Mountain Biking - Thinking of swapping frame

Hello everyone! I hate to make my first post a negative one but here goes. I recently bought a Raleigh M 50 Dx with a 22" frame. I did the stand-over test and had about an inch of clearance but I went ahead and bought it anyway because I thought it would fit my lanky frame. The bike rides great on pavement but once I go off road it takes a lot of effort to control. I'd really like to get the most out of my bike but I don't want to risk sterilizing myself after a nasty fall. My question is would it be possible to swap all of my current components onto an 18 or 20 inch frame and what problems can I run into and what do I need to take into consideration before doing so. I'm currently looking at Motobecane 600 and 700 HT frames for the swap. Any help or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

I would suggest that you find a friend who can do it for the price of a decent 12-pack. The main part that tends to be tough on a Miller High Life mechanic is the headset, bc nobody has a headset press laying around. Get a shop to press a cheap headset for you, and sell the current one with the frame. If money isn't as great an issue (and you don't have many friends), have a shop do the whole deal. There really aren't compatability issues as long as they use the same type of brakes (some frames don't accept v-brakes, for example). Going to a smaller frame means your shifter and brake cables should be long enough.

Some things *may* not be interchangable. Like the seatpost, the front deraileur, the bottom bracket and even the fork if the steerer tube is longer on the new frame. These are all things to consider and there are probably a few smaller things that I'm forgetting.

nodnerb's about got it in terms of potential fitment problems. Chances are you'll need to cut new cable housing also.

You *will* need some specific tools to perform the swap yourself - not sure if that's your intention. Regardless, don't sweat the headset press - one trip to Home Depot and five bucks will get you all you need.

Welcome to the forums - btw, if you think yours was a negative post, just hang around for a while. :D :rolleyes:

How recently did you purchase the bike, and was it from a local shop? You said "I thought it would fit my lanky frame". If from a shop, what did THEY say? If you did buy from a shop, I feel they should have checked to see that you got the right fit before selling the bike to you. I'd explain to the shop (if you bought from one), that the bike doesn't seem to fit, and see if they will work something out with you. I feel they should.

I purchased the bike about a month ago from a shop and they did suggest at least 2 inches of clearance. It was my fault for being impulsive; they sold me the bike for $370 and threw in $50 worth of accesories. I did try the bike out before I bought it but I wasn't able to try it out off road.

It wouldn't hurt to ask if you could trade down a size.