Sizing question, help please!
 

I recently sold my vintage De Rosa. It was a 62 c-t-c and 60 top tube. It was a bit big for me. I am now looking at a bike that's 57 c-t-c and 55 top tube. I also did my measurements online at competitive cyclist and the race fit suggests a 59 c-t-c seat tube and a 57/58 top tube. Is the bike that I'm looking at going to be too small? It felt fine when i stood over it, a little tucked in, but not bad at all. I learned my lesson about buying a frame that's too big, but it seems like there no harm in going a little smaller. Am I right to assume this? Would you guys suggest abstaining from buying the frame? Just need some advice. Its also a great deal for a chorus supercorsa.... Thanks!

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=221119 here are my 'rough' measurements from comp. cyclist.

I don't know what 57 c-c translates to on the bike you're looking at, but it's highly likely that you'll find the 55 cm top tube too short, even with a 14 cm stem, and the head tube that comes with it. Your build is on the lanky side of average so it means looking for something tall with a somewhat short top tube.

First, don't take the online fit calculator as gospel. Second, understand the kind of fit your looking for, competitive (utterly contemporary pro peloton), Eddy (pro peloton circa 1974-1990), or French (now considered touristy). Third, understand the relationship between your build and the geometry charts of the makers of the bikes your interested in.

I'm going to suggest that anything with a top shorter than 57 will be too short, anything with a head tube shorter than 17 will be too low, and any compact with an actual seat tube shorter than 54 will be too flexy, especially with a 27.2 mm seat post. To accommodate your leg length you may have to push the upper range of your head tube length to, say 58.5 cm. I'm seeing you on something like a 58 or 60 cm Trek H2, a 58 cm Scott CR1, a 58 cm Cervelo, a 58 cm Tarmac, or a Large Giant TCR. Don't be scared of a 58.5 top tube, you're on a 60 now.

For reference, I'm a slightly miniaturized version of your build, 182 cm total height, 89 cm leg length. I ride a M/L Giant TCR (57 cm top tube, 17 cm head tube) with a compact (75 mm) reach bar and 13 cm stem. The stem is not slammed down but it's low enough for me to straddle it, and the seat post is as high as I'd ever want to go for a skinny 27.2--it flexes visibly when I'm riding. By CC's gauge my style is between competitive and Eddy--my back is flat and quite low. A few weeks ago I tried a 58 Cervelo, which was dandy but for the turned up 11 cm stem that had me sitting in the back seat and still cramped.

For another reference, Eddy himself was a lanky 183 cm tall. His Molteni DeRosas were custom made to 60 cm c-t (58.5 c-c) with 57 cm top tubes and 13 cm stems.

thanks old bodcat, that was a really thorough and thoughtful response, i appreciate it. im going to go back and measure the stem and ride the bike around for a bit to see how it feels, i really really like it... i hope i can make it work. if it ends up being too small i can always sell it, i think im getting a good deal on it. im also not a professional racer or any kind of racer really, but i do ride my bike pretty hard and often. right now im on a 58/56 track bike and it seems like a good fit, i also know that track frames are supposed to be a bit smaller then the road frame... so i guess it would be strange if i had the opposite. i just really love this bike, maybe a 13 cm stem will compensate for the shorter top tube.... we'll see. when i stood over it, it seemed the same as my track frame though the track frame is 1 cm taller, it just felt right, i guess i need to meddle around with the other adjustable parts and make my decision then. thanks for your input!