Huck99

Hi all - I've been lurking here for a couple weeks to learn as much as possible, now I'd like to ask for your help. Bought a Jamis Citizen 2 from a new local shop (Rockville Centre, Long Island). The owner had to order it and ordered a 17" frame instead of 19" -- it quickly because clear it was way too small for me (I'm 6' tall - or a little less now at 55 yrs old and shrinking ;^)

He is trying to make it right - swapped me into a Coda Sport with 19" frame. I can now get the saddle high enough to get my legs extended, but feel like I'm leaning forward with a lot of weight on my hands. Took it back yesterday and asked him to raise the handlebars. Learned that the front fork design has the handlebar mounting tube permanently attached from the fork up, so you can only adjust the handlebars slightly higher using spacers before you run out of tube length (sorry if I'm not using the right technical terms). When I was younger, my bikes always had a handlebar mounting tube that inserted from the top down, so handlebars could be raised up more easily and a longer tube could even be swapped in if needed.

So, I ask for your thoughts on the following:

First, I've experienced (on both Jamis bikes) the major complaints that I've seen here in these forums - the wheels seem to go out of true almost immediately, and the brakes don't retract strongly and tend to rub slightly with each rotation. I'm having some buyer's remorse about not getting a bike with disc brakes... Guess I'm wondering if I should move away from the Jamis line altogether. This will be a long-term investment and I'm willing to spend a little more to get a bike that I'll be really happy about.

Second, I'm wondering if I really should be in a 21" frame, maybe I didn't go big enough with the 19". Even with the Coda Sport 19", I still have the seat tube extended out pretty far to get my legs extended properly, and am worried that with the handlebars raised up to the very tip of the tube, they still aren't high enough to match the seat height (also worried that they have enough tube to be safely and solidly mounted!). I've seen posts here that frame sizes vary by model line so I know specific advice is hard to offer... Any thoughts? My one complaint about this dealer, as nice as he is, is that he doesn't seem to make any effort to carefully size the bike to me - in fact when I picked up the first bike, he just gave it to me with the seat and handlebars all the way down and it was like I was riding a kiddie bike!

My pants inseam is ideally about 31.5 (32 is slightly too long and 31 too short). I self-measured my biking inseam per instructions here - barefoot, legs about 10" apart - came out to about 29.5 though admittedly could be off somewhat.

Appreciate any thoughts or suggestions -

Harry

swoodjr1

19" should be about right for your height/inseam. Seat post will probably "seem" to be extended too much because these bikes have a short seat tube compared to road bikes. don't know about the wheels on that bike but after truing them a few times they should stay true. This bike isn't a "comfort bike" so the riding position will be more " leaned over". Your arms will adjust after a while. The old fashion handlebar/stems were non threaded quill types. Nowadays bikes have threaded forks. If you want a more upright position you can buy an extender for the steering tube like this one
DELTA Product Reviews and Ratings - Stems - Delta Threadless Riser Stem from Performance Bike

Hope this helps.

MRT2

Jamis makes fine bikes, but IMO, 19" is a little small for someone 6' tall. Don't understand why the bike shop wouldn't have just started you on a 21' bike. I am 5'8" and I could comfortably ride a 19" frame (in fact I do, ride a 55 cm, which is in fact larger than 21").

If you want to keep the medium 19" frame, you can raise the handlebars by installing a riser stem like this onehttps://www.amazon.com/Origin8-Extra-Lift-Stem-Riser/dp/B00RNFRWY2
or alternately, a bar with a little bit of rise.

MRT2

Inseam is a poor measure of bike fit. It is all about how it feels when riding, not how comfortable it is while straddling your bike while stand with your feet flat on the floor.

Huck99

Thanks for all the quick replies! I'm really leaning toward the 21" frame, since I already have the seat tube out pretty far on the 19" to get my legs extended right. Seems like I should just get the right size frame start with. Appreciate knowing about the handlebar extenders too.

swoodjr1

I am 6' with a 34" inseam and ride a 21. Most bike shops look at me and try me out on a 19" but quickly move me up to a 21" due to my long legs.
If a 21" bike fits you better then your bike shop should swap it out for you, particularly if they are the ones that had you by a 17" and 19" that do not fit.

Huck99

Thanks - I'll go talk to him this weekend about it, will let you know how it turns out.

CliffordK

Rather than a stem extender, you can buy stems with a fairly upward angle (45 degrees?). Long or short stems.

There are also adjustable angle stems available.

DeltaFoxtrtZulu

I have a short inseam and this suggested a shorter bike at first, but the guy pointed out with the longer torso, you might feel more comfortable with the longer top tube. Seat height can deal with short legs (as long as you're stand-over isn't too uncomfortable) but it's trickier to deal with too long of a torso with a shorter top tube, especially if arms length doesn't quite make it comfortable.

I decided I was better off with the larger bike so get that more comfortable for me riding position. It's just slightly more work to get into the saddle.

Huck99

Thanks Clifford - pardon my ignorance but what would a longer stem attach to? The shop owner told me the stem was a single unit with the front fork...

Huck99

Thanks for that insight, another reason why the larger frame might be much better for me.

CliffordK

The "modern" stems are mostly 1 1/8" threadless.

The stem is held in place by the top cap plus generally 2 allen wrench bolts tightening it around the stem. A number of spacers are usually either above or below the stem, and can be moved up or down. The stem also may have a few degree angle and can be oriented upward or downward.

To replace, just find another 1 1/8" stem that you like. Remove the top cap and old stem, and put on the new one.

If you have a local bike co-op or used parts store, they should have a pile of extra stems you can look at.

Here would be a 1 1/8" adjustable stem.
https://www.amazon.com/Kalloy-Adjusta.../dp/B00G1NE55Q

If things aren't adding up, take some photos of your stem and handlebars so we can see your exact config.

andrei_r

A stem attaches to the steerer tube by tightening 2 hex bolts.




what the post above said . Didn't hit refresh button before posting my answer...

Huck99

Now I understand! What I was calling the "stem" is actually the steerer tube, that's the piece that the stem attaches to. It can't get any longer (i.e., bring my stem and handlebars up higher) than a certain amount because it's part of the fork assembly, if I understand right. They shimmed my stem up as high as it would go on the steerer tube, but I still feel like I'm leaning forward quite a bit with a lot of weight on my hands. This seems like another argument toward the next-larger frame so that I can bring the stem higher to match my seat height.

Thank you so much for all your kind responses.

Slow Bro

I think you need a frame bigger than 19". I find that Jamis Coda's fit on the smaller side. I am 5 foot 7 and purchased a Coda Elite 19" frame and it doesn't feel "big" at all. It fits just right but if I did not know it was 19" and I sat on it for the first time I would swear that it was smaller.

Jamis fits on the smaller side imo but Giant fits on the larger side. My Roam XR1 is a small and it fits me great. I didn't even bother to try the med. I just looked at it and new it was too big for me. I would suggest test riding a Jamis Coda 21"

Calder Benson

I own a 2014 Coda Sport 21", and I'm 6' tall. My seat is set a bit low but it definitely doesn't need to go any lower.

You might consider that another vote for a 21" for you.

By the way, where are the pics of all the bikes this dealer is throwing at you?

Huck99

Thanks Calder, and Slow Bro. Below are pix of the Coda Sport, as you can see the seat and handlebar heights are pretty much maxed. Still feel like I want the handlebars a bit higher; went for an hour+ ride yesterday and my palms were getting numb about halfway through, felt like a lot of weight on my hands. Maybe it's just because my upper body has a lot of weight ;^)

I saw a post somewhere about sighting down toward your front wheel hub while riding, as a way of gauging handlebar geometry. For me, the hub appeared a couple of inches behind the horizontal line of the handlebars yesterday. Not sure if that's useful.

Starting to also think that perhaps a model like the Jamis DXT Sport might be better, if he needs to swap me up to the 21" frame anyway. We have a series of small lakes nearby with equestrian trails that are often sandy and gravelly, as well has some paved trails with a lot of hard bumps. I originally envisioned myself doing mostly street riding but have really enjoyed those trails, so much more quiet and secluded, so expect I'll be doing a lot of riding on them.

Thoughts and opinions on this latest wrinkle would be appreciated.

Wilfred Laurier

Seat height does not look unusual. Bar height is as high as you can go without swapping stems, which the LBS can help you with easily.

It is hard to tell because of the angle of the bike int eh photo, but maker sure that your saddle is not pointing nose-down at all - it should be very close to level. And the part that should be level is the part you want to support your weight - the rear third of the saddle. Setting this part level might make the nose look like it is pointing up, but this is normal - you don't sit on the nose of the saddle so it shouldn't bother you. Adjusting the angle migh also require adjusting the heights slightly. If your saddle is pointing nose down, there will be pressure on your hands as you need to stop your body from sliding forwards.

MRT2

If anything, the geometry of the DXT looks more aggressive than the geometry on the Coda Sport, and thus might make your hand problem worse. Good luck with the larger frame size. If your hands are going numb, that suggests several things. 1. Bike fit. 2. hand position and 3. core strength. You are working on 1. As for the second, try not to bend or cock your wrists while riding. You want to make sure you aren't cutting off blood flow to the nerves going to the hands and fingers, which go through the wrist. Additionally, have you tried riding with gloves? This is personal as everybody prefers a different style of glove but, they do help. I use the Giro Bravo short fingered glove. They have just the right amount of padding for me, in the right places. As for 3, it is possible that weak core muscles mean you are putting too much weight forward. In general, with the bars even with the saddle, you should not have too much problem holding yourself up with just light pressure on the bars. If you cannot hold yourself up without having a death grip on the bars, you might want to work some planks, side planks, crunches, and leg lifts into your workout regimen.

Huck99

Thanks Wilfred and MRT2 - will look into the gloves and saddle adjustment for sure. I'm pretty good on core, but will make sure to keep focus on that for better riding.

Calder Benson

Another thing....your coda sport is last years model at least, maybe a 2013. Nothing wrong with that, but make sure you are getting 20-30% off of the $540 list for it, if you decide to keep it.

Good looking bike btw. Looks just like mine

Calder Benson

I looked at the pics again. It's a 2014. A 2013 would have had the Jamis brand etched into the stem in black.

Huck99

Haha thanks Calder, it's a nice-looking machine for sure. When I initially took the 17" Citizen 2 back because it was so small, he did say something about how it was the end of the model year and he couldn't get a 19" Citizen 2, that's why he swapped me up to the Coda Sport. Never mentioned it being last years' model, but he also declined to take any additional $$ for it, over the Citizen 2 price. He's getting a 21" DXT Sport for me now, mentioned an upcharge for that (it's $619 list for the current model), which I'm okay with, as long as the numbers are right. Any tips on how to tell if the DXT Sport is 2015 or not?

Calder Benson

Check the 2014 and 15 catalogs. There may or may not have been an aesthetic and/or spec change for that model as I am unfamiliar with the DXT.

Post pics when you get it, lots of keen eyes around here..

Huck99

The Jamis website has easy links to the 2014 models from each 2015 listing, so I'm fully prepped now ;^)