Originally Posted by knowledgdropper

The definite answer is maybe. Probably not what you want to hear, but that's the truth. See my post above- my 54cm Tarmac fits me very, very well. I do admit, however, that a 53cm (if Specialized made one) Tarmac would probably be perfect. Look up the geometry of the frameset that you've got now. Then do some research on other bikes with similar specs. Test ride those bikes locally and decide for yourself if it's too big.

There are ways to get a bike which is too large to fit better: Shorter stem, short reach bars, (sometimes) zero-setback seatpost. This approach may or may not be optimal though. If the bike is too far out of your natural "size range", you'll find that no amount of component & parts finagling will get it to fit. Run through the online fit calculator at http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za...LCULATOR_INTRO then compare the recommended measurements to the bikes that you've researched. HTH.