Originally Posted by aricc24

Most here will say go to a LBS for proper fitting. Id mirror that too, but some people just wanna buy used for price savings which is completely fine.

If you do that, look up the brand and bike type online and most sites have a sizing guide. A good rule of thumb is that when you straddle the crossbar, you should be able to pick it up and have an inch or so minimum of room. If its touching your gooch while you stand its too large.

In terms of bikes, depends on what you are doing with it. like you said, if you ride on roads that have a lot of potholes, arent kept, and want to take it on trails, Id suggest a hybrid. I went with a hybrid with 35mm tires and felt like I could even be fine with 32s. The giant ROAM I believe has front shocks which slow it down a bit but add comfort.

If It was me, Id buy a hybrid with rigid fork with a more aggressive geometry. The FX series from Trek, Escape from Giant, and Quick from Cannondale are models I looked at. Liked them all, just went with the one that was priced best at my LBS. The "fitness" hybrids offer a good balance between comfort and speed, can be pretty zippy on pavement but also forgiving on bumps and are fine on well kept limestone trails. Im likely biased though because that is what I ride. There are people on here that will bash hybrids and say they arent particularly good at anything, which may be true, but they arent particularly bad at anything either. Like you im fairly bigger (6'2, 230lbs) and enjoy the fatter tires. Plus there are tons of limestone rail trails around here which are NOT fun on a road bike.

If you want more speed for longer rides a road bike may be better suited.