|   Did I buy the wrong sized bike? Please advise. (fairly long) | CTRider
Dec 15, 2002 5:29 PM | | I've been riding a 17" Marin Nail Trail since May of this year and I like the bike a lot, I just wonder after each ride if I should have opted for the 15" (next size down) frame vs. the 17er.
Here's how it went, took a 15 inch out for a test ride and it felt kinda cramped in the cockpit (didn't mess around with stem lengths etc.) Then took the 17 inch out and I felt like I had more room in terms of the top tube (but very little standover clearance). Rode the 15" again.....then the 17" again and still prefered the 17er. BUT these were test rides on pavement (not on technical twisty, rooty, rocky CT trails like I'm riding now).
Do you think the smaller size would give me more control out on the trails? Or do you think the longer top tube is best suited for me (I have a short 30" inseam and a longer torso...I'm around 5'9" 5'10" tall)?
I did swap the stem on my bike to a 110mm with a higher rise (vs. the stock 120mm stem) and that has helped, but I still have that standover clearance issue to deal with.
I keep thinking that maybe I should test ride some bikes again by demoing them on the trail to see how they feel and then perhaps pick up a frame size the best suits me and then swap parts over from the Nail Trail.
Or perhaps I just need to improve my riding skills. :-)
Any advice would be welcome. |
| re: Did I buy the wrong sized bike? Please advise. (fairly long) | sprockets
Dec 15, 2002 6:12 PM | | I think that you are over-analyzing this. Ride and enjoy. First off, many people ride smaller bikes because of the perceived advantages of a lighter, more manuverable bike. Perceived, but not always real. If your weight is not correctly distributed, if your body geometry creates difficult moments, if you get uncomfortable on long rides, etc., then smaller ain't always better. Given the dimensions that you cite, it seems like a 17 is fine. Especially if the 15 felt small. I think of that size being appropriate for really small people. Thirty inch inseam on a 5'9" rider isn't "short", it is within the normal range. If you want quicker steering, try a shorter stem. You'll get it. Relax. Think less, ride more. |
| I did switch to a shorter stem with slightly more rise.... | CTRider
Dec 15, 2002 6:25 PM | | and it has helped a lot....especially on downhill sections. I often feel like my weight on the saddle isn't over the back wheel enough.....could I change the sweep of my riser bars a bit and move my seat back a little to try to get the right weight distribution?
I like you final comment and I think I need to ride and make adjustments and try and dial this frame in a bit more. And by riding more my skills will improve as well.
I love this sport!!! |
| I did switch to a shorter stem with slightly more rise.... | sprockets
Dec 15, 2002 6:43 PM | | There will be *lots* of times when you don't feel far enough to the rear (and vice versa) and you need to slide your butt back there. If you are not hanging over the back, which you do need to do at times, you will still need to be on the verge of going off the back during a lot of your riding. I tighten my butt muscles, jam my thighs tight together and slide on back. The seat always stays under me.
I don't know your bike. Is this a hardtail? If so, and this is your first year, you are probably spending too much time sitting on your seat like it was a road bike. Slide forward, back, and get your butt up and use your suspension (your legs). In rough, twisty, fast terrain, you should spend most of your time not relaxing on the seat. It is hard work. That is one reason people like FS. If it has a rear sus, you don't want to permanently postion yourself too far to the rear, it unbalances the suspension front/rear, and works against you.
You can slide your seat back a bit, but you need to not lengthen the cockpit so much that you are stretched out. |
| re: Did I buy the wrong sized bike? Please advise. (fairly long) | OtherJim
Dec 15, 2002 6:13 PM | | I'm 5'10" and I ride a 19" frame. I do mostly downhill/freeride type riding, so I was a bit concerned about control at first, but after riding both 17" and 19" frames for a while, I decided I liked the larger frame better. |
| re: Did I buy the wrong sized bike? Please advise. (fairly long) | LowCel
Dec 15, 2002 6:22 PM | | All that matters is how the bike feels to you! With that being said is it possible that neither one of them would fit you. Sometimes, no matter how much you like a bike it just isn't the bike for you. Maybe you should consider a different brand. I know that there are a lot of bikes that I have tried and no matter what size the frame was it just wouldn't fit me.
Don't know if this helps but its just my .02
b |
| Tell us about the standover issue... | næstep
Dec 15, 2002 6:26 PM | | You've had enough time on the bike now to know if it is indeed an issue for you. How much standover clearance do you have? Has this presented a problem yet on the trail?
næstep |
| maybe an inch standover tops... | CTRider
Dec 15, 2002 6:30 PM | | and it really hasn't created a problem on the trail per se. See my reply up above about adjusting the bars and moving the seat back a bit.....I see you post here a lot and I value your opinion.
Thanks!
I think the real answer is that I just need to get out and ride as much as possible. If only we'd get another two days of warm temps and then some really cold dry days here in New England it would make things a lot better for the trails and for riding them. |
| Sizing is subjective... | JmZ
Dec 15, 2002 6:30 PM | | I'm 5'11" with a 30" inseam and I've ridden everthing from a 15" to a 18" bike.
A few things that I've learned:
Not all bikes fit the same. I couldn't ride a 15" GT comfortably (it felt too large), but I could ride a 17" Univega. Likewise couldn't fit a 16" Diamondback, but fit a 15" Jamis.
Differences in standover and top tube are a compromise. I've got a Jamis 15" dually that I'm on right now. The top tube is a tad short, but the standover is excellent. I sold off two bikes in the past becase of the reverse (top tube good, but NO standover).
The difference in stem and seatpost should not be underestimated. A 20mm longer stem and setback seatpost can lengthen a cockpit by up to 1-2". This could be the difference between the top tubes on the 15" and 17" bikes.
The trail test ride is the best bet. Test ride as much as you can. Short of that, see if there are any shops around that have a 'fitting system'. It might be worth to see what it says, then again, maybe not.
In general a smaller bike has a lighter, more nimble feel. Probably due to the weight being lower, and smaller wheelbase. But this is not an absolute.
JmZ |
| Your 15" Jamis...how much standove does it give you? | CTRider
Dec 15, 2002 6:35 PM | | Just curious as to your decision to go with the 15" Jamis over the next size up.
I'd like to keep a hardtail and add a FS rig and am looking at Dakars right now....but nobody around here in CT has any '03s in the showroom yet and what they have left in '02s are 19" and 21" or the reverse 13" bikes. |
| Jamis Standover | JmZ
Dec 15, 2002 7:20 PM | | First I want to state, I'm on a 1997 Dakar and not the latest and greatest frame they've got. The sizing is probably a bit different.
I ended up on a 15" for a few reasons. (and in this order too..)
1) One of my previous bikes has issues with standover, I had a Diamondback V-Link, which gave me NO clearance. I erred on the size of caution, in this case the smaller frame.
2) I wanted the lighest frame. Hence the smaller bike.
3) The 15" frame was the easiest to get. A shop in town was able to get it within a few days.
4) I bought blind. There were no bikes for me to test ride. I got lucky with the Jamis, but I've been burned since (not by any particluar person, but by bike fit.)
I did know going in what top tube lenghts and things that I was looking for, and in that regards I was lucky because the Jamis was pretty close. I crunched the numbers of what the Top tube lenght was supposed to be and compared it to a bike that fit. It was about 40mm shorter, but I also ran a longer stem to make up for part of that.
Might want to look and see if the Geometry of the 2002 hardtails is close for the TT length, and standover for the Dakar series. If it is CLOSE, then it could give a general idea of which way to lean in those sizes. I know some companies vary sizes by models, but others keep pretty consistent.
Check out Jamis' website and see. http://www.jamisbikes.com . They should have some info that could help there.
Good luck,
JmZ |
| re: Did I buy the wrong sized bike? Please advise. (fairly long) | rockstar
Dec 15, 2002 10:49 PM | | i'm in same boat as you but i'm not gonna worry about it. i just bought a 2003 liquid 20 and it has adjustable rear and front suspension at its maximum rear height 5" in the rear my standover height is 3/4 inch but at 4" i have 1 3/4 . i rarely switch it to 5 inches. i normally run my front at 100 mm and rear at 4-4 1/2 which leaves me with 1 1/2 of stand over i'm 5-8 - 5-9 30 inch inseam and i use a 17 1/2 inch frame. the top tube length feels perfect i love the riding postion and it just feels right. i ride alot of technical single track, and semi technical down hill |
| What's the Top Tube Size? | RP
Dec 16, 2002 11:40 AM | | Standover height is not the way to size a frame. The most important measurement is Top Tube length. If your TT is too long you won't be able to properly weight your bike for technical riding. A short TT makes for a BMX feel which is great for the slower speed stunts/jumps but bad for high speed stablity and XC spinning.
I'm 5'9" and have a 31.5" inseam. I've got a 23" TT trail bike setup with a 100mm stem, 1" riser bar and a lay back post. I've also got a 22.7" XC race bike with a 120mm stem, flat bar and a lay back post.
Frame size is very important. It's best to ask around and get many different opinions. Throw out opinions from sellers that only have a single size in stock. Also throw out the extremes. Most riders think because they ride a certain size bike it fits, which is just not true. Also understand that different riding styles require different fits. A DH frame fits differently than a XC frame.
Test rides are only good if you already know how a frame should fit/feel. If you don't know this it's hard to dial a frame in with a stem, bar and post combination during a test ride. The best you can do is an educated guess using the TT as your starting point.
Standover is not the correct way to size a frame. Standover doesn't effect handling. Of course at the extreme there are issues, but I don't think you at there with a 17" frame. |
| The top tube is 21 and 3/4" | CTRider
Dec 16, 2002 2:44 PM | | What I've done is gone with a shorter stem with more rise....I have risers that came with the bike, perhaps swapping out to some risers with more sweep would help? Or I could adjust the current bars a bit to see how it feels.
The adjustments to the shorter stem and moving the bars around have helped already, so perhaps more fine tuning is what is needed. That and more time on the bike (I've only been really riding since May of '02 - and not as often as I'd have liked either - hard at times with kids and a wife who doesn't get my passion for this sport). |
| 21.75" ... really? That's already on the small side... | RP
Dec 16, 2002 5:45 PM | | For guys our size a reasonable XC/Trail frame sizing is somewhere between 22.5" and 23.5". Are you sure about your numbers? I don't recall seeing a geometry with a 17" seat tube and a 21-3/4" TT.
If I've got the facts straight, i.e. 5'9" (30" inseam) on a 21-3/4" TT frame, your bike might be too small.
A common problem with a small fitting frame is that the handle bars are too low relative to the saddle. Are your bars below your saddle? If they're too low the bike will feel really twitchy and tend to throw you forward on steep downhill trails.
Another problem with a small frame is that the steering will be very quick ... unnervingly quick. At higher speeds quick steering bikes are very difficult to control.
If you're bars are with 1" of your saddle and you're running a 110mm stem, then you probably just need some more saddle time. If your bars are more than 2" below your saddle then a riser bar or a stem with some rise might help. Either way I would tend to bet that if your bike doesn't fit it's because it's too small NOT to large. |
| 21.75" ... really? Yep, I just double-checked | CTRider
Dec 17, 2002 1:08 PM | | I just re-visited the Marin geometry chart and confirmed...but they measure their frames weird imo....do you think this isn't the true "effective" top tube length, because if anything I feel like I'm maybe slightly too stretched out.
My riser bars have a 1" rise.....I was thinking of going with something with a little more rise in the bars to go with the stem I have on now which gives 2 degrees more rise than what came stock on the bike.
What would be a good set of reasonably priced bars that would give me a little more rise than the stock bars?
And I think I defintely do just need more ride time to go along with thesed adjustments.
Thanks for all the insights everybody.
These forums and the people who post on 'em rock!
Take care,
Mark |
| No it's not too big | nalax
Dec 20, 2002 9:09 PM | | I'm 5-6 and ride bikes with top tubes of 21.5", 22" and 22.7". I have adjusted my stem lengths and position so that I'm comfortable on all of them, though they each have their own specific ride.
At 5-9 your 17" bike should be fine. You don't have a year of riding yet. Ride more and learn more. Remember it's 90% rider and 10% bike. |
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