# 50mm stem to 35mm stem: Noticeable difference?



## cookieMonster (Feb 23, 2004)

I bought a Kona Honzo recently and really like it so far. I bought a large, because that’s what was recommended to me being 5’ 10”. It feels a little big, mostly because of the long reach that I’m not used to.

My old bike, which is still my main bike, is a 2012 Specialized SX Trail. It is slacker (65* HA), has a low BB, short chainstays, but a shorter reach, being older and a medium frame.

This was never a problem, but now it feels really short after a ride on the Honzo. So much that I’m worried about having to adapt my style when switching between bikes.

The Honzo doesn’t have a long stem by any means, but there are shorter stems available. Looking at “35mm” stems, the handlebars would almost touch the fork steerer tube — but that’s only about 1/4” shorter than what I’ve got. Is that enough to make a significant difference in feel?

My goal is to get the two bikes to feel a little closer in feel, but I don’t want to spend the money if it’s barely noticeable.

The only stem swaps I’ve ever done were like going from an 80mm to a 50; very obvious difference. Thanks.


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## RS VR6 (Mar 29, 2007)

If you've spent enough time on the 50mm...for sure you'll notice the difference when going to a 35mm. 50 to 35 is a pretty good difference. I've got 40 and 50mm stems...while the difference is small...It can still be felt.


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## justwan naride (Oct 13, 2008)

The Honzo is not super slack at the front... shortening the stem too much may make steering twitchy, or not allow you to weigh the front wheel enough. 

Not saying the bike will become unridable, but there's a chance you will feel the handling gets affected. A 15mm difference is big enough.

Your best bet is to borrow a shorter stem to try. Even a 40mm will give you a feel.


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## cookieMonster (Feb 23, 2004)

justwan naride said:


> The Honzo is not super slack at the front... shortening the stem too much may make steering twitchy, or not allow you to weigh the front wheel enough.
> 
> Not saying the bike will become unridable, but there's a chance you will feel the handling gets affected. A 15mm difference is big enough.
> 
> Your best bet is to borrow a shorter stem to try. Even a 40mm will give you a feel.


I've always liked the handling of really short stems. The one on my SX is a zero reach (bar is right up against the steerer tube on the inside of the stem). I'm not concerned about shortening up the Honzo, as it would still have a considerable reach. Also, I am planning to get a longer travel fork (either 130 or 140mm) in the future, plus maybe an angled headset to slacken it out a bit more in the future.


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## mtnbkrmike (Mar 26, 2015)

I have a large Honzo with a 140 fork and a large Unit. Stock stem on the Honzo (which I believe is 50mm), and a 35mm stem on the Unit. Different bikes of course but in my view, they do feel quite different because of the stem. 

I am 5'10.5" with a 34" inseam and a 35" sleeve length. I am tempted to try a 35mm stem on my Honzo. Same with my Druid, which also has a 50mm stem. The shorter stem feels snappier, which is something I like, combined with my uncut 800mm bars. The shorter stem helps with wheelie drops as well.

Typing this has made me want to look closely at a 35mm stem not for my Honzo, but for my Druid. I think this will be my next little project. I have been tempted to throw down on We Are One's Da Package, although this has to be the most expensive stem/bar combo out there. Ugh.


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## TheDwayyo (Dec 2, 2014)

Measure the reach on your main bike, figure out what you need to do to make the Honzo the same. Simple maffs.


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## Trinimon (Aug 6, 2019)

I switched from a 50mm to 35mm and cut down my bars to 760mm on my HT last season. I noticed the difference on my first ride. Some might call it twitchy but I like that it feels quicker in the handling. One detriment was on steep climbs when the front wheel would sometimes get a little on the light side and I'd have to weight shift a little. Similarly with hard turns, I had to change my weight shifting a little so the front wheel doesn't wash out on me. Like with any changes on a bike, a few rides in for your body to get used to it and it'll become second nature.


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## LaXCarp (Jul 19, 2008)

You could also try, A: raising your stem up with more spacers underneath or, B. Getting higher rise handlebars.

I was looking for different handling/length of my bike and went from 45mm to 35mm and I lost some stability of my front end that was pitching me over the bars in rough/high speed tracks (the last thing I want to happen). I went back to the 45mm, raised the stem up 10mm and got 5mm higher rise bars and the front end of the bike came to life but remained stable at speed because I could still properly weight the front wheel.


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## cookieMonster (Feb 23, 2004)

TheDwayyo said:


> Measure the reach on your main bike, figure out what you need to do to make the Honzo the same. Simple maffs.


They're never going to be the same. The Honzo has like 3 more INCHES of reach, and its stem is already pretty short. I'd have to point the stem backwards to get close.


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## Lelandjt (Feb 22, 2008)

When I've used stems under 50mm I struggled for front traction on flatter turns.


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## ocnLogan (Aug 15, 2018)

I recently went from a 35mm stem, to 50mm stem on my process 153. I definitely noticed a difference. I struggle to weight the front end enough I think because I changed from old XC style HT's to slacker geo with the wheel way farther out front, so I'm used to riding farther off the back than required.

The 15mm difference isn't huge, but it is noticeable. The front end does have a more planted feel. Its less tentative feeling in turns.

That said, the height of the bar also makes a fair bit of difference. I'm still on the hunt for more front end traction, so I just moved all the spacers from under the bar, to on top of the bar, and may even try a lower rise bar if that's not enough.


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