I am trying to accomplish a gravel bike fit that is not a liability on rough terrain when cornering on loose soil for the occasional singletrack ride, more like a CX bike that I have now, but is fairly comfortable for a 100K gravel grind on dirt roads. That is a bit of a contradiction so a compromise will be necessary.

I can get either of those bikes to fit with the handlebar above or below the saddle without resorting to weird stem dimensions. either of them will fit me in a trainer. The real questions are:

• wheelbase difference of 10mm, is that a lot?
• front-center is where the wheelbase difference lies. toe overlap and weight distribution are affected
• exposed seatpost—more seatpost=smoother ride most fo the time. does 2cm of seatpost allow enough extra flex that I'd notice?
• stack—I like the aesthetics of a level stem and fewer spacers, but I won't like that determine what frame I buy. I should ignore it, actually.
• trail: how much does 3mm difference in trail make? probably not a lot. either way, the new frame has more trail than my old one—which equates to more stability at speed, correct? trail is still a bit mysterious to me.

I was thinking about drop bar bikes I've owned in the past: 54cm Salsa Vaya had a very long wheelbase and I thought it handled like a school bus—in a bad way. I used it like a gravel/CX bike on singletrack and roads of all sorts and it never felt fun to me. no surprise, it was designed to be loaded down and ridden for days on end as a tourer.
The next bike was a 52cm Soma DCD and it was a ton more fun for my riding. I went through the same dilemma between the 52 and 54 frame. I choose the 52 and put a pretty tall stack of spacers under the stem. I think I had a 90mm stem on it, but I am not certain of how it fit compared to what I have now. I do recall BAD toe overlap on this bike with 35mm Cross Boss tires, so I think I should avoid a bike with a front-center this short. I should have gotten the 54 DCD.I'm looking at the 52 & 54 Rando to see what is somewhere between the DCD and the Vaya above. Here are what I think of the relevant numbers:


Looks like the reach and stack on either Rando could work for me. I am worried about the short front-center on the 53, but maybe that's silly. Note that the Rando will have a EBB. that will move the BB drop, reach, and stack by up to 7mm, which is not a lot.