gbcb

If I can find a way to make it work, I may be the proud owner of a Jamis Nova in the next week. First, though, I have a sizing question:

The LBS I have been visiting has the Nova only in a 53cm frame. I had thought that this would be too small for me (I have very long legs for my height of 177cm/ 5'10"), but it feels mostly great. The one problem is that my preferred saddle height puts it about 1.5 cm above the "minimum insert" marker on the stock seatpost. Is this a sign that I need a bigger frame? The guys at the LBS say that a 55cm would change the feel of the bike, and would stretch me out uncomfortably. I'm inclined to believe them, since the horizontal reach seems about right as it is.

The question is: Is a higher seatpost going to present problems for me down the road? The guy at the LBS says my preferred saddle height would be too high for a racing bike, but is OK for a cyclocross / touring frame. Does this make sense? Any pointers regarding the sizing of this bike would be much appreciated! Many thanks...

gbcb

Any ideas? I think this may have been lost in the morning's proliferation of new threads...

walterk46

My concern about adding seatpost length would be that the drop from the seat to the handlebars would get uncomfortable, unless you have long arms to match your long legs. You might have to swap out the stem to get some rise and bring the bars up. Me, I have a 57cm Nova and I'm 5'11". It was an ebay pick up, and I did not get to test ride. The seat tube length is great, but I had to swap out to a shorter stem to get comfortable with the longer TT length.

gbcb

Hmm... that's something to think about. I didn't feel that the bars were uncomfortably low when I raised the seat to my preferred height, but it's hard to tell how it would play out over a longer ride. Unfortunately, the shop doesn't have a larger frame for me to test. I *did* ride a 56cm Kona Jake the Snake, and found that I was too stretched out. I also thought that the handling was a bit dead. I haven't compared the geometries of the two bikes, so I don't know how the Jamis would scale up -- would it be similar to the 56cm Kona?

comradehoser

generally, the rule of thumb for cross bikes is to size one size smaller than your usual.

I'm 5'11", with a 34" inseam, and ride a 57-59 road bike per usual. My nova is a 55. The top tube is 57cm, and the stock stem and bar set-up was spot-on for me. However, my seat post is jacked up right to the min. insert line.

I can't speak to going over the minimum insert issue in any authoritative technical way--I would search or post up in the mech. forum. I would be leery of placing undue leverage on the seat tube, as two of the '07 novas I know of have cracked at the lug.

I would try to get a ride in on the 55 frame, if at all possible. The aurora is a similar geometry to the nova, if they have any of those. I do think it sounds like the 53 is a tad small. As for being too stretched out, that can be remedied with a shorter stem.

jz19

This is what I did. I ride a 57 Nova that fits me perfectly but would ride a 59 roadbike (if I had one). I suggest that you go one size down from your road bike size and be done with it.

RonH

I'm 6'-0" with a 30" inseam and have a 57 Nova. When I first got it it seemed huge but I got used to it. I think a 55 may have felt better initially but would have been a touch too small once I got used to it. I wish they made a 56 model.