msullivan63

I've been biking for a while and I'm trying to get my girlfriend into in. We're trying to get her a new road bike, to replace the Huffy she's been holding onto since grade school. So far the best fit she's tried is the '09 Specialized Dolce in a 54 cm frame. She also tried a 54 cm Allez and a small Giant OCR3, but both of those were too long in the top tube.

Are there any other bikes we should try out? I don't know a lot about women's bikes so any info I can get would be great.

flatlander_48

Same as men's bikes but sized a bit differently because tend to be shorter in height and have different proportions from the waist down, and from the waist up, than men. I think most of the leading manufacturers have bikes sized for women now. Usually it is pretty clear from the model name that it was designed for women.

Were the bikes that didn't fit sized for men or women?

msullivan63

Thanks for the info!

The Dolce is a women's bike, and was a better fit. Both the Allez and the OCR3 were men's bikes, so she definitely needs a women's bike.

I was wondering if there were other popular women's bikes. From looking around Specialized has the D4W line, Trek has the WSD bikes, Giant has Giant for Women but I wasn't sure which ones people had good experiences with.

Zephyr11

At that price point, they'll all be spec'ed similarly. However, despite all being women's bikes, they will likely have different geometry, and some will work better than others. For example, Trek's WSD bikes fit me like crap, but Specialized's Ruby was great for me. Have her try as many as possible, or if you can find a shop with a Serotta-cycle that's willing to do a fit and take the price of the fit off the price of the bike, go with that. Even if you don't go custom, you can use those measurements to figure out which stock bikes best match her geometry.

flatlander_48

My wife had an Orbea Mitis Dama, which was a 2005 model that she bought in 2006. I think their models included 2 or 3 that were women-specific, but I think they are using different model names now. Anyway, Orbea makes very nice bikes and if you order one, you can do a lot of customization to the component selection.

jstek

I'm a little taller (5'7") and that might make a difference, but I've had good luck going with a men's bike and then swapping out for a shorter stem +/- narrower handlebars. I currently ride a Cinelli Aliante and love it. I agree that it is best to just go ride as many as possible, though, and see what feels best, knowing that you can make adjustments to components to get a personalized ride. Good luck!

Pat

Something I have noticed on many stock bikes is that they can have pretty long stems. Women have longer legs and shorter torsos than men of their height. If a woman is average height or taller, she can usually get by on a normal (man's) bike by having the stem swapped out for a short one. I have not seen a bike shop that will not do this gratis.

Short women often have to go with bikes sized to a woman's proportions in order to get a decent fit.

Fit is the single most important thing to get right on a bike so this is not something to skip over.

STPorDIE

I just bought my first road bike and chose the Specialized Dolce in 51 cm and I'm 5'6. I love it. I've only been riding a few weeks but want to ride everyday. I'm up to 25 miles a day.

stapfam

The WSD bikes are different. The toptube is shorter for the frame size and they normally have better saddles for the female butt- bars are narrower and brake levers may have a shorter reach or have shims in to bring the levers closer to small hands.

But to get a shorter toptube-in a mens bike you would have to go down a frame size and extend the seat post. There is normally some adjustment in the bar height and although mens frames do suit some females- if the WSD frame fits better- then that is the one to go for.

I am male but bought an OCR3 3 years ago. I can recommend this bike as a good reasonably price bike that works.