any recommendations what would roughly fit somebody who is 6 feet 1 inches? 56 or 58cm. My guess is going smaller would be better? Let me know if you are the same height and what size do you ride. Thanks!
Hi, I am 6 2". My road bike Scott CR1 is a 61 or an XXL. My TT bike is a 2009 Cannondale slice and it is a 58. TT bikes you can go a tad smaller.
so definitely not the 56 cm?
Yes, the 56 would be too small!v
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It all depends.
I’m 73.5 inches (just over 6’1") and ride a 56 Cervelo (R3) with a 100MM stem and a Medium QR (Seduza) with a 90MM stem.
Both have been FIST fitted and seem to fit me very well.
I had previously ridden a 58 cervelo (team soloist) and felt that it was much too big.
But, like I said, it all depends…on your measurements.
so definitely not the 56 cm?
I am 6’1, with about a 32" inseam. My saddle height is around 77.5 and I ride a 56 S-Works Tarmac as well as a Large (56) Transition. Both bikes fit great.
I’m 6’ 2" with a 34" inseam and ride a 58cm Madone. My old tri bike is also a 58, but I’ve got a forward seatpost on it. I was looking at a Cervelo P2 last year and the dealer fit me on a 56. In this case, I guess “it’s all about the bike”.
Brad
As someone who has a 58 road and tribike and is also 6’1", I would say go with the 56 cm. I wish I had. The deal here is you can do stuff with a smaller frame to make it fit a bigger person: longer stem, spacers, etc… but you are STUCK if you’re on a frame slightly to big and you remove all spacers have your seat pushed all the way forward and have your aerobar extensions chocked all the way up (/raises hand).
I would recommend the 56 to be honest, but it does also depend on how serious you are going to get. I only recently started wishing I would’ve went 56 after I have started tweaking to be as absolutely aggressive and aero as possible on both frames. If you plan on never taking it to extreme (like say qualifying for Kona etc…) then 58s will probably be fine.
6’2, 32 inch inseam. ride a 60cm Trek roadie, 19.5" MTB and tri bikes are all over the place (56 to 59cm depending on geometry and setup)
I’m 6’1" with a 34" inseam. Both my custom bikes are 59cm c/c. I’d much rather ride a 58 than a 56 if I had to buy a mass production bike. Sure, you can make a 56 bigger, but you do that by adding a big long seatpost and a big long stem, both which are much flexier than a frame itself. You also end up with problems finding a seatpost with the right amount of setback.
What we don’t know is your inseam. You could be short legged/long torso, long legged/short torso or about “average” in both measurements.
Also any given size from different manufacturers might be different. A size 56 Bianchi may be totally different from a size 56 Brand X, W or Z. Then there the issue of top tube lengths.
The classical way of determining road bike frame size was to measure your inseam and multiply by .67. This seems to work usually OK for me but I’m 5’9" with “average” proportions.
There are a number of road bike calculators on the internet. They tell you how to take your measurements and then you plug in the numbers to determine your frame. This is probably not a substitute for an actual in shop fitting, but the calculators tend to be reasonably accurate from what I’ve seen. Do a google.
Here’s one example of the online calculator. It would probably get you into the ballpark.
http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=FIT_CALCULATOR_INTRO
i am 6’1"…I ride a 56 road bike and a 55 p3sl…actually took the 57 p3sl home and rode for a week then took it back and exchanged it for the 55…
IIRC, Slowman in 6’1", check out his set up
http://forum.slowtwitch.com/gforum.cgi?username=Slowman;
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As you can tell by the posts their is no sure thing here - it could be a 56 or it could be a 58. Also, their is very little standardization any more from bike compnay to bike company, so what’s a 56 in a Trek may be a 58 in a cervelo or vice-versa. I am 6’2" and I can ride either 56 or a 58, but it depends on the bike and how it is set up. Generally, I prefer the 58 as I have a very long torso and the extra length across the top of the bike, keeps things better in balance for me.
I am not a fit fanatic, but if you are starting from scratch, it may be worth while to go to a shop and have them measure you up properly - or DIY. There are online caluculators that you can then use to figure things out better.
I’m 6’2" with 32 inch inseam so I’ve a longer torso too! I ride a 56 Trek 5000. Probably should be riding something bigger with longer top tube but it works for me for now…
6’1 1/2 here… Not sure of my inseam, but 32 length pants are good, 34 are too long.
I ride a 56 cervelo p2sl
Ok, nobody has posted it yet so here is your answer:
http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=FIT_CALCULATOR_INTRO
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I’m 6’ 1.5" and I think my inseam is just a hair under 90cm (about 35 inches) I have two road bikes, a 58cm Cervelo Soloist and a 57cm Litespeed Siena. On the Cervelo, I think the 60 would be too big. I could make the 56 work but I thought I’d end up with more drop (or more spacers) than I wanted.
Depending on your measurements, preferences you could probably fit anywhere from a 56 -60. Of course there isn’t much consistency across bike brands as far as geometry & how they measure so on one brand you might like a 60, where a 56 on another brand might do the trick.
Pay for the professional fit. Don’t listen to us.
My 700c wheeled bike is a 62 with 180mm cranks. I can’t get into the cockpit of a 56.