Hello - my wife is done standing on the sidelines and wants me to find her a good used ROAD bike. While i understand proper fitting, I want at least get in the ballpark with a good used road bike.
She is 5’ 6" with a 29.75" inseam and longish arms. I think this is pretty standard proportions for a person that size (vs. me who is 6’ 2" with a 36" inseam) Any idea what sized frame that corresponds to (52 cm, 54 cm, etc.)?
Thanks,
Mike
52ish.
+1 on the 52 cm for a ballpark. I’m 5’6" and ride a Specialized and a Felt in a 52 cm. I used to ride a 47 cm Giant (a size small) which is their compact geometry measurement.
52 sounds right. Im just over 5’7"–31.5 inseam, and I ride a 54cm. Just make sure the top tube isnt too long.
Good luck!
There is the Lemond formula of converting to cm and multiplying by .67.
29.75 x 2.54 = 75.57 x .67 = 50.6
Then round up to the nearest cm and you get a 51 cm frame. This is only a ballpark and is variable on other factors, but a 51 or 52 is probably about right.
Yup, my math was right. According to this chart, rounded up your wife is on a 51 cm. Note that the url states that top tube is the most important measurement however.
http://www.cyclemetrics.com/Pages/Docs/6-BikeFitting/LemondSystem/inseamtable.htm
Thanks! I agree on top tube sizing being most important. I had a hard time with myself and that. She is fairly normal in the torso sizing so am not too worried about finding a bike that will fit her.
When looking at used bikes keep an eye on the stem length. It is easy to find a bike that kinda fits for now but if the stem is already short you might be stuck. Buying a new stem is an easy fix. I do not know how many women I have seen stretched out with a long stem who complain their bike does not fit them. I see some good deals on used bikes with way too long of a stem for the size.