Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - my bike might be too tall for me..

hello everyone!
so i recently found an old schwinn bike laying around the garage, so i figured i'd fix it up and ride it when i move to davis for school this fall. and i didn't want to spend whole lot of money, so i tried to recycle lot of the parts that came with the bike. well long story short, i finally got it fixed and i was ready to roll, and put the seat in, i realized i would have to put the seat all the way down in order for me to reach the floor, otherwise i would have to lean over quiet a bit to put my foot down. i'll post the picture of the bike later tonight when i get home, but i just wanted to know, will it be okay to ride a bike that might be too tall for me? i read from somewhere here if the bike doesn't fit you then you shouldn't waste time and money fixing it... thanks!

I think if u are short on money, there is no reason u can't ride a poorly fitted bike as long as you have no trouble riding it.
But I wouldn't put a lot of money on it. Ride it until u save enough money for a frame that fits you and transfer whatever parts you can over.

hello everyone!
so i recently found an old schwinn bike laying around the garage, so i figured i'd fix it up and ride it when i move to davis for school this fall. and i didn't want to spend whole lot of money, so i tried to recycle lot of the parts that came with the bike. well long story short, i finally got it fixed and i was ready to roll, and put the seat in, i realized i would have to put the seat all the way down in order for me to reach the floor, otherwise i would have to lean over quiet a bit to put my foot down. i'll post the picture of the bike later tonight when i get home, but i just wanted to know, will it be okay to ride a bike that might be too tall for me? i read from somewhere here if the bike doesn't fit you then you shouldn't waste time and money fixing it... thanks!

That's fine. I don't think anybody's bike is that short that they can put their feet on the ground while seated. How do you feel when you stand over the top tube?

I'm always confused about saddle hight myself, but I don't believe you should be able to set your foot on the ground with the saddle at the perfect height. I think your leg should *almost* be fully extended at the bottom of the crank cycle. Can you stand over the top tube with your feet flat on the ground?

I have a similar problem with my '84 Schwinn World Sport. However, you need to remember that reaching the floor while you're seated isn't the most important thing in the world. You can stand over the top tube and clip in/get your feel on the pedals and push yourself up. It's a little tougher getting used to on a fixie (which I assume you're riding) though. As for seat height, you want your knees to be angled slightly when they're the most extended. There are plenty of articles around the internet who can help you there.

Happy riding!

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html
Read the section titled Adjustment.

you're not supposed to be able to put your feet on the floor while you're sitting on the saddle.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?675652-Help-upgrading-my-GT-Gutterball-(GTB)-09.&p=11388141&viewfull=1#post11388141 (http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?675652-Help-upgrading-my-GT-Gutterball-%28GTB%29-09.&p=11388141&viewfull=1#post11388141)

You've become the fit expert on SSFG, woo!

Hah! I'm just paraphrasing stuff I've read here and there and, like i said on that other post, sharing things I've learned from making plenty of mistakes myself.

I'm about as close to an expert on bike fitting as I'm close to ever becoming a CAT 1 racer.

Useful stuff though, I've been getting knee pain and I think my saddle is too a tad too low, need to read more.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html
Read the section titled Adjustment.

great info page! thanks a lot, i'll be sure to search & read up on it first next time!

http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/img/193_fig1.gif

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_SZx2oaxuJSA/Rupd7s8-NFI/AAAAAAAAAto/CehazdIKMqU/s320/SaddleHeight.jpg

I'm always confused about saddle hight myself, but I don't believe you should be able to set your foot on the ground with the saddle at the perfect height. I think your leg should *almost* be fully extended at the bottom of the crank cycle. Can you stand over the top tube with your feet flat on the ground?

i checked when i came home. my feet are not flat on the ground when i stand over the top tube. i have to tilt it a little in order to have my feet flat on the ground.. should i not even bother finish up the bike? while we're at it, can anyone recommend a frame?

To be honest, standover height is not as important as reach. Can you reach your handle bars fairly comfortable or do you have to stretch a lot to grab it?

Maybe post a picture of your bike?

well i can easily reach the handle bar with no problem. and as i have mentioned, my feet don't dangle, but its not flat on the floor either.. i have to tip toe a bit...

here's the picture of the bike.

did you intentionally switch the drive side? it looks like your bike is a little too tall for you, get a brake and you'll probably want to get some clips and straps for your pedals but that's all stuff you'll be able to transfer when you do find the right sized frame, be careful but you're probably fine to ride it until you find something that's a better fit

You should be fine, the bike does look a bit big on you. Try going down into the drops, I'm no expert on track drops, but it shouldn't feel like you're stretching yourself out much. If you do feel like a cat in the sun, you might want to look at getting a shorter stem or moving the seat up if you can.

the bike came with the drive side on the left side. but it's a dry fit, i'm going to paint the frame, so i'll just switch the side afterwards. and i have clips and pedals, and i have the brakes but haven't just install it yet. i guess i'll just ride it for now until i can save up some money for a decent frame. i'll just have to be careful to not bust my nuts on the top tube i guess.. just out of curiosity though, how much would a decent frame cost? i don't need anything fancy, just a something decent.. i know its all personal preference, but i have no clue as to where to start to look

OP, based on what you said later, then yes... it looks like the bike is a little big. How much of a dealbreaker is it? This is kind of a gray area IMO. A bike that doesn't fit you might actually ruin the experience for you. But as long as you keep in mind that it's a temporary solution to learn riding fixed gear while you can afford a frame that fits you properly, you might be fine. After a while riding this one, once you get a frame at the right size, you will only feel SO much better.

As ichitz said, just don't spend too much on it. Maybe a few bucks here and there to make it a little more comfortable for you (like, maybe a shorter quill stem if you think it's necessary). In the meantime, save up for your next frame.

EDIT: I wrote this before OP posted again.

there's a variety of frames, in a variety of price ranges, some great, some ok, some not ok at all.

What price range would you be looking at?

there's a variety of frames, in a variety of price ranges, some great, some ok, some not ok at all.

What price range would you be looking at?

just for the frame, since i can transfer everything from my current bike, i guess 150? as i said, i'm on a very tight budget moving to a new school. so it will be great if i can find one cheaper.. will i only able to afford 'not ok at all' frames with my price range?

Davis was my alma mater. Nice to have another aggie join the ranks. That said, Davis is a cesspool of bike theft. I had a bike stolen every year I was there and I was a super senior (graduated in 5). Good thing they were all Sears and Target bikes. So if you can make due with the bike you have right now and it's not terribly uncomfortable, stick with it. Your feet should not be flat on the ground when you're on the saddle. That means it's too low and there go your knees. If leaning the bike a bit to avoid the top tube is working ok, just go with it for now. Especially if your reach is fine.

You can get an EighthInch Scrambler frame for around that price. It's not THE BEST frame around, but for the price, makes a good beater solution. I had one for a while. Worked fine.

You might not be able to use your current parts on any modern fixed gear/track frame though. Once you add up all the parts, plus the tools, and time you need to spend on it, it will come up to maybe twice that. Maybe you can look into a cheaper full bike, like the ones at Bikes Direct. Kilo TT, Motobecane Track, etc.

I know. Bikes Direct gets mentioned a bit too often here. But ****... is there any other solution out there with similar options and prices? Show me one and I'll STFU about BD.

You can get an EighthInch Scrambler frame for around that price. It's not THE BEST frame around, but for the price, makes a good beater solution. I had one for a while. Worked fine.

You might not be able to use your current parts on any modern fixed gear/track frame though. Once you add up all the parts, plus the tools, and time you need to spend on it, it will come up to maybe twice that. Maybe you can look into a cheaper full bike, like the ones at Bikes Direct. Kilo TT, Motobecane Track, etc.

I know. Bikes Direct gets mentioned a bit too often here. But ****... is there any other solution out there with similar options and prices? Show me one and I'll STFU about BD.

Amen to that. Consider also that BD has the bikeisland sister site where you can get a frame, but really, for something like $100 more, just buy complete and be done with it. If you desperately need something to hold you over, go with the scrambler or, better yet, find a beater on craigslist that fits you.

That said, Davis is a cesspool of bike theft. I had a bike stolen every year I was there

Yeah! Just wait until this bike gets stolen before you buy a new one.

Or watch the bike racks for one your size that has his saddle way high and then leave him a note that you want to trade.

Given that you're in Davis, go to Bike Forth (http://daviswiki.org/Bike_Forth), ask someone there. They can help you with fit, get you a front brake, just about anything you need. If I recognise the bike, I might even say hi to you.

Given that you're in Davis, go to Bike Forth (http://daviswiki.org/Bike_Forth), ask someone there. They can help you with fit, get you a front brake, just about anything you need. If I recognise the bike, I might even say hi to you.

i'll be sure to check it out when i move up there, thanks!

i'll be sure to check it out when i move up there, thanks!

Hopefully I'll be seeing you there soon.