School me on Giant stems

jkbrwn · #1 01-23-2024, 04:27 PM

Hi PL,

I am stuck. I bought a new TCR, but the reach is a teeny bit too long for me so I ordered a 90mm 'Giant OD SL2 stem' as the spec sheet said I had a 'Giant Contact SL Stem' and I just assumed they were one and the same as I couldn't find a product listing for a 'Contact SL Stem' anywhere.

Giant are sold out of all stems so I had to order this from Taiwan. Was excited for it to turn up but lo and behold the stem doesn't line up with the silly proprietary spacers - not helped by the fact that there's a shim in there for 1 1/8" steerer tubes. It doesn't look at all safe.

From the shape of it, it looks as thought the Contact SL Aerolight will match the spacer shape but I am unsure. Not that its currently in stock anyway...

Can anyone confirm? It is this TCR, for reference: https://www.giant-bicycles.com/us/tc...o-compact-2022

Ignoring the little space below the top bearing, you can see how neatly the stem should sits against the spacers.

fourflys · #2 01-23-2024, 04:30 PM

I had the same issue when I went to replace the stem on my Revolt (same spacers/stem shape).. maybe Baron Blubba can shed some light..

jkbrwn · #3 01-23-2024, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fourflys

I had the same issue when I went to replace the stem on my Revolt (same spacers/stem shape).. maybe Baron Blubba can shed some light..

Indeed. Waiting for him to chime in! I have some shorter reach bars that I am fitting when some bar tape shows up, but ideally I wanted to reduce the reach by 15mm (10 from the stem and 5 from the bars) while maintaining the current stack where my stem is.

fourflys · #4 01-23-2024, 04:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jkbrwn

Indeed. Waiting for him to chime in! I have some shorter reach bars that I am fitting when some bar tape shows up, but ideally I wanted to reduce the reach by 15mm (10 from the stem and 5 from the bars) while maintaining the current stack where my stem is.

same issue I have with the Revolt.. I smack myself in the head for not fully realizing Giants have some reach on them.. plus Gravel bikes are weird anyway with the longer TTs and shorter stems uses (thus the weird reach numbers)..

jkbrwn · #5 01-23-2024, 04:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fourflys

same issue I have with the Revolt.. I smack myself in the head for not fully realizing Giants have some reach on them.. plus Gravel bikes are weird anyway with the longer TTs and shorter stems uses (thus the weird reach numbers)..

Yeah, for sure. I knew it was longer, and its a relatively racy fit (versus a Defy), but it was also much cheaper than any Defy currently offered, so I went for it. I just didn't think finding a stem would be this challenging.

prototoast · #6 01-23-2024, 04:46 PM

Giant makes a lot of almost great bikes, but their use of proprietary parts is a huge pain in the butt. I agreed to help my friend refurbish a 2017 TCX, and it's been the biggest headache I've ever dealt with. Took me months just to source a replacement headset bearing.

jkbrwn · #7 01-23-2024, 05:00 PM

Now that I'm actually paying attention, seems like this is all that is required:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/20212893161...r=502121119653

That's annoying. Half the price of the one I ordered....

fourflys · #8 01-23-2024, 05:14 PM

I agree, that does look like it would work..

Baron Blubba · #9 01-23-2024, 05:24 PM

You need a stem that was spec’d on any TCR from model year 2021-2024.
Otherwise you’ll get the gap you’ve got and never sleep well again.
What length do you need? Chances are I have something, maybe even an SLR.

jkbrwn · #10 01-23-2024, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baron Blubba

You need a stem that was spec’d on any TCR from model year 2021-2024.
Otherwise you’ll get the gap you’ve got and never sleep well again.
What length do you need? Chances are I have something, maybe even an SLR.

I'll PM you.

Baron Blubba · #11 01-23-2024, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fourflys

same issue I have with the Revolt.. I smack myself in the head for not fully realizing Giants have some reach on them.. plus Gravel bikes are weird anyway with the longer TTs and shorter stems uses (thus the weird reach numbers)..

The Revolt has a unique geometry. Once you figure out your stem length, it works great. Stem length and bike size on that bike are very specific to different body geometries --torso, arm, leg length.