Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - small frame question, kinda new at this, setback or not?

Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.
catapultkid
05-09-07, 11:07 PM
whats up guys, well im hear doing alittle bit of cycling around the campus and kind of pick this up as a second hobbie for awhile. im in college without much money and ive found a leader frame that is a 50, im 5' 10" and am currently riding a 58-59 kinda big. but its cheap, basically ive found this frame for cheap, but it is too small. i was wondering if gettting a setback post would solve the problem or not? is this a bad idea? or is it possible. i rode a friends 50 spicer and it wasnt that bad, small but doable. yes it is going to be a fixie
lmk what you guys think, thanks
-paul
666pack
05-09-07, 11:11 PM
i'd recommend two things: (a) low level english classes. (b) getting a frame that you're comfortable on.
catapultkid
05-09-07, 11:14 PM
yeah im a mechie so i dont have to worry about much english, yes i was hoping that the setback would make it alittle more comfy, thanks for the quick responce
666pack
05-09-07, 11:15 PM
i personally wouldn't ride a frame that's that much smaller than what i regularly ride. however... i am 6'7" and i don't think i could ever get a bike that's too big for me to ride.
thurstonboise
05-09-07, 11:16 PM
50cm is way to small.
whats up guys, well im hear doing alittle bit of cycling around the campus and kind of pick this up as a second hobbie for awhile. im in college without much money and ive found a leader frame that is a 50, im 5' 10" and am currently riding a 58-59 kinda big. but its cheap, basically ive found this frame for cheap, but it is too small. i was wondering if gettting a setback post would solve the problem or not? is this a bad idea? or is it possible. i rode a friends 50 spicer and it wasnt that bad, small but doable. yes it is going to be a fixie
lmk what you guys think, thanks
-paul
Ok, fav subject of mine - too small a frame.
Sizing puts me on frames 57-58, I am comfortable on my track bike which is 57 and I see how a 58 will be even better fit. Still, my favorite bike is a 53cm Time Trial one with curved seat tube - making the chainstays 37.5cm and the wheelbase 92.5cm without toe overlap.
The only problem was fitting my grasshopper self in the cockpit - I ride bulhorns on a 115mm stem and I found I am really comfortable with no setback seatpost. This might be related to the fact that the ST angle above the curve is pretty slack.
roadgator
05-10-07, 12:25 AM
yeah im a mechie so i dont have to worry about much english
you still have to communicate. do yourself and all us engineers a favor and take some pride in how you write. it'll set you apart from all the other guys who think like you.
now back on subject and ill step off the soapbox.
can you make it "work"? probably. but the money you'd have to spend on special parts to make it comfy will likely offset any savings of it being cheap to start out.
try holding out for something within a couple cm of your size, especially if you plan on ridding it a lot.
newnoise
05-10-07, 01:32 AM
I wouldn't say it's way too small. I'm 5'9" and have ridden 50cm comfortably. My first bike was actually my mom's and was a 50cm bob jackson touring frame. longer stem helped, and a longer seatpost (no setback). I tend to like smaller frames though since they are lighter, usually tend to have a tighter wheelbase, and just feel kind of quick and nimble. I did plenty long rides on it as well (50 or so miles 3 to 4 times a week). just another perspective.
old and new
05-10-07, 02:07 AM
50 is way too small.If you had very short legs (in your case 33.5 or less) a 54 would do,WITH a set-back post,these posts are a better way than using an overly long stem(140 or more) 55,56 is ideal.Think about it,at 5'10" you're average height,slightly taller than avg.If the smallest frame made is 49 or 50 and a large is 64 or so,why would one think that they should ride in the low range? That logic would make it seem as if a 64 frame's for a seven footer.50cm is for a sub-5'3" male at most.
catapultkid
05-10-07, 05:36 AM
thanks for the advice, i guess ill hold out on it. i understand that the only reason that i would consider it would be because of the cost, not because it is in my size and im not riding 50 miles a day either.
thanks again
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.1.12 Copyright © 2013 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.