Notices
General Cycling Discussion Have a cycling related question or comment that doesn't fit in one of the other specialty forums? Drop on in and post in here! When possible, please select the forum above that most fits your post!

Flipped stem?

Old 02-19-21, 08:31 PM
  #1  
mattsl
Junior Member
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Ohio
Posts: 18

Bikes: Gunnar Sport, 69 Raleigh Sports, 73 Raleigh Super Course, 85 Univega Nuovo Sport, 02 Gary Fisher Marlin

Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6 Post(s)
Liked 15 Times in 7 Posts
Flipped stem?

Found at Costco today. Is this what you guys call a flipped stem?


mattsl is offline  
Likes For mattsl:
Old 02-19-21, 08:33 PM
  #2  
sdmc530
Heft On Wheels
 
sdmc530's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: South Dakota
Posts: 3,124

Bikes: Specialized,Cannondale,Argon 18

Mentioned: 13 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 887 Post(s)
Liked 560 Times in 346 Posts
looks like the guy who put them together didn't know what way it was supposed to go so he did both!
sdmc530 is offline  
Likes For sdmc530:
Old 02-19-21, 09:10 PM
  #3  
mikedk13
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Beacon, NY
Posts: 29

Bikes: '21 Trek Domane AL3, '18 Trek FX2

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6 Post(s)
Liked 11 Times in 5 Posts
It kind of hurts my eyes...
mikedk13 is offline  
Old 02-19-21, 09:22 PM
  #4  
Kapusta
Advanced Slacker
 
Kapusta's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 6,187

Bikes: Soma Fog Cutter, Surly Wednesday, Canfielld Tilt

Mentioned: 26 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2749 Post(s)
Liked 2,516 Times in 1,422 Posts
Stems keep getting shorter, this guy just was just future-proofing the bike.

A visionary, really.

Last edited by Kapusta; 02-20-21 at 07:38 AM.
Kapusta is offline  
Likes For Kapusta:
Old 02-19-21, 10:02 PM
  #5  
79pmooney
Senior Member
 
79pmooney's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 12,830

Bikes: (2) ti TiCycles, 2007 w/ triple and 2011 fixed, 1979 Peter Mooney, ~1983 Trek 420 now fixed and ~1973 Raleigh Carlton Competition gravel grinder

Mentioned: 128 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4745 Post(s)
Liked 3,861 Times in 2,510 Posts
mattsl, I see you have only received wise-crack answers. Flipping the stem refers to removing the stem from both the steerer and handlebar, rolling it over so the logo now reads upside down and reinstalling, still pointing ahead. (There are stem makers who use labels with both right-side-up and up-side-down logos so you can flip them and not mess up their artwork.) This is done to change the handlebar height with only a minor change in the horizontal location. Doing this only makes a difference if the angle between the stem and steerer is not 90 degrees and makes little difference with short stems.

In 50 years around bikes, I have seen what you posted maybe 3 or 4 times. Maybe 1 or 2 that weren't by ignorance/accident.
79pmooney is offline  
Old 02-19-21, 11:46 PM
  #6  
veganbikes
Clark W. Griswold
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: ,location, location
Posts: 13,280

Bikes: Foundry Chilkoot Ti W/Ultegra Di2, Salsa Timberjack Ti, Cinelli Mash Work RandoCross Fun Time Machine, 1x9 XT Parts Hybrid, Co-Motion Cascadia, Specialized Langster, Phil Wood Apple VeloXS Frame (w/DA 7400), R+M Supercharger2 Rohloff, Habanero Ti 26

Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4253 Post(s)
Liked 3,866 Times in 2,579 Posts
This is due to Costco, Wal-Mart, Target, and other similar stores that are not bike shops not giving a damn or knowing what to do. People there are paid by the bike so quality and safety are at the absolute bottom of the list. So long as it looks enough like a bike and they can get it on the floor fast that is all that matters. In some cases they are also building grills and patio furniture and other stuff. The bikes also never see a mechanic before they leave and may not see one after which can lead to a very dangerous situation.

It is a shame there is always a constant race to the bottom instead of paying people hourly and teaching them how to do it correctly just let them do whatever and try to pay them as little as possible. Not that a Wally-mart special is going to be a particularly safe bike regardless but at least with a properly trained mechanic with at least some decent enough tools that isn't time crunched and can build properly will put out a potentially better bike shaped object that is less likely to have or cause issues.
veganbikes is offline  
Likes For veganbikes:
Old 02-20-21, 01:20 AM
  #7  
jay4usc
Live Healthy
 
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 417

Bikes: Wabi Classic

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 183 Post(s)
Liked 137 Times in 92 Posts
Originally Posted by mattsl
Found at Costco today. Is this what you guys call a flipped stem?


they should do drug testing with their employees
jay4usc is offline  
Likes For jay4usc:
Old 02-20-21, 07:34 AM
  #8  
dedhed
SE Wis
 
dedhed's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Posts: 10,516

Bikes: '68 Raleigh Sprite, '02 Raleigh C500, '84 Raleigh Gran Prix, '91 Trek 400, 2013 Novara Randonee, 1990 Trek 970

Mentioned: 40 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2731 Post(s)
Liked 3,361 Times in 2,034 Posts
Give them some credit, they got the forks the right direction.
dedhed is offline  
Likes For dedhed:
Old 02-20-21, 07:45 AM
  #9  
Kapusta
Advanced Slacker
 
Kapusta's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 6,187

Bikes: Soma Fog Cutter, Surly Wednesday, Canfielld Tilt

Mentioned: 26 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2749 Post(s)
Liked 2,516 Times in 1,422 Posts
This is what happens when you let Cubists assemble bikes.
Kapusta is offline  
Likes For Kapusta:
Old 02-20-21, 07:52 AM
  #10  
Wanderer
aka Phil Jungels
 
Wanderer's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: North Aurora, IL
Posts: 8,234

Bikes: 08 Specialized Crosstrail Sport, 05 Sirrus Comp

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 202 Post(s)
Liked 86 Times in 60 Posts
Just maybe, it was set up for someone who had an extremely short body or arms?
Wanderer is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 08:31 AM
  #11  
dedhed
SE Wis
 
dedhed's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Posts: 10,516

Bikes: '68 Raleigh Sprite, '02 Raleigh C500, '84 Raleigh Gran Prix, '91 Trek 400, 2013 Novara Randonee, 1990 Trek 970

Mentioned: 40 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2731 Post(s)
Liked 3,361 Times in 2,034 Posts
Originally Posted by Wanderer
Just maybe, it was set up for someone who had an extremely short body or arms?
Looks more like a display bike at the big box store
dedhed is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 10:47 AM
  #12  
crowbike
Newbie
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Corn Field County, Illinois
Posts: 57

Bikes: 2023 Cervelo Soloist 2007 Specialized Tricross 2017 Colnago CRS 2001 Schwinn Homegrown

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10 Post(s)
Liked 65 Times in 22 Posts
https://www.electric-bikes.com/better...mages/Full.JPG
Easy Racer recumbents are designed to use stems in that position.
crowbike is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 10:49 AM
  #13  
mack_turtle
n00b
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 1,397

Bikes: Surly Karate Monkey, Twin Six Standard Rando

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 428 Post(s)
Liked 466 Times in 273 Posts
this is EXTREMELY common at big-box stores where they hire people who have no idea what they are doing to slap bikes together as fast as possible. when you buy a bike from one of these stores, you get what you pay for.
mack_turtle is offline  
Likes For mack_turtle:
Old 02-20-21, 12:10 PM
  #14  
unterhausen
Randomhead
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Happy Valley, Pennsylvania
Posts: 24,364
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4 Post(s)
Liked 3,664 Times in 2,497 Posts
As noted, the fork is the right way around. So are the handlebars. So close.

There was some bike I put together recently where if the fork and stem had been assembled properly, it would have taken no more room in the box and it seemed like it would have been shorter. But bike manufaburers are so used to putting the stem on backwards that they did it anyway.
unterhausen is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 12:19 PM
  #15  
Pratt
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 1,095
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 410 Post(s)
Liked 488 Times in 291 Posts
Originally Posted by jay4usc
they should do drug testing with their employees
Maybe they are already testing drugs on their employees.
Pratt is offline  
Likes For Pratt:
Old 02-20-21, 12:50 PM
  #16  
tomato coupe
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 5,879

Bikes: Colnago, Van Dessel, Factor, Cervelo, Ritchey

Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3906 Post(s)
Liked 7,182 Times in 2,905 Posts
Originally Posted by mattsl
Found at Costco today. Is this what you guys call a flipped stem?
No, that's a flopped stem.
tomato coupe is offline  
Likes For tomato coupe:
Old 02-20-21, 02:42 PM
  #17  
themp
Full Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Raleigh, NC
Posts: 314

Bikes: Specialized Crosstrail

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 119 Post(s)
Liked 58 Times in 44 Posts
Originally Posted by veganbikes
This is due to Costco, Wal-Mart, Target, and other similar stores that are not bike shops not giving a damn or knowing what to do. People there are paid by the bike so quality and safety are at the absolute bottom of the list. So long as it looks enough like a bike and they can get it on the floor fast that is all that matters. In some cases they are also building grills and patio furniture and other stuff. The bikes also never see a mechanic before they leave and may not see one after which can lead to a very dangerous situation.

It is a shame there is always a constant race to the bottom instead of paying people hourly and teaching them how to do it correctly just let them do whatever and try to pay them as little as possible. Not that a Wally-mart special is going to be a particularly safe bike regardless but at least with a properly trained mechanic with at least some decent enough tools that isn't time crunched and can build properly will put out a potentially better bike shaped object that is less likely to have or cause issues.
My first bicycle was from Walmart and I rode it all summer/winter no problems. By Spring time I was ready to buy a better bicycle. I went to my local LBS and bought a $1000 dollar bicycle. On my first ride it would not shift into the smallest chain ring all the time. Five miles in, the handle bars released from the stem(it was never tighten down correctly). I almost crashed. I took the bicycle back and returned it. Went to another LBS and had success. So, mistakes are made and it can happen to any business. After the fact I brought this up with the mechanic at my new LBS and he said that the Spring rush was on and many bicycles had to be put together and they usually hire people off the street to help in the assembly.
themp is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 03:52 PM
  #18  
Kapusta
Advanced Slacker
 
Kapusta's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2017
Posts: 6,187

Bikes: Soma Fog Cutter, Surly Wednesday, Canfielld Tilt

Mentioned: 26 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2749 Post(s)
Liked 2,516 Times in 1,422 Posts
Originally Posted by crowbike
https://www.electric-bikes.com/better...mages/Full.JPG
Easy Racer recumbents are designed to use stems in that position.
I am sure this was the source of the confusion..
Kapusta is offline  
Old 02-20-21, 04:34 PM
  #19  
veganbikes
Clark W. Griswold
 
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: ,location, location
Posts: 13,280

Bikes: Foundry Chilkoot Ti W/Ultegra Di2, Salsa Timberjack Ti, Cinelli Mash Work RandoCross Fun Time Machine, 1x9 XT Parts Hybrid, Co-Motion Cascadia, Specialized Langster, Phil Wood Apple VeloXS Frame (w/DA 7400), R+M Supercharger2 Rohloff, Habanero Ti 26

Mentioned: 54 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4253 Post(s)
Liked 3,866 Times in 2,579 Posts
Originally Posted by themp
My first bicycle was from Walmart and I rode it all summer/winter no problems. By Spring time I was ready to buy a better bicycle. I went to my local LBS and bought a $1000 dollar bicycle. On my first ride it would not shift into the smallest chain ring all the time. Five miles in, the handle bars released from the stem(it was never tighten down correctly). I almost crashed. I took the bicycle back and returned it. Went to another LBS and had success. So, mistakes are made and it can happen to any business. After the fact I brought this up with the mechanic at my new LBS and he said that the Spring rush was on and many bicycles had to be put together and they usually hire people off the street to help in the assembly.
Yes issues can happen. That is why the bikes are generally exit tuned and at least our shop and other shops I have worked at have offered a tune up within the first few weeks or first month or so.
veganbikes is offline  
Likes For veganbikes:
Old 02-22-21, 02:25 PM
  #20  
mack_turtle
n00b
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 1,397

Bikes: Surly Karate Monkey, Twin Six Standard Rando

Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 428 Post(s)
Liked 466 Times in 273 Posts
Originally Posted by themp
My first bicycle was from Walmart and I rode it all summer/winter no problems. By Spring time I was ready to buy a better bicycle. I went to my local LBS and bought a $1000 dollar bicycle. On my first ride it would not shift into the smallest chain ring all the time. Five miles in, the handle bars released from the stem(it was never tighten down correctly). I almost crashed. I took the bicycle back and returned it. Went to another LBS and had success. So, mistakes are made and it can happen to any business. After the fact I brought this up with the mechanic at my new LBS and he said that the Spring rush was on and many bicycles had to be put together and they usually hire people off the street to help in the assembly.
That sucks. however, it's extremely rare to have a bike shop that allows bikes assembled so poorly leave their property that way. bike shops like that would get a poor reputation and go out of business in less than a year. big box stores don't care because they make money selling so many other things. people expect bikes to be crappy when they pay minimal prices for them. if you got a bike that held up that well for an extended period, consider yourself lucky.
mack_turtle is offline  
Old 02-23-21, 07:35 PM
  #21  
RandomDesign
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2020
Location: San Diego, CA
Posts: 69

Bikes: 2021 BMC Teammachine SLR Three

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 24 Post(s)
Liked 57 Times in 20 Posts
Another possibility is that they took it out of the box and didn't prep it - some bikes ship with the handlebars reversed so they fit in the box better. My Aventon Cordoba came that way, part of the setup was to flip the bars around.
RandomDesign is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.