Originally Posted by
SparkyCanada
Hi there.
It's time to replace my old hybrid mountain bike that I use for mostly city commuting.
Today when I was test riding a couple of bikes - I couldn't decide which format I liked better.
The models I was test riding were Cannondale Quick CX.
The bike I am currently going to be replacing is a Cannondale F800 with a Lefty Jake. Its frame size is a large with a longer stem to give me a bit of extension when I ride.
I took out a bike with a large frame and stock stem - which rode nicely - but I felt I was too upright. This of course could be corrected with a longer stem.
The second bike I took out was an XL frame with stock stem. The extension felt about right.
Is there a benefit to going with an extra large frame? Or should I stick to a large frame and get a longer stem?
I'm 5' 11" ...
Thanks
SparkyCanada
If you intend to put some real fenders on there I'd say it better with a larger frame and shorter stem. Otherwise you will have toe overlap. All my frames are slightly too large for me really but its the only way I can fit real fenders. You get used to a short stem in like 2 hours. On one bike i even got a fork with 10mm extra rake to solve this problem. You get used to this quite fast too.