Cinelli quill stem

[SteveParry]

Thanks for all the responses. I used to be comfortable with the stem inserted down to the line. Haven't ridden that bike for two years and in meantime put on weight and out of condition - it's now too low. If my fitness doesn't improve I'll have to go for the higher stem option.

Pity as I love the retro design of this stem. It complements the bike as its a Harry Hall (Manchester) 531C audax frame that was modded by Chas Roberts to include a pump peg, chain peg, front light fixing as per audax regulations. It even had the cable guides moved to under the top tube. It's done the Paris-Brest-Paris twice on the cobbles but by the previous owner!

The cable tie is there only as a convenient place to store it. It's a reusable one so could fix broken luggage straps etc.

 

[silva]

The dealer of my previous bicycle sold me a frame that was too small, my feet hit the front wheels fender when turning and my knees the steering when pedaling standing. After messing around like this for a long time I decided it wasn't acceptable.
I asked the dealer for a longer stem but he said (several times) he couldn't find one at his suppliers.
Though some day, he called me and said he had found a solution.
It was one from the rear post of a tandem, that he once purchased wrong and laid in his stock.
He mounted it and it was higher my knees didn't touch it anymore, I paid and left.
A half mile further at a crossing I had to ride over a higher platform they placed to make drivers slow down.
The steering bumped free and I barely managed to evade a couple cars to end in a hedge.
Turnt out the dealer had inserted it not below the marking, and that his found solution wasn't one at all.
So beware of not obeying markings. It can cost a life.
And that dealer, well together with a number of previous troubles it made me lose trust in any, and the point I decided to learn and do things myself, and made that easier by moving to fixed gear. This aside the subject ofc.

By the way, that red tape wrapped around it, since I moved towards 62 mm tires and thus bigger inner tires, I had some flats and these were ideal to shift over the handle bars, plenty grip, nice cold feeling, easy to remove and reusable afterwards. When big hands you can also wrap the inner tube itself around it, and lock the end with a knot. Ofc the color choice is limited to black.