Hi Everyone, I am new to road bikes. I have a 21.5 inch Schwinn Paramount I am 5' 10. When I stand over the bicycle and pull up I have three inches on the money (the bike can not be pulled up farther). I can ride this bike and keep up with my sixteen year old for hours and hours and I feel fine. He rides a 23" frame and it is too big when standing over it, but when he is riding it he is fine and is comfortable too. Everyone he has me trippin out that my frame is to small for me? all I say is wait till the light turns green. I am going to actually take pictures to show everyone what I mean.

I'm not seeing a problem, but can't wait for the pics.

Don't worry about standover height, focus on top tube length and leg extension. Are you comfortable on the bike or do you feel too upright or cramped? Can you ride comfortably on the hoods and in the drops? Are you getting full leg extension as you pedal?

If you are comfortable on the bike I don't see a problem, and if you want to get stretched out a bit more you might look into swapping your stem for one a bit longer. Its really more about comfort than anything else.

At 5' 10" I would guess that your inseam is in the 30-32" range, so a 21.5" frame should be very close to perfect for you.

Like folks have said, as long as you're comfortable on it and love riding it, then it fits. I'm 5'11" and I've found my perfect size to be about a 58x57, but have ridden as small as 52cm and as big as 61cm comfortably.

There is a very wide range in which any frame will fit any rider well enough; there is a narrower rang in which it will fit him/her well. As long as you are both happy with the way your bikes fit you, that is certainly good enough and maybe really good.

There must also be an ideal fit for every rider, which gives the maximum in efficiency, comfort, speed, safety, and every other parameter you can think of. Some riders think they have found it; some salesmen think they can help every rider find it. Maybe they are right; I don't know. I have been riding bikes a lot since the 70's and am still not sure I've found the perfect fit.

I would say if you are 5' 10" you would be happier on a 23" frame. But I might also say that taking sizing advice too seriously from some anonymous guy on the internet is probably not
to good a plan. As others have said, standover isn't too important. Feeling crunched, or too stretched are more important.

If I have a bike with poor standover, I lean it to one side when at a light.

A big part of frame size and fit is the length of the top tube. If it's too long of too short, the bike can feel uncomfortable.

To complicate things , you can maximize some of those parameters, but you have to compromise to find the right balance of them. The OP's bike would probably be a great choice for what CompetitiveCyclist calls the "Competitive Fit", but might look goofy if set up with more of a traditional fit geometry.

- Scott

it fits when you can ride it for hours.

a 21.5 frame is probably cose to ideal for you. A 22 is baout the largest you want to go. When you get too large a frame, it's awkward and the bike doesn't feel "snappy" and responsive. If you need to error, do so on the small end - it's easy to make a small bike larger but the reverse isn't possible.

+1. I think frame size is a little overrated. At 1.85m (sorry, no lb's or oz's for me) I can make any frame between 58 and 65 cm's fit decently with the stems and seat posts I've got. Beyond that it's the looks that get compromised first.

Thanks for all the imput. Here are the pictures. My back round in bicycles started as a 12 year old with a Thruster BMX(raced & stunt riding). rode a 12 speed for a year in NYC as a bicycle messenger on to mountain bikes on single track. most recently my son has moved in with me and I was riding a GT mountain bike off 5' walls, down flights of stairs and just riding like a 16 year old He got me going with road bikes with a friend of mine and well I wound up with a schwinn paramount.
I am not 100 percent if I am getting full leg extension, but I do not feel "cramped" I never ever use the drops and never have. It is kinda hard not to wheelie this bicycle again thanks for the advise

Looks a little small for my taste. You've got about a 60° back angle with hands on the hoods. I like to have a back angle somewhere around 30° in the hoods, myself.

That's fine for casual riding I reckon, and if you're comfy don't worry about it. If you should ever want to stretch out a bit you could go longer in the stem department, however. Looks like you've got a 90mm or so, leaving you many longer options.

That's about the size frame I ride and I'm 5'6". I have long legs, long arms, stubby torso. This is my setup.


Pinarello Record. by Lester Of Puppets, on Flickr

21.5" is my size and I'm around your height. I have shortish legs, though. It may be a tad on the small size for you, but I don't think it's too short to ride. If you're comfortable, you're good.

my inseam is 32" I ride on the flats and only grab the hoods when I am getting on it.

That frame is fine for you.

I'm 5'10" and I like a compact frame. I see no reason for a frame to be any larger than necessary; that's just adding dead weight. One of my bikes is a 54 cm (roughly 21.5) and it's just right. I put a fairly long tall stem on it and use a seatpost with a lot of setback. Like you, I occasionally have to humor people who ask me if it isn't "a little small". That takes me back to the 60s and 70s, when every kid tried to ride the biggest 10-speed frame he could possibly get on. :-)

I'm just over 5'10" and my riders inseam (pubic bone press) is 34".

I'm 5'6" and have 32.5" cycling inseam. That's how long my legs are and how stubby my torso is.

Looks like the seat is too low for maximum efficiency to me.

look at old Stage race pictures, in the 40s the pros rode a bike with a fit,
which looks a lot different, than they did 20 years later.

longer seat post height adjustment is a start..
But if its a JRA in sandals on the MUP with the family it probably does not matter.

Looks a bit small. PM me and I'll give you my shipping address.

I would like to see a picture from the drive side, please and without the rider on the bicycle. From what little I know, it looks to me like that bike is definitely too small for the rider. That said...

If it feels good, do it. However, you just might find out that riding a proper sized bike will get you to the light before it turns red;-)

Johnonaschwinn, The bike looks fine to me. The steerer stem looks too short and the handle bars too narrow, IMHO. Where is your knee in relation to the pedal's spindle when the crankarm is pointing forward (see KOPS).

Your set up is fine for neighborhood and leisurely social rides, but wouldn't work for me elsewise.

Brad

Saddle looks low to me as well. Generally, the advice is to put your heels on the pedals and adjust the saddle until your legs are completely straight at the bottom of the stroke, but without rocking the hips.

Ding ding ding.