thouse59

Hi,
I've been looking for a gravel bike that I can use for trails and touring. I'm 6'3" with a long inseam. I have a Trek Portland 63 that fits fine. Most companies I see out there that aren't custom seem to stop at 60 or 61 cm, which is not big enough. I can make one work, but I'd rather have a taller frame with a good sized head tube so I'm not slouched over. Any ideas without having to spend twice as much on a custom bike?

tangerineowl

I'd measure the stack and reach on your Portland and start with that. Worth also measuring chainstay length, bb drop, and front to centre.

Depending just how long your inseam is for your height, and your arm length, you may need a short reach frame/bike e.g.
1. Lynskey Backroad ti frameset build up: stack 668, reach 378 (very short). Seat tube length 590mm.
2. Black Mountain Cycles Monster Cross disk. Frameset or complete. Stack 667. Reach 404mm. Seat tube length 590mm.
3. Salsa Cutthroat. Stack 664, reach 396. Seat tube length 584mm.
4. Marin 2020 Gestalt X10/11 etc. Stack 640. Reach 404. Shorter seat tube length at 550mm which might be too short for you.
5. Merida Silex. 1x only? Stack 663, Reach 430. Seat tube length 560mm.

I had a look at the Canyon Grail but the geo chart across all sizes looks wrong to me. Bugged?

mstateglfr 

Measure your current bike's stack and reach since it isnt listed in the catalog years I looked up.
Then, look at stack and reach of new bikes. At 6'3, there are absolutely bikes available that should fit in carbon, steel, and aluminum.


Measure from the floor to the middle of your crank(which is also the middle of the bottom bracket).
Now measure from the floor to the top of your head tube in the middle of it.
Subtract the smaller number from the bigger- that is stack height.

Next, shove the rear tire against the wall snug and measure from the wall to the middle of your crank arm.
Then measure from the wall to the middle of the top of your head tube.
Again, subtract small from big- that is your reach.

These are stack and reach measurements for the frame and they are static, meaning they dont change. Fitment then comes from adjusting stem length and angle, handlebar reach, and saddle offset.

I posted this a week ago in another thread. It's a small list of frames I was considering. I am 6'5 and have a 37" cycling inseam.




A specialized diverge 61 has a stack height of 667mm- based on what you describe, I can't imagine you would be slouched over on that.

thouse59

Thanks. The stack height on the Salsa looks interesting, and the seat tube length is probably sufficient. The reach is a bit longer, but I can usually get along with a shorter stem.

thouse59

Super, thank you very much.