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04-01-09, 08:56 PM
The good news is that I just bought a hardly used '90s era Specialized Globe 3-speed. The bike was local to me and I doubt it has been ridden more than 10 times. It has the usual rotten tires and the hub needs adjustment, but boy does it move. I was cruising around the neighborhood last night at 17-18mph without much effort.
The bad news is that I did not notice the very high "minimum insertion" line on the seatube before I bought it. I have long legs and this is only a medium frame. I need the seat at least 2 inches above the minimum line. The tube is 26 x 400 and is unusual in that the minimum insertion line is only 10 cm below the top of the post. Most posts I've seen are the opposite (10 cm into the bike at min).
So, I'm wondering is this just a funky old seatpost that I can replace with a modern part with the usual lower minimum line or does this particular post have something to do with the Globe's unusual frame. I attached a pic. As shown the seat tube juts up about 15 cm above the top tube, kind of sticks up there all by itself. I put yellow tape at the minimum line on the seat post and on the frame where the bottom of the seat tube sits at my desired ride height. So, does the long seat tube insertion help to strengthen the seat tube? If that is the case, I assume I'm done and will have to re-sell the bike. The frame is steel and beautifully assembled. As you can see the post is just below the top tube but not by more than an inch at the ride height I need. If it is not a frame issue, I will definitely buy a new post that purports to be strong enough for that ride height I need. I'm really hoping I can make this bike work for me as a daily commuter.
The bad news is that I did not notice the very high "minimum insertion" line on the seatube before I bought it. I have long legs and this is only a medium frame. I need the seat at least 2 inches above the minimum line. The tube is 26 x 400 and is unusual in that the minimum insertion line is only 10 cm below the top of the post. Most posts I've seen are the opposite (10 cm into the bike at min).
So, I'm wondering is this just a funky old seatpost that I can replace with a modern part with the usual lower minimum line or does this particular post have something to do with the Globe's unusual frame. I attached a pic. As shown the seat tube juts up about 15 cm above the top tube, kind of sticks up there all by itself. I put yellow tape at the minimum line on the seat post and on the frame where the bottom of the seat tube sits at my desired ride height. So, does the long seat tube insertion help to strengthen the seat tube? If that is the case, I assume I'm done and will have to re-sell the bike. The frame is steel and beautifully assembled. As you can see the post is just below the top tube but not by more than an inch at the ride height I need. If it is not a frame issue, I will definitely buy a new post that purports to be strong enough for that ride height I need. I'm really hoping I can make this bike work for me as a daily commuter.