erina2

Hi,
I've already got some great advice about fit from the C&V forum, but it sounds as if vintage touring frames with top tube lengths of 48-50cm are nearly non-existent. I'm aware of the newer bikes like Surly that come in 650b and small frames, but I'm on a budget and would like to find something used on craigslist that would work for me. I'm interested in light touring (Me plus gear will only weigh about 150 lbs combined) on fire roads / pavement / C&O canal. Any suggestions for bikes I could look for?

Thanks!

phughes

Surly makes the Long Haul Trucker in a 42cm, which has a top tube length of 492.7, and an effective top tube length of 505.0. https://surlybikes.com/bikes/long_haul_trucker/geometry

Okay, sorry, I see you have ruled out Surly.

erina2

I'd love to get a Surly, but I'm going to have to save up

phughes

Yeah, sorry, I somehow missed that before I posted. I just looked at BikesDirect.com but didn't find anything with a top tube length that short. The closest I found was 530mm. That was just in the touring bike section though.

You may want to look for an older mountain bike from the 80s. They make nice touring bikes. I still have an old Ross Mt. Rainier from 1984. Many are fairly small, and you can change out the bars to better fit you.

Erina

fietsbob

Bike Friday NWT , and by being a 20" wheel
even a short, TT , no toe - front wheel overlap .

Have to save more money for that too..

but they are easier to fly and tour because of their design.

which had that kind of touring in mind.


...

Tourist in MSN

Or early 90s. A lot of mountain bikes from the pre-suspension fork era would be good touring bikes.

I use an old Bridgestone mountain bike for errands. I have never toured with it, but with the right front rack (it lacks the mid fork rack mounts) it would be a good touring bike.

I have also seen some people tour on mountain bikes with suspension. But I would only consider a coil spring suspension fork if I was going to tour on a bike with suspension. Or an air fork for shorter trips.

seeker333

A smaller wheeled bike is advantageous fit-wise for smaller bicyclists. Surly LHT or the geometrically-identical Disc Trucker (DT) in 26" is one way to go to achieve shorter top tube. Short/steep stem and short-reach drop handlebar will help further. A more radical reach solution would be to build a LHT/DT with MTB-style flat bar, or in worst case a trekking bar. Compared to drop bar, flat bar would reduce reach 6-9cm, and a trekking bar would reduce reach 7-12cm. BTW, there's nothing wrong with 26" wheels - they usually last longer than 700c wheels, although at your stated weight most any wheel is likely to last longer than you'd want to make them spin.

For you, the problem in using an old MTB for touring is that MTBs by design have an especially long top tube, as they are intended to be used with "flat" bars. Also MTBs typically have chainstay (CS) length of ~420-425mm, which in many cases means the final position of rear panniers causes the heels of your shoes to strike bags as you pedal (heel strike). Purpose-built touring bikes have CS length of 450-470mm to prevent heel strike. Because you are apparently smaller/shorter, you may be able to use an old hardtail MTB (even your Thrill) with rack and panniers without heelstrike - depending on the rack, size/shape of bags, size of your shoes etc. Even if you have no heelstrike on your Thrill, you'll still have a longish reach, which could be mitigated somewhat with a trekking bar. If you are really sold on drop handlebar then you should be looking at a bike frame with shorter top tube - one designed for drop bar (LHT/DT for example).

I'm inclined to recommend saving up for a LHT/DT, it will likely cost less in the long run than buying an old bike then eventually upgrading to a newer bike with lower gears, better brakes, etc. There are new LHTs on eBay every other day. You can set up an eBay search which will email you when new LHT/DTs are posted. Also Craigslist:

https://www.searchtempest.com/

My cheapskate counterthought is to find a rack, bags and a trekking bar and try this combination on the Fuji Thrill for reach/fit and heel clearance. BTW, bikes configured for loaded touring are relatively heavy, so don't let weight of Thrill discourage you.

Aubergine 

Brian25

I hate to put you on the spot, but how have you come up with this idea that you need a bike with a 50 cm top tube? My wife is short 5'-1", and does fine with a 52 tt. Is this one of these situations where you never ride on your handle bar tops/ always on the hoods, want to have a short reach situation??? I knew a girl who had a custom bike built with a 50 cm top tube. Eventually she "discovered" her tops, and ended up riding on them a lot. After a while, she found out that her top tube was actually too short. Ended up selling it and bought a "normal" bike.

erina2

seeker333 - I hadn't thought about mtn bikes having long reaches with drop bars so that is something to keep in mind. I'm open to trekking bars, however.

Aubergine - Sorry, I hadn't realized you were talking about a hybrid. I've been overlooking them and I shouldn't.

Brian25 - I'm 5'2" but had a frame builder say that I should stick to 50cm or less top tubes. I'm not so worried about it on my other bikes, but I'm planning my first mult-day / night trip and worried that a mismatch in fit might be more problematic on a longer trip. I do ride on the tops a lot though on my current 50cm tt bike (when not navigating traffic!) and it is pretty comfortable so maybe it is ok. I found a Cannondale T600 with tt of 52cm that I might go try out.

Thanks again everyone!

saddlesores

try a really, really short stem...

Doug64

I was able to buy 2 LHTs one a 42 cm and one 50 cm; both were in good condition and under $600.

However, I had been looking for a couple of years, but I am pretty picky. One daughter is 4'11, and the other is 5' 6".

niknak

As most production bikes get smaller, the head tube angle gets slacker to reduce toe overlap. A slack head tube combined with narrow drop bars makes for one twitchy bike at climbing speeds. My wife had a 42cm LHT that she nicknamed Floppy because the front end tended to wander all over.

If you forgo the need for drop bars, the options increase dramatically. You won't be limited by hard to find short top tube bikes because either flat or swept back bars will reduce your overall reach. Plenty of people, myself included, enjoy touring with swept back or flat bars. The other advantage to this is the ability to run mountain bike shifters and gearing, which is a big plus.

Doug64

I suspect that the "floopy" feeling has more to do with weight distribution on the bike, or bike handling skills. My daughtr rides a 42 cm LHT, and is pretty steady climbing hills at 3.7 mph. She is steadier at low speeds than I am. I know this from riding behind her on some steep hills.

niknak

While it could be weight distribution or handling skills, I believe the floppy handling is due to something known as flop factor. The linked calculator is fun to play with. A shallow head angle and narrow drop bars is not a good combination. There's a reason why mountain bikers use wider bars to match the higher flop factors of their bikes.

The best solution for these small frames is to use wide bars. You get the benefit of better handling at low speeds, plus you can use mountain bike shifters and gearing, plus your hand position will be closer to you. It would be a great solution for the OP, who could then choose from a larger number of bikes.