Originally Posted by
downhillmaster
Fit is not nearly as important as the obsessed want you to believe. Do a small amount of research and use a small amount of common sense and you will get close enough to thoroughly enjoy your bike/rides.
Fit is not that important? You have 3 contact points with a bike and when 1 or more isnt good, it can be miserable.
Fit seems quite important.
Regardless, my point earlier was that fit is more important than groupset for someone starting out. A lower level group on a well fitting bike is 10x better than a high level group on an illfitting bike.
And when I say fit matters, it isnt simply if the stack and reach work- it's the geometry of the bike too. A bike must fit well for the rider and the rider's style of riding.
An onlinr road bike with a 74deg STA and 73.5deg HTA with 43mm of fork rake may fit a rider based on a general chart, but that bike may be too twitchy for the rider due to geometry.
That wouldn't be known to a beginner without either trying bikes in person or doing a good bit of deep research.
I do agree that a brand's fit chart will work most of the time, assuming the rider knows what frsme geometry they want.