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Old 08-30-16, 06:24 PM
  #14  
Andy_K 
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I agree that the bars look really big, though that could be a camera trick. Also, the saddle looks like it is tipped forward. Again that might be an illusion, but if it is that would explain your hand pain.

Bike fit is a matter of getting your balance on the bike exactly right, and it isn't easy. It is, however, easy to test. If you're riding the bike and you take your hands off the bars for just a second, do you feel like you're falling forward? I'm guessing so, probably quite dramatically given your hand pain.

You probably don't want to sink a lot of money into this bike until you are sure that you'll be able to fix it, but I suspect you will be able to get it to fit you. I agree with Salamandrine that you should easily be able to re-sell that bike. I also agree with markk900 that it's a beautiful bike, and if I had bought it I would probably go to some lengths before giving up on it. If you live near a good bike shop, you could schedule a professional fit. That would cost you around $150, and hopefully they'd offer a free consultation to look at you riding the bike to judge whether or not they will be able to make it comfortable for you.

Otherwise, here are some things you can try on your own:

1. Make sure the saddle is level. I use a small level from the hardware store to check this. In my experience, "looks about right" isn't close enough.

2. Make sure the saddle height is correct. You should have a slight bend in your knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke.

3. Try moving the saddle back as far as the rails will allow. Don't go so far that the clamp touches the bend in the rail, but try just short of that. There is a rule-of-thumb involving having your knee over the pedal spindle when the cranks are horizontal, but that's kind of arbitrary. You might feel like this is a bad idea since you already feel like you can't reach the bars, but moving the saddle back will put more of your weight behind the bottom bracket and counter-act your tendency to fall toward the bar. One way to visualize this is to stand with your back right up against a wall and try to touch your toes. Then take a step away from the wall and try it again. You'll notice that your waist goes back to maintain your balance. Moving the saddle back works the same way.

4. Buy an adjustable stem. These are incredibly ugly, but they're relatively cheap and will let you move your handlebars around while you figure out what position is comfortable. Once you figure it out you can buy a fixed stem to put them there if you don't like the adjustable stem. With any luck, your handlebars have a 25.4mm clamp diameter and you can use this stem.

https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...&category=3569

If your handlebars have a 26.0 clamp diameter (and they probably do), you may need an adapter.

Moving your handlebars higher has a very similar effect to moving them closer. Either way keeps you from falling forward. Because your head tube is so short, you may have problems getting a stem that is safely inserted and as high as you would like. I think I mentioned this issue in another thread. You can work around this problem by cutting off some extra length on a very tall stem once you know the height you need. Just be sure that you have a safe minimum inserted.

The brakes are likely a different issue. If you haven't used road brakes before they take some getting used to. If your brakes are the single-pivot side pull kind, you might be happier with newer dual pivot calipers. You can change that independent of the shift/brake lever. If you don't like the Campy shifting mechanism you could try bar end shifters. There are a lot of options there, all involving more cash outlay. As markk900 mentioned, you could also install an upright/flat bar.
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