genec

Having never been fitted and really wanting to finally upgrade to some modern hardware... I have been thinking about this somewhat strange dichotomy: One typically selects the bike they want and then they are fitted.

But shouldn't you be measured first and shown lines of bikes that you are likely to fit?

I had a strange dream last night that I was on a machine that was fully dynamically adjustable... the saddle moved, the angles tilted, the bottom bracket moved, the handlebars moved up down, in and out and rotated... I just sat there and cranked, while all the adjustments were being made and in the end, the readouts and data showed how I fit onto a particular set of bikes that would be ideal for me in various riding positions.

So the real question is... does anybody Fit cyclists like this? Is there anyway to really find out what angles and lengths fit you best?

Then down to the nitty gritty... anyone in Southern California do anything like this?

sydney

Correctomento...A good fitting could indicate need for specific geometry or even a custom. Selecting bike first is putting cart before the horse.

jdtschida

https://wrenchscience.com/WS1/default.asp

There is a fit calculator on this site. It was pretty accurate for me. If you know you have freakishly long legs or arms or something, then you may want to pay for a real bike fit session. Hopefully someone with more details can help you there, I've never done it.

Cromulent

I looked at it like this:

I have x amount of dollars to spend on a bike.
There are n number of bikes in my price range.
They all have essentially the same features.
I'll try as many as I can.
The best one for me at the best bike shop for me wins.

Now if you have a bigger budget, you have more options. Then you can start with fit and go from there. That's the best way to do it, in my opinion. Actually, the best way is to go fully custom... but that can get pricey.

Grasschopper

Sounds like you dreamed you went and got a Serotta fitting to me. https://www.serotta.com/pages/size.html

timwat

Bernie Mikkelsen has also built a fitment cycle, his can actually be ridden around.

https://www.mikkelsenframes.com

KevinF

Yes. You dreamed about the Serotta Size Cycle. There is nothing on that thing that is not 100% adjustable. Try different saddles, handlebars, angles. You sit and pedal for as long as you want. When I did my last fitting the fitter had size cycle hooked up to a CompuTrainer that tells you all kinds of interesting info like how smooth your pedal stroke is along with what your wattage output is. I told him how things felt at any given position (i.e., stretched, crunched, etc.), and we looked at the compu-trainer numbers until everything reached a happy medium. Errr, wait. "Happy" isn't the word I'm looking for. Un-believably-delightful is a bit better. Call the guys at Serotta and ask them for somebody who has taken their fitting class near you.

hi565

dang chopper! had to do it before me did ya!


Well yes there is a device like you dreamed, maybe not as advance as you were dreaming, but they can adjust alot. At my LBS what you can do it do that fitting first and in most cases they can knock a couple frames off that you shouldnt get. Its pretty cool, I love watching fittings.

Pjmsj21

actually Waterford/Gunnar dealers, at least the better ones, also have a similar device. Go to Waterford's site and you can see it. The original poster is very correct in saying that you need to determine your optimum fit first and then look at bikes that get you closest to the fit. Fit is the most important component.

Pat Mc