I've always used Lemond's or Cobb's calculation. Both measurements take your inseam (in millimeters, measure from the floor to the top of your crotch). Lemond says multiply that number by .883, and John Cobb says .889. Then set the top of your saddle to the middle of the crank. I find that either one of those values is a fantastic starting point, and I raise or lower it from there. I'm not sure how those shake out using the Friels method, but I'd be interested to hear how close it gets.

2 questions. Are you saying the middle of the crank as in the middle of your bottom bracket and are you measuring in centimeters

It's middle of the BB, and it doesn't matter what units you use.

are you guys trying as hard as you can to not learn anything on this site?

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Please feel free to elaborate Dan. I've been through several bike fits two of which were guys who have gone to the fist School and all three fittings gave me different saddle Heights. So at this point I'm assuming I'm on my own to figure it out what is correct.

lol. To be fair....you do reference one of the aforementioned methods in this article. Granted, its from 2008.

Care to post the different fits in totality so we can see a) how different they are & b) if anything looks amiss?

It's been over a period of a year-and-a-half that I've had all three of those fits done and without going back and actually setting the bike to those measurements again and taking new pictures I no longer have that information. With the exception of the latest one that I have even started to change cuz it does not feel right. Mind you I'm still making changes three and a half weeks out from my first 70.3

I'm not sure where they're at anymore but there are pictures on slowtwitch of my Guru fit at some point

To be clear, I was suggesting that you post the numbers provided for in the fits. Not pictures of the fits themselves.

i.e. How different were the seat heights? Did they involve other changes, such as crankarm length, or fore/aft movement of the saddle? What were the pad locations? etc, etc.

let's say that you're a toe pointer. (anquetil; armstrong) or, let's say you're a heel scraper (lemond). that determines saddle height if - and only if - you use knee angle as the metric that determines saddle height. which i think is the wisest choice.

if you use limb length, or inseam, you disqualify your pedaling action as a factor in the equation. this is the difference between static and dynamic bike fitting: one method does not care how you ride the bike; the other incorporates how you ride the bike. it's knee angle its most open (obtuse) that should determine saddle height.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Why not just measure the angle of the leg at extension (not 6pm, but more like 5pm on a clock face). Just set your camera up, hit record, check the angle, and raise and lower accordingly.

Oh. Got ya

Ok. Good point.

I often feel getting a bike fit is akin to asking a barber if you need a haircut.

not if you go to a good barber. or a good fitter. put a video of yourself here on the forum. i'll tell you if you need a fitter. then take your helmet off and i'll tell you if you need a barber.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

Sometimes (often?) this forum is a place of great truths. This thread warms my heart, makes me smile.

Ian

For reference the formula that lemond uses works out exactly the same as using Friels heel method.

For reference

http://www.slowtwitch.com/.../Seat_height_21.html