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This is an extremely Rare 1989 RITCHEY FORCE Fillet Brazed quill stem Hand Made by Tom Ritchey
1” quill diameter
145mm reach
10 degree rise
Integrated front cable hanger
25.4mm handlebar clamp diameter
RITCHEY FORCE logo on handlebar clamp
NOT made by nitto but made using tubes supplied by Nitto.
Very rare “gun blue” over hardened steel finish
Made in California, USA
The History Behind the "Gun Blue" Finish
During the golden era of mountain bike racing, Tom Ritchey experimented heavily with finishes to make his custom-brazed steel pop at trade shows (like Interbike) and on the world cup racing circuit.
The Process: To achieve this finish on steel, the raw, hand-polished stem was nickel/chrome plated first to prevent deep rust, and then chemically treated with a custom hot-salt gun bluing solution. Because bluing requires specific steel chemistry to "take," applying it over a light flash-plating or on a specialized steel alloy gave it an iridescent, deep translucent, smoky blue/black sheen. It is incredibly beautiful but notoriously fragile to environmental wear.
The Frame Connections:
This translucent gun-blue-over-chrome aesthetic was most famously used on the 1989/1990 Ritchey SuperComp and certain bespoke P-23 models. Rather than standard paint, a select few high-end custom orders or factory-sponsored team frames featured this exact translucent, smoky gun-metal finish across the frame and matching hand-brazed stem.
Because Tom Ritchey was dealing with overwhelming demand for his P-series race frames at the time, his shop utilized a blend of specialized labor and imported raw materials.
• The Tube Sub-Assembly: To save time, Ritchey sourced raw, pre-cut, and pre-stamped quill tube inserts directly from Nitto in Japan. This explains why a Nitto date code and diameter stamp are present on the raw metal below the insertion line.
• The Brazing: The actual fillet-brazing of the extension to the quill tube was done right in California. However, while some were done by Tom Ritchey himself, many of these catalog "Force Fillet Braze" stems were brazed by Tom's highly skilled, hand-trained shop builders inside his original frame-building facility.
How to tell if Tom personally touched it
Tom's personal touch is famous for its "feathered" perfection.
• The Shop-Brazed Stems: Have beautifully smooth, flowing brass fillets. They are gorgeous, structurally perfect, and highly collectible, but were essentially production-level custom parts built by his staff using Nitto quill blanks to meet demand.
