Originally Posted by sweetspot

I ride recreational a lot on typical flat gravel roads (often washboard) and most of the time I am on tops to be more comfortable. In more challenging terrain I use hoods but this is max 20% of my ride. I look for the most cushioning possible to avoid neck and shoulder tiredness. I like my gravel bike and I like having a multiple hand position on a drop bar to avoid hand numbness so I don't intend to go back to hybrid bike with classic front suspension especially because of the weight of that solution. From my research and experience I believe that there is two solutions left for me: 650b 50c tires set up tubless or lauf grit fork. The second one is very expensive and will change geometry of my bike quite significantly which concerns me. The first one also presents drawbacks: mainly lower bb height and it is not that good for maintaining speed due to the smaller wheels.

Originally Posted by BluesDawg

I am very happy with my Redshift Shockstop stem, 90mm. I did find that the effect was less than I wanted when I first set it up at the setting recommended for my weight, so I changed it to the next lower combination and it has been fine. I attribute my experience to the fact that I set my bike up with the bars higher relative to the saddle than most people, thus putting less weight on the bars. This effect is even greater when gripping the bar tops as the rider is more upright and the weight that is being applied has less lever effect being closer to the steerer. I would try a softer elastomer combination as well as even lower air pressure in the front tire as long as you don't get sloppy steering or flat tires. Tubeless would help with that.

You may be looking for more shock absorption than this stem can deliver. I find it very effective at taking the edge off of potholes and rocks, but less so with washboard. From what I've experienced and read, I'm not sure anything really works well with washboard.