How to Raise the Stem on a Specialized Mountain Bike

Proper bike fit is crucial to any cyclist, and the height of your stem is an excellent place to start. Adjusting the height of your stem will in turn affect the height of your handlebars. Higher handlebars can reduce fatigue in the arms and discomfort in the lower back by giving you a more upright position on the bike. Depending on the age of your specialized mountain bike, you'll have either a threaded- or a threadless-style stem. Older, threaded stems "thread" into the fork tube, while newer, threadless stems slide over the fork tube.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

5 mm Allen wrench
3 mm Allen wrench (for threadless stem bolts)

Threaded

Step 1

Use a 5 mm Allen wrench to loosen the expander bolt in the center of the stem. You do not need to remove the bolt; loosen it only.

Step 2

Grasp the stem and gently pull it up. Stop at your preferred height. The stem may be marked with a minimum insertion line. If you see this marking, you've raised the stem too high. For safety's sake, there should always be at least 2 inches of stem covered by the steering column.

Step 3

Make sure the handlebars are straight. The top tube of the frame, stem and front wheel should form a straight line.

Step 4

Tighten the expander bolt again.

Threadless

Step 1

Loosen the two 3 mm Allen bolts on the side of the stem.

Step 2

Remove the 5 mm Allen bolt on the top cap of the stem. Once the bolt is out, also remove the top cap.

Step 3

Slide the stem from the fork tube. To increase the height of the stem, place a spacer of preferred thickness over the fork tube and lower the stem back onto the fork tube.

Step 4

Straighten the stem in case it's fallen out of line with the front wheel. For accurate steering, the top tube of the frame, stem and front wheel need to be in line.

Step 5

Return the top cap to the tip of the top of the fork tube, and thread the top cap bolt back in place. Re-tighten the two 3 mm Allen bolts on the side of the stem.

Tips & Warnings

After raising a threadless stem, be sure that the top of the stem clears the top of the fork tube by no more than 2 to 3 mm. Too much space here can make for a loose steering column.

Article Written By Matthew Ferguson

Matthew Ferguson is a writer living in Savannah, Ga. He has been writing for over 10 years and his work has appeared on various online publications. A collection of his short stories was published in spring 2010. He is a graduate of Appalachian State University.

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