# What size frame for a 5' 7" woman



## @dam (Jan 28, 2004)

Hi all. I'm looking for a new bike for my wife. Her current bike is a medium (~17.5") Schwinn carbon S-30. It cracked, so I'm shopping. Anyway, she always complains that her current bike feels too stretched out, even when I put a 90 mm stem on it. However, at 5' 7" I think a small might be a bit TOO small for her.

Are there any women out there around 5' 7" you have experience on small frames? Comments?

I'm particularly looking at the small Specialized FSR XC frame.

Thanks
-Adam


----------



## verslowrdr (Mar 22, 2004)

It's not just how tall she is, but how long her legs are compared to her torso. Some women have a shorter upper body and shorter arms than the average guy at the same height. This is where the 'woman's geometry' might be worth checking out.

I'm 5'8" with a 33" inseam and depending on the brand usually fit an 18 or 19 inch frame. HOWEVER, I also have long arms, a fairly long torso (for a woman), and broad shoulders. Most men's bikes fit me reasonably well right off the floor but not every gal is so lucky.


----------



## SheSpeedsNotSingleSpeed (Jan 26, 2004)

I'm 5'9" and ride a 17.5" frame. I would not feel comfortable on a bigger bike I don't think. 34" inseam and tall torso, but relatively short arms.

Her inseam and standover height is also inportant as well as arm length.

It is my rule of thumb to make a bike fit me with a 100 or 110 stem. Anything shorter or longer is going to have a negative effect on handling. That's purely opinion! However I did have a mountain bike with a 140 stem and crashed more than I've ever crashed before. (The stem length only contributed to the frequency of crashing)


----------



## Spike (Dec 30, 2003)

*Depends*

It sounds like you should be more concerned with the top tube length than the bike's size. It really varies by manufacturer, and from bike to bike because of different geometry. A 17" mens Trek felt very very different from the same size bike in the womens line. I ended up going with the mens bike because the cockpit seemed too small for me on the womens specific bike.

For what it's worth, I'm 5'7" and have ridden an 18" (too big for me, stupid salesman taking advantage of a newbie) and a 17" Specialized Rockhopper. The 17" I liked. I had a Med Superlight. Now I have a 17" Trek Fuel.

Spike



@dam said:


> Hi all. I'm looking for a new bike for my wife. Her current bike is a medium (~17.5") Schwinn carbon S-30. It cracked, so I'm shopping. Anyway, she always complains that her current bike feels too stretched out, even when I put a 90 mm stem on it. However, at 5' 7" I think a small might be a bit TOO small for her.


----------



## connie (Mar 16, 2004)

It does vary person to person depending on the length of her arms and legs, etc. But I'm 5'8" and a medium frame fits me well for most bike models. It also varies bike to bike, so it's really best for her to ride around and see what feels right.


----------



## @dam (Jan 28, 2004)

How do you like that fuel compared to the superlight, Spike?


----------



## Spike (Dec 30, 2003)

*Well....*

I really liked my Superlight, but it was stolen. I only have about 30 miles on the Fuel so far, so I can't really compare them yet. The Fuel definitely feels different, more active suspension. I also have a better (on paper) fork on the Fuel, so that should be a big difference too. Went from a SID to a Fox.

Spike



@dam said:


> How do you like that fuel compared to the superlight, Spike?


----------



## Laura (Feb 15, 2004)

I'm somewhere between 5'6" and 5'7". I have a 31" inseam. I ride a med. Superlight, which is about a 17 with a 110 stem. My first bike was a 16, which now feels too small. I rode a friend's Juliana the other day, although it was too small (she's only 5'3"), I liked the "girly" feeling of it.


----------



## fishercat (Mar 1, 2004)

*for what it's worth..*

i am female 5'6" w/ 32" inseam. I'm on a small 16" sugar (mens). the one thing i like about gary fisher bikes is they have a long top tube. i am usually between sizes on most brands (between small and medium) as far as top tube lenght. on the small sugar i can run a 100mm stem, be plenty stretched out, climb well, and have tons of standover. the other bike that fit me well was the trek fuel wsd size medium. i had less standover but cockpit lenght was right on. at 5'7" you are also in the middle of mens small and medium bikes. i do think it's better to go smaller and deal with the cramped feeling with a setback post / longer stem than to get something that has too long a top tube and have to put a tiny stem on it. plus with the smaller frame you will have an easier time manuvering the bike in technical sections.
also remember that if you do have long legs, you may need a setback seatpost to put you properly over the pedals which will bring you back on the bike and require a shorter stem for the same reach. due to my long femur bones, i use a setback post and am still very stretched out with a 100mm stem. i may switch back to 90 for that reason. hope this helps. definately dont buy a bike that's even a little too big. after a long ride your shoulders will hurt. it is much easier to make a small bike bigger than a big bike smaller.


----------



## verslowrdr (Mar 22, 2004)

Wow Fishercat, glad you filled us in because that might explain some of my experience test riding a dozen bikes a few weekends ago....

I was seriously considering a Kona Cinder Cone, but once ridden against a bunch of other bikes it just wasn't feeling right- something vague about the sizing wasn't working out, which was too bad. Another thing I started noticing about it and a number of other bikes I tried was that the BB seemed too far back under the seat, which compressed my poor ol' dinged up knees. Within the first minute I could tell I'd be a cripple the next day if I had to spend a couple hours on board. Others didn't give my knees a twinge even when pounding in high gear (FWIW the large GF Sugar and hardtails both felt great right off the floor both horizontal and vertical).

So perhaps a setback seatpost as you mention could have coaxed a better fit out of the geometry on the others. I got the most ideal bike out of the lineup even if I'd been able to force the fit on everything I tried so it was no big deal, but I'm keeping your little gem of wisdom in mind. And yes, the new Marin has a setback seatpost- feature that. 

My knees are casualties of younger years spent riding horses hard, plus a couple more years on too small a MTB frame in 91-93. My riding goal is to get a new bike when I'm 70 and ride it away from the birthday party... gotta take care of all the parts and pieces if I'm going to get there.


----------

