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Is this bike too big for me?

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Is this bike too big for me?

Old 06-27-19, 12:23 AM
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madoser
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Is this bike too big for me?

I’m 5’5 with a 28-30” inseam and the bike is a Raleigh Tourist 2018 in small size 52 700c tires. The top bar is all up in my crotch. The bike is nice but maybe too big? I’m used to BMX. It rides nice enough but getting in it is awkward. I can tip toe from the seat with the post all the way down.
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Old 06-27-19, 11:25 AM
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rumrunn6
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yes
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Old 06-27-19, 12:57 PM
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fietsbob
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Can you straddle the top, frame tube, standing flat footed ahead of .. not on the saddle ?
any clearance then?

you adjust the saddle height, for leg extension, relative to the pedals, not the ground ...
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Old 06-27-19, 07:49 PM
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xroadcharlie
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You should be able to stand flat footed over the top bar with some clearance, Otherwise It's too big. I too have about a 28" inseam. For those of us that have short legs we should either buy new bikes, Where we can choose the bike with a reasonable stand over height listed in the specs, Or try a used bike out before buying it. Given the make, year, model and size, we may be able to look up the specs and be reasonably sure it will fit.

This is why I bought Giant's Sedona X-Trail bike. The small frame has one of the lowest stand over heights of their men's bikes. Still next time I will try out a bike with a step through frame. I'm not proud! Just Lazy.

Last edited by xroadcharlie; 06-27-19 at 07:52 PM.
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Old 06-27-19, 09:23 PM
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madoser
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Originally Posted by xroadcharlie
You should be able to stand flat footed over the top bar with some clearance, Otherwise It's too big. I too have about a 28" inseam. For those of us that have short legs we should either buy new bikes, Where we can choose the bike with a reasonable stand over height listed in the specs, Or try a used bike out before buying it. Given the make, year, model and size, we may be able to look up the specs and be reasonably sure it will fit.

This is why I bought Giant's Sedona X-Trail bike. The small frame has one of the lowest stand over heights of their men's bikes. Still next time I will try out a bike with a step through frame. I'm not proud! Just Lazy.

Yeah I have to lean a bit not to hit the bits. However I did manage to score this bike for $190 new and it’s a $650 bike. The other bike was a creme caferacer uno which fit but at $399 plus tax it’s $245 more.
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Old 06-29-19, 01:11 PM
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A FREE bike that doesn't fit is not a good deal.
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Old 06-29-19, 03:39 PM
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philbob57
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28"-30" is a very wide range. What is your actual 'cycling inseam'? See, for example, https://www.veloharmony.com/measuring-cycling-inseam/.
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Old 06-30-19, 10:19 AM
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When I straddle the top tube on my LHT, I lightly touch the bar, but I can pull the bike up a bit before it hits hard. I could have gone with the next smaller frame, but wanted the larger frame so I could get the bars up higher without so many spacers stacked up. It has been fine for me for the last eight years, and I haven't hurt myself. As long as you can straddle the frame without hurting yourself, the standover height is fine, as long as you are okay with it, and the bike is adjusted to fit you.
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Old 06-30-19, 10:21 AM
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Originally Posted by phughes
When I straddle the top tube on my LHT, I lightly touch the bar, but I can pull the bike up a bit before it hits hard. I could have gone with the next smaller frame, but wanted the larger frame so I could get the bars up higher without so many spacers stacked up. It has been fine for me for the last eight years, and I haven't hurt myself. As long as you can straddle the frame without hurting yourself, the standover height is fine, as long as you are okay with it, and the bike is adjusted to fit you.

Thanks for your advice
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Old 06-30-19, 12:06 PM
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I ... wanted the larger frame so I could get the bars up higher without so many spacers stacked up.

an aesthetic choice ... since they ship with a pretty long steel steerer , to the dealers.. who can choose to cut it down .


Another factor .. top tube is a bit longer, proportional with a longer seat tube length, aka size..







....
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Old 06-30-19, 07:56 PM
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Originally Posted by fietsbob
I ... wanted the larger frame so I could get the bars up higher without so many spacers stacked up.

an aesthetic choice ... since they ship with a pretty long steel steerer , to the dealers.. who can choose to cut it down .


Another factor .. top tube is a bit longer, proportional with a longer seat tube length, aka size..

....
No kidding? Really? Yes, I am aware of all that, and chose the size I did accordingly. It is more than aesthetic, the size I got came with a longer steerer tube as well, which I specified uncut, so I could decide how much to cut off later. The head tube is longer on the 56 than it is on the 54 as well. Something else I wanted.

I also wanted the longer seat tube and top tube. I wanted the slightly longer wheelbase as well for stability.

Anything else Einstein?

Last edited by phughes; 06-30-19 at 08:41 PM.
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Old 08-24-19, 02:02 AM
  #12  
sumgy
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Not sure about the advice here.
Is it a square frame or a sloping top tube.
If it is square you wont have much room between nuts and TT.
If it is sloping you will have heaps.
But unless you are doing something incredibly wrong, you should never have problems slamming nads into TT on any bike IMO.
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Old 08-29-19, 01:01 PM
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My cycling inseam is 34", standover height of my touring bike is around 32 3/4", standing over the level TT wearing shoes I can pull the bike up until the tires are maybe 1" off the ground before I can't pull it up any higher. But my shorts/pants and other "stuff" are normally "resting" on the TT.
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