Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Long-framed bikes for tall-torso riders

Does any stock bike manufacturer make a road bike with an unusually long top tube? My needs go beyond installing a really long handlebar stem and moving the saddle back as far as possible. If the traditional road bike geometry is for a level top tube of the same length as the seat tube, I'm looking for somethig which would be more like TT = ST + 3".

I am 6'3" , but my inseam is only 31.5" so I have the legs of a guy about 5'9" and the upper body of someone about 6'10". I all my suits are "longs." I can't wear a standard XL shirt, but an XL-Tall (rare) is just fine. My dress shirts have 37" sleeves.

I can't afford a custom-made frame, with one kid in college and three more on the way. I can barely (and I mean barely stand over a 62cm frame), but even one of those is too short from seat to handlebar. Surely there are enough guys in my situation that there is an off-the-shelf bike which will work for us.

From what I have read the Lemond's have long top tubes. I am sure there are more but this is the one I have read the most about.

From what I have read the Lemond's have long top tubes. I am sure there are more but this is the one I have read the most about.

Thanks for the tip, but it turns out only to be true of Lemond's smaller frames. If you want a 55 or smaller, you get a top tube with an effective length longer than the seat tube, but go up to a 59 (Lemond's largest), and the top tube eff. length is even shorter than the seat tube.

What I need is something like a 60cm seat tube with a 63 or 64 top tube.

Compact frames are a useful option, these are designed for 3-6" of clearance to give appropriate reach for the average rider. If you size a compact frame the same as a trad one, with 1" of standover, you get a longer frame. There are many excellent budget compact frames in L size.

Big frames often come with longer (175) cranks. If you switch to 170 (about right for your legs) you can move your saddle 5mm rearwards and gain some extra reach whilst retaing your proper pedal/saddle position.

I had a bianchi aeros that seemed pretty long to me. I currently ride a Seven custom frame. When your kid graduates; I highly recamend one.

The computer I'm on right now is too old to load the site for me to check, but you might look up Trek's website and see if the Pilot is any longer than the x,000 road bike series. I'm not quite as long in the torso as you, but I am short-legged for my height (6'0") and the Pilot was a much better fit.

The computer I'm on right now is too old to load the site for me to check, but you might look up Trek's website and see if the Pilot is any longer than the x,000 road bike series. I'm not quite as long in the torso as you, but I am short-legged for my height (6'0") and the Pilot was a much better fit.

The tallest Pilot I can standover (barely) is a 63cm frame, but the tallest x000 I can standover is a 60cm. (see geometry tables below). With a 63cm Pilot, my effective top tube length is 23.2in/59cm; with a 60cm x000 the eff top tube is 23.0in/58.4, or 0.2in/0.6cm shorter. A difference of only 0.2in could certainly be made up with a longer stem for the handlebar, an rear-offset seatpost and a saddle with long rails (to adjust backwards). I'm not sure that I would gain more with a Pilot than I would lose (aerodynamics being one factor). Then again, I should try riding 50 miles on a relaxed geometry bike like the Pilot before I reject it. However, except for the handpain (see this thread (http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=233314)) with my current borrowed 58cm (too small for me) tourer, I like the traditional geometry. I'll have to buy a new bike soon, which is why I started this thread -- to find a bike which might fit me better.

Compact frames are a useful option, these are designed for 3-6" of clearance to give appropriate reach for the average rider. If you size a compact frame the same as a trad one, with 1" of standover, you get a longer frame. There are many excellent budget compact frames in L size.

By compact frame, are you referring to something like the Trek Pilot series with a sloped top tube instead of the traditional horizontal one? Or are you describing something else?

Yes, compact style means a sloping top tube.
Some touring bikes are made in compact style, inc a Giant model.