Womens specific frames

[fixedgearhead]

I am writing this to inquire about the advisability/wisdom of the womens specific frame ala Terry and Trek and others. My wife is in the market for a new multi gear frame for road use and is interested in the arguments for/or against those type of frames. I have no experience in that area as I ride Fixed Gear bikes and haven't kept up on this area of biking. The bike in question would not be used for racing, just recreational riding on the roads and some light touring. What is the take on 26" front wheel and 700cc rear wheel? Can't you build a bike with matched wheels that fit a womans body measurements? Any help in this regard will be appreciated. I want to encourage her to ride more than on the bike trails as she does now and anyway, I am always up for another bike in the house. She would consider custom made as an option also so we are not concerned with only stock bikes offered. I would appreciate any feedback from those who have experience with this type of frame. Pro and con.

Thanks,

John Taylor
AKA:fixedgearhead

[late]

Hi,
how tall is she? How experienced? What's the budget? FWIW...my wife rides a Bianchi Strada. But what your wife really needs is a Trek 5200 WSD :D

[fixedgearhead]

Hi,
how tall is she? How experienced? What's the budget? FWIW...my wife rides a Bianchi Strada. But what your wife really needs is a Trek 5200 WSD :D
She rides a 54 cm Bianchi Eros w/700cc wheels and is 5'8'' height and of standard proportions. She has ridden for about 4 years on the local bike trails using a couple of single speed bikes that I have built up for her and the Bianchi eros that she does not ride too often. She only asked about the WSD bikes after noticing the Terry catalog and my mentioning that all of the major makers were now offering them. I could not give her any recommendations one way or the other. I can understand the argument of pedal overlap but I think that might apply on smaller framed bikes, more than on a 54cm sized frame. I don't notice any overlap when she rides the Bianchi. The two sized tube and wheel issue is well documented and is probably not as big an issue as some imagine. I carry two tubes when I ride my 700cc wheel bikes and am not inconvenienced. Does the argument for such a bike extend to the 5'8" sized rider, or is it relevant to a smaller rider or one with unique proportions? I guess that is my question. Budget is not an issue as we are retired and childless and treat ourselves to some pretty nice toys. Although, I would hate to buy something and find out that it was not necessary and did not perform the intended function though. Any further Information is appreciated.

Thanks again,

John Taylor

[lovemyswift]

Terry puts the 2 sized wheels only on the smallest frames. Her theory was that it was the only way to build a small frame to get the correct head tube angles. If you notice she is now building her top of the line bike with 26c wheels.
The only comment I have seen for bigger women is that they may need to go a size smaller in frame to get the correct tt length. I rode with a woman who was your wife's size and she was so stretched out on her frame, she was complaining but didn't know what to do.
Your wife is very lucky, she can buy any bike she wants.
At 5'2" I'm sooo jealous.
Kathi

[late]

Hi,
I am also 5' 8". A typical size for me is 54. Top tubes tend to run 54-56. I prefer a shorter top tube. I suspect your wife would as well, I am going to just pick a number out of the air and say 52. But it wouldn't surprise me if she liked 51, or even 50. When the two of you are going around trying bikes, you should keep track of the the TT lengths. You have a number of choices. There are WSD bikes, and she should certainly try a couple.Trek has the 1500 and 5200, maybe others. Then, of course, there is Terry. Several other brands are making women specific bikes now. Then there is custom, such as Serotta or Waterford. Serotta has a wonderful reputation for producing bikes that fit like a glove.
I also have what may be an off the wall suggestion...Rivendell. They make frames that put a person in a fairly upright position. But I think that would be a tough call if she couldn't arrange a test ride to be sure. My preference would be to get a custom Ti Serotta. That is a very expensive preference, and would require going to a Serotta dealer for a fitting. She could specify the way she wanted to sit on the bike; and they would build it to suit the sort of riding you want to do. If that is too much $$$, there are many other companies that do custom for less. My 2nd choice would be Waterford.

[fixedgearhead]

We have used a shorter reach stem that is made by Nitto called the Technomic. It is taller then a regular road stem and the reach is 50mm. This gives her a less stretched out position and a more upright riding style, which to my way of thinking, achieves the same effect as the shorter top tube. I have been riding bikes for about 50 years and I think I know something about fitting, but I am a man and that is , shall we say, different. I am a more aggressive rider and I ride track bikes which have a notoriously uncomfortable position. I think we have achieved a good compromise on the present bike but, we are willing to try one of the newer WSD bikes and see how it goes. I think that I can convince her to go with a custom made bike as she loves the look of all mine and, I think, would love to have one made especially for herself. Pride of ownership, you know. Fully lugged and nicely detailed. I may investigate one of the pro shops and see if I can schedule a FIT KIT session. I know that they are rather racing oriented but if you specify the more casual riding style intended, then they can adjust accordingly. Anyway, Thanks for the input.

John Taylor

[nathank]

i'm not up on exactly which road bikes are offered from different manufacturers...

but sounds like you guys are on the right track - and i agree with most of the comments here.

for 5'8" and 54 or 52cm frame, i think regular 700c wheels should be better - the smalelr wheels are only needed on REALLY small frames. my girlfriend is like 5'1 1/2" and she has a 700c bike that doesn't fit her (she's had it a while - before we knew each other). we just bought her a WSD mountain bike which is SO much better than her old one - the first time a bike has actually fit her!

which to my way of thinking, achieves the same effect as the shorter top tube.
as to stems: yes, you can "modify" a regular men's bike by a shorter stem and in most cases this is fine. although a) sometimes it's still not enough as is the case for my gilrfriend and her road bike and b) it does change the handling slightly but usually not a big deal (i.e. the bikes are designed with a specific length frame, so shortening is a change) - this one you just have to try out (?)

at 5'8" the other WSD things like shorter levers (for small hands) and cranks (short legs) won't be much of an issue i think...

i would definitely recommend trying out the WSD bikes... or if you guys do a custom built frame as you suggest, then no worries - the designer will make the top-tube the length she needs! (although if you're shelling out the cash for a custom-built i would try to have it designed for BOTH comfort now with the potential to be more aggressive later - just in case she really loves it you'd hate to have to buy another custom bike)

[MichaelW]

In the UK, there is a style of bike which I havent seen from US builders. It is a light-touring bike that takes 26" MTB wheels, using narrow slick tyres (up to 1.5").
With small wheels, you can build a light, agile well proportioned bike. With MTB wheels, tubes are never a problem, and you can get tyres suitable for fast road riding, up to quite poor trails.

[lilogs]

Women ususally require shorter top tubes. Custom bike frames often make sense as a result, especially for shorter women. If you look at bike specs from most manufacturers smaller frames tend to have relatively long top tubes compared to larger frames. Manufacturers do this to avoid "toe overlap" where the toe hits the front wheel if the wheel is turned at an extreme angle and the foot is pointing forward. Luna Cycles (www.lunacycles.com) makes custom bikes just for women and on their web site they explain the logic in different frame geometries that some women require. It is worth checking out.