Looking for a small racer

nimhaoe

Hi i'm 5'3" and looking for a small racing bike frame size about 50cm/52cm. Does anyone have anything like that for sale?

Lemag

nimhaoe wrote: »

Hi i'm 5'3" and looking for a small racing bike frame size about 50cm/52cm. Does anyone have anything like that for sale?

I'd say that you should be looking for something smaller than that again. I'm 5'7'' and my bikes have seatube lengths of 51.5cm and 52cm. The latter is actually too big for me.

If you don't already have a bike try a few out for size but bare in mind that their suitability varies from model to model even if their seattube are similarly sized as there are other aspects of their geometry to take into account.

macnab

Lemag wrote: »

I'd say that you should be looking for something smaller than that again. I'm 5'7'' and my bikes have seatube lengths of 51.5cm and 52cm. The latter is actually too big for me.

If you don't already have a bike try a few out for size but bare in mind that their suitability varies from model to model even if their seattube are similarly sized as there are other aspects of their geometry to take into account.

yeah I was thinking the same thing, I am 5'5" and 52cm is too big for me too. 50cm is almost the perfect size for me with a 29 inch inseam.

Lawr

I'm 5' 3", and I have a 52cm Trek 2.1. It is my first road bike, and I took the 52 on the advice of the dealer from whom I bought the bike. It felt good on the floor, but I was not sure what to look for. In retrospect, I think that I would have been better off asking to sit on something smaller, even smaller than a 50cm. Also in retrospect, the dealer was probably more concerned with the sale than whether the bike was suited to me or not. I learned a lot about buying a bike from what that dealer did not do for me and what I, consequently, ended up doing for myself.

Anyway, I've made do. I do a lot of crunches and push ups, so my core and my upper body are fairly strong. I am pretty stretched out on the bike, and on most days, I feel pretty good about the fit. I like being stretched out, and when I stand up, I do not feel as if I am over my front wheel. I am 32-33 inches from crotch to floor, so in that respect, I guess a 52 is fine. The problem is that I am slightly short-waisted, so my horizontal reach does not match my vertical reach. I had to buy those shims for the shifters to get them to sit closer to the handlebars, and I tried a 60mm stem, but it made the steering quirky. A moments' lack of attention and the drift could be substantial. I went back to the 90mm, dropped the bars to their lowest setting on the steerer and set the seat as far back as possible. I might be a bit overstretched, I am not sure, but for the most part, it feels okay. I suppose I would love to say that I can reach the shifters/break levers with greater ease.

I would like to try a smaller bike to compare. The next time I buy a frame, I will look for the shortest top tube/reach. This for me is the critical factor, I think. You can always buy longer stems, but my experience of shorter stems was not a good one, handling-wise--though the reach did improve. As long as you can raise the seat high enough to accommodate your leg length, then look for a top tube that best accommodates your reach, whatever that is. And don't forget, no matter how good it feels on the showroom floor or when trialling it around the block, imagine whether you can maintain that position/those positions for 60 or 70 miles.

macnab

I had a similar thing happen to me. The salesman was pushing me towards a 52cm frame, in hindsight I would think it was because he had a few makes and models in that size, but he had only 1 bike in 50cm. Good technique but not the best result for the the end user if I had bought a bike that was too big for me.

Bike Frame Size Calculator.
Inseam (in cm) multiplied by 0.67=Size for classic frame.
Multiply by 0.58 for a sloping frame.

Finnrocco

I have a TREK 5200 size I think 50 cms which I could sell.
Its quite old ( approx 10 years or so), its a carbon frame USPS colours.
It's built up as a full bike, I can strip down.
What do you think? Picture attached - I have changed the forks from picture, from old style threaded to ahead type.

I raced on it this year, its a super frame.

Finnrocco

I actually have 2 of these frames, one is a 50 cms, the other is a 54cms. The 54 is a bit bashed up (cosmetic) but rides fine. I would sell one of them for areaonable price, I want to keep one. Don't care which !

Lemag

nimhaoe wrote: »

Hi i'm 5'3" and looking for a small racing bike frame size about 50cm/52cm. Does anyone have anything like that for sale?

Hi nimhaoe,

Dispite that your request for a 50cm/52cm I still think that mine would be too big for you but you can check it out here anyway - http://adverts.ie/310077 . I've just posted it.

victorcarrera

Finnrocco wrote: »

I actually have 2 of these frames, one is a 50 cms, the other is a 54cms. The 54 is a bit bashed up (cosmetic) but rides fine. I would sell one of them for areaonable price, I want to keep one. Don't care which !

What price for the 54 cm frame?

Finnrocco

You could try out my bike for size if you want.
No obligation, just if you want to see how it fits. Then at least you will have an idea of what frame you need. Can lower saddle, hire bars etc. Only thing is I have a size 13 stem on, might be too long for you, but could probably change that to a shorter one.

Finnrocco

I suppose 250 or so. I just got a new headset on recently. It is the old style steerer, i.e. threaded. There is a bottom bracket on it. Could probably throw in a seatpost as well, might have a carbon one.
I will put up a pic of the actual frame later on today. Would build up into a good winter training bike, or put straight bars on and use as a commuter as I was going to do but can't get time to do so.

sexpot

Sorry to hi jack the thread but what groupset is on the frame Finnrocco? Would you be interested in selling it?

Finnrocco

Ok I have a 54 cms Trek 5200, like one pictured, just has headset and bb and post on it. It's a bit battered, but is structurally fine.

The Trek pictured is either 49 or 50 cms, I have it built up with mostly Campag equipment, Athena group from a few years back. Probably would sell.
Or I could transfer all the kit to the bigger frame. Probably around 400 euro.

I also have this bike pictured, which I would sell if someone was interested. At moment I use it for work, its a super bike, group set is a mix of parts I had lying around.
However it needs a new chain, cassette ( it jumps on low gears) and tyres - they are quite worn.
I would sell this for 200 as is.
Campag Mirage brakes, Shimano shifters, 105 rear hub / Open 4 rim, no brand chainset, ( newer one than in pic) - could put on SPD pedals it you want.

victorcarrera

What size is the casconi?

Finnrocco

I'm at work and used 6 inch ruler to measure it so measurements are not bang on, but close.

Seat Tube Centre to centre - 51 cms
Seat Tube Centre to top - 54 cms
Top Tube c to c - 54 cms

The cassette is a Shimano 9 speed cassette, the teeth are worn on what looks like the 19 17 16 sprockets and the chain jumps on these 3. I can put on a better chain, but reckon it will still jump.

Note the shifters are Shimano 8 speed.
There is no front mech on it, I ran a cable but never got round to buying a mech.

If I sell it I will include a rear light, a tube, allen key tool and tyre levers.

I am happy to keep riding it, it is a great little bike for going round town on, but it wouldn't be worth my while to fix the issues mentioned prior to selling it.

Some pics attached.

Finnrocco

Anyone interested in this bike?