Average sized rider can't find the right fit

[etack]

Hi. I am narrowing down options for my next bike purchase. I am leaning toward a Specialized WSD because (some of you may object to this) it is just the easiest option. Best bike shop in town carries them, feelings of loyalty, dislike of other shops, good deal offered. Here's the deal: I am 5 feet 5.5 inches. I understand this to be among the most average sizes of women across America. Yet the 51 feels small and the 54 feels big. Can this be solved through proper fit (of course the shop says so)? Or should I make the painful switch to another brand. Most other brands still have the 51/54 problem, however.

[ny biker]

I'm not familiar with Specialized bikes. My road bike is a Trek regular (not WSD). Over the years I've had various changes made to the stem to try to get it to fit better, most recently switching to a very very short stem that angles up in order to bring the handlebars closer. Frankly, I'd prefer to just get another bike that doesn't have such a short stem.

So I would look at other brands to see if I could find one that fit better.

[Cataboo]

What's your inseam? The problem with WSD is that - if you are a female that has long legs and a short torso, it'll probably fit you great. If you don't have long legs and a short torso, you're usually better off getting a unisex or men's geometry bike.

[indysteel]

You might try a non-WSD version of the same bike or determine what, if anything, can be changed up to make either the 51 or 54 WSD fit. What, precisely, feels too big or too small on the bikes anyway? The reach? It's easy enough to tweak that via the stem.

If you do look at other brands, take a look at their actual specs to see how the geometries compare. The size only tells you so much.

[etack]

I am long-waisted, with a long torso and average legs. I have tried twice to get on a men's bike and twice was re-directed to the WSD. It is the reach that feels too short or too long. The bars feel very close with the 51. They're better with the 54 but I worry about my neck, which is my problem spot.

[indysteel]

I would try a longer stem on the 51. I'm long waisted and 5'4. I have one bike that's a 50 and another that's 49, so a 51 for your height doesn't strike me as "wrong." You can lengthen your reach, too, with different bars.In the end, it's easier to make a bike bigger than it is to make it smaller.

[Cataboo]

I am long-waisted, with a long torso and average legs. I have tried twice to get on a men's bike and twice was re-directed to the WSD. It is the reach that feels too short or too long. The bars feel very close with the 51. They're better with the 54 but I worry about my neck, which is my problem spot.

Have you managed to get on the mens bike to try? I'm 5'1 with short legs/long torso - I have been sold WSD bikes before that I ended up not riding jus because they didn't fit right. I do a lot better on a mens bike. Shops aren't always great at realizing that WSD isn't for all women. At 5'1 - I can ride a men's 50 cm, but generally end up riding a 48 cm bike. So with your height, I think you should be on a 51 or a 50 instead of a 54. The bf's 5'6 and he rides a mens 53 - which is border line too big for him (he's 5'6 with a 33 inch inseam, and should probably be riding WSDs)

[KnottedYet]

I have tried twice to get on a men's bike and twice was re-directed to the WSD.

If your shop won't even let you try a standard bike, I'd switch shops.

(I'm also a chickie with a very long torso, and WSD don't fit me at all. Exactly as you describe.)

[ridebikeme]

I agree with Knot, if you aren't able to try a standard size bike... I'd have to look elsewhere. I am 5'5" and ride a standard bike. Like some of you, I have a long torso and short legs. Anytime I have tried to ride a WSD it simply isn't comfortable... at least for me.

Like so many others have suggested, try several bikes/brands BEFORE buying. The bike should fit YOU and not be something that someone is trying to sell because it's a carryover or the one and only. NOt all women fit on womens bikes.... we certainly don't wear all of the same brand of shoes, helmets, etc... so shops shouldn't assume that we all can ride WSD bikes comfortably.
Good luck!

[moderncyclista]

I am 5'3'' and ride a standard (a.k.a. not WSD) geometry 520. I used to own a WSD bike and hated it - my hands went numb because the top-tube wasn't long enough and too much pressure was being exerted on my arms/shoulders. If your torso is longer than your legs WSD might be wrong for you. Hop on all types of bikes - WSD or not. That is the only way to ensure that you'll be satisfied in the end. Best of luck to you!

[Melalvai]

I am 5'5" (half-inch shorter than you). I ride a Trek WSD 7.3FX 17". It fits me very well, except I got a longer stem for it and my wrists were grateful. Good luck finding the right fit!

edit: I have the opposite proportions as you: long legs and shorter torso.

[etack]

Thank you for all your replies. It seems like WSD bikes are really best for women with short torsos, which I do not have. I bought into the WSD concept because of the lighter weight and the smaller proportions for my hands. My problem is that my local shops don't have a lot on the floor. No 51 Roubaix to try. I have traveled around some, but I have troubled a lot of salespeople along the way in my search for a WSD bike. "Not her again!"

[zoom-zoom]

Thank you for all your replies. It seems like WSD bikes are really best for women with short torsos, which I do not have. I bought into the WSD concept because of the lighter weight and the smaller proportions for my hands.

I have a relatively long torso compared to my legs, but my arms are short, too, so a WSD ended up working well for me when all of my stats were assembled. I'm pretty happy with my Cannondale WSD (Féminine) and don't really find that I feel it's too big or too small. Like you, I appreciate the smaller brake/shifter set-up. If you haven't checked out a Cannondale, perhaps the proportions would work well for you, since it sounds like you and I are proportioned similarly. Mine is a 48 (I am 5'3.5"), so maybe a 51 would be comfy.

[KnottedYet]

the smaller proportions for my hands.

I think I'm missing something here.
Every bike I've bought, the LBS has been willing to switch the bars and shifters across the board to fit my hands before I even left the shop (and at no extra charge).

The only time a shop hasn't done that is when I've specifically said I liked what the bike came with.

Am I just leading a charmed life? Doesn't every shop do this? Are women being fed a line and forced to buy WSD frames that don't fit just to get bars and levers that do?

(My LBS even did this for me on a $350 Kona Smoke, and I've never bought a bike over $1,000, so it's not a "high end bike" thing.)

[OakLeaf]

I think it depends on where you are, how much competition your LBS has, and just their general personality.

I had to pay to swap my cranks from the 170 mm that came on the frame that fit me, to the same crankset in 165 mm. They acted like they were doing me a favor by not charging me for the labor. My bike wasn't super expensive, but it wasn't the cheapest thing on the shop floor, either, a far cry from your Kona.

Also, the short-reach Shimano shifters are Ultegra-grade and Ultegra price. If they were swapping them out on a bike that came with 105 or less, honestly I'd expect to at least pay the difference.