Old 11-14-18, 07:36 PM
  #17  
carleton
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Also, larger frames usually have taller head tubes. Tall head tubes move backwards more, away from the front tire. So, if the goal is to put the palms of the hands directly over the front axle (my reference mark), doing that with a 60cm frame might require a 140mm stem and doing the same with a 50cm frame might require a 80mm stem...using the exact same handlebars.

People at bike shops would look at me like I'm crazy when I asked for 140mm or 150mm stems. "Why do you need such a super long stem??!"...because I'm 6'1" on a 60cm bike with short/shallow 35cm Scatto bars.

Super D, I think you are quickly picking up on the fact that, while similar, fitting for track can be significantly different from fitting for road.

I think the riders that experience the most frustration are those that think, "Well, for road bikes I always use X, so that's definitely what I need on the track!" I did that. My first custom track bike was 57cm...because that was the size of my favorite road bike. My current custom bike is 61cm. FOUR centimeters longer with all other angles the same! Part of that was going from "wide" 38cm bars to "narrow" 35cm bars. But, a lot of that was also learning more about fitting.
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