Why Do Some Frames Feel Like A Tiny Clown Bike?
04-05-15, 09:58 PM
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Why Do Some Frames Feel Like A Tiny Clown Bike?
I tried out a Jamis Coda 21" today, and it felt very... compact. Like I was riding a clown bike.
I'm currently riding a Felt Verza City 3, 20". So a 1" smaller size, but it feels a lot bigger. I mucked with the Jamis seat post briefly, but even getting that roughly right didn't address the issue. They didn't have a bigger size in stock, the 23", so I couldn't see what that was like.
The Felt has shorter reach, but the Jamis handlebars felt too 'close-in.' Overall, I just felt scrunched up riding on the Jamis.
Personal background: I have fairly long legs and long arms.
My previous ride was a heavy slow beach cruiser... that felt amazing to sit on. I think it was that the pedals were 'crank forward,' so the bicycle had an extended wheelbase and the pedals were pretty far in front of the seat.
Now I'm riding this:
The Jamis that felt like a clown bike
They don't look too different. Here's the geometry table comparison:
Possible causes:
*The Felt has a slacker, more horizontal seat tube, so the seat is further back from the crank.
*Felt's longer wheelbase
*Felt's longer chainstay
I'd like to be able to identify a bike I like from a geometry table, plus I want to just understand what causes a bike to feel a certain way.
Why does the Felt feel right while a bike like the Jamis feels wrong? What should I look for in a road bike to have a similar feeling of comfort and safety that I felt on the beach cruiser and Felt? Failing that, will I just get used to riding a small-feeling bike? Will moving the saddle back make a big difference (never done that)?
I'm currently riding a Felt Verza City 3, 20". So a 1" smaller size, but it feels a lot bigger. I mucked with the Jamis seat post briefly, but even getting that roughly right didn't address the issue. They didn't have a bigger size in stock, the 23", so I couldn't see what that was like.
The Felt has shorter reach, but the Jamis handlebars felt too 'close-in.' Overall, I just felt scrunched up riding on the Jamis.
Personal background: I have fairly long legs and long arms.
My previous ride was a heavy slow beach cruiser... that felt amazing to sit on. I think it was that the pedals were 'crank forward,' so the bicycle had an extended wheelbase and the pedals were pretty far in front of the seat.
Now I'm riding this:
The Jamis that felt like a clown bike
They don't look too different. Here's the geometry table comparison:
Possible causes:
*The Felt has a slacker, more horizontal seat tube, so the seat is further back from the crank.
*Felt's longer wheelbase
*Felt's longer chainstay
I'd like to be able to identify a bike I like from a geometry table, plus I want to just understand what causes a bike to feel a certain way.
Why does the Felt feel right while a bike like the Jamis feels wrong? What should I look for in a road bike to have a similar feeling of comfort and safety that I felt on the beach cruiser and Felt? Failing that, will I just get used to riding a small-feeling bike? Will moving the saddle back make a big difference (never done that)?
04-06-15, 11:10 AM
#2
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The compact sloping Top tube designs dominate the market because the seat post has a longer range of adjustment so same size frame fits more people.
Take the Measurements . off the Cruiser? seat angle and a Horizontal 'virtual top tube length' in addition to how long the seat tube Is.
In addition You can divide the reach up into 2 parts with a Plumb line at the BB axis in between.
Take the Measurements . off the Cruiser? seat angle and a Horizontal 'virtual top tube length' in addition to how long the seat tube Is.
In addition You can divide the reach up into 2 parts with a Plumb line at the BB axis in between.
04-07-15, 05:35 AM
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what you can feel on a bike are the stack and reach, nothing else. comparing numbers on a chart after the fact only confirms some of the ride sensation that you feel. Coda is a performance hybrid where as Felt is more of just a commuter - shorter wheelbase means more nimble.
there is more drop to the headtube, allowing you to take on a more aerodynamic ("aggressive") posture. In fact, the reach on the Jamis is longer than the Felt by 12mm, so I presume your testride saddle height is too low.
one company's "20" will not and was never intended to match another company's "21", you cannot take a measurement somewhere on the bike that says 21". if I buy a pair of shoes 9.5 where I am from, and you buy the same in LA and we go to Europe to buy a 42-43 shoe. You'd be foolish to expect they fit EXACTLY the same, the same as a 20" bike and a 21" bike - the bigger one is NOT one inch bigger.
there is more drop to the headtube, allowing you to take on a more aerodynamic ("aggressive") posture. In fact, the reach on the Jamis is longer than the Felt by 12mm, so I presume your testride saddle height is too low.
one company's "20" will not and was never intended to match another company's "21", you cannot take a measurement somewhere on the bike that says 21". if I buy a pair of shoes 9.5 where I am from, and you buy the same in LA and we go to Europe to buy a 42-43 shoe. You'd be foolish to expect they fit EXACTLY the same, the same as a 20" bike and a 21" bike - the bigger one is NOT one inch bigger.
