[renegade999]

I recently took delivery of the brand new Thomson X4 31.8 50mm stem for my 2005 DH race bike. I was very reluctant at first to try the new crop of 31.8 bars, but after installing a Renthal FatBar on my CRF450 and feeling the difference in stiffness and responsiveness it offered, I wanted to try the same type of technology on my DH bike.

All I can say is this is a beautiful piece of machinery. There is nearly nothing to this stem. It's completely bored out from front to back with a dual bolt rear clamp, unlike the previous generation internal clamp. Very light and very strong. It's an absolutely gorgeous part.

After a weeks worth of wintertime DH riding, I can feel the same type of responsive handling that I have on my CRF, running an Answer Protaper OS bar to finish the package. It feels like a pro-level tennis raquet, or a finely tuned musical instrument. I am very happy!

I do have a question for all you gear hounds out there. Is there a top-level non-carbon 31.8 bar with a 1.5" rise? I cannot seem to find one that matches the quality and feel of an Easton or Answer bar. Any help is much appreciated.

 

[Mattoid]

I also just threw a x4/ protaper OS combo on my DH bike. Ya gota love the 31.8 stuff, glad to hear your as happy as me

 

[punkassean]

Dude I bought a 70mm Thomson 31.8 non DH stem for the Enduro I'm building and then saw the stem you got at, I am swapping out my 70mm for the 50mm X4 soooo sick!

I ordered some EA70's in 31.8 also...

 

[renegade999]

Dude I bought a 70mm Thomson 31.8 non DH stem for the Enduro I'm building and then saw the stem you got at, I am swapping out my 70mm for the 50mm X4 soooo sick!

I ordered some EA70's in 31.8 also...

Are the Easton's available in a low rise? All I see on the website is the 2" rise, which is the same as my current Protaper OS setup. It's just a hair too tall for my tastes. Yes, there is no question about it, the Thomson is a work of art. Wait until you feel how light the 50mm is. It's unbelivable the quality and worksmanship of the internal machining. The feel is incredible on the bike too. It takes point and shoot steering to a whole new level.

 

[punkassean]

Negative, they are only doing the 31.8's in a hi-rise for what reason I can only assume...

Probably they are thinking that OS bar buyers want the DH look of hi-rise? I wanted them in low-rise also

I think the Specialized Enduro or Demo bars are available in a 1.5" rise 31.8mm, they feel pretty close to Eastons I think, also Funn makes a low-rise but it has a semi-funky sweep/feel

 

[TWISTED]

I just checked the Race Face website, 31.8 handlebar Diabolous = 1.5" rise.

Truvativ website Hussefelt or Holzfeller 31.8 handlebar = 25 or 50 mm rise.

I'll try the 25mm rise Holzfeller bar with my 66rc.
Tim

 

[Bulldog]

I do have a question for all you gear hounds out there. Is there a top-level non-carbon 31.8 bar with a 1.5" rise? I cannot seem to find one that matches the quality and feel of an Easton or Answer bar. Any help is much appreciated.

Do you not have at least 1/2" of headset spacers under your stem? 99% of bikes I see do.

 

[renegade999]

Do you not have at least 1/2" of headset spacers under your stem? 99% of bikes I see do.

According to your calculations, my bike falls into the 1 percentile.

None of the folks I ride with run any spacers under their stem, and they are all Pro or Expert DH racers. I do know this one girl who runs about 2" of spacers under her stem on her Bianchi Boardwalk. It looks quite comfortable, but not for me.

 

[Bulldog]

According to your calculations, my bike falls into the 1 percentile.

So does mine. That's only due to my new fork being really tall and wanting to keep my bars relatively low. Oh well, it was just a thought. Sometimes the easy solutions are overlooked.

As far as above recommendations, the Holz looks better than the Diablous just due to being MUCH lighter. After looking into it I'm actually considering it. I run the same setup as you (X4-ProtaperOS) and with this new fork I'm not sure if I need the 2" rise anymore. I'd still like to find a light 1" rise bar with the 8/4 bends though. Another winter research project I guess...

 

[renegade999]

I absolutely recommend the X4/Protaper combo Bulldog. The bars are great, however I'd like to get it lower for leverage in the hard corners. With an 8" fork, a 2" rise bar is really tall up front.

Easton and Answer - If you're listening. The market is calling for a 1.5" rise 31.8 bar! Make that one please! Now if only Thomson was in the handlebar business, I'd have one of those on every bike I own. The quality of their new stuff is unmatched by anything out there now.

 

[SkullCrack]

Syncros makes a 31.8 1.5" (40mm) rise bar. The Bulk. Also comes in 1" and 2" rise.

 

[Jeff 151]

Titec "El Norte" stem. 31.8, 37mm rise, 3 year no-questions-asked warranty. It's on my Morphine and Gemini.

 

[J5ive]

While we are here, I was thinking of getting one of these stems and using the shims from my 888 intergrated stem tio run a low easton bar, any reason this wouldnt work?

 

[MikeD]

FSA FR 270 is 270g and low-rise...maybe not a "top-level" bar, but I've been very happy with it.

I run as few spacers as possible under my bars...heck, I even run mild negative rises on my stems. But in a few cases, I've needed to put a really small spacer under the stem to give enough room for the top cap to seat properly.

Ed: Planning on using the FR270 and a 70mm Thomson X4 31.8 on my Evil Sovereign, if and when the frames are ever available...I want to order the components, but I'm holding off until I know some more about the frame delivery date. I wish Thomson made an 80mm, though...

MD

 

[punkassean]

I swapped my 70mm for a 50mm yesterday, stoked. I hope the Easton bars aren't too tall but the fork I'll be running can be compressed to climb and the max travel is only 6" to begin with so it shouldn't be too bad.

 

[leprechaun]

Guess what? Those wackoffs at easton use a goony measurement and the 'High' rise is really 1.5" of rise.I know you will think i'm crazy but i have a pair of 2" ea 70 os bars and they are 1.5 rise.
They're measuring center to top or some **** like that.
oh and they're clamped by a Thomson 50x4 stem. and it rocks.

 

[punkassean]

Sweet, I think they measure from the center of the clamp to the center of the grip surface at the very end of the bar, so with upsweep it's like 2+ inches. but in that regard a flat bar is actually like .7" or something...

Thanks for the heads up yo!

 

[renegade999]

Krispy, do you know if the new 31.8 Eastons come in low rise? I know what you're saying about the EA70's - I had that exact setup on my 2004 race bike with the previous gen Thomson 50mm stem. Great stuff!

 

[leprechaun]

They only make 1 rise on the 31.8 as far as i know.