What size do I fit?
07-31-21, 01:07 PM
#1
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What size do I fit?
Im trying to buy a bike second hand on a low budget just to feel biking again and to see if its for me. I am quite short at 5'2-5'4, I tired finding my answer on my own but its quite confusing TBH. I was looking at this vintage bike but I'm not sure if its too small for me since here's a comparison with a larger bike.
Thanks for your help!
Thanks for your help!
07-31-21, 05:35 PM
#2
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I take it that you've seen the bike in person. Are those wheels 27"? Is the saddle in the photo adjusted so that you could sit on it and barely reach a down pedal with your heel, without severely rocking your hips? If not, can it be so adjusted? Sitting on the saddle and leaning forward and holding the tops of the brake levers, do your upper arms make something like a 90° angle with your torso?
If the answers to the above are yes, it'll work fine.
If the answers to the above are yes, it'll work fine.
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07-31-21, 05:55 PM
#3
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I take it that you've seen the bike in person. Are those wheels 27"? Is the saddle in the photo adjusted so that you could sit on it and barely reach a down pedal with your heel, without severely rocking your hips? If not, can it be so adjusted? Sitting on the saddle and leaning forward and holding the tops of the brake levers, do your upper arms make something like a 90° angle with your torso?
If the answers to the above are yes, it'll work fine.
If the answers to the above are yes, it'll work fine.
07-31-21, 07:30 PM
#4
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and with an assistant, take the required measurement and put them in. The calculator will produce some figures for different styles of fit. Look at them all. The two most important frame measurements are effective seat tube length and top tube length. So then you need those measurement for the bike in which you are interested. If they're close, you're golden, close meaning within a couple centimeters.
The bike you're considering is a rather old frame style and the bars are a bit weird. It's really something you want to sit on and then take for a ride.
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08-01-21, 05:07 AM
#5
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Ah. That's a little more complicated. If you are of average proportions, a frame size of 49-50 cm should be about right. If you're not, go to this website: https://www.competitivecyclist.com/S...ulatorBike.jsp
and with an assistant, take the required measurement and put them in. The calculator will produce some figures for different styles of fit. Look at them all. The two most important frame measurements are effective seat tube length and top tube length. So then you need those measurement for the bike in which you are interested. If they're close, you're golden, close meaning within a couple centimeters.
The bike you're considering is a rather old frame style and the bars are a bit weird. It's really something you want to sit on and then take for a ride.
and with an assistant, take the required measurement and put them in. The calculator will produce some figures for different styles of fit. Look at them all. The two most important frame measurements are effective seat tube length and top tube length. So then you need those measurement for the bike in which you are interested. If they're close, you're golden, close meaning within a couple centimeters.
The bike you're considering is a rather old frame style and the bars are a bit weird. It's really something you want to sit on and then take for a ride.
08-01-21, 08:03 AM
#6
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08-01-21, 08:20 AM
#7
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08-01-21, 08:34 AM
#8
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This is pretty easy to read:
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html
You can also put smoother tires on an old 26” mountain bike, may make a good fit.
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html
You can also put smoother tires on an old 26” mountain bike, may make a good fit.
08-02-21, 08:47 AM
#9
I'm good to go!
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Slight differences in bar and stem reach, crank length and lots of other things will change how even the same exact frame feel too you.
There really is no standards document that says a 50cm frame must be this top tube length and this seat tube angle or anything else. And on those old bikes, even if you go by the original manufacturers suggest for the size you should get, you don't know that someone in the many years since new didn't change the stem or bars to change the reach or changed cranks to change crank length.
So you really need to try them on. Make sure to ensure the saddle can be set to your height leaving enough post in the seat tube and that you will be in a comfortable position with your reach to where your hands will be on the bars.
If you are going to buy without being able to try, then just don't spend so much that you can't get another if you chose poorly.
There really is no standards document that says a 50cm frame must be this top tube length and this seat tube angle or anything else. And on those old bikes, even if you go by the original manufacturers suggest for the size you should get, you don't know that someone in the many years since new didn't change the stem or bars to change the reach or changed cranks to change crank length.
So you really need to try them on. Make sure to ensure the saddle can be set to your height leaving enough post in the seat tube and that you will be in a comfortable position with your reach to where your hands will be on the bars.
If you are going to buy without being able to try, then just don't spend so much that you can't get another if you chose poorly.
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