Steering Stems:
Posted: Wed Nov 13, 2002 8:09 am
I don't know how everyone makes their steering stems, but if you didn't already know it, the stock stem is made of 4130 Chromoly, which is WAY better than any of the stock stems made by any of the other factories. In fact, it makes buying a replacement stem kind of pointless if you were just wanting a different material hoping to get something stronger. There is another thing to consider as well. Remember that any vehicle (including your quad) is designed as a total package. How each part works has a huge effect on the other parts of the vehicle. The stock steering stem on the Cannondale is the same way. It was designed for an exact load and purpose, and to change that can have negative effects on other parts of the quad. What I am saying is that it would certainly be possible to make a stem that would never bend as you would like, but unfortunately it would transmit those loads to other parts of the quad like the frame. That means you could destroy a frame to save a stem. I know what I would rather replace. If they designed the stem and built it out of a certain size chromoly, then to change that in an effort to make it stronger could be a very costly mistake. Always protect the expensvie parts (in this case the frame) with the cheaper ones (the stem). Just my thoughts.