Associate
- Joined
- 26 Nov 2009
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Hi all. I want to buy a bike online but I'm unsure about sizing. I'm 5′ 7″ and I could order either a 51cm (5′ 3″ - 5′ 8″) or 54cm (5′ 7″ - 5′ 10″). Any advice please?
Road Bike Size
- Thread starter maklabouhlel
- Start date
Don
What bike are you looking at (as I'm sure others will be able to advise more specifically)?
Personally, given that you are on the edge of both sizes, I wouldn't risk ordering either (especially if it's a fairly expensive bike). I would have though it would be worth popping into a decent bike shop, and trying a few different brands/sizes to get an idea of which way you need to be looking (although bearing in mind that fit/frame size can differ between brands).
Personally, given that you are on the edge of both sizes, I wouldn't risk ordering either (especially if it's a fairly expensive bike). I would have though it would be worth popping into a decent bike shop, and trying a few different brands/sizes to get an idea of which way you need to be looking (although bearing in mind that fit/frame size can differ between brands).
- Joined
- 26 Nov 2009
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Man of Honour
I'm 5'9 and ride a 54cm. I wouldn't want a bigger bike. This doesn't help. Sorry.
- Joined
- 26 Nov 2009
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No, it does help. I think I'll go for a 51cm. They have a free return policy.
You can always adjust your fit to suit a larger bike (to an extent) to make it comfortable but if the frame size is too large you will always be over-reached.
51cm sounds like the best bet but I'd drop them a line to check as well as a bit of googling to see what others your height opt for.
51cm sounds like the best bet but I'd drop them a line to check as well as a bit of googling to see what others your height opt for.
Man of Honour
I think it might be worth getting a bike fit done, at some point, if you can't tinker with things enough to find proper comfort yourself. I had a 100mm stem on my bike originally and found I was too stretched out (but it's more racy geometry) - put a 90 on after getting a bike fit thing done and it's much better. Now I've gone for a more endurance style bike.
Your reach and leg length would normally determine which size is best for you.
I'm a 5'7" and ride 54cm. My legs are quite short (30-31") and my short arms reach/flexibility wasn't great so I even had a shorter stem fitted on my Giant Defy in 2014 for a really relaxed upright position. Could probably now go back to the old stem...
My more recent Specialized Diverge (2 months ago) I've not needed to swap anything and am even considering dropping a few spacers to stretch myself out more. Still a fairly relaxed geometry kinda bike. I've coped with the larger size fine (although it did take me a while). I can't imagine riding a smaller frame now - I get some toe overlap (would be worse on a smaller frame)!
The Felt you're looking at is an endurance/sportive geometry which basically means it's quite relaxed (similar to my 2). It's usually 'easier' to fit a rider to a slightly smaller frame than on a larger one, but you may find yourself crowded over the bars of the 51cm, particularly if you have longer arms. You ideally need to go into a store and try each size out, giving you an idea of how each size feels. 1 will feel better than the order (they don't have to be Felts for this).
I'm a 5'7" and ride 54cm. My legs are quite short (30-31") and my short arms reach/flexibility wasn't great so I even had a shorter stem fitted on my Giant Defy in 2014 for a really relaxed upright position. Could probably now go back to the old stem...
My more recent Specialized Diverge (2 months ago) I've not needed to swap anything and am even considering dropping a few spacers to stretch myself out more. Still a fairly relaxed geometry kinda bike. I've coped with the larger size fine (although it did take me a while). I can't imagine riding a smaller frame now - I get some toe overlap (would be worse on a smaller frame)!
The Felt you're looking at is an endurance/sportive geometry which basically means it's quite relaxed (similar to my 2). It's usually 'easier' to fit a rider to a slightly smaller frame than on a larger one, but you may find yourself crowded over the bars of the 51cm, particularly if you have longer arms. You ideally need to go into a store and try each size out, giving you an idea of how each size feels. 1 will feel better than the order (they don't have to be Felts for this).
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