MicMar

I'm looking for some input: I just sold my Orbea Onix (54cm) and am looking at Trek Domane 4.5, Felt Z5 and Cannondale Synapse carbon 4. Last week I test rode all three in size 54, but the 51 cm Cannondale felt the best on my short ride. I am getting close to pulling the trigger, but I want to know if there could be any long term downside risk to buying the smaller bike that I am not thinking about. I'm 5'11'', 31 inch inseam, 170 lbs.

johnny99

31" insead sounds like really short legs for 5'11" height. If you have a long upper body, do you have enough handlebar reach to avoid a hunched back when riding?

ypsetihw

stem a mile long . . . 3 ft of seat post . . . none of that sounds appealing. and yeah I'm also 5'11" and I ride a 57cm, everyone is different, but your inseam does sound really short for your height. how did you measure it? did the bike shop fit you or did they just put you on a bike? are they just trying to sell you what they have on the floor? if so, go somewhere else.

MicMar

Hi Johnny - I don't feel like my back was hunched, but maybe I need to take it for a longer ride. I rode the 54 and the 51 Cannondale. The 54 felt big, meaning it felt sluggish going uphill, from side to side. The 51 felt better - like I was in more control. I've never ridden an "Endurance bike" or a Cannondale, so I wanted to know if anyone else has had the same experience.

That said, I do have short legs!

MicMar

Greetings in Buffalo! I measured my inseam while wearing my bike shorts and went from my heal to my undercarriage. The crazy thing about my test ride yesterday was that the bike wasn't stretched (seat and stem). I've never ridden an "Endurance bike" or a Cannondale, so I wanted to know if anyone else has had a similar experience. The 54 Felt Z5 felt good, but the 54 Cannondale felt sluggish. The guy I was riding with (who I trust, goes to my church) suggested I try the 51 and it felt alot better - more in control.

fietsbob

I'm 5'9" I like sitting up more * you want to stay down Low and aero to reduce frontal area for Racing, You May like that size,
Thus, I cannot Judge for You .


* But I Bike Tour Not race.

Short legs in a 54 sloping top tube frame I fall back on the old Straddle the bike, bare flat footed , and lift the front wheel test .

how far can you lift the front wheel off the ground?

ypsetihw

the method most people recommend for measuring your inseam at home is to place a book between your legs while wearing your shorts, and snug it all the way up there and then put a mark on the wall. then measure the distance on the wall, not your body. when I did this I got 33 or 34", but I only wear a 32" inseam on my pants. just saying it might be an inch or two different.

also, if you don't ride much or aren't very flexible or very heavy (you didn't really say), perhaps your like the smaller frame because it allows you to be more upright as you might not be flexible enough for an aggressive stretched out position? also a shorter frame typically comes with a shorter stock stem, and this will increase steering response. also, the geometry of the front end will impact steering. the frames you tried may not have the same stem length or frame/fork angles, so keep that in mind when trying different bikes. this could be contributing to it feeling "sluggish." it's rarely the case that "all other things are equal" when trying bikes off the floor.

just curious, did you ask the shop to fit you? or are you just fitting on feel? feel is important but if the frame is too small you might run into other issues over time such as injuries from moving incorrectly during your pedal stroke. you might find that you get used to a larger frame over time, especially as you get more miles.

I would see if you can find some tech specs on the frame geometry of your old orbea and compare it to the new frames, this will allow you to make some estimated measurements and find out which bike is closest in actual cockpit size to your old bike. too bad you sold it, or you could have taken a tape measure to the old frame and compared the readings to the new bikes.

MRT2

Hmm. From side to side? You might want to look at your hill climbing technique.

I can see how a small bike gives you plenty of control. BMX bikes, for example. But ask yourself. How will your back, neck, and shoulders feel after 4 or 5 hours in the saddle?

Particularly for someone who has a proportionally longer torso, I would think you would need to go up a size. Cannot imagine someone almost 6' tall riding anything smaller than a 57 cm frame for any kind of long distance riding.

Carbonfiberboy 

I'm a short-legged 5'6" and ride 51-54 bikes. My 54 fits perfectly - 54cm top tube and 110mm stem, but there's not much seatpost showing. It's an endurance fit. My 52 has a 52cm TT and a 110mm stem. It's a perfect race fit and is my rando bike. My 51 has a 52cm TT and only a 90mm stem so I feel a little cramped, but am too lazy to change it. That bike also has a race geometry. It works OK

MicMar

Good ideas. Glad I'm getting to talk to you before I pull the trigger. Wish I could have talked to you before I sold my Orbea! Bottom line is the 51 fit better and I'm having a hard time believing it. I was hoping someone would reply and say they had the same experience with a Synapse or an Endurance bike. I'm not very flexible, but do work out quite a bit (170 lbs). I'm also 39 years old, so that's why I'm looking at the endurance frames. Also, Cannondale has the Synapse on sale right now for under $2k, seems like a good deal. Thanks again.

ypsetihw

did some googling and the synapse is a more race oriented frame with a longer top tube compared to the old orbea you had. basically you are not comparing the correct frame style in cannondale to the orbea, the geometry is more aggressive. as such, it has a longer top tube, meaning it will feel the same in the cockpit on a size down. so yeah, the 51 on the synapse probably feels similar to the orbea in a 54.

I would still say take it for a longer test ride. with the smaller frame you might run into issues with toe overlap on the front wheel when making tight turns, or might even have issues getting water bottles into and out of the frame while you ride. not deal breakers, but personally I wouldn't drop a couple thousand dollars unless it was perfect.

MicMar

Thanks for your help; I'm going to take the 51 out for a longer ride this weekend. Also going to test out the Domane in a size smaller. I appreciate all the input, really helped me out. Have a great weekend, thanks!

MicMar

Good info, thanks!

Drew Eckhardt 

Note that what's most familiar may feel best although long term you'll get more comfort out of something else.

Ignoring the effects on handling, stem availability and exposed carbon steerer length impose practical limits on how high and far you can move the handlebar.

As others have noted, it's your cycling inseam you're worried about. I wear 30" pants but measure 32." At 5'9.5" I'm on a 55cm frame with a 55.5cm top tube and 100mm +8 degree stem. 110mm is OK, 90mm definitely too short.

After riding for a few decades I caved in and got a professional fit when one knee started hurting. I'd recommend a dynamic fit which involves measurements made while you ride a bike on a trainer, like Specialized Body Geometry or Retul.

That will get you a position based on your anatomy, flexibility, and pedaling style which you can then translate into bike size and setup.

While it might not feel entirely natural at first, you'll be in an efficient position less likely to cause problems.

AnthonyG

From the point of view of long distance comfort I wouldn't recommend a smaller frame over a larger frame as long as you fit OK on the larger frame. It shouldn't be this way but unfortunately most bike manufacturers these days simply steepen the seat tube angles on smaller frames rather than reducing the reach in a suitable manner which has the outcome of placing more weight on your hands and shoulders.

Riders can tolerate this for an hour or so but on really long rides it becomes almost unbearable.

I've looked at Cannonade Synapse geometry before and I'm not a fan. The 51cm frame has a 74.3 degree seat tube angle which is steep. This will place quite a bit of weight on your hands/shoulders. Having said this the 54cm has a 73.9 degree seat tube angle which honestly isn't much better at all.

I'm recommending that you look at other bikes. The Synapse range isn't my pick for long distance comfort. I've had a quick look at Orbea geometry and from what I can find your old Onix had a 73.2 degree seat tube angle in 54cm. Both Cannonades will move your weight forwards placing more weight on your hands/shoulders.

See if you can try a bike in 54cm size with a 73 degree seat tube angle or even 72.5 if thats possible( this will be hard to find).

Anthony

MicMar

All good points. I'm going to go ride some different bikes this weekend, thanks for the ideas!

MicMar

That was the biggest problem, that the smaller bike felt better. I'm going to test some more bikes out this weekend. Thanks for the help!

Carbonfiberboy 

Try the fit calculator:
Bike Fit Calculator | Find Your Bike Size | Competitive Cyclist

berner

I'm 5'7" with a 30.75" cycling inseam and ride a bike with a 54mm top tube. When I first began cycling 4-5 years ago, I thought the bike was a bit big. Almost 20,000 miles later, my position on the bike has changed some. I'm most comfortable a bit lower on the bike. At present, the bars are a cm or so below the saddle. Since you are athletic, I would suggest that the bigger would be the more comfortable, not immediately, but after you've accumulated some miles.

philbob57

a cramped position can feel fast at first, but not for long. btdt. i read that you don't sense arching your back, but if your measurements are correct, you definitely ride the 51 in an unorthodox position - most of which get painful pretty quickly.

i know you want to get the sale price, but if you get the wrong bike, you'll spend far more than you save.

i'm 5' 7", 30.5" cycling inseam, and i ride a 54 seat tube, 56 top tube, 110 stem. by your self-measurement, your trunk is close to 4" longer than mine ... what you say you're experiencing doesn't make sense to me, but you may just be an outlier.

similar to berner, my bike feels long at the beginning of every season, but riding increases my flexibility, and i feel good pretty quickly.

whatever you buy, i hope it turns out to be a great purchase.

dim

According to Bianchi, I should ride a 53-54cm bike based on my measurements

I have a 50cm road bike and am flying on this .... I'm really comfortable, corner fast and ride fast. I had to change the stem though and had to change the saddle and tweak the height/position a few times until I felt comfortable

I've owned and ridden several 2nd hand bikes in the past 6 months (I buy a bargain, ride for a few weeks, then sell for a profit, and buy something better) .... I've even had a bike for a few weeks that was large (I had to tilt the bike 45 degrees when I came to a traffic light) ... on a straight road, it was fine

for me.... bigger framed bikes ride fine once you are going, but they are not as quick around corners etc (thats my own personal experience)

mdelrossi

5'10.5" here,
Felt z5 56, and a Trek Domane 2.0 56.
I'm comfortable on both though I have slightly settings.

just thought I'd throw that in here.

YMMV

mdr