Getting the stem right

[Canardly]

Not sure if this is the appropriate thread.

 I have  a Trek road bike amongst others and have just reversed the stem cos I am an old git and the reach felt a bit long. I am not convinced ref ahead fixings and messing about with 5 or 6 knm star fittings which also make me uncomfortable. Stonking great old  threaded things used to make me think all was well. What do others think?

[Feanor]

I've not had any problem with threadless headsets ( at least in regard to the threadless design ), and nor has anyone I know.
( I have had headset bearings fail, but that's not an issue of threaded vs threadless. )

What problem is concerning you?

The stem clamp system works just fine.
The star nut is just used for the initial pre-load to remove any play from the system, and then the stem clamp holds it all in place.   It's possible to actually remove the cap-bolt totally after the stem is clamped.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Flipping the stem is usually one of the best improvements you can make to a road bike.

I like ahead sets and think they are far easier to set up properly than threaded headsets.

they are ugly though and being unable to adjust the height is a major flaw.

[vorsprung]

There are various adjustable stems available for Ahead.  I've used one of these from Spa Cycles



The best bike has a Specialized Stem that allows 4 different rises/falls by adjusting a shim

If you don't like star fangled washers then there are alternatives available, the Hope Hed Doctor for example