Hi all! I'm NOS (New Old Stock, ha ha) to biking. Well I did ride some many decades ago but as soon as I got out of college that fell by the wayside. So I'm basically starting out from ground zero here, or slightly below.

I was going to rescue my old bike which has been sitting in a shed so it has some surface rust but otherwise seems ok. It's a 23" Raleigh Sprite made in Taiwan circa 1980.

The top of the top bar is at a height of 33". This is what the bike ship "fitted" me for way back then. It has always been uncomfortable - too much weight bearing on the hands, top bar too high to stand over, etc. I've been reading voraciously the past few days on bicycle fitting and I'm now suspecting the shop sold me what they had rather than what I needed. I'm taller than average, 6', and would need a top bar that is at 30" and maybe even 29".

I love the classic look and would happily swap out my frame for a 20 incher. But in my initial searchers it seems that what is predominately available are other 23 inchers! At lot classic bikes were made in 21" or 23" frames. From what i've seen. the (men's) Sprites were generally made in 21(.5), 23(.5) and even 25 inches! General sizing guides recommend 23" bikes for someone who is apx 6' 3" tall and 21" for 6'.

Were bikes just made big in the 70's and 80's? Because they don't seem to have been made for average heights like 5'6"-5'8".