buddhafrog

Thanks for your advice in my first thread detailing how this 6'2", 240 lb'er ended up with a 17.5" Trek 7.3 with the seat post jacked all the way up to heaven. I was able to return that bike and now think that I've found the bike I'll buy. However, I can't test ride it and really would appreciate guidance on what size to buy.

I live in Korea and have only found one bike anywhere near my price range that I can buy in my size - but I have to buy it online and can't test ride it. In fact there are NO bikes in the store I can test anywhere near my size. I'm buying blind. You are my eyes.

Fuji Absolute 3.0 - I'm liking the all white (I'll actually be buying the Absolute S, Japan only version of the 3.0 with cosmetic mods)

Anyone know if the Fuji Absolute runs true to size? I'm thinking that most likely the 23" is best, but I've learned here that a little small is much better than a little big. I've read various reports/charts about what size to get - the 21' or the 23" - and I'm getting conflicting info.

I'm 6'2", Inseam is 34", 240 lbs but am working hard to get to 199! (and thus the bike purchase).

Please advise. I'm eager to buy.

badger1

Very, very difficult to help ... but you are asking and fwiw if the Japanese 'S' version is the one that shows up on the current Fuji Japan website, as a 'special' model, then it's looking like the 23 to me, though I think you could ride either (either would be a vast improvement on the Trek 17.5). I base that on the facts that

--that size has the same headtube length (190 mm) as the 21" version (the new one, with the curved top tube) that shows up on the English Fuji site, and that
-- effective top tube length on that 'S' version 23" is still not overly-long (in other words, the 21" 'S' version might prove a little short/low re. handlebar positioning.

A lot of this, though, is contingent on your actual cycling inseam. You mention 34"; is that a trouser inseam, or is that your cycling inseam (i.e. standing straight, feet a few inches apart, bare feet, measure from floor to firmly up against crotch)? Given your height, 34" sounds like the former ...?

Dunbar

I'd probably order the 23" and put a shorter stem on it if you feel too stretched out. A 21" frame is going to force you to ride a very aggressive saddle-to-bar drop. The only way to remedy that is put an ugly riser stem and/or bars on the bike.

jt02gt

IMHO I think the all white is a bit much, now the all black is pretty sick looking. Don't get me wrong I usually like white over black as I have the white version of the Trek 7.3 FX and I liked it better than any of the other colors offered for it but in your case I think the all white is a bit over the top.

buddhafrog

@jt02gt, yo, don't knock my biking style. Actually I was concerned with it being too much as well and was considering the blue and black but felt the white looked truly different than other bikes I have seen (the pink is sold out in both 21" and 23", so don't even suggest it). The black is still in the running, fwiw, and this pic does make the black Absolute look sick indeed. This pic of the white Aboslute (large pic at the bottom of the article) is the one that originally caught my eye - I can imagine it looking like a giant ghost as I speed on past all the mountain bikers here in Korea. The article is an interviewer with the Absolute designer, if anyone is interested.

@badger1, thanks so much - that took some excellent effort and the advice has sold me unless I hear other info. I wish there were a way on this board to +1 you ... you deserve it. Thanks to you too, Dunbar.

nfmisso

23" no question - I am 5'!!" 32" pants inseam; and 23" even 24" frames work well for me.

derf36

My 2 cents.. white bad, black good!

buddhafrog

@badger1 was correct - 34" is my pant inseam. I tried my best to measure my cycling inseam (barefoot, back-to-wall, firmly saddling book, then measuring floor to top of book) = 35" cycling inseam is my best measurement, assuming I measured correctly.

So, 35" inseam, still in agreement with the 23" bike? Thanks.

badger1

buddhafrog: as I said above, a very tricky exercise!! But, again fwiw, a few thoughts:

1. If your inseam measure of 35" is now roughly accurate, a couple of things follow. First, you are proportioned slightly toward the longer leg/shorter torso end of the scale. This is an approximation, but using the 'divide height by [floor to crotch] inseam' measure, a result of 2.2 is (very roughly) 'average'. You end up at 2.11; I'm more extreme still, for example, at 5'8" and a bit but with a 33" cycling inseam (2.06 = long legs, short torso). So, standover height probably won't be an issue with either the 21 or the 23, especially with shoes on (and you won't be riding barefoot!).

2. Second, this also means a fairly long bottom bracket (crank axle) to top-of-saddle measurement, so you need (ideally) a fairly long headtube so that you don't have too much drop to the bars and/or have to resort to a very up-angled stem or other bodges.

So, again looking at the geometry for the bike (if I've got the right one!), you probably could ride either the 21 or the 23. I think the 21 would give you a slightly more 'aggessive' riding position, the 23 slightly more 'relaxed', relatively speaking. That's based on the headtube length difference (160 for the 21, 190 for the 23). The effective top tubes (i.e. the horizontal 'reach' to the bars) are pretty much the same; the 21 is at 56 cms, the 23 at 58 cms, but that 2 cm difference is cut in half by the fact that the seat angle on the 23 (72 degrees) is one degree slacker than that on the 21 (73 degrees). This means that to achieve a given position in relation to the pedals, you'll have the saddle on the 21 about 1 cm further back on its rails than on the 23 -- so 'reach' is a wash.

Again for comparison, I ride a 'Medium' Specialized Sirrus that fits me perfectly, even with a 185 mm head tube, with plenty of standover clearance. As I said, I'm only 5'8" but really, my Sirrus is not that much 'smaller' than the 23 Fuji -- though it does fit differently.

Given all that, I think the 23 Fuji you are looking at would be a very safe bet; as I said, probably the 21 as well, but I'd go the 23 if I were in your position.

Good Luck!

common man

i used to own a fuji absolute 2.0. i hated the fit. the handlebars were waaay too low. it was like a roadbike without the drops. i personally thought that was lame. either have handlebars at the height of mtn / hybrid or low handlebars WITH drops. half and half was uncomfortable for my hands and back. so the fit of the absolutes did not work for me, even though by "size" 19" was appropriate for my 5'9" frame. different mfrs have different fits - each doesn't suit everyone. i liked the fit of the trek fx so much better.

there is no better and easier way than to try in person. having said that, if you want to go by size only, 23 is appropriate for a 6'2 fella. however, keep the bike clean and be prepared to return it if you don't like the fit - without a test ride (and even a small parking lot ride says very little).

Dunbar

I don't think it's the bar height, it looks like Fuji runs 25-30mm more reach (ETT and stem length) than most brands which stretches you out more. That is pretty easy to dial out with a shorter stem.

Back to the OP, I'd definitely get the 23" frame with a 35" cycling inseam.

Wool40

I'm almost the same size as you. 6'2 225 and ride a 22.5" Trek 7.2 and it fits me very nicely. As stated a few times above the 23" is the way to go.

common man

i put the 19" fuji and the 17.5 trek fx side by side. the 17.5" had handlebars 5" higher. ETT and stem length were very similar (i.e. 555 mm vs 568 mm). stretching out was not the problem. this was the 2009 model so things could have changed. anyhow, the OP should keep this in mind.

edit: yup, the new fuji looks very different from just 2 years ago. looks more like the specialized sirrus with its curved TT!

buddhafrog

Will purchase the 23" today (still haven't decided on the black vs. white). I'll send a pic of me an my bike when it arrives.

Thanks to the forums for helping another newbie.

qmsdc15

Go big, go white!

giantcfr1

How exciting!!! I'm looking forward to seeing your final choice. Hopefully it won't take long to arrive.

buddhafrog

It's bought. And yes, I ordered white. Apparently all I needed was for one person to help me feel good about the white. qmsdc15 was all I needed.

mjwithtwins

I would have suggested white too! Can't wait to see pictures

himespau 

White looks cool, but I ride through too much much (rain, puddles, the occasional hard packed trail) for it to stay looking good for very long, so I would have gone with black, but either way looked sweet. As a reassurance on size, I'm 6'3 and find my 22.5" bike to be a bit on the small side (~8 inches of seatpost and 5-6 inches of steerer showing with a 140 mm stem), though it's an old mongoose so our geometries will probably be quite different.

qmsdc15

Glad I could help!

Yes, please post pictures!

buddhafrog

Well back and ready to post some pics. I got my bike a few weeks ago but had to go through some tweeking. When it first arrived I became quite anxious b/c it just didn't feel right after riding it. That 17.5" Trek actually felt better. After riding the new Fuji, my hands really, really killed me. As did my rear. But after reading/learning enough here, I knew to be a little patient and get what I needed to make it work right.

I found a local bike store that has been great. We communicate with my broken Korean and their even more broken English - and our new friend google translator. They've been very helpful with the bike - not charging me anything. I ended up buying a cheaper bike from them for my son as well so we can do some father-son riding.

The Fuji came with some pretty standard grips. I wanted to buy Ergon grips with bar ends for a change of hand position. Unfortunately, Korea only carries size Small. I decided against the small (and the immediate purchase/riding gratification) and instead purchased Large size from overseas. While waiting for the new grips, my hands just hurt too much so I also went ahead and bought some thin gloves with gel padding. I was really shocked at how well they worked. The new grips are now here and together they are great. I was a little concerned about having the gloves plus the wider grips but I've had no problem whatsoever.

The handlebars we a little shorter than normal (forgot size). That caused me to put a lot of pressure on my outside of my palms only. When I changed the grips I also got handlebars that were a couple inches wider. Together with the gloves / grips / handlebars = ZERO PAIN.

I bought some nice baggy bike shorts and the padding quickly solved my rear pain... that and the fact that after a few rides I found the right position for my seat: A cm back and about 2 cm angled down from how the bike was set up for me. This new position just feels effortless and comfortable.

I've had a long history of knee issues and when I had the seat at the position recommended by the LBS (which I think was correct based on what I've learned), I would occasionally have pain. I lowered my seat a couple cm's and now the knee pain is gone.

So there it is: padded shorts, gloves, grips and longer handlebars, totaling $100 (I got good prices).

I've now ridden my bike several times and when I'm done, I'm tired from exercising but have really zero discomfort. I just want to go back out and ride again. I love it! I added added a couple pics of the bike. In the top right of the second picture, you can see the bike path that I usually ride. But now, I've been sort of taking it all over town. I find it fun roaming the city and back streets as well as the bike path.

buddhafrog

OH, and not that you've asked, but I've lost about 15 pounds in the past 6 weeks with my exercising (3 weeks of riding) plus change of diet. That feels good too.

qmsdc15

A real beauty and nicely photographed! Maybe the best looking hybrid I've ever seen. Get a good lock!

I'm not a fan of sloping saddles and wonder if lowering it a little more will allow you to make it level again.

You don't want to get sanctioned by the UCI for misconduct!

I guess if pro riders want their saddles tilted slightly nose down, maybe it's not such a bad idea after all. Nevermind...

Good call to use the white barends instead of the Ergon ones, but again that's more of an aesthetic concern of mine. Your comfort is (slightly, haha) more important than how your bike looks to me. By the way, bar ends parallel to stem would look really good on your bike. It wouldn't require a big change.

I changed the handlebar on my fast hybrid yesterday from 19" to 21". The handlebar I installed is gold tone which would look really good on your bike. If I'm ever in you neck of the woods, maybe we could swap.

Congrats on the weight loss!

giantcfr1

Well congratulations on your purchase. It's great news that all has come together.

buddhafrog

I'll take that compliment anyday! Thanks a lot.

Yeah, the slope is minor but has made me feel as if the seat is no longer there. Comfort requires me not to change this.

Yeah, like the next time you bike to the store to pick up some milk, just come to Korea instead and we can swap handlebars.

I could've bought a gold handlebars but the thought never occurred to me. In hindsight that might have looked real nice. I like the white bar ends a lot, too, and am glad I went with them. Good point about placing them parallel with the stem. They are close now I might not notice any difference. I will side with comfort, but if essentially equal, parallel it will be.