 You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
My riding buddy recently bought a new Merida hardtail the flat wide bars we swapped for some slightly narrower risers to see if it would help his back.
The stem has a two piece clamp and it creaked like a b**ch, even swapping back still creaking!
Any suggestions as to a remedy? TIA.
What towzer said but I use carbon paste rather than copperslip.
Personally I'd buy a cheap higher rise stem (lots of decent options on SJS Cycles) - better way to ease your mate's back issues, and also allows you to double check that's actually what's causing the creak. Always good to have a selection of stems with different lengths and rise in the spares box when setting up a new bike; you can always go more gucci later when you're happy with what you need, although I'm of the opinion a stem is just a metal stick that puts the bars where you need them.
One miniscule bit of sand or something getting in between the bars and the stem faceplate can cause a hellish creak.
My bars and stem drove me absolutely nuts until I greased my headset and then they were absolutely fine.