only one stem fits my frame

for some reason, only the stem that came with my frame fits, nothing else does, calliper says they are the same dimensions, but it just doesn't go in, so im stuck with a stems that's too long

sure calliper says its the same?

french bikes came with a 20mm steerer over the standard 22.2mm

solution = sandpaper and lots of time

thats what i thought! freaking french frame, ive been filing this one stem, i think im just gona take it to the workshop and use the electric sander
cheers

2.2 mm is a lot to sand off.

sorry its 22 and 22.2*

sorry its 22 and 22.2*
wasn't being sarky. that makes it a bit more doable!

if i do that you try getting my stem out after..haha

if i do that you try getting my stem out after..haha
anti-theft

you'd be better of using a lathe if you can get use of one. the difference between 20mm & 22.2mm is rather huge

I'm facing the same problem as-well with a peugeot frame im re-building.

I've given up trying to get a french stem, they are either hard to find or silly expensive.

Given that you only need to actually take 0.1mm off to reduce the diameter by 0.2mm, im going to go down the sand paper route aswell. You might have seen these links already, but if not, they may help.

http://sheldonbrown.com/velos.html
http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-716753.html

i think im going to stick with this stem atm, (im plain lazy) or at some point im going to replace the headset and fork, which seems like the method requiring less effort than sanding a stem.

Had the same problem with my swiss frame, take the stem, wrap it in sandpaper and spin it around for a few minutes, worked like a charm