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Old 04-23-18, 03:19 PM
  #24  
Kontact 
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This is one of those topics that gets caught in relativism. Many of the folks here expressing an enjoyment of "large" frames are actually riding normal frames and used to have small frames.

Despite some of the fitting tools out there, the vast majority of folks riding road racing bikes should have been fitted like the following:
5'2"=48cm, 5'4"=50cm, 5'6"=52cm, 5'8"=54cm, 5'10=56cm, 6'=58cm, 6'2"=60cm, 6'4"=62cm.

Manufacturers use this scale, and years of watching what came out of the fit studio confirms that these numbers match reality more often than not. And it shouldn't be a surprise that the most common US frame size is a 56 and the average mail height is 5'10" in the US.

Which isn't to say that anyone needs to stick to the above chart, but it pays to be aware of where your frame and height match up.

There is always much discussion of long and short legs, but people with short legs and long torsos don't really benefit from riding a very small bike that matches their legs while ignoring the long reach conferred by their long upper body. Often, using height strikes the best balance between saddle height and reach in such cases.

New tall head tube geometries offer a great option for leggy folks to "size down" while keeping adequate stack.
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