Flexx Bars & Stems

[AzRob]

I'm going to be buying 14 deg. quad racer Flexx bars for my '07 TRX450r and might be looking to get an anti-vibe stem at the same time. Wanting to get some input on stem choices, mainly pro's and con's of going with + size stem, either 1" or 2". I don't race, mainly dune & cinders with a little trail riding in the summer. I'm 5'11" by the way.

Leaning toward the JD stems, seems to be a good stem, and does not seem too expensive.

Thx for any input.

Rob

[panici33]

IMO, if you're not racing, a new stem is not neccessary unless you need something taller or you want something shiny (I know how you dune guys are ). I am vertically challenged so the heighth of the stem is never an issue for me. If you feel like your bending over too much on the bike because the bars are too low then i would suggest getting a longer stem.

I think the Flex Bars raise the heighth too, so the stem may not be neccessary. I'm sure someone with Flex Bars on here will pipe up.

[Trentk]

I would run the stock stem with trail tech bar clamps and the quad racer fasst bars. I have that setup on 2 hondas and it is a good height. The trail tech clamp is +1"

Or if you really want an aftermarket stem you can get a +1 Jd or LSR with their clamp and it will be the same height as a stock stem with a trail tech clamp. I just compared them today actually because i was at LSR picking up a new stem. The stock stem really is weak, my friend bent two of them in some pretty low impact wrecks. But since your stock one isn't bent there isn't much reason to upgrade.

[rinehart_mitch]

I hate the trail tech crap, it blinded me, and i think it was the reason for my stem bending cause it gave it more leverage, cause the wreck it bent in should not have bent it, i was pissed

[ElderGeek]

You got part of it right, it was the leverage, any brand clamp with the same rise would have bent the bars the same way.

When you think about when the quad gets upside down, the bars are actually "roll bars" for the quad. The bars and the stem take all the force when it hits. (taking the subframe out for the moment) Both with nothing but their wall thickness fighting back. It's amazing to me the stock stems don't bend more than they do...

But you kinda want the bars to bend before the stem because bars can be bent back into ridable condition & are cheaper to replace if you can't. It's almost impossible to bent a stem back.

That said, stock bars will fold much quicker than FastFlexx bars due to how & what they are built with. So a stock stem will bend faster with FF bars opposed to stock bars. With FF bars, the weak link is now the stock stem.

You need to sit on gm1979's quad. He's got at least +2 stem on it.
You might like the bar height.

[Wicked Al]

I have Houser +1 antivibe stem...superstrong. I got rid of the Fasst bars that were on it and added 3.5" Rox Risers and Protaper bars. There are several nice things I like about the rox risers. Not only do they put the bar up where I like it (I'm 5'11") I can also adjust the bar forward and backward to find an ideal position. It's amazing what an extra inch forward or backwards will do for your control and fatigue. On the Snowflake race I put the quad upside down. Guess what bent up on the top side? Nothing! The Rox risers pivoted back and took the hit. They were tight enough that two guys had a heck of a time pulling them back up. It helps having the antivibe stem as the bushing there also takes the hit and allows the bars to move without bending them.

I like to stand up a lot on the quad and this makes it very easy to do so, just about the ergos of a dirtbike.

Another side benny is the cost of the risers and the pro tapers are less than the Fasst bars by themselves

Alex

[rinehart_mitch]

Ya but alex, yours are also like ape hangers, idk how your cables where long enough!!!

[Wicked Al]

They are much closer in than when you tried it (you did try it right???)

It took me several sessions to get them to where they felt really comfortable regardless if I was sitting down or standing up. They work great at the track too. I think that is one of the reasons why I held up so well on the Snowflake race, took a big load off of my arms.

Alex

[Wicked Al]

OK, I was wrong. Finally took a close look at my quad, the Houser steering stem IS bent. It's bent below the gussets and above the bearing. It's bent to the left and back as you're looking at it from the front.

The Rox risers are NOT bent though they did pivot. I won't know for sure until I take it off, but it doesn't look like the pro-tapers are bent.

Looks like I'm in the market for another steering stem unless I can bend this one back!

Alex

[06YFZ45racer]

Dont try and bend the steering stem back. I have bent a Houser before and i was told then not to try and straighten it. I love the Houser anti-vibe setup with my Fastt bars AND the Elka steering damper!