Levo Gen 3 Stem Length - S4

[DuncanDoughnuts]

Hi
I would like to get a idea of what stem length you are running on your Gen 3 S4 Levo's ?

I have tried a 35 but find the front keeps washing out on corners (could be cause I'm a shit rider)

 

[TheSnowShark]

Hello,

On mine S4 : TranzX, 34,9 mm 170 mm

 

[DuncanDoughnuts]

Hello,

On mine S4 : TranzX, 34,9 mm 170 mm

and your stem length ?

 

[TheSnowShark]

Je ne comprends pas votre question.. ou la tige est peut-être une autre partie ?

Pour moi, la potence fait 170 mm.. quoi d'autre ?

 

[DuncanDoughnuts]

Je ne comprends pas votre question.. ou la tige est peut-être une autre partie ?

Pour moi, la potence fait 170 mm.. quoi d'autre ?

La tige est la partie du vélo qui relie le guidon à la fourche.

 

[Jamescoughlan]

35mm length here on an S4 but I'm 5'8" / 173cm so short for an S4.

I'm running coil front and rear, but I don't know if that really makes a difference?!?

I didn't like a 35mm length on my medium Rail but, of course, the reach was shorter.

It's the best handling trail bike I've used in over 30 years! Maybe my old Cannondale Prophet was "better" - but bikes have progressed massively anyway!

 

[jetskier973]

There are discussions about stem length and fork offset length.
For fork, I am running RS Lyrik 44mm offset. The DMR 50mm stem (I've had forever) made the steering feel slow, so I decided to try Spank Split stem in 43mm and 38mm.
The 38mm was a real eye opener! The steering was quick to move with only a hint of input, and the wheel felt quite committed to staying turned. It was a little heavy to bring back to center.
The 43mm was predictably less fast, but definitely better than the 50mm.
Local weather has kept the trails closed around here, so my all testing was on street and down my from stairs. Looking forward to trying both on the trails and downs.

 

[Oakhills]

I run a 32mm stem on an S4. 5’10”, longer legs, shorter torso. The last bike I had was a large Nomad v3 with a 35mm stem (reach is a scant 438mm)

 

[DuncanDoughnuts]

Im curious about this "Make your stem length the same as your fork offset" theory .... will give that a try , but will probably got down to 35mm as I was running a 35mm on my gen 2 which is shorter than the gen 3.

 

[arTNC]

This is always an interesting topic because honestly there are a ton of variables, and the solution can be very rider specific and location/terrain specific. Plus I think many mountain bikers try to apply everything they learned from their pedal-only bike days to their emtb's. Is there carry over in bike geometry and setup from one to the other?...of course there is. But these emtb's with their added weight, battery location, and power assist can alter traditional thinking and setup in some ways.

The weight contributes to stability and lack of easy deflection with little to no penalty because of the pedal assist. The center of gravity on these emtb's often have a front end bias benefit due to battery location which removes some of that effort to put more rider weight forward and over the handlebar. And then the power benefits often require a little different rider approach to entering, leaving, and through the corners at more speed. Some dirt motorcycle techniques can come into play if you're riding one of these aggressively.

OP, you mention front wheel washout. Obviously tires also come into play, so I don't know what you're running there. I'm on a Rail 7 and run 2.6 Minion DH tires front and rear. Pedal assist allows almost no penalty for the bigger tires and actually a benefit since you can hammer corners with better traction. I also run a very high bar with the OEM 50mm stem and a Hussafelt DH handlebar. In profile the bike looks more DH than trail, but the bike still rails the corners without me having to be permanently hanging over the front end of the bike like a Tour De France racer...LOL!

I'll say it again...though you don't throw out the baby with the bath water when it comes to bike setup from pedal-only bikes to these emtb's...you can usually apply a wider latitude of geometry and ergonomic tweaks to emtb's in many/most cases that are not dictated by traditional mountain bike standards.

 

[jetskier973]

@arTNC i appreciate your comments!
I carried over my stem length from my Orbea Occam H30 (so I have two DMR 50mm stems). I never gave the weight bias of the Turbo Levo any thought regarding stem length. Makes sense to me, thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.

 

[Mikerb]

As has been said a bove the main difference you feel with different stem lengths is steering response. If you are having problems with the front wheel washing out, messing with stem lengths is not going to have much impact. More likely is either using the wrong technique, not having the optimum fork tune ( especially low speed compression/rebound), or poor tyre choice in terms of compound, and tread pattern. Tyre pressure can also play a role.
Some tyres with no intermediate knobs between the corner knobs and central knobs need a somewhat faster transition onto the corner knobs and have a scary sliding moment if that transition is too slow. Tread patterns with intermediate knobs can be more progressive in that respect whilst maybe not having the ultimate corner knob grip of the more channeled design. A softer rubber compound delivers greater grip. Depending on the tyre wall structure and whether the (cornering) terrain is hard pack or loose, different tyre pressures of just a few PSI can make a huge difference.
Finally, how much weight you transfer over the front end obviously matters, but that needs to be body movement rather than a few mm stem length one way or the other.