that it flexes too much. I am 6'5 225 and only wish I produced enough power to be annoyed with the flex of a 110mm stem.

As for bars with flare, I plan to buy some bars with 4-6deg of flare for my main road bike. The Ritchey bars on the bike now have a bend I love, but a slight bit of flare would be nice for getting the ends out of the way when I am holding the hooks.

I like a little flare with my bars, road or gravel.

I don't think you'd notice much difference between carbon and aluminum stems and handlebars unless one of the carbon ones is specifically designed to offer that.

I'm only familiar with the Lauf handlebar that's designed to dampen buzz, but there may well be others.

Honestly, if you want a little shock absorption with your stem and handlebars, you're probably better off going vintage with a quill stem and 26.0mm bars (or even 25.4mm bars). The smaller diameters are going to make more of a difference than materials. Or is the Anderson a 1.125" steerer?

I don't really notice a large benefit or much of a difference from my stem material. I have bikes with carbon, aluminum and titanium. I believe the titanium stem has a little more flex built in than the other two.

My current favorite bar is the Whisky Spano. It has some great hand positions, is lightweight and flexes under load enough to dampen vibrations and smooth out the ride.

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The material makes no difference near as I can tell, and aluminum is as light or lighter than carbon in this application, and much cheaper.

Carbon handlebars might make a difference. After installing them on my road bike I feel fairly isolated from the chip seal road buzz - but again, I can't say that it's actually the bars and not the new tape. At least with carbon you can get more interesting shapes and save close to 100g for the cost.

Kalloy Uno for sure, make sure you get the 7075 version, the cheap ones are 6000 series aluminum. For bars I ran the Whisky 6f on my Firefly and liked the small amount of flare. Fave bars these days are Zipp XPLR, more flare but all below the shifters so they aren't angled.

I think a carbon stem will result in a lot less bank account buzz.

Enve says their carbon stem does this and it must be true:

“Over rough roads the carbon fiber laminate helps absorb vibration and reduce hand and upper body fatigue”

I owned one and do not agree. I can’t tell a difference in bars either. I owned a Lauf and maybe it did but didn’t like the shape.

I like a little flare, the zipp xplr bar is my go to.

let 2 more psi out of your tires.

To me, a lot of parts make sense to be made out of carbon fiber. A crankset for example. Why Shimano is holding the line trying to make their stupid bonded hollow aluminum cranks work when carbon fiber is working well for everyone else is a mystery.

That said, I dont think a stem is a good application of CF. Much more expensive than a good alloy stem, and I dont think there is much, if any weight to be saved.

I agree with this.

More effective changes in ride comfort:
lower tire pressure
wider tires
new bar tape
thicker bar tape

Modern tubeless tires sized to allow 60psi or less will do more good than anything else.

No rigid stem regardless of material would have any perceptible difference or provide any damping benefits.

To get any damping, you would need something like a Redshift stem. Dave pal wrote a good review here.

https://forums.thepaceline.net/showt...ft#post3237292

thanks all!

I figured a carbon stem would just mainly be for cafe style points.. ;)

I'm strongly considering the Specialized Roval Terra bars if I want some flare, or the S-Works shallow bend carbon bars if no flare.. I can get a great deal on either of those (almost down to alum version prices)..

Thoughts (FWIW, I tend to like a more compact bar as I have smaller hands and do not like a large drop)-
https://www.specialized.com/us/en/ro...=330154-205517
https://www.specialized.com/us/en/s-...=219814-130380