brn1dwn

Looking to pick up a late 2000s Specialized Allez Elite (prob 05, 06, or 07).

I have a swimmer's body. I'm almost exactly 6ft but I only have a 30in inseam, maybe 30.5 at most.

I bought a *** 58cm bike from craigslist. Its ridable but I feel myself stretched out. Arms are either locked or close to locked.

Should I go with a 54cm or a 56cm?

Any insights for this novice would be greatly appreciated!

Rupert

wrenchscience.com has a nice fit calculator, make sure you're taking your cycling inseam and not your pant inseam. I'd go with the 56cm if I were you, or better yet go test some new ones because the geometry is probably the same for the last couple years.

brn1dwn

Thanks much for your advice. I'll check out that website. Do you think a 56 would be too tall for me? Gotta protect the family jewels

Carbon Unit

How size stem do you have on your bike? If you have a 120mm stem, you could replace it with a 100mm or maybe even a 90mm and they bike might fit. I have a 60cm frame with a 100mm stem and the bike fits me perfect.

rdubbz

you can't really judge fit by stand over since many bikes now have compact geometry with sloping top-tubes. what is probably more important is top-tube length. competitive cyclist has a very thorough fit calculator which should get you the correct size. you are probably in between sizes and could go either way you prefer your bikes to fit.
https://www.competitivecyclist.com/za...LCULATOR_INTRO

Rupert

Hmm, I guess we're looking at a 767mm (30.1in) vs 790mm (31.1in) stand-over height according to the Specialized archive. Are your jeans a 30" inseam, did you check on the cycling inseam? If you have shoes on it will raise you up a bit, maybe an inch or so. The tires you have on the bike might also change the SO height a bit too. I would also try adjusting the stem on your current bike as Carbon Unit suggested to get a better feel for the Top Tube length.

brn1dwn

So would a 55cm be perfect then?

Atol

Go to your LBS and let them fit you on that thing that rides up against your nuts. The fitting/size of a frame is something I wouldn't second guess.

DaveSSS 

Measure your cycling inseam to firm crotch contact in bare feet. 30 inches is very rare. I'm 5'-6.5" (169cm) tall with a 32-5/8 inch (83cm) cycling inseam - the opposite end of the spectrum. Cycling dimensions are best expressed in metric units.

Sloping TTs help provide standover clearance, but don't solve the head tube problem. You might be able to stand over a frame that fits your long torso, but the head tube will be much too tall and you'll never be able to get the bars very low.

Erik B

Pro-fit madone, Pricepoint Sasso frameset, Custom

Headtube and standover will drive probably end up driving this bus.

The numbers you are throwing out don't really jibe.

I'm 5' 10" with 29.5ish cycling inseam depending on how hard I want to yank up.
My primary ride is 50 X56.3 custom job with a 136mm HT height and I can get to just shy of 3 inches of drop with a -17 stem.

The Pro-Fit Madone has a taller HT than my custom but still shorter than most and the integrated headset dumps height so it works out to be about the same as my custom bike. It's zero clearance standover wise for the boys but not painfull. You may also need to source an original incorrect run of the seatmast to make it work depending on your actual cycling inseam if you went that route.

brn1dwn

Im going to measure my cycling inseam tonight based on the calculator link that someone kindly posted above.

In regards to my pants inseam I wear 30'' with shoes maybe I'm 31''

For what its worth the bike I have now is a 58cm Windsor frame and i have maybe half an inch of clearance. The bike has 700x23 wheels.

brn1dwn

What do you mean the numbers don't jibe? I swear I'm being honest about my physical dimensions lol.

People are always uber surprised by my pants inseam. What can I say, I have squatty troll legs haha.

s4one

Your all torso, go for a 54cm. We have similar body geometry. This way you'll be able to have a more aggressive setup, if thats your goal..

cmburch

I also am 6' with 30" inseam. I went with a 54cm. Obviously my upper body is longer so I have highest rise Salsa stem and the seat is way back. The 56cm was too big for me. I have a Madone 5.2 with 700 tires.

DaveSSS 

Pants inseam is worthless info. I wear 30 length pants too, but my cycling inseam is 32-5/8 or 83cm. That would still put you into the odd dimensions category, since I'm 5.5 inches shorter. I've got no trouble fitting onto stock frames. You'll have trouble getting enough reach with a shorte enough headtube length.

A Trek 6 series might work, but still expect to need a 130-140mm stem and look for long reach bars and/or DA 7900 group that has the longest reach brake hoods.

robotkiller

+1

I have difficulty believing OP has a true inseam of 30" at 6' tall. I'm a little over 5'9 with a 33" true inseam (pro fit).

Or maybe I'm the freak.

DrPete 

Fit my last bike using this, and my TT/Tri bike using their "Aero" fit calculator. Both have been perfect.

brn1dwn

What do you mean by an aggressive setup? Like more performance or just look more badass?

Also I assume you ride a 54cm? Care to share your body stats?

brn1dwn

All my pants 30 inseam. I think I have a pair of pants from Banana Republic that is 31.

Go to the closest pool and watch the local swim team swim. All the fastest swimmers for the most part will have a body type similar to mine. Long torso, short legs.

But yeah I suppose I have a freak body. DONT LOOK AT ME. *WEEPS*

Donegal

Get the 56. I am between 5-7 and 5-8. I have a 29 inch inseam and ride a 54-55 top tube bike and enjoy it thoroughly. I truly hate, repeat, hate, being scrunched up on a frame. I like the feeling of being stretched out and open, I just breathe better. If you are 6' with a 29-30 inch inseam, your torso must be very long. Try different frames until you find one you feel good on.

Another reason I like the larger frame (besides stability), is weight distribution. I can run at high speeds better and don't have to worry about overlap with my foot and the front wheel. I looked at two frames one 53, one 55. The 53 had a 141 cm. headtube, the 55 had a 165. The higher headtube brought the bars closer, I got a slightly less agressive posture (my neck likes this) and I have short arms.

The moral of the story is that you have to ride it to buy it. I'm not going to talk about all the frames and bikes that professional bike shops sold me that didn't work.

robotkiller

I believe you. Michael Phelps comes to mind. Not to belabor this, but did you try the old jam a book against your crotch and measure inseam method? Reason being, my true inseam is longer than my pants inseam.

terrymorse 

A 54 cm frame for a 6'0" tall person is rather rare, I'd almost always fit someone that tall on a 56.

The measured range of frame heights for a 6'0" rider is 54-61 cm, with an average of 57.3.

signalnc

do the fit kit because your arm length and torso length will determine your top tube (most important). as far as standover goes you will probably feel more comfortable on a 54--although a sloping 56 might fit---it really depends on the frame geometry. You need to do the fit kit then pick a frame...
the competitive cyclist is very good and it will get you where you want to be.

bobthib

As mentioned, pant inseam is not the usual measurement used for bike fitting, however, I'm also 6 ft with a 30" pant inseam. I have a 54cm Trek and a 56cm Moto. It is a classic flat top bar, Trek/Fuji type measurement.

I find the 56 most comfortable. It's a little more upright, and I don't feel cramped. On the 54 Trek I always felt my butt should be about an inch further back.

After I got my 56 Moto I got a Pro Fit. In retrospect, the correct way would be to get fitted, then buy (or have custom built) the bike. Never the less, the tech said "wow, this bike is almost spot on. I don't usually see them this close. You wouldn't believe what I see." Now I did read a bit about fitting and adjustments, and did try to dial it in myself. And I had the experience with the 54cm Trek that told me a 56 would be better.

But I don't feel "cheated" by spending the $100 for the pro fit. In fact, I have to say of all the things I have done to my bike, the fit was the best value. It took 2.5 hours, and even the small changes he made made a big difference in comfort and power. The biggest change he made was to change the stem from the stock 110mm to a 90mm.

A lot of the club veterans recommended a fit, and they were right. I'm pretty cheap, and I do most of my own wrenching, but I took their advice on this and I'm glad.

Good luck.

brn1dwn

Okay here are my measurements as calculated by the fit calculator.

Note these are rough and done barefeet. I am ghetto as hell and dont have a tape measure. Being that its pretty late in the evening I fashioned one out of an old LAN cable, using a piece of A4 sized paper (11 inches length) as a guide.


The Competitive Fit

• Seat Tube Range c-c:52.6 - 53.1
• Seat Tube range c-t:54.3 - 54.8
• Top Tube length:56.9 - 57.3
• Steam Length:11.2 - 11.8
• BB-Saddle Position:84.6 - 86.6
• Saddle-Handlebar:52.2 - 52.8
• Saddle Setback:0.9 - 1.3

The Eddy Fit

• Seat Tube Range c-c:53.8 - 54.3
• Seat Tube range c-t:55.5 - 56.0
• Top Tube length:56.9 - 57.3
• Steam Length:10.1 - 10.7
• BB-Saddle Position:83.8 - 85.8
• Saddle-Handlebar:53.0 - 53.6
• Saddle Setback:2.1 - 2.5

The French Fit

• Seat Tube Range c-c:55.5 - 56.0
• Seat Tube range c-t:57.2 - 57.7
• Top Tube length:58.1 - 58.5
• Steam Length:10.3 - 10.9
• BB-Saddle Position:82.1 - 84.1
• Saddle-Handlebar:54.7 - 55.3
• Saddle Setback:1.6 - 2.0

What y'all think? Can you help me translate these results? The frame range im reading is 53-56. amirite?