The line between genius and insanity is a thin one. On which side of the line does the BMB Raised Reversed stem stand? The quirky-looking stem is designed to improve downhill performance without bringing any real disadvantages. That sounds too good to be true, so we wanted to find out what it’s capable of!
Ingenious inventions often require you to swim against the current. BMB, short for Bee More Bikes, did exactly that with the Raised Reversed stem. The stylish alloy stem is produced in California and comes in a striking golden finish, which the manufacturer confidently calls “Race Winning Caramel Gold”. However, with a price tag of $ 500, it will burn a big hole in your wallet. Especially considering that you’ll have to add between $ 10 and $ 70 for shipping costs. The special feature of the Raised Reversed stem is its extreme height, which raises the handlebars by 150 mm, while the -15 mm stem length places the handlebars slightly behind the steerer tube. It looks crazy, but what’s the idea?
BMB claim that the raised handlebars put more weight on your legs and less on your hands, which should improve the feel on the front wheel, and also ensure more freedom of movement in the arms, so that you can sit back far enough in steep sections without your arms being completely stretched. This is meant to inspire more confidence and prevent OTBs. In addition, placing the handlebars behind the steering axis should prevent the front end from collapsing in tight corners and allow you to shift your weight further out in corners. At the same time, it makes it easier to lean the bike deep into corners, and ensures more control over the front wheel in all situations. To get to the bottom of these many bold claims, we tested the Raised Reversed stem extensively, and can tell you what it really does.
The BMB Raised Reversed stem on the trail
The RR stem attaches to the steerer tube the same way as a conventional stem, with three bolts ensuring a secure connection. However, you’ll have to make sure that your hoses and cables are long enough to reach the handlebars with the raised stem. When you swing your leg over the saddle and start pedalling, the BMB Raised Reversed stem ensures a comfortable and very relaxed riding position. The high front end makes you feel as if you were sitting on your granny’s e-bike. When going uphill, the position is still very comfortable, making it easy to negotiate climbs on gravel ramps and tarmac roads – provided they’re not too steep. With steeper gradients, the high front end results in a lack of pressure over the front wheel, which in turn, leads to a lack of traction. As a result, the BMB stem makes it a lot harder to master technical climbs.
But let’s get to the most important question: how does the stem work downhill? Well, at first, it’s pretty strange, as it changes the position on the bike completely. It’s more upright, with a lot of weight on the pedals and hardly any pressure on the hands. Once you get used to this, however, this gives you a great sense of security, especially in steep trail sections, where the super-high front end prevents you from going over the bars. The Raised Reversed Stem also makes you faster in turns, with the long lever at the front and the negative stem length placing the bike at a nice angle – just as promised! However, in open, flat corners, there’s a noticeable lack of pressure on the front end, which makes it hard to keep the wheel tracking and forces you to actively shift your weight over the front end. In the long run this becomes exhausting, because you’re constantly in a push-up position with your chest nearly touching the handlebars. The lack of weightover the front is also a problem in rougher trail sections, making it hard to control the front wheel. This offsets the confidence you get from the high front end and comes at the expense of control.
In a nutshell, the BMB Raised Reversed stem changes the riding characteristics of your bike radically and also improves them in some ways. However, the extreme stem height results in a lack of pressure on the front wheel, making it hard to control it – which obviously robs you of confidence. On descents, the disadvantages clearly outweigh the advantages.
Our conclusions about the BMB Raised Reversed stem.
The BMB Raised Reversed stem is a new type of stem that challenges all existing mountain bike geometry standards. In steep trail sections, the high front end inspires huge amounts of confidence and makes it easier to lean into corners. However, the front wheel is harder to control, which leads to a lack of traction and quickly leads to fatigue. Despite BMB’s confident claims, the stem’s riding characteristics are primarily negative for us.
Tops
- Inspires confidence in steep sections
- Makes it easy to lean the bike into corners
Flops
- Lack of control on the front wheel
- Lack of traction up front
- Tiring to ride
- Requires a long brake hose
For more info, visit BMB’s website.
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Words: Simon Kohler Photos: Simon Kohler
