Originally Posted by stapfam
If you are talking Kona- Then their 17" will not be the same as other manufacturers 17". Not only Kona but a lot of Manufacturers will measure differently. The only way to check out is to sit on and possible Test ride.
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Remember I am not that short But I do ride bikes that apparantly are too small for me. You can always "Enlarge" a bike But trying to shrink one is Impossible.
"Not that short" haha you're my height exactly, actually
. And that's been my sense -- that a 17" of five different brands will give you five different geometries, to say nothing of model. I went to my LBS and sat on a 17" Marin frame -- a little oversized for me, almost a good fit (and maybe if I'd ridden it, it would've been). But it felt gigantic compared to my 15" Specialized. The guy at the LBS thought 15" should be a perfect fit for me, but the other LBS took one look at me on it and said "no way, it's too small".
So now the major hurdle is just *getting* to one of the Kona dealers and taking a test ride. Hmm.