Just. Get. It. Right. #3

Pretty much, and as therevokid says above there is an engineering reason to have one spacer above, also it does at least leave you the option of a bit of height adjustment. I suppose that on a race bike it comes down to having that 'pro' look with no superflous weight and a perfectly dialled in racing position.

Most test road bikes normally come in with two or three spacers - as they would be sent to a shop, and usually, but not always, with the spacers below the stem cos it looks 'neater' giving the reviewer the option of tweaking the position to suit - which can often mean the bike will be ridden with the spacers above the stem.

Personally I don't have any problem with a bit of above spacer action, but then I'm the sort of person that leaves the laces on their trainers unnecessarily long because they came that way and because if I cut them I will inevitably find myself in a situation in which a long trainer lace would prove vital.

Scuse my ignorance but what's wrong with having spacers above the stem? Is it purely aesthetic?

I'd expect review bikes, which they get passed around several publications, to have spacers above the stem when they're setup for some journalists.

the above stem spacer is to even the stem's pinch bolt
loads across the steerer evenly .... which is fair
enough in an engineering way ... but the non drive
side !!! .... oh dear, oh dear, oh dear .... it'll be
small ring and half way up (or down) the cassette next !

Easton advise on fork installation instructions for 10mm spacer above stem.

Just checked pics of 5 pro bikes and they all have 10mm spacer on top

Mmmmm! Cow Gum. And they wonder why designers are all weird, like?

And if you weren't very careful with your cow gum rubber, you'd have had messy bits around the text too, eh Nick?

A cover that important at a big publisher might well be designed in a different department by someone who isn't overly knowledgeable (or even care) about bikes. So they would just go with the right composition. Which is all the more criminal then to arrive at a cover so........meh! as they say on the interwebs.

Back in the old days, of course, you could reverse a transparency and have the chainset appearing on the left which really is the ultimate cock-up. Guess who's done that?

ah, maybe they were trying to break the mould, make a statement… like an art gallery turning the pictures to the wall… not sure what sort of statement that would be, but I'm not the intellectual sort

Ooh, the wrong side, that's terrible. And spacers above the stem, even worse.

What idiots, not to have done what everyone else does.

Hahaha brilliant (as in brilliantly rubbish)

Lennard Zinn advises you should always have at least one spacer above the stem, can't remember why. So that isn't completely wrong but non-drive side photo...definitely amateurs!

thats the best one yet!

obviously their cut and paste head honcho was off that day and they left it to the intern.