OK, here goes. I’m 5’9" and interested in purchasing another tri bike, A 2005 QR Caliente (700 wheels), 55cm frame. I understand that 55cm may be on the upper end for my height, but, man, it’s a good deal! (I know it means nothing if a bike doesn’t fit). Just wanted your opinions! The bike is being sold far away and I don’t have access to a QR dealer anywhere nearby. Obviously, the seat height and stem can be adjusted. By the way, for my height, I have long arms, inseam is about 31" Thanks for your input! -Matt
You might be able to make it work with a super short stem but my guess is that it will be a bit too long for you. It depends on how you ride though, how much drop you can handle, seat tube angle, etc. In other words, the fit. If you were to get it my guess is that you would need a 70 mm stem to get it to work.
But it’s hard to say if you’ve never been through a bike fit and don’t have your measurements to go off of. If you’re comfortable on your current tri bike take some measurements and then have the seller measure the QR frame to see if it would match up at all.
Actually a 55cm QRoo from 2005 has less reach than say a 54cm Cervelo P2. It has a 54cm top tue with a 76.5 degree sea angle. Pushed up to a more appropriate 78 degrees and your top tube would be an effective 52.5-53ish. Very common for someone of our height. But of course, internet fitting is sketchy at best.
tritogo,
I’m 5’ 11 1/2’’ and wear pants with a 30" inseam. I ride a TT frame with a 52cm top tube and a road bike with a 54.4 cm top tube.
I’m betting that the 55cm QR frame will be too large for you. You will be too stretched out and will havedifficulty breathing properly. Yes, you might be able to make it work somewhat but ultimately you will not be able to achieve your optimum position and your performance on the bike will be compromised. Even with the super short stem you will be sacrificing “normal” steering for very fast (twitchy) steering.
Now if you are fully prepared to put the frame on Ebay when you finally accept this reality, then go for it and repeat what many others before you have learned the hard way. Just don’t forget that when you buy 2 bikes to get the “right” bike it really isn’t that great a deal!
Good luck.
I’ve got an '06 Caliente that was billed as a medium w/ a 53 top tube. I’m 5’11 w/ a 32 inch inseam and there is no way I could ride the next size up. It wouldn’t even be close.