Originally Posted by peripatetic
Okay,
But are you simply talking about moving the seat back on the rails? Or actually getting a seat with more setback? How far back would I be able to get it? I have the long torso issue, as well, and I'm going to try getting a longer stem first. But another question, which I asked somewhere else, but which I didn't really hear back about: where is the ideal place to have your handlebars in relation to the fork/front wheel axle? Does a more forward position improve or degrade handling?
Hi peripatetic...
As a first cut, yes, I was suggesting simply moving the seat back on its rails. Seats are a very personal thing but if your chosen seat has long rails, that might be enough, otherwise, a setback seat post may be helpful. My Rodriquez has a 72 degree seattube while my Steamroller is 73 degrees. I ride Selle Italia SLR saddles which have rails long enough for me to achieve the same effective seattube angle with both bikes.
As for the stem length? I've heard that the middle of the handlebar should obscure your view of the front axle BUT I've never seen any analysis indicating the importance of this .... I suppose it might be useful as a starting point, I once had a frame with a short toptube and tried a 150mm stem. It felt awkward to me. Now I try to stay in the 120mm range for drops and about 90mm for bullhorns. Speaking of which, bullhorns tend to stretch you out for a given stem length. Even though it's a forward weight shift it might help with your problem. Are you using bullhorns or drops?
Jim