In no time at all Renthal have become one of mountain biking’s most sought after brands. Building on a rich heritage in moto, and now push bikes, Renthal have well and truly arrived. With the Fatbar quickly becoming one of the must have products of 2011, the gravity set was hungry for a direct mount version of their popular Duo stem. It wasn’t long until the eagle eyed amongst us started spotting prototypes on Specialized and Mondraker factory bikes during the ’11 world cup season, setting the Internet hype machine whirling. Roll on to February 2012 and the stem, aptly called the ‘Integra’, has been out for a few months now; we’ve had it on one of our test bikes for a while now and this is what we think…

Words and Photos: Olly Forster

Renthal’s success may to some extent be a product of clever marketing and their sponsorship of the sports movers and shakers, but there’s no denying that what they make is both practical and pretty. You only have to ask to anyone who’s put some time in on their handlebars to tell you they won’t be going back to anything else anytime soon. So, the stem, what makes it so special?

Renthal’s approach to bar and stem design is all about focusing material quantity and density, directly to where it’s needed. The bars are where they’ve started, and Renthal bars being as stiff as they are, aren’t the lightest, so to balance things out they remove a considerable amount of weight where it isn’t needed, i.e. in the middle of a lump of material, like a bicyle stem. Clever stuff, but when you understand material distribution in high stress environments, you can manufacture products like the Integra stem.

Just like the Duo stem we reviewed last year, the Integra is a two piece affair; black anodized top half and a gold bottom. Laser etched logos and markings and CNC work thats second to none. All this is held together with 6 steel bolts, yes, I said steel bolts and not Ti. When you can offer a product this light – the Integra coming in at 120 grams, you just don’t need to add something which will ultimately will be the product’s downfall and weak spot – yes Ti bolts snap like little bitches with just the slightest over torquing and something I’d rather live without.

It’s been said a million times – having to remove 6 bolts to change your bars. And? How many times do you need to take your bars off? Solid, stiff and complimenting their bars perfectly – it’s no surprise these are selling like hot cakes! Just look at the machine work and finish…

The two piece direct mount stem design isn’t new, other brands have released direct mount stems comprising of two parts, but where they fail and Renthal succeed, is that Renthal once again didn’t follow protocol and saw another route to utlize this design to its fullest and maintaining a solid bridge of material between the two halfs and removing the stems reliance on their fixings to hold it all together.

How stiff are we talking here? Bloody stiff is all I can say and when you mate the stem and the bars together, you’ve got one of the stiffest and lightest set ups going.

There are markings on the stem, just like the Duo, so you can match them up to the ones your bars, but as my bars are nearly a year old, the markings don’t match – although they did on the Duo. New bars, you shouldn’t have an issue. It’s also worth mentioning that the Integra is a zero degree stem, with no rise to mention of, but if you like things nice and high, even higher than your gonna be on some 38mm bars, Renthal have something in the works… More on that soon.

The Integra is adjustable with the option to run it at two length options; 50 and 45mm. I’ve been running a similar size frame for the last two seasons and always ran a 50mm, but ran a 55mm for the latter half of last year. Although it did feel odd at first, I quickly got used to it, but going back just 5mm has made the bike feel like home again. That 5mm makes a lot of difference should you need it, but taller riders looking for more reach, might struggle here.

Set up on the 50mm setting, the stem sits flush against the crown. The Integra’s bolting pattern is the now ‘international standard’ used on all modern triple clamp forks covering all the major brands, but older Marzocchi’s may be an issue, running a different pattern to Rock Shox and Fox.

Running the 45mm setting and you do have a little overhang to the rear of the crown. Whether or not this is an aesthetical issue is something only you can decide should you need to go for this setting.

Conclusion.

Okay, I’ve pretty much said this is a great product already and it is, but lets talk economics here. £100 sterling for this beauty and that’s no drop in the ocean for two bits of aluminium and 6 steel bolts. But when you consider that the Truvativ Boxxer stem comes in at £80 and weighing in at around 80 grams more than the Integra, plus that £100 is unfortunately about the going rate for a premium, or should I just say quality, direct mount stem, it doesn’t sound that bad and lets face it, once you got it, you got it.

So, it’s £100, weighs 120g, is made in the United Kingdom and looks the bollox. It’s also as stiff as it gets and designed to work harmoniously with Renthals ludicrously stiff Fatbars and is made to the highest standards. All together this is a solid product that could well be the icing on the cake for many riders looking for that last piece to finish their ride off before the snow melts and the forests and mountains welcome us in like kids to a sweet shop. I’ve been nothing but impressed with both Renthals products and their approach to our little sport thus far and the Integra leaves me in no doubt that they will continue to push the envelope and deliver great bike products.

Renthal is distributed in the UK by Ison-Distribution.

For more information on Renthal and the Integra stem, please press the logo below!

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