Bikes for BIG Boys

[renoster]

My friend is 6'5", 250 lbs and has asked me to help him select a road bike. This is his first road bike, but he has large financial capacity. Do you have any suggestions on wheels, frames, components etc., that stand up to the rigors of carting around a giant.

Bikes and equipment easily available in the USA are preferred.

Thanks.

 

[capwater]

My friend is 6'5", 250 lbs and has asked me to help him select a road bike. This is his first road bike, but he has large financial capacity. Do you have any suggestions on wheels, frames, components etc., that stand up to the rigors of carting around a giant.

Bikes and equipment easily available in the USA are preferred.

Thanks.

Any well made frame should suffice. I would caution him away from the low spoke count wheels though.

 

[badkarma]

Any well made frame should suffice. I would caution him away from the low spoke count wheels though.

Almost any bike will suit him just fine. As CW said, the wheels are really the trick when it comes to rider weight. You're going to need a good pair of wheels, perhaps a pair of handbuilt ones. Once he buys a bike, if he decides that the wheels won't work, just put them on ebay, and then either find some machine built wheels or have someone build you ones. If you end up going with handbuilt wheels, I would talk to Mike Garcia (www.oddsandendos.com), I know people who have gotten wheels from him, and they have been very satisfied with them. If you tell him your situation, he'll be able to make you some bulletproof wheels that will certainly hold his weight (plus Mike's prices are very reasonable).

 

[capwater]

Something like an Open Pro would be fine, if concerned you could opt for a 36 hole hub/rim.

Giggity, giggity, giggty..... all right!

 

[badkarma]

Something like an Open Pro would be fine, if concerned you could opt for a 36 hole hub/rim.

Giggity, giggity, giggty..... all right!

You live in Quahog, RI, that rules!

Yeah, mavic open pros are pretty much indestructable.

 

[AussieRob]

The wheel advice is pretty good. So here is some frame advice: forget bikes that come in S, M, L, XL and don't bother with a compact frames.

I'm 6ft5 and I know it can be difficult to find a decent fitting frame.

 

[John M]

My friend is 6'5", 250 lbs and has asked me to help him select a road bike. This is his first road bike, but he has large financial capacity. Do you have any suggestions on wheels, frames, components etc., that stand up to the rigors of carting around a giant.

Bikes and equipment easily available in the USA are preferred.

Thanks.

If financial capacity is truly large, your big guy friend could not do better than a custom Zinn. Lenard is the guru of custom frames for the big guy. Although if your friend is a beginning road cyclist, it probably is not worth that big of an expense for a first road bike. Better to get a decent fitting stock bike and then go for a Zinn or similar if he ends up being serious about cycling.

 

[gclark8]

I have a couple of tall (over 6'2") friends, they both ride 59cm Felt SR101 Flat Bar Road Bikes. At 6'5" the 62 cm should be plenty big enough. Here in Aus, Velocity do Deep V rims on 4 bearing hubs.

 

[grifter]

Custom steel, 36 spoke wheels, and your friend won't have any problems

 

[John M]

Custom steel, 36 spoke wheels, and your friend won't have any problems

I hope that you are referring to stainless steel spokes. It should not be necessary for anyone to incur the weight penalty of steel rims. 36 spokes on an aluminum tandem/touring rim will provide enough strength for anyone.

 

[grifter]

Custom steel frame!

 

[John M]

Custom steel frame!

Ah yes. I agree (see my previous post suggesting a Zinn).

 

[renoster]

Thanks for all the great advice. There seems to be a big push towards custom steel frames. I was under the impression that for big riders, the stiffest frame would be the best. Would a steel frame be stiff enough?

Also, I am pretty large myself and regularly blew out spokes on my Mavic Open Pros on a monthly basis. I upgraded to Ksyrium SSLs about 2 1/2 years ago, have broken only one wheel and have never had the wheels go out of true.

 

[p38lightning]

One more thing I'd avoid carbon frames, carbon frame elements (such as seat stays), and titanium components (such as cassettes) completely. In the fine print some carbon frame producers set an absolute weight limit of 200LBs for their frames, although you'd probably be better off below 180.

 

[Catabolic_Jones]

Well if price is no concern, and you want strength i'd go with a titanium cyclocross frame.

 

[mrowkoob]

I´m 6 5. (200 ibs) Since your friend is 50 ibs more....

I would reccomend (for the US market)

A Scott Speedster S1, s2 or s3 (depending on budget) size XXL with custom wheels mavic cxp 33 rims (stiffer than open pro) and 36 spokes in a 3 lace build. Ultegra hubs or Campy Veloce depending on what gears you want.

A Trek 1500 in size 63 again with the same custom wheels as above

A non carbon cannondale frame caad 8,7 or 5 in size 63 again with the wheels mentioned above. (The Caad 5 is the stiffest and cheapest I beleive the model name is s500).

A Specialized Allez in size 62 again the wheels custom (which is not by any means expensive)

Stay away from getting a carbon frame (he is just too heavy).
Titanium is really nice but also very expensive and at that weight potentially flexy.
Stay away form the very nice looking (but that´s all they do) design wheels like Ksyrium, Bontrager, Campy, Shimano you name it they are too flexy for his weight, even at 200 ibs thay are often too flexy. Some insist that they are not but I strongly disagree.

If by any chance you should stumble across Brands like Principia or Boreas (size 63) they are very stiff bikes and would also do the trick but thay are very very hard to come by in the US. I mentioned some ready availiable brands in most US stores even though they might have to order your (his) size.

Also while youre at the bike store pick a store that offers a fitting, So that he gets the correct setup on the bike. (Saddle height, stem length, handlebar width, crank length, cassette setup, double or tripple crank). Dont accept "well that looks about right" from a shop owner that has not measured you (him). It might cost you a little bit more but the end product will fit and that´s definetly worth the extra cash.

As to grouppos you will do very well with Shimano 105 or Campoagnolo Veloce, but dont go lower than that.

You could go up a notch to Shimano Ultegra and Campagnolo Chorus.
If money is no option there is ofcourse Shimano Dura Ace and Campagnolo Record but both groups are made with weight saving in mind and not much point in that when youre 250 ibs and not competing (except for the feeling of having a high end product) In functionality Ultegra and Chorus are just as good)

Have fun riding!

 

[Doctor Morbius]

My friend is 6'5", 250 lbs and has asked me to help him select a road bike. This is his first road bike, but he has large financial capacity. Do you have any suggestions on wheels, frames, components etc., that stand up to the rigors of carting around a giant.

Bikes and equipment easily available in the USA are preferred.

Thanks.

I weigh the same as your friend and ride an '04 Specialized Sequoia Elite, an '03 Allez Sport and an '03 Raleigh M60 MTB. All of them are fairly plain vanilla bike shop brands and are structurally sound but I don't race and I don't ride them over curbs or potholes or anything that would stress them.

Even the low spoke count Alex ALX-295 wheelset that came stock on the Sequoia are holding up with approx 3300 miles on them. I broke 1 spoke on the rear wheel at 1400 miles and after replacing it and truing it it's held up fine ever since. That being said, I would prefer something like a 32h Mavic Open Pro or CXP33 over low spoke count Alex rims for my weight.

I can't imagine why I would need a custom steel frame unless I were going to abuse the **** out of it or race cyclocross.

 

[DeanC]

Stay away from getting a carbon frame (he is just too heavy).

I sent mail to the Trek guys when I was shopping last year asking if their bikes were up to my (at the time) 255lbs. The response I got back from them was: "The frames are, no problem. Get different wheels though."

Dean