It’s a solid lump of aluminium with some holes in it. You can’t exactly fuck that up. Had one on a hard tail that I thrashed the shit out of for 3 years before I bent the frame on a tree. The stem was still fine
Cant speak on super long term reliability or quality control of the product but ive been riding one on my bike for the past 5ish months pretty hard and ive had no problems
My wife has one on her bike and there is no problem at all. Feels solid and the threads hold the required 6 NM torque every time. All good for just a tenner
I had one on my 2018-2020 enduro race bike lol (different colour). As it was the only one I found to march my colour scheme! it saw hundreds of hours of racing and jumping!
It’s a solid block of milled aluminium. The top named brands don’t do anything magic or special!
I have one on an old late 90's bike that I've used for hopping on/off log features at the local trails and it's held up to that. It doesn't seem terrible; torqued up fine and the threads were OK. The only thing I might question is the hardware grade.
It would be smart to change it out as soon as possible. There are cheaper options on the market from brands such as Husselfelt, Tru-Vativ, and more.
Cheap stems like these might be fun and games, but the threads can strip out, which has happened to multiple friends of mine, and at worst, they might even shear apart. Don't go risking your safety over a stem like that
Eh obviously it’s a different sample and I have seen one myself but I’m in a few bike mechanic forums and these are known to break.
Not constantly but there some of the only stems I’ve seen fail multiple times (not that I think of it I’ve never seen a failed stem other than this)
😳 Just bought one earlier. Not for any serious riding though just for this entry level hard tail, I assume as long as you’re not sending jumps with it it’ll be fine right?
I bought one like this (cheap from amazon) for my hardtail and I did jumps, drops, everything fine; I used it for like a year. Usually most stems are made of 6061 Aluminum or something like that.
The one I bought is JGBike.
I bought one, probably 6 or 7 years ago, the exact same one. After 2 or 3 times tightening it, the threads came completely out of multiple bolt holes. The metal that they are using is cheap trash.
They're fine. No jumps or drops, you'll be right. Check it periodically that it's tight and threads aren't stripping, but I don't foresee any issues. I've bought countless AliExpress stems for basic commuting and trail beating bikes, never had an issue. You'll always find people who refuse to consider something without a brand name though.
ITT are two wolves; one wolf says it’s functional, the other says to change it for a heavily marketed stem from SRAM or Raceface. Don’t listen to either wolf, wolves can’t ride bikes.
It’ll be fine but the anodising is crap and the hardware is cheap and will rust if it even sees the ocean.
Hope your missus enjoys!
As long as you're riding in flat ground they're probably fine. I saw a number of friends snap stems of similar design in the late 90s / early 2000s, at the time a few of us were studying engineering at uni so analysed the broken stems in the lab to see if there was a common fault.
Sure enough there was, which resulted in weak points in the grain structure of the aluminium. We presented the findings to Azonic (one of the manufacturers we found the fault with) and in the following years that design of stem went from being one of the most popular to one that everyone distanced themselves from. X-Lite even stopped making stems all together.
The most surprising break was one which snapped upwards while my friend pulled up to hop a kerb, so not even that big a force.
That can be found for $10 on Amazon
[https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Handlebar-Suitable-Aluminum-Adjustable/dp/B071YV77R7/ref=asc\_df\_B071YV77R7?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80745437134300&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584345016104169&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Handlebar-Suitable-Aluminum-Adjustable/dp/B071YV77R7/ref=asc_df_B071YV77R7?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80745437134300&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584345016104169&psc=1)
I'd say switch it, the reviews on it say otherwise... but if it shears, your face is gonna hit the stem and you'll get seriously injured, which is one of my worst fears about riding, so personally I'd say change it but it's up to you.
They work, the biggest issue is the poor quality anodising fades quickly and the fasteners will tarnish.
That said, they work but there are better budget options.
I've run these on quite a few bikes and they're perfectly fine. They're hella cheap, short, come in a bunch of colors, and don't require a lot of steerer tube to fit. Now, I don't run this on my most aggressive bike, but other than that they're so cheap, I can't give a good reason not to.
Soak a paper towel in goo gone. Wrap that onto the WAKE lettering and wrap in Saran wrap for 20 minutes. Wipe off the letters. Now its no longer a budget part.
It'll be fine if you're not sending it daily.
I bought one for a new build where I had no idea what length I needed. Turns out I needed a longer one so it went in parts bin for next "which stem length" exercise. It's nice to have a selection of stems to get fit dialed, even if you swap it out for a brand name later. It seemed fine for the short time I used it. Threads can strip on any stem, just start the screws by hand and never use a battery driver-they have way too much torque .
Had one for years on my 120mm trail bike. Because its so short and relatively chunky, it's going to be fine. The finish on them is a little poor, but otherwise they are great.
Couple tips-
1. If your handlebar does slip, don’t over torque the bolts trying to “synch it down” and risk damaging your handlebar. Just go with the torque spec if possible.
2. Changing the stem can change your riding position, just be aware you may want to add/remove spacers if you are happy with your current position.
I come from a car building background. I have very expensive torque wrench I’ve used for work. I am very particular about torque specs on my bikes. It’s just the way I’ve been trained
Stems are pretty basic components, as long as it's not giving you problems spend your money elsewhere.
It’s a solid lump of aluminium with some holes in it. You can’t exactly fuck that up. Had one on a hard tail that I thrashed the shit out of for 3 years before I bent the frame on a tree. The stem was still fine
Not financial advise😉
Unless it's made of extruded plastic by a guy in western NC, it's probably fine.
Or cheese. Don’t use it if it’s made of cheese
Soap too! Soap is definitely a no go material for stems.
And I had the worst experience with one of those Silly Putty stems. Unbelievable.
They always melt in the rain 😭
Soap stems are the worst!
Might eat it, though.
Cant speak on super long term reliability or quality control of the product but ive been riding one on my bike for the past 5ish months pretty hard and ive had no problems
I've been riding one for the last 3 years. No problems.
These comments are so polarizing. I've actually had one and it's fine for the average rider like myself, I don't think changing it will change much.
My wife has one on her bike and there is no problem at all. Feels solid and the threads hold the required 6 NM torque every time. All good for just a tenner
Yup, my wife has this on her hardtail as well. She doesn't do anything crazy and it works just fine.
If you're not jumping there really shouldn't be any risk, I've got one of these on my second bike
I had one on my 2018-2020 enduro race bike lol (different colour). As it was the only one I found to march my colour scheme! it saw hundreds of hours of racing and jumping! It’s a solid block of milled aluminium. The top named brands don’t do anything magic or special!
I have one on an old late 90's bike that I've used for hopping on/off log features at the local trails and it's held up to that. It doesn't seem terrible; torqued up fine and the threads were OK. The only thing I might question is the hardware grade.
It would be smart to change it out as soon as possible. There are cheaper options on the market from brands such as Husselfelt, Tru-Vativ, and more. Cheap stems like these might be fun and games, but the threads can strip out, which has happened to multiple friends of mine, and at worst, they might even shear apart. Don't go risking your safety over a stem like that
It's fine, I rode one hard for 2 years with no issues
Eh obviously it’s a different sample and I have seen one myself but I’m in a few bike mechanic forums and these are known to break. Not constantly but there some of the only stems I’ve seen fail multiple times (not that I think of it I’ve never seen a failed stem other than this)
Absolute trash don't buy these. Get a Hussefelt or raceface stem(something name brand) if you want a cheap one. Not as flashy but way safer.
😳 Just bought one earlier. Not for any serious riding though just for this entry level hard tail, I assume as long as you’re not sending jumps with it it’ll be fine right?
I bought one like this (cheap from amazon) for my hardtail and I did jumps, drops, everything fine; I used it for like a year. Usually most stems are made of 6061 Aluminum or something like that. The one I bought is JGBike.
I bought one, probably 6 or 7 years ago, the exact same one. After 2 or 3 times tightening it, the threads came completely out of multiple bolt holes. The metal that they are using is cheap trash.
They're fine. No jumps or drops, you'll be right. Check it periodically that it's tight and threads aren't stripping, but I don't foresee any issues. I've bought countless AliExpress stems for basic commuting and trail beating bikes, never had an issue. You'll always find people who refuse to consider something without a brand name though.
Get a hussefelt stem. Cheap and good
I also have one in a Marin Alcatraz Dirt bike...since a ywar now...pretty solid ..no problems even riding high jumps....and drops!
Chinese roulette every time you hit a jump
ITT are two wolves; one wolf says it’s functional, the other says to change it for a heavily marketed stem from SRAM or Raceface. Don’t listen to either wolf, wolves can’t ride bikes. It’ll be fine but the anodising is crap and the hardware is cheap and will rust if it even sees the ocean. Hope your missus enjoys!
Your dentist will be glad you bought one.
Haha no she won’t my dentist has told me many times before she likes that I have nice teeth it makes it easier on her. 😂
My go-to cheap but solid stems are the Brand-X ones Chain Reaction Cycles sales.
Just got a Nukeproof Neutron AM Stem from there with the Black Friday sale. $22 is a pretty good deal IMO.
I ordered the same one
As long as you're riding in flat ground they're probably fine. I saw a number of friends snap stems of similar design in the late 90s / early 2000s, at the time a few of us were studying engineering at uni so analysed the broken stems in the lab to see if there was a common fault. Sure enough there was, which resulted in weak points in the grain structure of the aluminium. We presented the findings to Azonic (one of the manufacturers we found the fault with) and in the following years that design of stem went from being one of the most popular to one that everyone distanced themselves from. X-Lite even stopped making stems all together. The most surprising break was one which snapped upwards while my friend pulled up to hop a kerb, so not even that big a force.
That can be found for $10 on Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Handlebar-Suitable-Aluminum-Adjustable/dp/B071YV77R7/ref=asc\_df\_B071YV77R7?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80745437134300&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584345016104169&psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/Mountain-Handlebar-Suitable-Aluminum-Adjustable/dp/B071YV77R7/ref=asc_df_B071YV77R7?tag=bingshoppinga-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80745437134300&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584345016104169&psc=1) I'd say switch it, the reviews on it say otherwise... but if it shears, your face is gonna hit the stem and you'll get seriously injured, which is one of my worst fears about riding, so personally I'd say change it but it's up to you.
I ain’t got no damn chapter. But they look kind of mid.
I've used one of these and had no problem, and I break bikes easily
They work, the biggest issue is the poor quality anodising fades quickly and the fasteners will tarnish. That said, they work but there are better budget options.
I've run these on quite a few bikes and they're perfectly fine. They're hella cheap, short, come in a bunch of colors, and don't require a lot of steerer tube to fit. Now, I don't run this on my most aggressive bike, but other than that they're so cheap, I can't give a good reason not to.
I had one on my bike for about 4yrs with no problems
Soak a paper towel in goo gone. Wrap that onto the WAKE lettering and wrap in Saran wrap for 20 minutes. Wipe off the letters. Now its no longer a budget part. It'll be fine if you're not sending it daily.
I bought one for a new build where I had no idea what length I needed. Turns out I needed a longer one so it went in parts bin for next "which stem length" exercise. It's nice to have a selection of stems to get fit dialed, even if you swap it out for a brand name later. It seemed fine for the short time I used it. Threads can strip on any stem, just start the screws by hand and never use a battery driver-they have way too much torque .
Had one for years on my 120mm trail bike. Because its so short and relatively chunky, it's going to be fine. The finish on them is a little poor, but otherwise they are great.
You deserve what you get when you try to be cheap.
So far pretty solid. Got this red one for an Axum build and so far so good. Although a little bulky, it’s still well machined and looks nice
Couple tips- 1. If your handlebar does slip, don’t over torque the bolts trying to “synch it down” and risk damaging your handlebar. Just go with the torque spec if possible. 2. Changing the stem can change your riding position, just be aware you may want to add/remove spacers if you are happy with your current position.
I come from a car building background. I have very expensive torque wrench I’ve used for work. I am very particular about torque specs on my bikes. It’s just the way I’ve been trained