Submitted by
Matt
a Cross Country Rider
from St Louis, or Kirksville
Date Reviewed: November 26, 2001
Strengths: good position, dual bolt design which makes it easy to take the handlebar off without taking off the grips and brakes and shifters
Weaknesses: double flexy. no, triple super flexy. and made out of cheap metal.
Bottom Line:
I am not sure if I am reviewing the right stem, so just to be sure, I am reviewing the grey icon stem that came on a '99 Trek 7000.
The stem worked reliably for a few years, although it was flexy as all hell. I could feel the thing twist when cranking real hard, or climbing super steep hills. Then finally the other day I noticed that the handlebar was starting to motorcycle a little, and when I tried to tighten the handlebar clamp bolts, the hole for the clamp bolts stripped out. Not the bolts, but the threading in the hole which they screw into. Not what I needed to be spending money on at the moment. But, I was happy to get rid of it. I mean come on, the diameter of this stem wasn't much bigger than that of the handlebar! Ideally, I would like to have a Thompson Elite stem. Now THAT thing is one beefy mother. and it looks better.
Similar Products Used: Zoom, Titec Lil Al, an old Kore
Bike Setup: heavily upgraded Trek 7000
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Aaron R.
a Cross Country Rider
from Baltimore, MD
Date Reviewed: October 20, 2000
Strengths: Light, Strong, what more do you want it's a stem
Weaknesses: none at all wel maybe the single bolt clamp mech. i might have a creaking from it. haven't pinpointed yet or felt like spending the time so i guess none really
Bottom Line:
Great stem at any price. I got mine on sale at the shop cause they had a huge buy-out of a shop that went out of buisiness so i got it something like 35 pecent off.
Submitted by
Josh
a Cross Country Rider
from Fairfax,VA
Date Reviewed: September 7, 2000
Strengths: Light Cheap Stiff Looks good Available in different lengths
Weaknesses: well, it wasn't FREE.....
Bottom Line:
OK, this is actually for the Durante Mountain stem, but there's no listing for it here........but...
Can't find a lighter, stronger, stem for anywhere close to this price. It looks great, fits several sizes of bars, and is dirt cheap.
Sure, go get yourself a Kore stem or RaceFace or whatever. They're not noticeably lighter or stronger, and I'll use the $80-$100 I saved to buy a round of drinks for all of you suckers who drop all that extra dough just for a trendy name and a pretty paint job.
Submitted by
Matt
a Weekend Warrior
from Berkeley, CA
Date Reviewed: December 31, 1999
Strengths: light, easy to change out handlebar, stiff
Weaknesses: too stiff? weak clamp
Bottom Line:
Decent stem. The weird clamp thing weirded me out at first, but it sure makes it easy to get the bar off so I can ship it to wherever I'm going. Also, the first day I had it, I was climbing in the saddle, hands on the bar ends, and the handlebar slipped. The clamp wasn't on tight enough, even though I torqued it down pretty hard. I had to really put some pressure on it, and I weigh over 200 lbs. It's not a bad stem all around, but I'm considering switching to a Ti cockpit for the extra vibration dampening. It does come in a wide variety of lengths and bends, which is nice, and the welds are absolutely gorgeous.
Similar Products Used: some no-name quill piece of crap from '94
Bike Setup: Airborne Lucky Strike, Icon Diesel handlebar, Profile long bar ends
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
TREE
a Weekend Warrior
from Seattle WA
Date Reviewed: November 20, 1999
Strengths: stiff forged finish quality
Weaknesses: the icon logo looks silly Icon should fire the guy who design their logo! I tried to replace a different size of a same kind,the store told me that sliver stem for $30 and black for $69!!!!!!???????!!!!!!!????
Bottom Line:
What! icon????????(when I was buying the Trek 7000) Oh yeah!!!!!icon!!!!!!!!!!(now) suprise me a big time that they are good stuff! 5 hot sh*t for quality.
Submitted by
AV98
a Cross-Country Rider
from SF Bay Area
Date Reviewed: September 14, 1999
Strengths: Light Stiff Durable Kool XTR Gray Color Easily Interchangable
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
This stem rocks! It's light and durable with a pretty inexpensive price. The design is just like the Kore Elite with the single bolt release. It works great, making handlebar changes a cinch. It's one of the harder stems to find but worth looking for. Icon is owned by Trek which usually signifies mass produced lower quality products. I must disagree with this product, seems like they've spent more time on quality control and research. I must add that the Gray XTR finish makes it a non-standard winner. 5 Cheesy Poofs heading Cartman's way.
Favorite Trail: High speed Fireroads and Singletracks
Duration Product Used: 6 months
Similar Products Used: Control Tech Profile Boa Performance Topo
Bike Setup: Proflex 857 NR-2 Front NR-4 Rear Full XT component grouppo
Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Some K H
a Cross-Country Rider
from Singapore
Date Reviewed: June 3, 1999
Strengths: Light, dependable, well-made, clean design, most length & rise are available
Weaknesses: Reputation as OEM spec. hinders it's progress to becoming a sought-after aftermarket item !
Bottom Line:
If you guys are tired of paying $80-90 for a Kore Elite, Litespeed, etc, take a GOOD LOOK at Icon's offering. Similar hinged design as Kore & a peated surface for durability ! Championship material. For that ultra smooth finish, look to Klein's for similar design !
