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Road frame for short (4'11") rider

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Road frame for short (4'11") rider

Old 09-20-20, 07:29 PM
  #1  
Marylander
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Road frame for short (4'11") rider

My 26 year old daughter is only 4'11". She's been riding a bikes direct bike I bought for her a few years ago. The bike is a "42". She is really stretched out on it so I finally did a rough check of the reach on the thing. It's around 405mm, more than 30mm longer than the reach on my black mountain 54cm road. So, I'd better get her another frame (or possibly complete bike). Her legs are long for her height, 28 3/8" PBH, so the reach seems to be the key spec. We do a lot of riding on the C&O (crushed gravel) so I'd like to be able to fit 28s or even 32s. Her current bike has been updated just recently with 105 R7000 stuff (mostly stripped from one of my bikes, although I did buy some 160mm cranks for her) so I really just need a frame/fork. As I'm old fashioned and she has no opinion I'd prefer rim brakes unless a full build could be found at a decent price. She's enjoying riding but the hobby is more mine at this point so I'm just going to buy it for her.

What's out there for someone south of 5'? Locally I found an XS Trek 360 that looks overpriced ($400), a 44cm Fuji Finest 1.0 that also looks overpriced ($650), and a 40cm Felt F95 Jr that I've asked the seller if it'll handle 28mm tires. Not sure if $450 is reasonable for that one. Online I see a Felt FR30W new that I'm also checking with the seller if it'll fit 28s.
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Old 09-20-20, 09:07 PM
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Originally Posted by Marylander
My 26 year old daughter is only 4'11". She's been riding a bikes direct bike I bought for her a few years ago. The bike is a "42". She is really stretched out on it so I finally did a rough check of the reach on the thing. It's around 405mm, more than 30mm longer than the reach on my black mountain 54cm road. So, I'd better get her another frame (or possibly complete bike). Her legs are long for her height, 28 3/8" PBH, so the reach seems to be the key spec. We do a lot of riding on the C&O (crushed gravel) so I'd like to be able to fit 28s or even 32s. Her current bike has been updated just recently with 105 R7000 stuff (mostly stripped from one of my bikes, although I did buy some 160mm cranks for her) so I really just need a frame/fork. As I'm old fashioned and she has no opinion I'd prefer rim brakes unless a full build could be found at a decent price. She's enjoying riding but the hobby is more mine at this point so I'm just going to buy it for her.

What's out there for someone south of 5'? Locally I found an XS Trek 360 that looks overpriced ($400), a 44cm Fuji Finest 1.0 that also looks overpriced ($650), and a 40cm Felt F95 Jr that I've asked the seller if it'll handle 28mm tires. Not sure if $450 is reasonable for that one. Online I see a Felt FR30W new that I'm also checking with the seller if it'll fit 28s.
Have you tried a shorter stem and/or swept handlebar?
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Old 09-20-20, 09:33 PM
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If you genuinely want to shorten the "Reach" of a bike frame, to be shorter than what is already achievable on say a 42cm, 700c wheeled bike, then the ONLY option is to move to a bike frame that uses smaller wheels.
There is no other option as its the wheel size that limits the lowest possible "Reach" that can be specified.
Your looking at 650c (ERTRO 571mm) or even 24" (ETRTO 520mm) for narrow high performance tires but if you want wider tires your looking at 24" Mountain rims (ETRTO 507mm) or there are some wider options for 24" (ETRTO 540mm) available.

Short top tube lengths can be achieved on spec sheets with 700c wheels simply by making the seat tube angle steeper but this doesn't shorten the "Reach". If you really want a bike with a genuinely shorter "Reach" then there is nothing for it except smaller wheels.
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Old 09-20-20, 10:01 PM
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My wife is and inch or two shorter than your daughter.

The bike you are describing is not a true 42. It's some sort of compact geometry and is most likely rides like a 50cm or so.

This is perfectly normal and modern. Depending on the brand, I can range from 46 to 55cm, because they all have a 55cm virtual height. This definitely makes shopping harder

My wife has two bikes in the garage. I'll describe them.

1. An early aughts Motobecane. 650c wheels. Seems diminutive but is actually a tiny bit big. I think it measures a true 49cm and also sports a super short stem. 650c tires are hard to mount and are getting hard to get. Usually only in 23mm. Terry makes one in 28. Those are your options. The standard is on its way out.

2. A 48cm Centurion Ironman. Older but fits better. The 700c wheels make it sit taller but once she's on it, its better. I can fit 30's of multiple brands on it and do a 650b conversion if I wanted to use 35's or so.

Judging by how it fits, a 45cm or so would be perfect. This is incredibly hard to shop for, since with compact geometry, a search will bring up bikes that are meant for far taller riders.

A few years ago I saw a true 44cm Mercier on eBay and let it go. I've been kicking myself ever since.

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Old 09-20-20, 11:05 PM
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https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/renegadeseries.html
the aluminum and steel frames come in 44cm sizing with 350mm reach and 495mm of stack. 650b wheels that allow for proper frame geometry. There has been a frameset in years past, havent looked recently.

https://www.norco.com/bikes/2020/roa...-s-frame-fork/
this has 355mm of reach and 507mm of stack. Frameset in stock. Multiple full builds too.

https://allcitycycles.com/bikes/space_horse_tiagra
363mm of reach and 493mm of stack height. Comes in a frameset or full build options.


All 3 are quality designed and come as full builds or framesets. Just swap most of the components over if its a framebuild then buy wheels and some cable brakes to work with the current shifters.
All 3 can handle a wider tire. Buy quality tires that will roll fast and provide comfort on the stone trails.

Last edited by mstateglfr; 09-20-20 at 11:26 PM.
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Old 09-21-20, 05:06 AM
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As I remember, cyccommute has a fair bit of experience with riders of he shorter variety.
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Old 09-21-20, 12:01 PM
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
https://www.jamisbikes.com/usa/renegadeseries.html
the aluminum and steel frames come in 44cm sizing with 350mm reach and 495mm of stack. 650b wheels that allow for proper frame geometry. There has been a frameset in years past, havent looked recently.
So, I did some searching on the options everyone presented and found a 44cm Jamis on closeout in a shop not too far away so I pulled the trigger. This looks like a perfect choice for the riding we do and will allow us to hit some things a bit rougher than her current bike can handle. It'll take most of the 105 parts I've got as well (mechanical disc brakes so I don't need new brifters).

Thanks everyone!
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Old 09-22-20, 04:40 PM
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Originally Posted by Marylander
So, I did some searching on the options everyone presented and found a 44cm Jamis on closeout in a shop not too far away so I pulled the trigger. This looks like a perfect choice for the riding we do and will allow us to hit some things a bit rougher than her current bike can handle. It'll take most of the 105 parts I've got as well (mechanical disc brakes so I don't need new brifters).

Thanks everyone!
At 4’11” and with a inseam of 28”, the bike might still be a bit big. She will only have about 1/2” to 3/4” of clearance. That’s not a lot. Think of how close you want the frame to be to the sensitive bits if you have to bail off in a hurry. You could gain a little bit of space by using a 559mm rim instead of the 650C wheels (571mm). It’s not a lot but every little bit is going to help. With discs brakes this is pretty easy to do.

Also look to reducing weight as much as possible. A tiny person usually doesn’t weigh much and a 24 lb bike could be 1/4 or more of their body weight. Think how you would feel if you had to haul around 1/4 of your body weight all the time. Replace as much many parts as you can with carbon. She won’t be able to stress the carbon so it will last a long time. My favorite light hubs are White Industries T11s. Go with as light a rim as you can find, as well.

A bit of a rant on weight: Women’s and kids bikes are tanks compared to bikes for larger men. I can go out and buy a 14lb bike tomorrow but I can’t go out and buy a 14 lb bike for my wife or one for a child. I can’t even get close without spending a large wad of cash and making many modifications. I wouldn't even consider a 50 lb bike but we expect women and children to ride the equivalent.
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Old 09-22-20, 07:54 PM
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Quite right cyccommute. We'll look at her stand over clearance when we ride together later this week. I'll look at wheels either way as that looks like a clear spot to lose weight (I'm going to compare the wheels/tires from the old bike to the new ones, I'm betting the new ones are a couple pounds heavier, all said). I will be switching most of the parts over to 105 R7000 that I've already got (shifters/brake levers, rear der, front der, crankset, bottom bracket, 12-25 cassette) so we'll lose a couple pounds there. I'll have to look at some CF stuff. I've got a CF seat post that might work but could be too long (it's got a bend in it that may not clear the seat tube). Here's hoping I have the time to swap stuff out before we ride this weekend.

All that said she's pleased to have a bike that fits better but she's not nearly as excited about it as I am.
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Old 09-23-20, 12:09 AM
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Check out Georgena Terry Bicycles. They used to be a nitch brand for short women but I don't know anything about their current offerings.
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