[Drewdane]

My new Stumpjumper has one small flaw - the front end does not do a very good job of staying in contact with the ground, especially on climbs. If I were to switch from risers to a flat bar, do you think it would shift my weight a little towards the front and help me "press" the front wheel into the ground?

 

[Ray_from_SA]

Shift saddle forward slightly?
Change stem to shorter stem?

There are various ways of changing your weight distribution on the bike, the best is to find the one you're comfortable with.

 

[StormShadow]

If you have a stem that isn't 0 degree rise try flipping.

 

[Drewdane]

Shift saddle forward slightly?
Change stem to shorter stem?

There are various ways of changing your weight distribution on the bike, the best is to find the one you're comfortable with.

Thanks for the advice. I like the way I fit in the cockpit, so I'm reluctant to change those dimensions, but maybe I'll give it a try.

 

[FreeRangeChicken]

Shift saddle forward slightly?
Change stem to shorter stem?

There are various ways of changing your weight distribution on the bike, the best is to find the one you're comfortable with.

Ummm.... a shorter stem will move weight back compounding the problem.

Drew, before you moving stuff randomly the first thing you need to do is to make sure your saddle in the proper position everything else builds off of that. Take a look at the link below for guidelines on setting seat position.

http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/1998/03mar/kronpa.htm

By chance, did you change forks or have the shop change teh fork when you bought this bike? If so, the fork may be too long for the original design spec of the frame which can cause the problem you describe.

FRC

 

[gunfodder]

beware of other effects of shifting weight forward

I noticed the same problem when I got my Yeti 575, which has a much taller fork than my old hardtail. There are several things you can do to shift weight forward, including flat bars. These could compromise the downhill performance of your bike, though. And it can increase the pressure on your hands, leading to pain and/or numbness. I found that by sitting farther forward on my saddle and bending my arms I could dig in on climbs without compromising the comfort of my cockpit on level ground and descents.

 

[Drewdane]

Drew, before you moving stuff randomly the first thing you need to do is to make sure your saddle in the proper position everything else builds off of that. Take a look at the link below for guidelines on setting seat position.

http://www.physsportsmed.com/issues/1998/03mar/kronpa.htm

By chance, did you change forks or have the shop change teh fork when you bought this bike? If so, the fork may be too long for the original design spec of the frame which can cause the problem you describe.

FRC

Thanks FRC! I'll check that site but like I mentioned earlier, I'm pretty comfortable in the cockpit - I'm reluctant to screw around too much with that.

The bike is as I bought it. It appears to be a design "issue" with this particular bike, as I've read similar complaints in reviews, etc.

I noticed the same problem when I got my Yeti 575, which has a much taller fork than my old hardtail. There are several things you can do to shift weight forward, including flat bars. These could compromise the downhill performance of your bike, though. And it can increase the pressure on your hands, leading to pain and/or numbness. I found that by sitting farther forward on my saddle and bending my arms I could dig in on climbs without compromising the comfort of my cockpit on level ground and descents.

Yeah, those are potential downsides to swapping the handlebar - I've never owned a bike where I didn't have to adjust the seat angle to take pressure off my palms, and I imagine a flat bar would only exacerbate the problem. What you describe is pretty much what I do now. It works, and sometimes having a loosey-goosey front end is helpful (much easier to negotiate logs, etc. on tough climbs), but it's also sometimes a little annoying. Thanks!

 

[FreeRangeChicken]

Thanks FRC! I'll check that site but like I mentioned earlier, I'm pretty comfortable in the cockpit - I'm reluctant to screw around too much with that.

The bike is as I bought it. It appears to be a design "issue" with this particular bike, as I've read similar complaints in reviews, etc.

Best thing to do is make some marks on the seat rails and the seat post so you can get back to your current position. Also measure your cockpit length.... back of hte seat to center of the bars.

If you do the plumb bob thing and figure out that your seat is too far back, that's probaby what is causing your problem. Move the seat forward to the correct spot using the plum bob. To keep the same cockpit length(since that feels comfortable to you) you will need to get a stem that is long enough to make the cockpit the same length again. The difference in stem length will be pretty close to the amount you moved the seat.

Since you say others are stating similar problems in the reviews it could just be a design issue that may be tough to resolve.

Good luck.

FRC

 

[Picard]

I have same issue with my 2003 stumpy too

I am wondering about the same issue too. I have 2003 stumpjumper that supposed to have maniteu Elite fork. I change it to Fox Talas RLC fork. My bike handling is fine. Is there a way to measure if the bike front end is out of sync after a new fork is installed ? I have RF carbon riser bar.

 

[jeffj]

I am wondering about the same issue too. I have 2003 stumpjumper that supposed to have maniteu Elite fork. I change it to Fox Talas RLC fork. My bike handling is fine. Is there a way to measure if the bike front end is out of sync after a new fork is installed ? I have RF carbon riser bar.

Best way is to compare axle to crown measurements of the two forks.

 

[gunfodder]

What can you do?

Yeah, those are potential downsides to swapping the handlebar - I've never owned a bike where I didn't have to adjust the seat angle to take pressure off my palms, and I imagine a flat bar would only exacerbate the problem. What you describe is pretty much what I do now. It works, and sometimes having a loosey-goosey front end is helpful (much easier to negotiate logs, etc. on tough climbs), but it's also sometimes a little annoying. Thanks!

Yeah, I'm not thrilled about lifting my front wheel on steep climbs either. Shifting weight fore and aft gets tricky when you're trying to keep the front wheel down and keep the rear wheel weighted to maintain traction. On the bright side, it makes riding uphill more interesting