Originally Posted by Stucky

When it comes to bikes, the scientific method is not necessarily such a good thing. What with it being a good deal about "feeling"; and maybe that it involves more art than science, I think the best thing is just to ride and experiment until you just happen upon a combination (fit; geometry; material; construction; etc.) that just happens to work. It doesn't matter so much if one bike has 23mm tires and one has 25mm's; if one bike is on the smallish side and tweaked to fit vs. one on the larger side tweaked to fit. The small differences may all add-up....but in isolation, they don't mean all that much- it's more about how everything works as a whole. Don't over-think it. Be an artist, more than a scientist!

It's kinda like buying a couch. You could look at it scientifically and compare various proportions and cushion materials, and make a spreadsheet....or you can just sit on 'em, and let your chooch be the judge.

And after you've been around this forum long enough, you'll start to notice, that the more "scientific" various threads get, the less that is really said; the more the fun is zapped out of a topic and/or riding in general; and in general, when they devolve into quoting various studies and data references, nothing is accomplished and no consensus is arrived at.....it just becomes an intellectual exercise of people trying to justify their position/ideas. That is the opposite of what cycling should be!

We're riding kid's toys....lets think more like kids! It's a lot more fun, if you don't take it so seriously.