I agree with Johnny. Think about how you mostly want this bike set up and size accordingly. You had mentioned wanting an Albatross bar setup, so if it were me, I would go with the 54cm and longer top tube that will play nicely with the swept-back bars and longer stem required for said bars. I also have a PBH that's between 83-84, even though I'm a little shorter than you. If I were buying a new Sam, I would purchase the 54cm size, and I would probably also run some sort of swept-back cockpit. I already have a drop bar Riv, and a fat-tired Riv, and those are the only two factors that would make me want to size down to a 51cm.
Brian Lex KY On Thursday, April 18, 2024 at 11:40:27 AM UTC-4 Johnny Alien wrote: > I am between sizes as well and my general rule is...if I want a more > traditional setup/fit (maybe with drop bars) I size down. If I want to go > laid back, more sweptback style I go up. With your PBH if you want drops go > with the 51 otherwise the 54 might be best. If you want to size up but the > standover gives you pause then consider a Platypus. I understand the advice > to call Rivendell but (from my experience) they are almost always going to > push you into a go larger direction and that has not historically always > worked for me. > > On Thursday, April 18, 2024 at 11:20:35 AM UTC-4 DavidP wrote: > >> Oooh, a new Sam - exciting! >> >> 1) Send Riv an email and get their recommendation, they're great with >> this stuff. >> >> 2) I'm a similar height but have an 87cm PBH. With your torso length I'm >> guessing you'll want more reach, the concern is the standover on the 54cm >> Sam if you max out the tires. Either way you'll probably want a long stem >> on that Albatross. My 58cm top tube Albatross bike has a 120mm stem. The >> drop tube bikes (Susie, Platypus, Clem) are great for getting a longer fit >> without worrying about standover; I'm on a 60cm Platypus and the reach is >> luxurious. >> >> -Dave >> >> On Thursday, April 18, 2024 at 10:43:16 AM UTC-4 Robert Calton wrote: >> >>> Haven't had luck pinning down a used bike this last week, so I'm >>> thinking I might try and buy a new Sam in May/June with the refresh and I >>> don't know if the 51 or 54 frame size is the right choice. Compared to my >>> current bike, a 55cm Salsa Vaya's standover of 77.6cm and top tube of >>> 55cm... >>> >>> 51 Sam standover: 78.6 (+1cm from Vaya) >>> 51 Sam top tube: 56.5 (+1.5cm from Vaya) >>> >>> 54 Sam standover: 82.0 (+4.4cm from Vaya) >>> 54 Sam top tube: 58 (+3cm from Vaya) >>> >>> An 83.8 PBH was the highest measurement out of the 10 or so times I >>> measured. Most of the time it was 81.2 - 82.5 range. I'm 5'11 with a 30" >>> inseam. Riv says a 51 Sam is 79-83 and a 54 is 83-86. >>> >>> I would like to run Albatross bars and be comfy about it. >>> >>> Which frame size should I choose? >>> >>> >>> -- 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 rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/7196769b-a191-47d3-9d3a-20cd17fb027dn%40googlegroups.com.
