The oil slick design theme is an acquired taste, but if you jealously saw what FSA sponsored pro riders last season, be jealous no more.

FSA has now released is Gradient Team LTD stem as a retail product. The design is familiar in shape to most enduro and trail riders, but the big news for 2021, is its kaleidoscope colour finish.

Beyond their function as a crucial steering component, stems also can make or break the colour harmony of a bike. For those riders who desire the oil slick finish atop their head tube, this Gradient Team LTD stem could be the missing lacquer link in a dream build.

Read more: the best stems you can buy

Stem dimensions for modern geometry

The geometry is on trend for a contemporary enduro stem, with a 35mm bore handlebar clamp specification and matching 35mm steerer stack height. As one would expect from an enduro stem, the Gradient Team LTD has a 0° rise profile.

As reach numbers have increased on modern trail and enduro bikes, stem lengths have seen a proportional decrease in length. Aware of this, FSA’s product planners offer the Gradient Team LTD in three lengths: 35-, 40- and 50mm.

Meticulously CNC machined, the Gradient Team LTD has a minimalist appearance but all the material that has been milled away, does not reduce the stem’s inherent stiffness. By using sophisticated finite element analysis in the design process, FSA’s engineers can shape an attractively minimalist stem, that is also robust.

What about the oil slick finish, with its industrial material rainbow colourway? The purple and gold highlights are infused as part of an anodizing process.

Detailing is tidy, too, with laser-etched graphics and nickel-plated steel bolts – because plain black would ruin the Gradient Team LTD’s appearance.

FSA weight classifies its oil slick enduro stem at 157g (for a 50mm length variant), whilst the shortest version is 123g. All three sizes in the range, price at €209.