Hi all, has anybody given these a shot? I like that the Girvin FlexStem uses a bushing, as failure doesn't seem catastrophic. This looks… Explosive? if something goes wrong.
by koupathabasca
Hi all, has anybody given these a shot? I like that the Girvin FlexStem uses a bushing, as failure doesn't seem catastrophic. This looks… Explosive? if something goes wrong.
by koupathabasca
8 Comments
That’s so cool.. i don’t even know what it is…
Looks similar to a soft ride with a shock instead of an elastomer bumper
Edit: This is a JD Components suspension stem…Taiwan made 90’s.
My friend used to run a Girvin Vector. Such a cool concept with questionable performance. But they tried some different stuff, and for that they need credit.
Just got the same one today its pretty easy to take a part and service gary’s Project on YouTube made a build using it and show How to take care of it !!
You can look cool as hell as you lose control of your front wheel. 😁
Be careful……if you zoom into the picture there is an adjustment bolt that sets the angle of the stem at the bottom above your finger. That location is also the only point that holds the stem together when you pull up on the stem like in a wheelie or bunny hop. I broke mine before it ever saw a trail (in like 1995). It completely detonated as that bolt and housing it is in sheared off completely when I did a normal bunny hop. Be careful….
It’s a variation of the Softride suspension stem. A recent update is being marketed to the gravel bike market.
These cheap ones are not like a Softride stem, the Softride versions are nicer since they only move vertically, whereas these, and the Girvin rotate forward when they compress. There isn’t much to go wrong its just a spring inside the tube.
The real downside is they were really only meant for straight handlebars, don’t put swept back bars on these, if your hands are sitting behind the steerer tube you’ll be levering the stem upward on a bump, rather then having it compress to absorb the bump.
Also i wouldn’t suggest riser bars either, the extra rise adds more leverage and makes it easier to compress, i tried some 5” risers on one of these and it was sketchy how easily it moved just from shifting weight, it was too sketchy to even try riding, even with the spring at the most rigid setting.