Oval Concepts R900 stem review

Cold forged and then machined before being wrapped in layers of carbon fibre composite the R900 is 5g lighter than the all-aluminium R700 model. 

It doesn’t feel any stiffer than the R700 in use, although the deflection test did show it to be slightly stiffer in torsion.

The rear facing cap screws can be a fiddle to get to grips with as they need an Allen key extension when using a torque wrench, but this also makes you pay more attention to even bolt tightening when you’re fitting your bars.

A nice touch is the slot at the rear of the steerer clamp that is cut at an oblique angle to reduce the likelihood of damage to carbon steerer tubes.