Hey bike forums members, I've got a problem and was wondering if you could help me out. I'm in college (NDSU, Fargo, ND) getting into my first non-bigbox store bike. I've determined a road orientated hybrid or cyclo-X (with emphasis on the X bike) bike to fit my needs perfectly. The problem is, I want to make sure if I'm spending a bunch of money, I get a bike that fits me right. I'm 6'5", 37" inseam, and I weigh 235 lbs. I've been to my lbs and sporting goods stores and most of them stock Giant, Trek, or Specialized bikes in 22.5" or 61cm frame sizes. I test rode an XXL specialized tricross that I liked a lot but it was only 61 cm and I'd really like to give a 25" or 63cm a shot before I make any final decision (mostly because I'm afraid I only like these bikes because they are bigger than Wal-mart ones and not actually my size). Am I just being overly picky? on lbs tried to tell me something about specialized bikes being "more proportional" as they get bigger, any validity to that? Are there ways to make a bike "ride bigger?"

Thank you, I look forward to your replies

btw here are some links
https://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/...010&spid=45905
https://www.trekbikes.com/au/en/bikes...path/fx/70fxe/
https://www.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=jake
https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/

My main uses for this bike would be getting around campus and in the summer commuting about 8 miles to and from work. not to many big hills to speak of just little rollers.

If you have more than 2 or 3 inches between your crotch and the top bar when standing flat footed on the ground, that's a good indication that you could use a larger frame. If it's less than 3 inches, it's probably right. If the handlebar seems too close or too far of a reach, the stem is easily replaceable.

bt93, thanks for the advice, will lengthening/shortening the stem affect handling? or will it be too small a change to notice?

+1 for the Trek 7.0 FX. Most bike shops will sell it for $300-$350. I rode a 7000 (what the 7.0 used to be called I think) and it lasted forever. I left it out for a solid year in the rain (gave up cycling) and it barely had any rust on it. What it did have I removed with some steel wool.

Any of those will do what you want, but they are very different bikes. The specialized and kona have drop bars, the trek has basically flat bars, and I'm not sure which Giant you were linking to - I just got the home page. So, it kind of depends on what riding position you're comfortable with, but they're all good bikes. As far as sizing, if you think you need a bigger size, I would definitely try to find one to try out. And no, you aren't being overly picky.

The Jakes run big for their stated size (at least they have in the past, unless they have changed), so you might want to take that into account.

Also, do you plan to use a rack and panniers? At 6'3", you probably have pretty decent sized feet, and will want to prevent heel strike. The FX has the longest chainstays at 445 mm. The Tricross is almost as long, at 440 mm. The Kona is shorter at 425 mm. Again, not sure which Giant you are interested in. Any of these can probably be made to work with the right rack, and with panniers that have a robust mounting system, but it's something you should probably take into account if you want to use panniers. Just my two cents.

As far as your stem question, I don't think it would affect the handling noticeably, but I really have no experience with things like that.

Get at least a 63cm frame if you can. To make a bike 'ride bigger' one can get 180mm cranks. Longer seattube and stem. https://www.bikesdirect.com/products/..._cross_cx3.htm There's a couple of 64cm colors in this bike type. Great bike for the money. I've got the Fantom CX2.

For an 8 mile commute you are around the range where I would start preferring different hand positions. As with any new bike purchase, ride as many as you can. Remember, the most important thing is fit.

Right now it sounds like the LBS' you have visited have bikes built up for people smaller than you (probably around the 6'1 mark or so) . I would wait until larger sizes are built.

Unfortunately at your height, finding bikes built up for your size will be hard to come by. You may need to do some internet searches to find out what sizes people are riding. Or pester LBS' to build something up for you.

Are shopping in Fargo, or Minnesota? Never been to either city, but I would think Minnesota would have more options. Will you be working in Fargo or Minnesota over the summer?

If you are back in Minnesota I would wait. If you will be in Fargo I would wait until a bike in my size was available before purchase.

Best of luck .

It will alter it slightly but, to be honest, most modern bikes have too long a stem. It looks cool and keeps the weight down slightly for the same overall bike size. Changing stem is no big deal - it would ALWAYS be part of the fit process if bikes were sold properly.

Also go to the Cross forum and look at the review of the Motobecane Fantom. These bikes are sold mail order with a LONG return period and prices are very low for the quality.

Based on the small amount of time I've spent in Fargo and Grand Forks, wind is always going to be an issue. For that reason I would suggest something with drop bars. It sounds trivial, but the ability to lower your torso even just a few inches can have a huge impact on your aerodynamic drag. It may not be comfortable to ride around campus on the drop bars, but if you are riding anywhere out in the open where the wind can really get going you will notice the difference.

As far as size is concerned, I would suggest riding as many bikes as you can. Our local Scheels has a couple of trainers for indoor test rides, I am guessing that monster of a Scheels in Fargo has plenty of setups you can try. As you mentioned, you really should try different brands and different sizes within each model. I ended up buying a frame that on paper is too small for me, but I found it to be the most comfortable. The point is that it's difficult to know what bike is going to fit you best until you try a few on for size.

Here is a link to a post on the Clydes and Athenas forum. https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/721514-So-If-You-re-A-Tall-Rider-You-re-Screwed-Bike-Wise

It should give you and idea of what to look for size wise, or at least what to expect.

Minnesota would have more options because it's a state. However, without driving 200+ miles into Minnesota to get to Minneapolis, Fargo will have a better selection.


Bigman- as someone mentioned earlier, drop bars are a good thing in Fargo. If you're bucking 20-25 mph winds, being able to get lower helps immensely.

If you weren't dealing with Larry at Great Northern Bike Co when looking at the Specialized, I'd seek him out for his opinion. He's a taller rider (at least 6'3") and has been in the bike biz locally for 25+ years. To put your mind at ease, you might want to consider a pre-fit($25 at GNBC, and Paramount might also do them) to get a reference point at least for sizing.

Whoa, more Fargo people Sweet!

I'd also check out The FM Community Bike Workshop, I know there's some big frames in there too the last time I looked. You could build something from scratch for basically free (7hrs of volunteering = free bike). Otherwise check with GNBC and Paramount because I think they'll both be able to get you into something that'll fit. At your height, getting a bike that fits will be very important. Both local shops are Surly dealers, so maybe a 62cm Cross Check would be a good fit. Or even a Salsa Fargo (oh the irony right?) would be perfect, although pretty expensive and not something I would want to lock up on campus.

my bad

Given your size figure on replacing the stock wheels sooner rather than later as they probably won't hold up.

a 62-64cm frame should be in the sweet spot, though you could actually go bigger - hard to find unless you go custom.
My son is 6'4 and 320 lbs, and he fits well on his 22" Motobecane mountain bike. I've installed a wider bar to fit his frame.

+1 on the Bikesdirect option. Their bang for buck factor is hard to beat, but the tradeoff is that you can't test ride one before you buy (you can return it at your cost, however).

Another option is the Civia Bryant, which comes in a 63cm frame with approx 34-35" standover. The bike itself has very similar geometry to a cross bike, with slightly longer chain stays for better stability and heel clearance with panniers.
The derailleur versions are competetive pricewise with other bikes in the genre (Surly Crosscheck, Long Haul Trucker, etc). Salsa makes nice bikes, but their frames top out at 60cm, 33" standover.

If you really want to compare sizes between brands as you describe, you would need to be able to compare key measurements between bikes. Top tube length, seat tube angles, head tube length, and on CX bikes specifically bottom bracket drop vary considerably between brands. Some still use an "old" cyclocross style of higher bottom brackets, while many have lowered it to be similar to a road bike.

A higher BB will leave you sitting higher on the bike and often have you bent over a little more, all else equal. Trying to find something sized as a 63 will limit your choices greatly. Really though, you're just talking about adding about 10cm to a stem. It's not as big of a deal as some make it out to be, and those of us at the top end of the size spectrum just don't have a choice but to get over it.

I'm 6'4" and ride bikes labelled as 58/60/61/63... depending on the brand and how I want to fit on that style of bike. For example, I have a 58 Cannondale cross bike because they run a size big, and a 61 Specialized because they don't, and there's a huge size drop to a 58.

Pretty sure I bought a pair of Nokians from you on CL.

FMCBW could be a good option. Heck, I'm probably dropping off a 25" early 80's Sekai, so I know there might be at least one bike that would fit.

Yessir you did

Thank you for all the replies. tho answer a few questions:
-I'm shopping in Fargo right now
-size 13 feet, hadn't even thought about pannier clearance. (I'll probably get a rear rack)
-I'm definitely a fan of the drop bar, especially after some test runs.
-I did in fact talk to Larry at GNBC, he said the 61 specialized there was a good fit, I sensed a little bit of salesperson in that though so I wanted to ask some non-biased people before I did anything.
-Thanks for the tall riders link
-I will be visiting FMCBW on Tuesday to see what I can see.

At this point, I'm probably going to try and find something at FMCBW, I'm an engineering major, and building a bike sounds like a blast, and getting it essentially free, that sounds pretty good to my wallet.

So, at this point what I'm looking for is: a 63cm, 25in or bigger road/cross frame

I'll get back to you guys later this week to tell you how the search is going.

once again thank you

You'll definitely have to watch the chainstay length. CX bikes with more of a "commuter friendly" build (eyelets for racks and fenders, slightly longer wheelbase, more BB drop) would be better than the more race-oriented machines.
One way to gauge this visually is to look at the size of the gap between the front of the rear rim and the seat tube (I say rim because this takes tire size out of the equation). Racing cross bikes will have short chainstays for responsive climbing and a shorter wheelbase, and this gap will be pretty small.

As JeffS mentions, the total geometry of a given bike will vary between styles and brands, so it is helpful to be able to throw your leg over several different bikes to get a feel for size ranges that might work.
Bikes with a sloping top tube design can be deceiving. The seat tube measurement may be quite small when compared to that of a conventional (horizontal top tube) frame with similar geometry, though both bikes could very likely be identical in all other aspects.

FMCBW could be a good option. Heck, I'm probably dropping off a 25" early 80's Sekai, so I know there might be at least one bike that would fit.[/QUOTE]

I was over at FMCBW today (sunday) and while in the basement somebody dropped off a larger Sekai bike. that wouldn't happen to be you would it?

I was in there too with my wife and kids around 4:30 or so. Just stayed for a few minutes looking for a bike for my wife.

Hope you can find something there that works for you! We'll have to all get together for a cruise around town sometime.