A second hand bike I recently acquired has proved to be a bit over-sized for me. The reach is a bit too much so I decided to fit an adjustable handlebar stem today. To my horror, I discovered the old stem was cracked almost from side to side directly underneath where the handlebars attach. Basically, unless you had a swan neck or turned the bike upside down to inspect it you would not spot it. It was literally minutes from failing, which had it done so on a fast decent for example would have been very painful
![Embarrassed :-[](http://www.heartofenglandcyclingclub.org.uk/forum/Smileys/default/embarrassed.gif)
So the lesson is, do turn your bike upside down and check for cracks in the frame, forks, seat post and stem regularly folks!!