mikosh

A friend has a bike with a Ride Right Comfort System stem. She likes to ride with the handlebars in their highest position but as she rides the stem slowly lowers the handlebars. I've tried tightening the large hex bolt on the front of the stem but it seems to be as tight as it will go. Is there any other adjustment to prevent this happening? If the stem is worn out and must be replaced I can't see any method of saving the handlebars; they appear to be an integral part of the whole stem system. any help or comments would be much appreciated. I have a picture of the stem and handlebars but being a newbie I'm not able to add it to my post.
Thanks,
Mike

veganbikes

Never heard of that stem but from my search on google it looks to be some adjustable quill stem. If everything is properly torqued and it is still coming loose it might just be worn out internally. Certainly I would show us some pictures (assuming of course you are interested in bikes and talking about them otherwise the aforementioned google is probably the better bet) and we can take a look. I have a feeling there is a bolt underneath the stem that will loosen the handlebars so you could take those off if the rest of the stem is gone.

mikosh

Thanks for the reply. The only pictures and information I could find using Google were in this Youtube video. I'm currently restricted from putting the whole URL.This is the exact stem + handlebars my friend has.
/watch?v=119AJ6gtW4M

hokiefyd 

He eventually gets to the stem at about 2:00 in...

hokiefyd 

If this is like many rubber suspension bushings, it's possible that the rubber has deteriorated, allowing the bushing center to fully spin inside the shell. If that's the case, then there's likely no fix beyond replacing the stem. In theory, it might could be rebuilt, but I think it'd be next to impossible to find any service parts.

mikosh

Thanks for your thoughts. The one remaining question, I can't see how to remove the handlebars easily. The top of the stem curves around them and is fastened with a hex bolt. It looks like I'd have to remove the bolt and pry open the stem or break it.

hokiefyd 

With this style of stem, you must remove the controls (grips, brake lever, shifter, bell, etc.) from one side of the handlebar, loosen the one hex pinch bolt, then slide the handlebar out of the stem. Many modern stems use a two- or four-bolt face cap which allows you to mount a handlebar to the stem without sliding it through the hole. But older style stems like this require you to slide the bar out one side.

Andrew R Stewart 

This stem has a single bolt handle bar clamp, just like millions of stems made over the many decades before current time. Nothing unique or special. To remove the bars from the stem one loosens the bar clamp bolt, removes one side's grip and controls then slides the bars out of the stem. Sometimes the controls remaining on the bar's, and it's still attached cables, prove to be too short to allow the bars complete removal so those cables or controls will need removal too. To remove the stem from the fork/steerer the wedge draw up bolt is loosened, often needing a small tap on it's top to break loose the wedge inside.

I strongly suggest replacing the stem with a solid design, no hinge, suspension or angle adjustability. We see a lot of these two piece stems and a fair portion are worn to the point that the hinge can't be completely tightened. Even a poor lawyer can make a case for an unsafe situation if the bars move about. Andy

mikosh

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate your replies. I'll convince her that this stem has to be replaced with a new solid one piece.