Frame Size..Too big?

Ksc4444 said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes, all of the salesmen
steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one of these bikes for a ride, they felt way
cramped. I also looked like a giant when I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the
shop. I know all about the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch
frame gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike? Maybe I should just
dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any drawbacks (except nut crushing) to a 21
inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

No drawbacks that I can see but I'm sure you'll get plenty of reasons. Positives are less endos IMO.

I'm 5'9" and was always put on a medium frame (16-18"😉 by the lbs. When I road I was always going
over the handlebars. I felt like you being cramped on the bike. Went to a Large frame and haven't
gone over but a couple of times in several years mostly due to riding tougher stuff than I would
have tried on the smaller frame (I was always fearful of face plants).

Go with what you feel is more comfortable for you.

Gary

Quoted message said:

Maybe I should just dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again!

Yeah just go ahead and do that.

Quoted message said:

What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike?

Some say a smaller frame is quicker in the tight, curvy singletrack... but is that worth the
discomfort? Probably not. Life's too short not to go big...gotta go big (I heard that somewhere).

Ksc4444 said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes, all of the salesmen
steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one of these bikes for a ride, they felt way
cramped. I also looked like a giant when I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the
shop. I know all about the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch
frame gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike? Maybe I should just
dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any drawbacks (except nut crushing) to a 21
inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

mmm. I'm 6' and on hardtails I stick to 16" frames (17 inch max) but then I always run dual crown
forks on them which alters the geometry hugely.

The best way to find the right size of bike is to ride around, you dont want the top tube to be too
long, otherwise you'll feel stretched out over the bike. You also dont want one too short or you'll
feel crushed up (like your current problem).

You could try a different manufacturer. At work we stock various brands, giant, specialized, 24/7,
GT etc and on similar specced mountain bikes there is usually a wide variation of the angle of the
top tube. Try out another 21 inch mtb from a different company to see if theres a 'comfier' geometry
you prefer. I know for certain Specialized have a pretty wide range of bikes suited for the same
purpose and the geometry of frame differs to suit all sizes of people. Height of rider isnt the be
all and end all measurement to size up what frame you might need. Inside leg is usually overlooked.

that probably sounded like random gibberish but you get what I mean 🙂

Small Black Dog

"Ksc4444" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes,

all

Quoted message said:

of the salesmen steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one

of

Quoted message said:

these bikes for a ride, they felt way cramped. I also looked like a giant

when

Quoted message said:

I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the shop. I know all

about

Quoted message said:

the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch

frame

Quoted message said:

gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike?

Maybe I

Quoted message said:

should just dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any

drawbacks

Quoted message said:

(except nut crushing) to a 21 inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

The only rule: there are no rules. Ride the damn things, each and every thing that interests you,
and evaluate them all independent of one another. If a bike is comfortable, it fits. Period.

That being said, I'll fuel the fire by stating I'm 5'10-5'11" with a 31" inseam and I ride two size
Large Gary Fisher bikes, on ht and one FS, and a 54cm road bike.

If you came in to my shop, at 6'2", I'd say "I have no idea what's better for you - L or XL. Here's
one. Go ride it. Come back in a half hour, get the other one, repeat as necessary."

Chris

"Ksc4444" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes,

all

Quoted message said:

of the salesmen steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one

of

Quoted message said:

these bikes for a ride, they felt way cramped. I also looked like a giant

when

Quoted message said:

I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the shop. I know all

about

Quoted message said:

the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch

frame

Quoted message said:

gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike?

Maybe I

Quoted message said:

should just dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any

drawbacks

Quoted message said:

(except nut crushing) to a 21 inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

Got the cash for custom? May solve your problems if cookie cutters don't fit.

Chris

"Ksc4444" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes,

all

Quoted message said:

of the salesmen steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one

of

Quoted message said:

these bikes for a ride, they felt way cramped. I also looked like a giant

when

Quoted message said:

I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the shop. I know all

about

Quoted message said:

the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch

frame

Quoted message said:

gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike?

Maybe I

Quoted message said:

should just dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any

drawbacks

Quoted message said:

(except nut crushing) to a 21 inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

Can't answer your question. I can tell you that I ride different sized frames depending on the type
of riding I do. General nontechnical XC, bigger frame for comfort. Aggressive riding over technical
terrain and some air time, smaller frame for control.

"Ksc4444" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes,

all

Quoted message said:

of the salesmen steered me towards 18-19 inch frames. Whenever I took one

of

Quoted message said:

these bikes for a ride, they felt way cramped. I also looked like a giant

when

Quoted message said:

I looked at my reflection in the windows in front of the shop. I know all

about

Quoted message said:

the few inches one needs between their junk and the top tube; a 21 inch

frame

Quoted message said:

gives me about an inch. What the hell? Should I be riding a small bike?

Maybe I

Quoted message said:

should just dust off my old Free Agent and start BMXing again! Any

drawbacks

Quoted message said:

(except nut crushing) to a 21 inch frame. Thanks for your positive (and negative) input.

I don't see any major drawbacks. All my bikes are large sized. (XC, FR, and
DH) I'm 6' and don't like the cramped feeling of smaller bikes. If you're comfortable on it, ride
it. My bikes are like big trucks in really tight turns but they're fine over the rough stuff
and in the air. A lot of bikes now have sloping top tubes so you can have a large frame and
room for the boys too. ;^)

Mike - don't stop BMXing either.

[email hidden] (Ksc4444) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes, all of the salesmen
steered me towards 18-19 inch frames.

Sounds like you have some crappy bike shops in your area. Ask any friends you may have who may know
which bike shops are reputable and try them out.

JD

Quoted message said:

Life's too short not to go big...gotta go big (I heard that somewhere).

Josh Bender.

Small Black Dog

Michael Dart said:

Ksc4444 said:

Hello, I'm a 6'2 rider who is new to the sport. While I was pricing bikes, all of the salesmen
steered me towards 18-19 inch frames... [clip]

I don't see any major drawbacks. All my bikes are large sized. (XC, FR, and
DH) I'm 6' and don't like the cramped feeling of smaller bikes. If you're comfortable on it, ride
it.

I agree completely. One thing I would add: bike manufacturers always talk about their sizes in terms
of seat tube height. But the most important single measurement to use for comparison between bikes
(or frames) is effective top tube length.

The conventional wisdom is that you should get the smallest frame you can get, and err on the side
of smaller if you aren't sure. And of course, like much of the world's conventional wisdom, that's
mostly bunk.

I can tell you from experience, if you wind up with a bike whose frame is on the small side, on the
short ride and in the short run, you might be happy. The smaller bike might feel lighter and
quicker. On a 45-minute ride that may be just what you want.

But on the long ride and in the long run, you'll wind up feeling less comfy. You'll think about
getting a longer stem, and maybe one with more rise so that you can feel less cramped and doubled
over. Then one day you'll do something crazy like get a new pair of shoes that have a little thicker
sole. You'll try to adjust your saddle height and find that now you have to have the seatpost's
minimum insertion marker showing to get your legs extended. So you go buy a new longer post. Maybe
you also get one that has setback, so you can get your saddle a little farther back.

One day you'll look at your bike and realize that it's ridiculous. You have a half mile of stem and
a half mile of seatpost showing. And even then it isn't really comfortable for over an hour.

And so I gave it to my wife, er, I mean, so then you'll give it to your wife.

Quoted message said:

My bikes are like big trucks in really tight turns but they're fine over the rough stuff and in
the air. A lot of bikes now have sloping top tubes so you can have a large frame and room for the
boys too. ;^)

The whole standover thing is really pretty silly, I think. I've been riding offroad for 15 years. I
think I've really needed to get off the bike fast and straddle the top tube two or three times. When
I need to get off, it's usually over the side or stepping over the bars as the bike goes endo. Long
as you have an inch or two to spare so that you can be comfortable straddling the bike while yakking
with your buddies during short trail stops, you're fine.

Honestly, the threats to your lower back, neck, etc from repetitive stress riding a bike that
doesn't fit well are a *much* more meaningful threat to your health than the threat to your boys
from standover with less than 5 inches of clearance.

I'm 6'1" with fairly normal proportions. I have two mtbs: one is a 20.5" and the other is an 18".
The 20.5" one has a 24.25" effective top tube. The 18" inch one is a MUCH LARGER bike with a 24.75"
top tube. I run a 120mm stem on the 20.5" and a 105mm stem on the 18", and they are set up almost
exactly the same (distance from bar to saddle, etc.) Both have sloping top tubes, but the 18" one is
radically sloping (it's a 29er).

And neither of them handle like big trucks. Maybe they'd feel like that if you came from bmx...

When you test ride two bikes, make note of three things: how long is the top tube? how long is the
stem? does the seatpost have a setback, and how far back is the saddle in the clamp?

Be hesitant about the fit on a bike that has either a ridiculously long or short stem, or that has
the saddle jammed as far back or as far forward as possible in the clamp.

Good luck.
--
Tom Purvis - arkansasvalley.nettpurvisOpen ↗ Salida, CO

Well my Raleigh M60 is a 20 in frame My Proflex / K2 is a Way Big frame. My Access is a 2o in frame.
My K2 Attack 3.0 is a medium frame. My GT Accent is a 21 in frame which is my commuter. My Schwinn
Probe is a 21 in frame and to just ride around the city. Its rear rack comes in handy. Size and top
tube angle like the slope on the K2 Attack I can get away with a medium frame. But with a level top
tube a 20 in works fine. And for the streets a 21 in frame goes. By the way I'm 6 ft tall.

Fire up MTB 03

I went through this recently, so I'll pass on what little I learned. I'm 6'1, with a 32-33 inseam. I
tried a wide variety of bikes, from Cannondale and Fisher to Trek and Giant. All the 19" frames
seemed to small, and the 20" frames felt OK but not great. The Cannondales come in large and
x-large, and I felt like I was in between sizes. The x-large had me stretched out too far, but the
large had my seatpost up really high just to get some reasonable leg extension. Kona had a nice fit
on the 19 and 20 inchers, but again I felt like I was in between sizes. I was determined to not
spend too much of my time focusing on components and such, figuring that the best bike for me is the
one that fit the best, and in my price range most of the bikes were essentially the same
component-wise. But I couldn't find the fit that was "just right". I had also read about going
smaller if not sure, but all the smaller ones just felt too cramped. I wondered if, as I got better,
would I wish I'd have taken the smaller size, so I was wary about getting something too big. But I
really wanted something I was comfortable on from the start. Maybe my legs are long for my height, I
don't know, but nothing seemed to fit well.

Then I went to a shop that had Rocky Mountain bikes, and lo and behold it came in a 19.5" size. I
got on, rode for 2 minutes, and knew this was the one. I rode for another 15 minutes, and bought the
bike. I know, I should have ridden for a longer time for proper testing, but it felt right
immediately. I was comfortable, not too stretched out, good leg extension; everything felt good. It
was "just right".

I'm not necessarily telling you to try a Rocky, (though you should!), but only let you know that all
the different manufacturers measure differently and you can only tell what'll feel right by getting
on and riding. You'll find something that feels right.

I've had mine now for several months and I've ridden a couple of hundred miles of trails, roads,
etc., and it still feels just right.

Mark [email hidden]