Surly Cross Check and Effective Tube Top questions!

Hey smarties! I have two very unrelated question!

1) What is the difference between Top Tube length and Effective Top tube length?

As I get closer to ordering something, unfortunately without riding, I seem to be basing it all on the Top Tube. Is that the way to go?


2) I've started looking seriously at the Surly Cross Check, but I'm hearing that it has more of an aggressive stance. Do you ladies that have CCs find this to be the case? Or is it fairly adjustable with stem height and seat position?

If I'm more used to a comfy ride, would I be better of with a different bike? My other two main choices are the Jamis Aurora or Jamis Quest.


Thanks!!!

I use my Surly Cross Check as my touring bike. I saw you were comparing with a Jamis Quest on another thread, and it doesn't seem as aggressive to me as the Jamis. I had a 94 Quest, so maybe the geometry of the Quest has changed, but it was too aggressive for me at the time. Anyway, my lbs left the fork on the Surly uncut so I could get it where I wanted it. You have to be careful because the size is deceiving. Because it is a cross bike, the seat tube is shorter because it's higher off the ground. My 46cm Cross check has the same top tube and standover as my 53cm Burley did. The effective tt is what you want to look at. It's the one parallel to the ground, whereas the actual one may slant.

Lots of women here have the Cross Check and love them. I highly recommend it as a do everything bike. It has braze-ons for racks, takes large and small tires (my lbs has 4oisih cm ones on a demo one, I use two wheel sets, one with 32s and one with 25s) The thing goes anywhere! Oh, and it takes fenders too if you are so inclined. Great for commuting, or for tours of many miles. It's very comfortable. Here is a pic of mine. (I love this pic and have used it before) I have an acorn bag on it and a Brooks saddle. As you can see the bars are about even with the seat, which is what I wanted. Looks like I've got the 32cm tires on it. This was a 25 mile ride, and I'm not sure why these tires were on it, but they weren't a problem and I was comfortable the whole time. I like to hop off and take pics as you can see. Let me know if I can answer any questions. I'm not an expert by any means, but I went through a lot of bikes before I finally figured out that this one is the ticket! (Including a Jamis Quest!) Oh, and one more thing about the Quest, it was my first drop bar bike, but there was not room for large tires, fenders, etc. Unless they've changed it.

Edit: I ordered this bike based on the top tube measurement. Probably not the best idea to base it on that, but I had nowhere to ride one of these bikes. I used the Colorado Cyclist site and what I did and didn't like on my old bikes to figure out what my best fit was, and went from there. I totally ignored seat tube length, and put the emphasis on top tube. My lbs ordered the frame and moved my components over. (moved from the Quest to the Burley to the Surly). I have Shimano 105 components which Dan said were great components, and definitely worth keeping. Maybe I just got lucky but it's a great fit. I wish I was closer and you could try it out! Good luck and let us know how the search goes.

Hi, uforgot! Thanks so much for the response! I have indeed seen that picture before, and I'm pretty sure it was that thread that got me looking at the Cross Check to begin with.

And thanks for the comparison with the Quest. I'm thinking the Quest is going to end up being too road bikey, when what I should really go with is BOMB PROOF. Besides, the Surly is much more within my price range.

I was doing a little more research on my old Aurora last night, and realized that it's listed as a road/sport bike, rather than a touring as they now are. The '94 Quest was listed as a race/tri, so that makes sense that it felt more aggressive to you, I think.

It looks like I'll be going with the 42cm. Surly's site lists the TT length as 19.9in and the Effective TT as 20.6.

Yesterday, I rode a 51cm Jamis Ventura with a Effective TT of 20.6 (oh, the same!!) and it felt a bit long. I rode a 48cm Specialized Dolce that has a TT of 19.92 and it felt SO PERFECT. I'm not sure what the Effective TT was, though.

Even though it felt a bit long, I might be able to fix that with a shorter headset/stem?

Ok. Final question, and then I think I'm just going to pull the trigger: which shop to order from.

Shop #1: The guy seemed pretty knowledgeable about Surlys. Knew right away I'd need a 42, and was keen on swapping out some parts for me, namely STIs instead of the bar end shifters. I really liked him, but no guarantee. Shop about 5 miles from my house. (There's always ebay, right?)

Shop #2: Really nice guy. Put me on a couple different bikes to test out the sizing, looked things up with me for quite awhile. Didn't know too much about Surly's and didn't really say anything about swapping parts, but has a 7 day guarantee. Shop about 20 miles from my house.


Thanks!! OOOOh, I'm getting excited and hopeful!!

I ride a cross check, and I loved her, at first. Now though after using her for a year and a half as my daily commuter I'm finding that my set-up isn't right for my body. It felt really comfortable the first time I tried her out, and only in the past few months have I felt strained to the point of not wanting to ride. I'm stretched out, so I'm going to try to find a shorter stem, and my handlebars are too wide for my shoulders, so I'm going to find narrower ones.

My advice to you, get sized by the most knowledgeable individual at your lbs and also get as much input from us as you can on your choice. The single best advice I can give you though is to listen to your body and tweak that baby like crazy when you get her. You may find it takes a long time to get all the components just right.

Effective top tube length is more important on a sloping geometry - if your top tube slopes, then comparing the length of it to a bike with a top tube that's flat, doesn't make any sense... so effective top tube is more the distance from the seatpost straight over to the stem of the fork, whether or not the actual top tube follows that path.

I actually base ordering a frame on the seat tube angle & length & the top tube length... but then I know what works for me measurement wise.

Thanks you for the responses! :) It sounds like I'll be developing a good relationship with a bike shop! Luckily, I have met alot of really nice dudes in some really nice shops, so I just need to decide where to start!

Thank you! I think I will have a new bike soon, yay!!