Canfield Bikes Announces Special Blend Stems

Jan 12, 2023 at 15:27
by Canfield Bikes  
Canfield Special Blend Stems

Press release: Canfield Bikes

High-end mountain-bike manufacturer introduces its own line of trail/enduro and direct-mount stems.

FRUITA, CO – Canfield Bikes, high-end boutique mountain-bike manufacturer, today announces its all-new line of Special Blend Stems for both trail/enduro and downhill. Both are precision CNC machined from 7075 series aluminum billet with a 35-millimeter clamp diameter and feature laser-etched graphics.

The Special Blend Trail/Enduro Stem measures 40 millimeters in length with a 10-millimeter rise, while the Special Blend Direct-Mount DH Stem comes in at 45 millimeters with a 17-millimeter rise. They weigh in at 170 and 161 grams respectively.

Canfield Special Blend Trail Enduro Stem

While best known for high-end full-suspension and hardtail frames, Canfield also has a reputation for innovative components including its popular patented convex Crampon Pedals and was one of the earliest proponents of shorter crank lengths.

When he set out to design the brand’s latest cockpit centerpieces, owner and designer Lance Canfield did so with a clear vision of form and function.

Canfield Special Blend Direct-Mount DH Stem

“Like all of our products, I wanted them to be strong and perform well first and foremost,” says Canfield. “And I wanted them to look good, but performance and functionality are always my top priorities.”

bigquotesPerformance and functionality are always my top priorities.—Lance Canfield

The result is a sleek yet understated aesthetic that is unmistakably Canfield but will look right at home on any bike.

Clean, eye-catching lines are blended with soft, beveled edges and rounded corners—a subtle yet important detail for Lance Canfield who cut his knee to the bone after catching it on a sharp-edged stem in a crash during Red Bull Rampage in the early 2000s.

Canfield Special Blend Trail Enduro Stem
Canfield Special Blend Trail Enduro Stem
Canfield Special Blend Trail Enduro Stem

Canfield Special Blend Direct-Mount DH Stem
Canfield Special Blend Direct-Mount DH Stem
Canfield Special Blend Direct-Mount DH Stem

Both stems are designed to be compatible with carbon and aluminum handlebars without any stress points or hot spots at the clamp interface.

Building on more than two decades of bicycle and component design, Canfield carefully crafted the new Special Blend stems for the optimal combination of strength, weight and good looks to tie any cockpit together in style. Available in any color you want, as long as it's black.

Canfield Special Blend Trail/Enduro Stem Specs
• Material: 7075 Aluminum
• Length: 40mm
• Rise: 10mm
• Clamp Diameter: 35mm
• Stack: 42mm
• Weight: 170g (w/ hardware)
• Laser-Etched Graphics

Canfield Special Blend Direct Mount DH Stem Specs
• Material: 7075 Aluminum
• Length: 45mm
• Rise: 17mm
• Clamp Diameter: 35mm
• Weight: 161g (w/ hardware)
• Laser-Etched Graphics

The Special Blend Stems will be standard on complete bikes from Canfield and are in-stock and available for purchase separately now at CanfieldBikes.com.

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102 Comments
  • 90 2
 Someday I want a stem press release to read along the lines of

"It'll connect your bars to your steerer tube. It's not too heavy. That's all we've got. It's a stem."
  • 64 3
 How about
"We like our bars with stems and our weed without"
  • 12 2
 here's another new flat pedal oh wow
  • 6 1
 @SacAssassin: I like my bars with weed
  • 3 1
 @SacAssassin: Username checks out?
  • 2 0
 I'll go to a weed bar... that shit grows on stems...
  • 1 3
 The direct mount doesn't connect to the steerer tube tho...
  • 63 2
 stems
  • 18 1
 stems
  • 11 1
 stems
  • 6 12
flag dexterfawkes (Jan 12, 2023 at 15:46) (Below Threshold)
 Show me ya stems
  • 5 1
 stems?
  • 2 3
 Stimulating Stems
  • 26 1
 Stemulating
  • 7 1
 Interlinked
  • 2 0
 stems
  • 61 9
 Also, I so want to like Canfield as a company, but I have to admit that I would be far more interested in their stuff if it didn’t feel like their branding required me to have mud flap angel and devil girls and a “no fear” or “fear this” sticker on my truck.
  • 2 1
 Lol
  • 13 6
 odd insecurity to have
  • 16 3
 That’s the vibe you get from a stem?
  • 9 4
 @TheR: no, that’s the vice I get from the brand.
  • 12 0
 @panthermodern: mud flap angels & devil girls are two of my very favorite vices...
  • 5 0
 Just play some love songs when riding / on your edits to counter act the deathly graphics
  • 4 0
 @panthermodern I can live with all that but I draw the line at humping my cousin.
  • 5 0
 I had a Nimble 9, loved it. First thing I did was pull all the stickers off it. Personally I prefer a brand that makes stuff I like that doesn't look the best to a brand that has garbage that looks really nice.
  • 3 0
 @excavator666: If you won't then can I have a go?
  • 1 0
 @TheR: lmao
  • 4 0
 I think you think too much about how you look on a bike.
  • 21 7
 If they cnc carved the Canfield skull into the stem . I would buy two. One for my bike and one to fondel. Admire . Cherish . Nerd out with fellow riders . Come on over for burgers . Oh what's that wicked jewelry. ? Canfield stem bra.
  • 20 8
 Fondle a dictionary instead: you'll score more if you level-up diction & syntax to middle-school proficiency.
  • 15 19
flag OliOliOli (Jan 13, 2023 at 2:57) (Below Threshold)
 @WarOnErrorism: hUrR dUrR i KnOw WoRdS

That's how I read your response.. dickhole
  • 2 0
 They're making stem bras now?
  • 3 0
 @WarOnErrorism: make love not war bra .
  • 8 0
 @WarOnErrorism: Username checks out hahaha
  • 1 2
 @WarOnErrorism: Pulling out a thesaurus while others read the dictionary. On the big brain thoughts.
  • 5 4
 @WarOnErrorism: Canada is beautiful because we embrace other cultures. They may not have a great level of speaking or understanding English. But I listen to what the words mean. No interest in perfect pronouncing or proper sentences .
As long as the message gets across . I don't give a rats ass .
Try accepting flaws and use empathy .
  • 21 8
 I think a stem is one of the few components that, aside from maybe weight, truly has no affect on a bike’s performance.
  • 22 0
 Until it slips. Then it affects performance quite a bit.
  • 5 2
 Length and rise can make it feel and handle very differently
  • 15 0
 @OliOliOli: That's what she said.
  • 6 0
 @TheR: She said that too.
  • 1 0
 You can definitely feel a flexy stem relative to a stiff one. And a flexy stem is a bad stem.
  • 15 2
 "high-end boutique mountain-bike manufacturer"

Sorry, I prefer low-end boutique stuff. Anybody got a lead?
  • 9 0
 This press release text is just horrible…
We are all mountain bikers, so please don't treat us like posh golfers or fussy bankers.
It's a stem. That's okay, but it's just a stem.
  • 1 1
 You read the text?!
  • 1 0
 Who do you think buys those Yetis?
  • 10 0
 Yawn. Heavier, pricier, & uglier than best in segment. Hard pass.
  • 5 1
 What is best in segment, @powturn?
Please reply fast, must know so I can impress friend.
  • 8 1
 @broscience: Syntace. 97g, No rider weight limit, 10 year warranty.
  • 5 1
 @Rightio: If you think a syntace stem looks better than these,
I dont think we have the same taste..
  • 4 1
 @learmiller: Of all the stems on the planet he said Syntace...
  • 4 0
 @broscience: looks, price, weight, function/strength: rank them in 1-4 terms of priorities, and maybe the PB tribal elders will weigh in to stoke both bro & friend, real or imagined.
  • 2 0
 @learmiller: ah, looks is a matter of taste, so meh.

Personally, I like the stealthy blacked out, minimalistic branding on the syntace megaforce 3. But hey YMMV.
  • 6 0
 The world doesn't need another stem, but this one is at least vaguely interesting in that it offers relatively high rise for it's length - most 40mm stems are dead flat, maybe 5/6mm rise tops. Good for those looking for a little more bar height and maxed out on headset spacers... but the world doesn't need more stems.
  • 1 0
 Now if someone could figure out how longer, higher rise stem weighs less….
  • 10 3
 They look just like every other boring CNC stem until you see the little details on the sides that are ugly AF. At least it's not as ugly as the one that Revgrips made...
  • 7 3
 Rise in mm instead of degrees! So good. Wish it was 31.8 though, 40x10 would be nice to get rid of a spacer, or go with a lower rise bar (if you like the flatter look, I happen to like the looks of my 40mm rise Renthal)
  • 1 0
 Funn equalizer - 35, 42 and 50mm options, 31.8 and 35 options, multiple color options, 10mm rise. Looks good, not too heavy.
  • 6 0
 Where do you route the cables?
  • 3 1
 I'm particular about my components and have nearly identical part specs on each of my builds: Full XT drivetrain with XTR chain, XT brakes, SDG Bel-Air saddle, HT PA03 pedals, Brand-X dropper, ODI Ruffian grips, KustomCaps headset caps, Hope headsets, spacers, and seat collars...


Except stems. I just buy whatever matches the rest of the build for $50. Azonic, Bontrager, Race Face, ODI, Nukeproof, Home Depot clamps, it doesn't really matter.
  • 3 0
 Interesting take and I can't argue with you on that: function has to win over form.

That being said, I'm particular about my components too, but having a nice stem is also important to me. I almost see the stem as the centerpiece of the build.
  • 3 0
 @AProulx: stems are one of my favorite places to have some bling. the i9 stems are so beautiful and love that they are made here.
  • 1 0
 @adrennan: i9 stems are indeed really nice. Buying locally manufactured parts it also important to me, but since I am Canadian I recently purchased a North Shore Billet stem. It's a stunning piece.

My go-to stems have been Thomson for about 15 years. I had a 90mm Elite with the wedge clamping a long time ago, then a couple X4 (70mm, 50mm), I also have their BMX stem on my two BMX Race bikes. I also got a couple Renthal stems.
  • 8 4
 Remember Special Blend outwear? Good stuff

I like to bikes

And sometimes boards
  • 3 0
 Why do companies still design stems without the ‘no gap’ interface? Surely torquing up the bolts is way more accurate when one side is already perfectly aligned?
  • 3 0
 I was going to comment the same thing. I don’t understand designing a new stem and not having a no-gap interface on one side of the clamp. Even Treks mid-range forged stems use a no-gap interface now, with a reversible stem interface to allow you to mount stems in rise or drop with the no-gap always on the top. Why did take so long to develop something so simple and why hasn’t the entire industry gone that way.
  • 1 0
 I am on it! I like Canfield Products a lot. Then again, the only Canfield product I have experience with is their cranks. I tried to buy a 2016 Canfield Balance in late 2017 during a clearance sale, but Canfield sold out.

I have 2 pairs of Canfield Cranks, both 155mm, a 3rd set (83mm, 155mm), is on the way (back-ordered and prepaid).

From here on out, I will never use any other Cranks except 155mm again for my All-Mountain, DH, or Enduro bikes. Canfield were the first ones I believed that sold "short cranks" in mass. I find with shorter cranks, I don't have to have the proper "leg extension length" to put down the power. I can put the dropper halfway, and still lay down decent power and legs don't get tired. I can ride 175mm cranks without issues as long as the seat post is set properly. Also the extra 20mm of clearance is nice.
  • 1 0
 Compared to something like the RF Atlas direct mount stem — which I consider to be the pinnacle of light weight and strength meets minimalistic and functional design in a DH stem — this new thing is huge and way overbuilt. I am all about strength and function, and wish more stems were 45mm, but riding along looking down at the new Canfield DM stem I’d be compelled to scream out “We shall ride eternal shiny and chrome through the gates of Valhalla!”
  • 3 1
 Love a 10mm rise stem. Keeps my bars from looking like a chopper. Those spider eyes on the side of the enduro stem give me the heebee jeebies though.
  • 2 1
 Aww I would have thought Canfield had the balls to make 31.8. I guess the 35mm continues to look better next to a brand new land rover.

Reminder: mtn bikers need fatter bars than Robbie Maddison.
  • 2 0
 I came to the conclusion that selling stems in the MTB world is the same as selling t-shirts on youtube... both carry very low production cost and huge margin of proffit.
  • 2 0
 They should really offer another batch of their cranks, its impossible to get them in Europe.
  • 2 1
 Canfield Cranks are cooler than 5Dev..
  • 2 0
 Looks like an ugly version of the NC-17 stem. Weights the same but costs double.
  • 5 4
 I’m still looking for a top load stem. Now that would be different from every other stem on the mtb market.
  • 1 0
 5Dev teased one at Sea Otter last year but have yet to put it into production.
  • 10 0
 @terriblejon: oh god, can it be someone other than 5dev though? I also want to like those guys, but it seems like everything of theirs has to be drillium, anodized purple, and cost like a grand
  • 2 0
 If you don't need it shorter than 45mm: elevnracing.com/products/stems/31-8mm-stems
  • 1 0
 @AndrewHornor: Thanks for that. Definitely a good option. I know a few other BMX racing companies make similar ones, which I have considered. I worry (probably needlessly) that because they are made for BMX racing, which is a game of weight (frames and parts often, at least in the past, had weight limits), that they might be less sturdy. I'd assume that they would probably be plenty for my purposes, though, as I'm not exactly riding rampage or something.
  • 3 0
 Like race face diabolus D2?
  • 1 0
 @AndrewHornor:

Ahhhhh! And that one has an actual wrap-around knee-friendly clamp. I’m a sucker for that design since the short reach days.
  • 1 0
 ridefarr.com/product-category/stem-headspace
  • 1 0
 @lightone: there we go
  • 2 0
 Seriously, a whole article on this...
  • 1 0
 Helpful that they have the torque numbers and the degrees. I like it, looks good. Well done.
  • 1 0
 They look decent. The direct mount one looks like the spank DM40, which is a good looking stem.
  • 2 0
 Wow a CNC'd aluminium bicycle stem, how novel!
  • 8 7
 Exactly what the market was demanding.
  • 2 0
 WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE!
  • 3 0
 It might just be cheaper for them to make their own stems and slap them on their full builds than it is to buy stems from another manufacturer. And then if you make them, might as well sell them.
  • 2 0
 @wpplayer18: I'm 99% sure this is why these exist. Cheaper to spec white-label stems, grips, bars, etc. on complete bikes when most buyers won't care about those components. Slap a Canfield logo on it & put extra stock (that doesn't end up on complete bike orders) up for sale on the off chance someone wants to buy it.
  • 4 2
 Forum Forever
  • 1 0
 I've got an old original one on my old and now never used DH bike.
  • 2 2
 Appears to be an off the shelf rebranded stem that looks exactly like one I have seen sheered in half.
  • 1 0
 I just want a 31.8 version of the Odyssey Elementary BMX stem
  • 5 7
 Finally! There were simply not enough stem choices out there. Hopefully they'll produce some bars next since they already have pedals. Maybe some seat post clamps...
  • 8 8
 Chode 35mm bars are gross.
  • 5 5
 BUT THEY CAN'T HOLD A WATER BOTTLE MAH MAH MAH MAH MAH
  • 1 0
 Nothing special.
  • 1 1
 Stems and seeds
  • 1 1
 42mm stack height :o
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