recommendations: smaller framed bike

Will H said:

I'm researching decent bikes for a friend of mine. She is
160cm (about 5'3"😉 tall and probably needs a 47cm frame.

Geometries get a bit strange with smaller frames so I
wondered whether anyone could recommend a frame builder or
an off the peg brand which would be appropriate. Any other
hints and tips would be appreciated as the components
(cranks, brakes etc) will have to be smaller as well.

Price range is between £400 and £800 (ish)

The best we've found so far is the Mercian Compact
merciancycles.co.ukframe compact.htmlOpen ↗

Something with 26" wheels is good. There are 1" slick tyres
available now, so you don't have to have a mountain bike
even if you have mountain bike wheels. Try www.sjscycles.com
and look at the Sherpa. You can specify dropped bars or
straight bars.

Will H said:

I'm researching decent bikes for a friend of mine. She is
160cm (about 5'3"😉 tall and probably needs a 47cm frame.

Geometries get a bit strange with smaller frames so I
wondered whether anyone could recommend a frame builder or
an off the peg brand which would be appropriate. Any other
hints and tips would be appreciated as the components
(cranks, brakes etc) will have to be smaller as well.

Price range is between £400 and £800 (ish)

The best we've found so far is the Mercian Compact
merciancycles.co.ukframe compact.htmlOpen ↗

Thanks for the help W

Just as an aside, I'm *just* 5'4 and ride a (I think) 51cm
frame. It's slightly too big on the reach to the bars along
the top tube, but fine for the height and standover.

I've changed a lot of stuff to get it to fit better, and
really would only now change the length of the top tube,
which entails a new frame, so isn't happening any time soon
- the rest of the size suits me fine now.

I pondered on crank length, but what it is (170? 175?) feels
fine to me, and I'm conscious that shortening it would mean
I'd have to raise the seat further, and that'd mean I'd not
get tiptoe down to the ground when stopped (a requirement
for me still).

Look at the bars - get narrow ones to suit her shoulder
width - I found it a lot easier to live with the long top
tube once the bars weren't quite so wide and putting my arms
out in a triangle!

My bike also has 700C wheels, and there can be an issue with
toe overlap in certain circumstances on the front wheel. I'd
say the 700C wheels are the direct cause of the longer top
tube, so you might find for a smaller frame you'd have to
look at the 26" wheels instead - then again, this might be
the standard for anything of 47cm sizing.

Brake levers (or STI shifters - great invention) might be
worth comparing the shimano vs campag - I have shimano and
with small fingers find it difficult sometimes to apply
sufficient force when I'm on the hoods, I think just due to
the reach of fingers needed more than anything else. I don't
know if either of them make smaller than the other, or if
there are women specific brake levers, if she'd be happy
with shifters on downtubes etc. Me, it's a requirement they
be STI ;-)

Glad she's looking at the fitting of it - if I could go back
and do it again, much as I love my bike, I think I'd get a
frame built up for me that was a little smaller to start
with than the one I have (Dawes Audax 51cm). I'd have not
spent time and money changing lots of bits to improve the
fit that way!

--

Velvet

The Trek WSD bikes are much loved in this household. The
47cm frame uses 650c wheels resulting in a very natural
geometry. The 47cm should also come with shorter (165)
cranks, though you need to check that.

Will H said:

I'm researching decent bikes for a friend of mine. She is
160cm (about 5'3"😉 tall and probably needs a 47cm frame.

Geometries get a bit strange with smaller frames so I
wondered whether anyone could recommend a frame builder or
an off the peg brand which would be appropriate. Any other
hints and tips would be appreciated as the components
(cranks, brakes etc) will have to be smaller as well.

Price range is between £400 and £800 (ish)

The best we've found so far is the Mercian Compact
merciancycles.co.ukframe compact.htmlOpen ↗

Thanks for the help W

Will H said:

I'm researching decent bikes for a friend of mine. She is
160cm (about 5'3"😉 tall and probably needs a 47cm frame.

Geometries get a bit strange with smaller frames so I
wondered whether anyone could recommend a frame builder or
an off the peg brand which would be appropriate. Any other
hints and tips would be appreciated as the components
(cranks, brakes etc) will have to be smaller as well.

You can buy "decent bikes" that don't have diamond frames.
Moultons seem to scale very well to different sizes of
rider, and I'd imagine something like a Bike Friday would
as well. Or you could do her a /real/ favour and line her
up with a recumbent. The Toxy SR and Nazca Fiero XS are
specifically designed for shorter riders, and I think
Optima do a version of the Dolphin designed for shorter
folk. Usual problem with 'bents is they cost a packet, but
if you're looking at a Mercian then clearly you're willing
to spend a few bob!

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111
ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382
640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net
[email hidden] dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

thanks to all of you for your responses to my enquiry. Very
excellent and useful.

In summary: Mercian (Steel; £480 frame only; £1040 built up
with Campag Veloce?)
merciancycles.co.ukframe compact.htmlOpen ↗

SJS Sherpa (Steel; £400 frame only; £699 built up with
Shiman Deore/LX)
sjscycles.comsherpa.htmOpen ↗

Trek 1500 WSD (Aluminium; £999 built up with Shimano 105)
trekbike.co.uk1500WSD.phpOpen ↗

A folding bike Moulton/Brompton/Bike Friday.... Bromptons
are about £600; Moultons about £3400 (::gasps:: I must be
wrong!); Bike Friday are apparently priceless.
- The Bike Fridays look the business. Their site is down at
the moment, so no further info.
- I've found that Bromptons are good, but the geometry is
too much like a shopper bike and not good for journeys
over a couple of miles (sorry to the legions of Brompton
enthusiasts who'll take issue with this)
- A recumbent is probably a step too far for now.

The components will just have to be tried and tested.

ta Will

Will H said:

A folding bike Moulton/Brompton/Bike Friday....

Moultons and BFs aren't really folders, more they break down
for easier=20 transport when required. Folding a Moulton (or
more accurately=20 disassembling it) will take you a few
minutes with tools, where a=20 Brompton is a 15 second job
with no tools. That a Moulton comes apart=20 is more an
incidental benefit than a primary design goal, I think. The
BF is somewhere between the two: it's designed to come apart
for=20 travel from the ground up, but is a Serious Piece of
Kit capable of real =

performance from models like the Pocket Rocket.

Quoted message said:

Bromptons are about =A3600; Moultons about =A33400
(::gasps:: I must be=

wrong!);

Moultons come in various flavours. A New Series Speed in
stainless=20 steel will actually set you back about =A35K
(yes, really) but on the=20 other hand something like the
Moulton R18 from Pashley is =A3995. AMs=20 somewhere in
between, the new Bridgestone Moulton is =A31650.

Quoted message said:

Bike Friday are apparently priceless.
- The Bike Fridays look the business. Their site is down
at the moment=

, so

Quoted message said:

no further info.

Not cheap, but reckoned to be good. Though a related
possibility in the =

UK for a performance machine with smaller wheels that just
happens to=20 fit into a suitcase and doesn't have a diamond
frame is the Airnimal.

Quoted message said:

- I've found that Bromptons are good, but the geometry is
too much lik=

e a

Quoted message said:

shopper bike and not good for journeys over a couple of
miles (sorry to=

the

Quoted message said:

legions of Brompton enthusiasts who'll take issue
with this)

I won't take issue, I think for what your looking for a
Brompton is the=20 Wrong Thing: it is a convenient utility
machine, and though you /can/ go =

far on them they're certainly not ideal for the job. But do
have a look =

at, say, the Birdy Black, which weighs under 10 Kg, has full
suspension=20 and has a riding position just like a "normal"
bike. It folds up=20 reasonably small as well.

Quoted message said:

- A recumbent is probably a step too far for now.
The components will just have to be tried and tested.

My recumbent uses Shimano Deore transmission, a SRAM chain
and Time ATAC =

pedals. Aren't they "tried and tested"?

But why "probably a step too far for now"? If you're
spending Serious=20 Money on a serious bike it's daft not to
try a reasonable spread before=20 spending. If she decides
in 2 years that a recumbent would be much=20 better then
you've just burned a grand or so on a bike that's left
for=20 dead in a couple of years. If she tries one and isn't
convinced then=20 don't get one: that's much better
reasoning than assuming it's "probably =

a step too far for now". Roos decided to splurge on a
Serious Bike recently. Given a budget of a =

couple of grand with a lifetime of riding fairly good
diamond frame=20 bikes as her experience, she's bought a
recumbent (and she doesn't even=20 have the size problems
diamonds can bring to shorter people to worry=20 about). At
least try before dismissing them with FUD arguments.

Pete. --=20 Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44
1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net
[email hidden] dundee.ac.uk~pjclinchOpen ↗

Hi, thanks for the detailed response. I've added some
comments below...

Quoted message said:

Moultons and BFs aren't really folders, more they break
down for easier transport when required.

fair point. BFs look marvellous as well.

Quoted message said:

I won't take issue, I think for what your looking for a
Brompton is the Wrong Thing: it is a convenient utility
machine, and though you /can/ go far on them they're
certainly not ideal for the job.

agreed. Bromptons have turned commuting on its head, but I
personally wouldn't use them for a fun/fast ride.

Quoted message said:

Birdy Black, which weighs under 10 Kg, has full suspension
and has a riding position just like a "normal" bike. It
folds up reasonably small as well.

I have bike love <3

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

- A recumbent is probably a step too far for now.
The components will just have to be tried and tested.

My recumbent uses Shimano Deore transmission, a SRAM chain
and Time ATAC pedals. Aren't they "tried and tested"?

I was thinking about fit rather than quality but it was a
bit ambiguous

Quoted message said:

But why "probably a step too far for now"? If you're
spending Serious Money on a serious bike it's daft not to
try a reasonable spread before spending. If she decides in
2 years that a recumbent would be much better then you've
just burned a grand or so on a bike that's left for dead in
a couple of years. If she tries one and isn't convinced
then don't get one: that's much better reasoning than
assuming it's "probably a step too far for now".

Fair point. I'll discuss and test.

Peter Clinch said:

Will H said:

A folding bike Moulton/Brompton/Bike Friday....

Moultons and BFs aren't really folders, more they break
down for easier transport when required. .... The BF is
somewhere between the two: it's designed to come apart
for travel from the ground up, but is a Serious Piece of
Kit capable of real performance from models like the
Pocket Rocket.

Bike Fridays *are* folders although the stem detaches. I
have a Pocket Rocket and it folds down in about two minutes
by undoing two q/r's in about two minutes. it really is a
sporty machine but also has excellent luggage capacity and
can take panniers both front and rear. However it is a
fairly ungainly package when folded and really needs to be
bagged which takes another two or three minutes. Of course
it can be taken apart - to fit its trailer suitcase - but
that takes a lot longer.

The BF is my preferred bike when travelling using trains
when I have a long ride at either end. If I am doing short
journeys (no more than 5 miles) then the Brompton wins hands
down for folding and convenience.

John B

Will H said:

I'm researching decent bikes for a friend of mine. She is
160cm (about 5'3"😉 tall and probably needs a 47cm frame.

Geometries get a bit strange with smaller frames so I
wondered whether anyone could recommend a frame builder or
an off the peg brand which would be appropriate. Any other
hints and tips would be appreciated as the components
(cranks, brakes etc) will have to be smaller as well.

Price range is between £400 and £800 (ish)

I'm smaller than your friend, about 5' 1" with
proportionately short legs. My experience is that at the
extremes, nominal frame size is a poor guide to whether a
bike will fit. When looking for an entry level MTB I tried
14" frames from several manufacturers. The Marin 14" was
much too big - I couldn't even straddle the cross bar. The
superficially similar looking Specialised had loads of room
above the cross bar. A Kona from one year was too big, a
Kona from about four years later fit well. She really needs
to try each bike, which unfortunately will involve lots of
hunting to find a retailer with the smaller sizes in stock.

When I wanted a tourer with 700C wheels, there just wasn't
an off the peg frame available. I ended up having one made
by Malc Cowle:
withingtoncycles.co.ukmalc cowle.phpOpen ↗ The bike I
got is out of your price range, but I did choose a lot of
expensive bits, so don't dismiss this option. The two things
that I love on this bike and miss on the MTB are narrow
handlebars and short cranks.
--
Being one man too many, Ensign Extra is eaten by the alien
Steph Peters delete invalid from [email hidden]
Tatting, lace & stitching page <sandbenders.demon.co.ukindex.htmOpen ↗