kosmo886

I am trying to map current fit settings on one bike to another. The question is, what’s the correct order, if any?

I assume I want to start with getting the saddle height relative to pedals along with saddle angle and setback from pedals.

Then get bar height relative to ground.

then tip of saddle to bar for reach.

this order seems to make sense. Am I missing anything major?

what’s the best way to get the orientation of handle bars consistent?

asgelle

my mistake.

deacon mark

This is not rocket science just get the bike out and set it up. How complicated can it be? The seat sits up off ground and pedals, the seat is suppose to be level. The handlebars you can measure but really just get it in the ballpark and tweak it after you ride a bit. No bikes of different models have exact geometry.

ofajen

Start with position of cleats on pedals, assuming you clip in.

Otto

Zaskar

1. Cleats
2. Saddle - Height and fore/aft relative to pedals (spindle) not bar
3. Bar - height (spacers) and fore/aft relative to saddle/reach/hip rotation/flexibility... (obviously, fore/aft means swapping stems) and rotation

Full disclosure: I've doing fits for a long time... mostly for this one guy
(I'm not a professional)

Dean V

What has the cleats got to do with his bike set up?
He is trying to duplicate the fit of one bike to another.

ofajen

Getting the cleats right is important for saddle height and saddle fore-aft. If you change the cleats later, you will need to redo those other adjustments.

Put differently, the position of the cleats is what really determines where your body will be relative to the BB (once you do all the adjustments that work with it).

Otto

Phil_gretz

^ While cleat position is #1 in terms of the sequence of fitting, I'll agree that the OP's scenario assumes the same shoes and pedals that he's using on the original bike.

Other unspoken assumptions:
1) crank length
2) handlebar shape - specifically reach, drop and width

So, the sequence is foot-to-pedal, pedal-to-saddle, crank spindle-to-bar (clamp), and then shifter/lever placement - bar pitch.

Iterations go from there on saddle pitch and stem variation, as well as bar pitch.

Kapusta

I think your plan is fine, with the one change noted above. Also, when I think of the "bar" position (reach and hieght), I am thinking of the tops of the hoods. guess a really different drop style could call far a slight change, but in the end I spend a lot more time on the hoods and that is what I care most about.

Orientation of the bar and shifters? I take a picture from the side as a guide, but ultimately I just keep tweaking it til it feels right. This sometimes ends up meaning I need to add or remove a spacer under the stem to compensate for the change in height.

In any event, this has gotten me REALLY close on the last two new road/gravel frames I set up for myself.

I am assuming same length cranks, here.

Iride01 

Saddle height over the pedals reigns supreme. Get that right if nothing else. If the head tube angle and seat tube angle are different enough, it's going to feel different anyhow. You may never make it feel the same as the other bike. And that doesn't make the bike wrong for you. Might be that one is better for you on certain types of rides and the other is better for other certain types of rides.

cxwrench

The OP said nothing about new shoes, just a different bike. Cleat position is a non-issue in this case.

SoSmellyAir

Depending on the curvature of the handlebars in the transition from the ramps to the drops, even a relatively small change in the angle of the handlebars (with respect to the stem) may have a large effect on where the levers are clamped, which in turn increases the effective reach to both the hoods and the front of the drops (the portion of the bars used for descending with a finger on the brake lever). So many handlebars are tilted too far up in order to have an absolutely flat transition from the ramps to the flap ends of the hoods, which I do not feel is necessary, and which significantly increases the effective reach of the handlebars. I don't think that the bar ends of the handlebars need to be tilted to an angle steeper than the slanted top tube.

genejockey 

I got a great bike fit about 25 years ago and I try to replicate that with each new bike. Some bikes can't quite reach it, but mostly I'm within half a cm or so. I take the model bike, and I set it up on a level floor with the rear wheel against a wall or door. Then I measure from the door and the wall to the center of the bottom bracket. Then I take a series of measurements, all from the door and wall, and put it all into an Excel spreadsheet that automatically calculates reach, stack, saddle height from BB, saddle setback, handlebar drop, handlebar reach, etc.

I did run into issues with a couple bikes from the 1980s that I acquired. I've been using 175mm cranks since the mid-90s, but they have 170s. That took a bit of experimentation. I ended up, unsurprisingly, with about 5mm higher saddle height on those before they felt 'right'.

But, yeah, set the saddle height and setback first and leave it while you bring the bars to the right place.

PeteHski

Unless you are using the same saddle I wouldn't go off this measurement alone for reach as saddle nose length can vary a lot between different saddle models - easily an inch or more. So I find it better to measure from the back of the saddle as with most saddles you tend to sit in a similar position relative to the back rather than the nose. At least check the length of both saddles you are comparing to see if there is a big difference. Different saddles make this measurement quite tricky to get right.

ofajen

Sorry, I wasn’t sure whether I should assume pedals and crank length would be identical, and generally speaking a fit should ensure cleat position is good before spending time on saddle adjustments.

Otto

Maelochs

If the OP knows how to set up his/her bike because the bike is set up correctly, and just wants his new bike to fit the same .... then it doesn't matter in which order he adjusts things.

All s/he needs to know is the relation in space of the various contact points relative to the BB and each other, and s/he can duplicate that relationship on any other bike with a similar-sized frame.

If the OP truly doesn't have a clue then we will need seven ages of detailed instructions, interspersed with the OP going and making measurements and reporting back ......

Also, I think we have to assume that either the OP would be abler to make micro adjustments based on how the new bike feels, or we have to assume s/he is so ignorant that we could not possibly help him/her. For instance, if the new bike's bars and stem are a different shape and size, the OP would need to orient brifters based on measurements not based on the bars .... but either s/he is smart enough to just see this or too not smart to get it from a few hints.

I would probably suggest something like @genejockey suggests, taken to an extreme----get an old carboard bike carton or similarly big box, and use one side as a backdrop and out of the other cut a giant protractor and right triangle. Get a plumb bob (which is a big nut on a string) and a carpenter's level and a tape measure, and lay things out in three dimensions---top of the saddle center (where the projected seat post would hit the top if it stuck right through) to the center cap, to the junction of the bars and stem, to the bases and the tops of the brifters .... and the angles side-to-side and up-and down for those measurements,. Top of the saddle center to the pedals at farthest extension, to the center of the BB .... angle of the bar tops, angel of the brifters off center and off the bars .... whatever the OP might need to transfer the parts so they have the same relationship in space.

I wouldn't worry about the position of the cleats on the pedals unless I was using different shoes, cleats and pedals, or I was planning to use different legs and feet. I try to use the same pedals on all my bikes so I don't have to mess around much but I do have two- and three-bolt bikes, a couple of each. Either way, the cleat position is pretty much the same, and pedal stack is within a few millimeters .... and if they are different cleats, shoes, and pedals, i am going to need to experiment to see exactly where I need the cleats based on that new combination, and I cannot figure out where the cleats are going to go if I don't know where the saddle is .... maybe you guys ride standing? Otherwise the ball of my foot and the length of my leg don't change positions much, so if I can get the seat set, minor cleat adjustments are easy.

But .... if the OP rides some, s/he will get all this and if not .... we should send the OP to either the Fitting your Bike page (https://www.bikeforums.net/fitting-your-bike/) or to YouTube to learn bike basics.

tomato coupe

The pro mechanics do it alphabetically.

Maelochs

in their native languages or the language of the bike's manufacturer?

tomato coupe

Nationality of the rider determines the language, obviously.

urbanknight

Measure to the widest part of the saddle. Some saddles have heart shaped backs, some have tapered backs, etc. but most saddle are designed to have your sit bones at about the widest part.

urbanknight

Except if you do the wrong item first, the next item might throw it off. For example, if you set saddle to bar distance first, and then set saddle setback from BB second, you just altered the saddle to bar position and need to do it again. Much time can be wasted that way... I know from personal experience.

I think the OP has the correct order... or at least a correct order.

PeteHski

Yeah I like that idea. It is a tricky measurement to get right when comparing bikes with different saddle shapes and lengths. Measuring from the saddle nose to the bars only works if you are comparing fit with exactly the same saddle.

Kapusta

Yeah, different saddles would throw a wrench into things.