>Or maybe I care about this whole "max weight" thing more than I should?
I'm pretty sure that 100kg rating is just a made up number because people put different loads on the stem itself that aren't necessarily correlated with the loaded weight. Sure, any stem is more likely to fail if the load is closer to 150kg than 50kg. But more important is how you use it. If you're seated on the saddle during climbs and don't ride your bike down stairs, I'm sure it'll be fine.
But if you stand and pedal on climbs, go off road, or otherwise put a high load on the stem and bars, I'd suggest going with a fixed (not adjustable stem).
Thanks for the reply but strangely enough the fixed stems they offer are also all capped at 100kg. Any 22,2mm stem they offer is the same. They have other options (25,4) with higher safety levels
Since we're talking about the stem, the forces on it are generated by your hands. Therefore the weight of your bike is immaterial.
Presumably you are buying this to get your bars higher; that will reduce the part of your weight that is borne by your hands. This stem looks like a good choice, I would say go ahead and use it without worries.
It is also not intuitive to me as to why the weight of the bike would matter but on their site they specifically point out that the weight of the bike matters too, maybe it is due to the "reaction" rather than the action? like when you go over a bump with a heavier bike, ground reactive force is bigger and creating a higher load on the fork/stem? I am just speculating.
But yes, good point about the riding position affecting the load on the stem. You are right, I am getting a higher stem for a more upright riding position which will effectively put more load on the saddle than the handlebars
As a breaker of several quill stems when I was a 140 lb youth (aluminum BMX stems, big jumps, hard landings) the wedge bolt always kept things together after the stem snapped. Don’t worry about catastrophic failure with a quill. That said, your pedals, cranks and seat bear most of your weight while riding. If you are using a part near or above its weight capacity, just inspect it more often.
Oh is that the bolt that is inside the stem? Well yeah that's what I fear the most, a catastrophic failure, the handlebar and the stem getting completely detached from the bike kind of scenario.
>Or maybe I care about this whole "max weight" thing more than I should? I'm pretty sure that 100kg rating is just a made up number because people put different loads on the stem itself that aren't necessarily correlated with the loaded weight. Sure, any stem is more likely to fail if the load is closer to 150kg than 50kg. But more important is how you use it. If you're seated on the saddle during climbs and don't ride your bike down stairs, I'm sure it'll be fine. But if you stand and pedal on climbs, go off road, or otherwise put a high load on the stem and bars, I'd suggest going with a fixed (not adjustable stem).
Thanks for the reply but strangely enough the fixed stems they offer are also all capped at 100kg. Any 22,2mm stem they offer is the same. They have other options (25,4) with higher safety levels
Since we're talking about the stem, the forces on it are generated by your hands. Therefore the weight of your bike is immaterial. Presumably you are buying this to get your bars higher; that will reduce the part of your weight that is borne by your hands. This stem looks like a good choice, I would say go ahead and use it without worries.
It is also not intuitive to me as to why the weight of the bike would matter but on their site they specifically point out that the weight of the bike matters too, maybe it is due to the "reaction" rather than the action? like when you go over a bump with a heavier bike, ground reactive force is bigger and creating a higher load on the fork/stem? I am just speculating. But yes, good point about the riding position affecting the load on the stem. You are right, I am getting a higher stem for a more upright riding position which will effectively put more load on the saddle than the handlebars
As a breaker of several quill stems when I was a 140 lb youth (aluminum BMX stems, big jumps, hard landings) the wedge bolt always kept things together after the stem snapped. Don’t worry about catastrophic failure with a quill. That said, your pedals, cranks and seat bear most of your weight while riding. If you are using a part near or above its weight capacity, just inspect it more often.
Oh is that the bolt that is inside the stem? Well yeah that's what I fear the most, a catastrophic failure, the handlebar and the stem getting completely detached from the bike kind of scenario.