Hello all.
Another quill question if you don’t mind.
I have a 1990 Era avanti mtb, assembled in New Zealand. Looking to update the handle bars and so looking for a quill adapter to get to 28.6 mm of course.
So taking the current quill out I find it stamped with 22. Does that mean 22.2 or 22.0? I do not have calipers but a dodgy ruler suggests it may be less than 22.2. Same dodgy ruler measures the steerer tube (tube the quill goes into?) at around 23 mm Internal diameter. Should I risk a 22.2mm to 28.6mm adapter or does this require further investigation, perhaps some calipers? I’d like to believe that the stamp says 22 cos they ran out of space and this isn’t a fancy french bike.
There are no further markings on the stem itself and external diameter of the stem is 23.9mm (it has been powder coated previously)
Thoughts?
by Gr33nslime
3 Comments
Measure the steerer OD to determine if it’s really a French steerer, i.e. does it measure 25.4 or 25.0?
I’ve never heard of a 90s bike still using a French headset/fork/stem, but it’s a big world.
Even if the fork is French, you can almost always get a 22.2 quill to work by taking down the OD with just sandpaper if you don’t have a fancier way of doing it.
Two things:
1. You are measuring the wedge, that’s not what you measure when you’re trying to determine the diameter of a quill stem.
2. Get a caliper. Even the [cheap plastic calipers that Harbor Freight sells for $1.79](https://www.harborfreight.com/6-in-utility-caliper-63664.html) are good enough to measure most of the parts on a bike.
One more thing: you most likely have a 22.2mm stem. If you want to be sure, and if there is a bicycle co-op or collective in your area, take your bike there and ask to borrow one of their quill stems marked 22.2mm to see if it fits in your bike’s steerer. If it’s a good fit, then go ahead and order the 22.2mm to 28.6mm quill stem adapter.
Also…
>There are no further markings on the stem itself and external diameter of the stem is 23.9mm
I don’t know what to make of this measurement. Did you come up with this number using the same dodgy ruler?
Where in NZ are you? If in chch I can help with old Avantis