I can't address your size questions, since I'm a bit taller, but I can address the top tube question. Yes, this is something to be careful about, *if you are particular about where you want to place your drop bars. *I am not saying that Rivendell tt sizing will be a problem for you, but it *might* be a problem for you.
Example: I owned a 56 cm (57?) Sam Hillborne that had a 59 c-c tt. I wanted to put a drop bar on it, and particularly a 46 cm Noodle, quite a bit wider than the 42s I was used to. In order to get a comfortable position on hoods and hooks, I had to position the bar some 1 1/2" or 2" higher than saddle -- which felt awkward to me. That was one reason I sold it. I would not even have been able to set it up like my Matthews, the SH replacement, with such a long top tube, because with this "road bike for dirt" I like the bar about even with or perhaps 1 cm above saddle -- a long ramped Maes Parallel, but only 42 cm wide My road drop bar position (dialed in over 25 years) is presently a gentle 3 cm below saddle. I would not be able to get that position on the Sam Hill because of the top tube. (Not that I'd set up the SH exactly like my road bikes, but you get the picture.) OTOH, my 3 custom Rivs have all had 56.5 or 57 cm c-c tts; this is perfect; with a 8 cm stem and long-reach/shallowish drop bars (Compass Maes Parallel, 37 or 38 mm wide) 3 cm below saddle, I get very comfortable positions on ramps, hoods, and hooks. In fact, one of the very best fitting bikes I've owned was that 1958 Rene Herse which had a 60 cm c-c st and a 56 or 57 cm c-c tt -- perfect; I only had to adjust the saddle. Now if you use upright or "tourist" bars like the North Road or even more so the Albatross and so forth, top tube length is (I think; I'm not an expert on these bars, though I've used many such) far less of a determinant in comfortable bike setup. And even for drop bars, if you care only about reach and not about height, then again, tt length is far less of a concern. Top Tube length matters! On Mon, Oct 10, 2016 at 9:43 AM, Belopsky <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Riv sizing talks about me riding 55-57cm depending on the frame, but I > always worry that the top tube is too long. Anywho, I was under the > impression that for a 'fast' bike you want a slightly longer stem, for more > weight in the front..but also with bars at seat height I suppose I can ride > a bigger frame with a shorter stem - how short is too short, with drop bars > - anything can work with some pullback. > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
