Nitto Lugged Quill Stem

Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It's a traditional 'quill' handlebar stem to fit an older frame with a 1" threaded fork steerer that has a 22.2mm internal diameter i.e. most of them. Apart from its lugged steel design that some people will find perfectly complementary to their lugged steel frame, the main claim to fame of Japanese Nitto's lugged steel stem is that it has a quill - the bit that fits and holds in place by means of a threaded wedge and an allen-key-fitting expander bolt down inside the fork steerer tube - a good 6cm taller than the average quill stem. This means that a frame that would be otherwise too low and aggressive-fitting at the front - in other words the handlebars are too low and cannot adjust safely higher - can be rendered comfortable.

Here's what the suppliers Rivendell who also designed the stem for manufacturer Nitto have to say about it:

"Our lugged quill stem is the strongest and most beautiful stem out there, and is hand-brazed by Ms. Yabashi, a 42-year old woman who works at Nitto. It is made of CrMo tubes specially drawn for this application, using our own investment-cast lugs. The stem quill is 22.2mm; the bar clamp is 26.55mm.

This stem is a soft, not shiny nickel finish, something Nitto calls dull-bright, strange as that may sound. The quill is 190mm. It is expensive, but of course is a good choice for a bike that'll last a long time. If you can afford it. If not, get the Technomic Deluxe - another, more conventional forged-alloy stem also made by Nitto - and save $$$."

That pretty much sold it to us and the relatively-expensive, lugged steel option was certainly a bonus even considering the price. It perfectly complements a rather nice classic and hand-made steel frame that we would have otherwise had to replace to get a comfortable fit now that we're using the bike for pleasurable ambling and commuting rather than anything remotely athletic.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

OK, we said it has a 22.2mm quill which will fit more or less any traditional bike with a 1" standard threaded steerer. The only thing you might need to watch is that older alloy handlebars came in either 25.4mm or 26.0mm diameter and this is a 26.0mm, like the vast majority of European alloy handlebars, especially those made by the Italians like 3T and Cinelli. Nitto are pretty much the Japanese masters of quill handlebars and stems and have enjoyed something of a mini-boom with the renaissance in classic fixie bikes but of course the handlebars and stems work just as well on classic road and touring bikes. Just so you know, we fitted a Nitto Noodle bar at the same time as this stem and there will be a review along on that, as well.

The stem is made from two custom-drawn chromium-molybdenum steel tubes hand-brazed together and reinforced with a traditional finely-shaped lug. There are exquisite little reinforcing ribs and the whole is plated in a satin-sheen nickel finish that looks thick and durable. Certainly more durable than we have any reason to criticise in the fitting and first few hundred miles of use. All the bolts including the long threaded expander are well-plated chromed steel.

The Nitto lugged steel stem has an air of the permanence about it; you sense it will outlast pretty much every over component on the bike.

The Nitto lugged steel stem weighs 367 grams which is exactly 98 grams or 3.5 ounces more than the 269 gram 3T alloy quill stem it replaced. In the context of a sturdy steel bike that's nothing considering the additional comfort or lovely looks. You choose.

The Nitto's particular 'tall' attribute should enable a 10/10 for comfort.

It's either a very expensive stem or a very inexpensive way of getting your bike to fit without changing the frame. Appearance wise, you can decide whether the lugged steel construction floats your boat for the money. Otherwise, there are geometrically identical alloy stems made by Nitto for a lot less cash.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Perfectly. We identified that with our existing classic lugged steel frame we needed a good few extra centimeters in rise at the front end for comfort. Faced with the prospect of finding another frame to replace our otherwise perfect model and to which we felt all sorts of personal attachment, it was a no-brainer to chose which of the lengths 8-12cm would do the job and we went for a 10cm to bring our handlebars back by 1cm and up by 4cm.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Apart from the comfy position, we felt that the lugged steel appearance perfectly complemented the frame it was mounted on.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Hardly dislike, but a chrome or even just a shinier finish would have looked a bit more bling but fully accept that might overdo it.

Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?

Lovely, and nice that there are still places to buy special products like this when there is a particular requirement. Let's hope Ms Yabashi is happy to carry on brazing her stems for many more years.