frame size vs person size?
 

hey all.

looking to buy a nice little peugeot for my girlfriend (so we can ride peugeot together....aww how cute....i know) and she stands "tall" at 5'5". I am not too sure about the frame size deal as it relates to height (which means I just havn't taken enough time to look it up and actually comprehend it) so I was wondering if anyone has any advice on a good frame size for her?

and, I'm 5' 11". So what frame size would you recommend for me? (I'm a bit embarassed to say that I don't even know the size of my own frame haha...but it feels good to me).

easiest method to determine frame size is to straddle the bicycle over the top tube, grab the front by the bars and the back by the seat and lift it off of the ground. you should have 2 inches or so before it touches your groin.

5'5", assuming a fairly proportionate torso/legs, maybe something like a 53cm. perhaps a size smaller?

5'11", assuming a faily proportionate torso/legs, around 58-60cm.

For a road bike you want the top tube to be an inch or so below your crotch when you stand over the bike. Then when you are on the bike, you want the seat so your leg is bent just a little at the bottom of the pedal stroke.

dracvamp, sounds about a size big in each case

Or measure the circumference of your head, across your forehead above your eyebrows and the most bulging part in the rear, and subtract one centimetre.

some would say that TT length is much more important, but who knows..

well, TT size is super important to someone that knows sizing well and is tuned in to the differences in stem length, saddle position, and all of the other micro-adjustments that can be made to make for a more efficient climb, sprint, etc etc etc etc. for a guy that doesn't know what size his bike even is i don't think he'd be able to discern the difference between a few cm's of TT length. (no diss at all intended). as a safety precaution, one of the things most concerned is if you ever had to bail or anything, you would really need that 2 inches of play between toptube and groin. more so than, say, an extra 1-2cm's of TT length.

the 2 inch TT/groin sizing method is rudimentary, of course, but a pretty good estimate when getting the ballpark size. a fitting downtube length is almost always going to have a nice proportionate toptube length to match, and a short or long tt can always be compensated for by stem length, bars, saddle.

for ready to convert road frames...

measure your inseam. convert the measurement into centimeters. divide by 33%...the result is a ballpark figure for TT size, CTC. now remember, this is for road frames. for track frames, i would take a whole centimeter off the result to compensate for the aggressive seat tube angle.

wallah, ballpark figure for frame sizing.

and compensate for the higher bb on a track frame.

joo are a 56cm

TYLERGARRISON. OMG. I KNOW JOO.

Hey bro. Did you find her a peugeot? Nice if you did, bad that you didn't tell me. I'll be back down around oct. and we'll totally ride together. Peace bro. What size is your peugeot, cause you guys are roughly the same, you may be slightly taller. :\

I am 5'5" and ride a 50 cm cross check. I would have gotten a smaller one if it was available, but I have used 50's before and this one is working out well. Unless your GF has long legs, I think a 53 cm frame would be too tall to give her any clearance.

I am 5'10" and a Sagittarius. I share the same birthday as Marshall "Major" Taylor and am a pretty good dancer. One friend once commented that I could quite possibly kick in the front windshield of a car if I tried really hard. I didn't believe him. My favorite food is Bento Box A, with 2 tamago and 2 super white tuna, washed down by 2 beers. I have lived in another country and been sent overseas. Occasionally, I will eat peanut butter straight from the jar, and drink OJ from the carton. I dig good whiskey. I have never skipped to work.
Therefore, I am a 54cm.
Anything else would be wrong.

54 road conversion I'm assuming, which translates to what for a track frame?

yeah, road conversion. stop daydreaming.

make that a 54 segway, with streamers.

You couldn't just help a guy out and answer the question, could ya? Oooh, no ... gotta be difficult!

*wanders off muttering*

yeah, I got the NJS one

the question is a bit more complicated than you might realize - people's tastes vary. you could start here:

http://www.kvanproductions.com/cycling/frame_sizing.htm

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

http://www.bsn.com/Cycling/ergobike.html

i'm 5'6, 50cm "track" bike, 54 cm road bike (but i wish i had 52 for the road)

the two fixies in my fleet that get the most use (by me) currently are 53cm and 61cm...

You guys all ride small bikes, my frame is huge.

Hey,

Thanks for the links - I've checked out Peter's article before but the other two were new to me.

I asked about 165's bike size not to be my end-all answer, but to get another opinion on what people feel is comfortable for their height. The only "track" bike I own is a 53cm Flite 100 from a few years ago. A lot of people have said that a frame a bit too small for you will feel fine until you try one size up, which may feel much better. I was wondering if I'd been in that situation. Craigslist and Ebay have been daily searches for me lately, but those are options that I won't get a chance to test ride or know all the specs.

Anyway, frame fit guestimation when buying online is a topic for another day. Thanks for the info again, though.

- eyefloater

Ps. Humour translates brutally online. Just in case, my earlier post was a poor attempt at it.