Don’t worry, frame is fine. You need to replace your stem. It can be a job for a workshop. Looks old, can be seized. But definitely doable.
racefacexc on
As it sits, quite fucked. But, It’s an easy fix and shouldn’t be much $ relatively speaking. You may have gotten very lucky if the failure is a result of what I think it is from what I see in the picture.
The fix should only require replacement of the quill stem. Everything on the stem (handlebars, cable stops) should be able to move over to a new stem. If you get a new stem locally, bring the old one with you and they should be able to make sure the new one will work. If you order one online, make sure to get one with the same handlebar clamp diameter. My guess is 25.4mm but that’s just a guess based on contextual clues going by what I can see in your picture.
It looks like the broken stem is extended far past the minimum insertion line, assuming the marking/line visible in your picture is just that. If so, assuming your didn’t crash and get hurt when this stem failed, you got lucky! If you get a new stem and you want your handlebars up higher, get a stem that will accommodate this instead of trying to only partly insert the stem into the steerer tube. Those minimum insertion lines really are a hard limit, not a suggestion.
jeffbell on
As other people have pointed out, it’s mainly just a matter of replacing it with the right size stem. You will have to get the stem off the handlebar too.
One other lesson from this is that there is usually a minimum insertion mark around the stem. The stem is prone to breaking if extended further than that, which might have been the case here.
3 Comments
Don’t worry, frame is fine. You need to replace your stem. It can be a job for a workshop. Looks old, can be seized. But definitely doable.
As it sits, quite fucked. But, It’s an easy fix and shouldn’t be much $ relatively speaking. You may have gotten very lucky if the failure is a result of what I think it is from what I see in the picture.
The fix should only require replacement of the quill stem. Everything on the stem (handlebars, cable stops) should be able to move over to a new stem. If you get a new stem locally, bring the old one with you and they should be able to make sure the new one will work. If you order one online, make sure to get one with the same handlebar clamp diameter. My guess is 25.4mm but that’s just a guess based on contextual clues going by what I can see in your picture.
It looks like the broken stem is extended far past the minimum insertion line, assuming the marking/line visible in your picture is just that. If so, assuming your didn’t crash and get hurt when this stem failed, you got lucky! If you get a new stem and you want your handlebars up higher, get a stem that will accommodate this instead of trying to only partly insert the stem into the steerer tube. Those minimum insertion lines really are a hard limit, not a suggestion.
As other people have pointed out, it’s mainly just a matter of replacing it with the right size stem. You will have to get the stem off the handlebar too.
One other lesson from this is that there is usually a minimum insertion mark around the stem. The stem is prone to breaking if extended further than that, which might have been the case here.