CXWXC 31.8 Bike Stem - Short Aluminum Alloy Mountain & Road Bike Handlebar Stem Riser - Lightweight MTB/City Bicycle Stem for Better Control - Perfect for Commuting, Trail Riding & Urban Cycling

just what I needed, wish it came with the stem cap, it does notThis is a very nice looking stem, but it is not T6 rated, it is very thin in all the wrong places. T6 rated stems are still twice the thickness in high stress areas through the webbing and cross sections than this stem has.I will not take this stem on the trails. Thinking hard about returning this thing. I have several stems here with me now and this one just doesn't sit right with me.Nice looking part except for the black paint coming off. Had some small chips on it when it arrived. Just handling it caused then to get larger. I guess I’ ll pull it off in winter and have it powder coated. Kinda odd that a mountain bike part that may see some rough action has such a delicate coating. Has larger clamp gaps (3-4mm) than most of my other name brand stems.I got this CXWXC stem to swap with the stem on my single speed 29er and I'm really happy with it so far. I had originally swapped the factory stem that was 70-80mm in length for a Truvativ Hussefelt in a 60mm length a few years ago. I like the shorter stems since I feel like they give me quicker response and control from the handlebar.I saw this come up and decided to try it since it's 15mm shorter.. just to see if I'd be able to feel a difference. My Hussefelt stem had a zero degree angle, whereas this stem seems to have at least a small degree of drop comparatively. I feel like between the shorter length and small drop, my reach stayed pretty similar with both stems.After swapping the stems, I took the bike out for a quick ride around the lake by my house. It's about a 4.5 mile loop with a mix of asphalt, concrete, grass, gravel and dirt. I also like to hop around a bit on it, jumping curbs and whatnot. I'm 51 and weigh around 215 lbs, so I don't get too crazy. Anyway, I did feel like the turning response did in fact get a little quicker. I ride pretty narrow handlebars (also aftermarket) that seem to help with this as well.The stem does look good too. As another reviewer mentioned, you can see some of the exposed steering tube through the gaps in this stem, which may bother some folks, but it doesn't bother me. My bikes are always garaged, so I don't worry much about that part getting wet and rusting or whatever since it is bare steel. And I've always been more of a "function before fashion" type of guy anyway.I included a couple pics with the weights of both my old stem and this new CXWXC stem for comparison. As well as some side by side shots so you can really see the difference.This is a very nice looking stem, and the skeletonized design reduces its weight significantly. It also greatly reduces the surface area making contact with the steerer tube. I do not like that this design exposes some of the unfinished steerer tube. I do not ride hard, I'm just a neighborhood cruiser, so the durability under hard use is not a concern for me - but I'd be skeptical of using this on a hard use downhill or trick bike. All in all, I'm happy with it, but would not use in the kind of riding where breakage would be likely to kill me as opposed to making me spill my beer.I put this little stem on an old dirt jumper, took it to the local trail and had a great time. Had to throw an extra headset spacer on the fork tube to make up for the difference between the old stem and this one, but that's all part of the process. You could also cut the tube, but I didn't want to do that to a nearly 20 year old air fork. It really helps the old bike look a bit more modern.This stem was a great addition to my budget bike build. The stock stem was too long, and this stem makes for a better riding style for me. It is a quality machine aluminum stem that has good paint/anodized finish. The threaded screws also had thread locker on them to prevent prematurely backing out. I like the color options, which gave my bike a little extra color matching my upgraded pedals.