What size bike....

[Mary K]

How do you determine what size bike you need? 24" 26"....


Thanks

[tinksdad]

Message edited due to containing inaccurate information.

By all means... go to a bike shop and get fitted properly.

[jimqpublic]

<Rant ON>

Your local bicycle shop will be able to help out. I would no sooner put a family member on a department store bike than I would have Toys R Us install the brakes on my car.

There are several ways to advertise the size of a bike. Kids bikes are normally labeled by the nominal tire size- so 12", 15", 20", 24". While you can make a big bike with small wheels, you can't make a small bike with big wheels! Note that unlike cars, bike wheel sizes refer to the outside diameter of the standard tire in use when the size was first produced. To clear up confusion- especially with some non-standard Chinese bikes, the industry is starting to migrate to labeling the diameter (in millimeters) of the tire bead seat.

For normal full-sized adult bikes the basic choices are 26" rims (Mountain Bike standard) and 700C rims (Road Bike standard). The only reason to go with anything different is if you're under about 5'3" or want a folding bike.

(For even more confusion- older road bike wheels were called 27", now replaced by the slightly smaller european size 700C (622 mm bead seat). When they put the 622 mm rims on a mountain bike they call them "29 inchers". In other words a rim smaller than the old 27" model is sold as a 29" size.)

Adult bike sizes are actually based on the distance from the bottom bracket spindle (center of front chainring) to the top of the seat tube (without the seat post). I'm 5'10" and ride a 22" (56cm) road bike.

So to answer the original question- 26" tires unless you're not tall enough. How you know is go to a bike shop and ride some bikes. Note I say "Ride", not "straddle in the department store aisle".

<Rant OFF>

[Mary K]

Thank Ya. It's been forever sense I bought or rode a bike. I hope I remember how.

[bobhenry]

Start with a 26" with the seat all the way down. If you can not set squarely on the seat and rest the ball of your foot (not your instep)on the pedal at the bottom position then it is too tall for you. You should pedal with the ball of your foot and flex your ankle this will help to eliminate a saddle sore butt from sliding side to side on the seat.

[Arne]

Like I tell people about all kinds of things they have not done since their youth... "It's just like falling off a bicycle... you never forget how"..

[Sonetpro]

:lol: Thank Ya. It's been forever sense I bought or rode a bike. I hope I remember how.

It will come back to you. It' just like riding a bike.

Just take it easy when you first get it. I got one when I was 30 and thought what the heck I rode one of these all the time when I was young.
I rode about 5 miles. Got back to the house and my legs collapsed from under me. They were not used to it.

[Mary K]

I do remember falling off a bike.....ouch!

[Boodro]

Mary , I would highly recommend trying a recumbent bike also!!! I tried one a few years ago at a bike shop & ended up getting a recumbent. I will never ride a "wedgie bike" again!!! You will find the seats on recumbent's VERY comfy& full size. Mine is a E-Z touring bike, & has a 5 inch thick molded seat on it . I can ride this bike twice as far as a wedgie bike & be half as tired. It has 24 gears & great back support, its like sitting in an easy chair. there are different kinds of recumbent so make sure you try more than one . Just do some research on the Web & you'll see whats out there.Good luck & pedal on!!
Check out this site. Mine is the EZ 1 SX
http://aurorafamilycycles.com/suncycles.htm

[starleen2]

:lol:


I do remember falling off a bike.....ouch!

Again, it just like riding a bike - you never forget how to fall off!

[mary and bob]

jimq: small bike with big wheels: I have in my collection an old Ross that has the "compact" frame. It's a lower frame than standard but has 26" wheels. Since we have a vintage teardrop, we needed vintage bikes so I picked up an old Raleigh mens bike and a womans BSA. They need some work, so then I got a 70's 5 speed Ross mens bike with 27" wheels and a 70's womans Ross 3 speed 26" that were in nice shape and ready to ride. Bob

[SouthernGirl]

Frame geometry has little to do with wheel size. Seldom are adult bikes even sold by wheel size anymore.

I'm 5'5" and ride a 700c wheel. But that has nothing to do with the frame size.

Get fit at a reputable LBS. Test ride several bikes for comfort and style of bike (road, hybrid, etc). Be prepared to try different saddles too. Don't judge the bike by the saddle. That's the part that is most easily swapped. & don't buy a soft, squishy saddle.

HTH,

[Shadow Catcher]

Basically the frame should if it is a road bike fit closely to the crotch straddling it with feet flat on the ground. For a mountain bike you want a bit more room, a couple of finger widths or a bit more, this to protect the dangly bits.
This applies to conventional triangle frame geometry. I am 6'3" and my mountain bike frame and the Tandem are 23" middle of the bottom bracket to to the top bar.

[George Kraus]

Hello Mary

My wife and I are road bikers, by all means as many have said, go to a reputable bike shop and very important, get a bike designed for a woman. If you are contemplating many miles it will make a huge difference. My wife's road bike is woman specific and they make a ton of geometric changes in a bike to compensate for the torso, leg, and arm ratios of a woman.

Also remember there are two kinds of people who ride bicycles, those who have fallen and those who will.

George

[Gerdo]

Go to a few good bike shops. Play dumb and see what they sugest. Remember what size they put you on so you can compair the sizes all the shops put you on.

Something you need to decide on befor you go to the shops is, what type of riding do you want to do. This can help you/them choose the type of bike best for you.

True, they do make bikes built for women. The old days a girls bike was a step thru style frame. They still have "step thru style frames" but they are not just for girls. A woman specific frame is built for a womans body proportions. At a quick glance you would not be able to tell a mans bike from a womans.

Road: fast, light, small tires, great on road, not great on gravel.
Mountain: heavier, fat tires, great off road and gravel roads, slower on road.
Hybrid: a mix of both road and mountain. (nice all around bike)
Triathalon: tight, fast, not great for long rides.
Fixed gear: single speed, no brakes, pedals always spin (road or Mtn)
Trials: kinda like a mtn but for hopping around on obstacals (sometimes, no seat)
Cyclocross: kind of a road bike built for mild off roading, 700cx35 tires (road dia but fatter)
Cruiser: the old style, more upright sitting, some single speed some 3-5 gears, seen on beach type boardwalks.

Here is a guide to read reviews on a lot of bikes.

Once you decide on a type of bike, ride a bunch that are built out of the same materials. Just because there are 10 bikes all built out of one material doesn't meen that they will ride the same.

I rode about 12 full carbon bikes whan I bought mine. some in my price range and some 2 to 3 times more. I'm light and bikes are made for the average to heavier person. Most were too stiff. They will have different geometry and some feel lazy while are twitchy