Yet the death of the quill stem is really what changed the way we think about saddles.

The quill stem allowed cyclists to easily raise or lower their handlebars.

With a quill stem, the steerer tube does not protrude above the headset.

On the other hand, a quill stem must be sized to match the inner diameter of the steer tube.

So, for example, a 17 stem angled downward would mimic the angle of the typical road quill stem.

Minimum insertion (quill stem)

Threadless stems avoid the internal binding or seizing possible with a quill stem's wedge or cone bolt.

The quill stem requires a threaded fork that extends up through the headset but does not protrude beyond the headset.

The quill stem fits down into the inside of the top of the fork steerer tube to be held in place internally via either a wedge and bolt or a cone-shaped expander nut and bolt.