Originally Posted by
bryroth
5' 11"
But my knee won't be raised as high or in as large a circle. That should take the pressure off, correct?
Although I agree that higher cadence is a given. I think that is what Sheldon Brown's was getting at when he said that crank length alone does not offer mechanical advantage, since it depends on what gear you are turning.
At 5'11" you should be on a 170, maybe a 172.5.
What are you calling pressure? Remember, the knee isn't passive. It's channeling all the force of the muscles above it. That's what I'm calling pressure. Decrease the force and you decrease the pressure. If your problem is a range-of-motion issue, then you'd be trading one form of pressure for another and I don't think you'd see much of a benefit.
Sheldon is right, but like more than a few of his points it isn't clearly stated.
If you assume the same gearing, then the longer arm alone
does offer more mechanical advantage.