quill stem reach variation: ITM > Cinelli > 3ttt (new data added)

[wallymann]

if you're persnickety about position like me and your classic steel rig needs a slight tweak in reach, here's addl info to inform your stem selection given varying availability in the market at any given time.

i have 3 classic quill stems: ITM Professional, Cinelli XA, 3ttt Record 84. all 3 are spec'd @ 130mm. i fitted them all on 1 handlebar at the same time, lined up the quill axes to be parallel and lo...all 3 are different reach despite the same spec.

reach in descending order is: ITM > Cinelli > 3ttt. the ITM is roughly 5mm longer than the 3ttt and the Cinelli falls between albeit closer to the ITM.

i can post up some pics if anyones interested, but there it is.

[Ken Robb]

chances are good that a Nitto would be different from all the others too.

[hankchong]

Are they all the same angle?

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[Black Dog]

some things never change in the bike industry. 130mm is not 130mm. Perhaps the definition of the word 'standard' has been lost for many more years than we thought. :roll eyes:

It is a good thing that they have sorted this all out...especially with bottom brackets.

[Black Dog]

Are they all the same angle?

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True enough. If the 'standard' was the horizontal distance from the centre of the handle bars to the centre of the fixing bolt then the exertion of the stems would be different if they were different angles.

[numbskull]

chances are good that a Nitto would be different from all the others too.

A Nitto will be about 5-7mm longer than its stated size when compared to a Cinelli 1a of the same size. A 90mm Nitto is closer to a 100mm Cinelli rather than a 90mm Cinelli. Nittos also seem the best made of the bunch.

[wallymann]

Are they all the same angle?

Yep. All the nominal 73deg "standard" angle. In practice the 3ttt is more like 71-72deg.

In any case the reach comparison was equalized for angle, with all stems mounted on same bar at same time -- we're chasing *effective* reach.

True enough. If the 'standard' was the horizontal distance from the centre of the handle bars to the centre of the fixing bolt then the exertion of the stems would be different if they were different angles.

As noted, any differences in angle/rise are trivial...even a 2deg diff in rise yields <1mm change in *effective* reach so meaningful differences in reach are due to the reach actually being different.

some things never change in the bike industry....It is a good thing that they have sorted this all out...especially with bottom brackets.

Love it!!!

[wallymann]

for grins i added a semi-modern TIG'd 3ttt stem to the mix and it measures up slightly longer than the ITM!

so now the reach hierarchy for these 130mm stems is:

3ttt Pro-Chrome (tig) > ITM Professional (forged) > Cinelli XA (forged) > 3ttt Record-84 (forged)

and to highlight my nuttiness, here's my current spares inventory of quill stems:

http://brown-snout.com/cycling/misc/quill-stem-craziness.jpg