Question for Bianchi riders/enthusiasts

[melissam]

Hi Amy,

The first "real" road bike that I bought is a 1984 Bianchi Limited. 18" frame. Back in those days, they didn't have WSD bikes, and this was one of the few bikes that fit me.

Anyway, in the mid-90's, I tried a Trek non-WSD. I believe it was a 47cm, so the seat tube was about the same size as my Bianchi. I didn't like it because I felt really stretched out. OTOH, my Trek WSD in 47cm fits me really well.

When I bought the Trek WSD, I mentioned how I'd tried the non-WSD Trek and it didn't fit me so well, but my Bianchi fit me fine. The person at the store said that Bianchi's tended to have a more compact racing geometry, with shorter top tubes. This seems to directly contradict what you heard.

I guess the best way to find out would be to look up the frame geometries for the Bianchi you might be renting. Compare the seat tube/top tube lengths in the size(s) you're interested in. If you can't find the geometry for the model you'll be renting, look at seat tube/top tube lengths for the other Bianchi road bikes and see if there's a trend.

How does the length of the top tube relative to the seat tube compare to your Serotta's measurements? Just for fun, check out the geometries for other manufacturers -- does it prove the point that Bianchis have longer top tubes relative to the seat tube? Or all they all about the same?

Also, can you ask for a road bike on your tour and switch if you can't get it to fit you?

Good luck, and have fun on your tour! Take lots of pics!!

-- Melissa

PS I can't wait to see your beautiful new Serotta in the flesh (er, can you say that about bikes?!)

[michelem]

Amy,

Funny you should ask! I was worried as well (I'm short and have some neck issues that necessitate a shorter top tube). Anyway, this is the info that CC sent to me:

Geometry - Via Nirone 7 Alu Carbon
Size, mm
500
530
550
570
590
610

Seat Tube, mm
470
500
520
540
560
580

Top Tube-virtual, mm
530
540
555
565
580
590

Top Tube-actual, mm
515
527
541
552
568
577

Btm. Brkt. Drop, mm
68
68
68
68
68
68

Head Tube, mm
120
135
145
165
180
200

Seat Tube Angle,°
74.5
74
73.5
73.5
73
72.5

Top Tube Slope,°
7
6
5
5
4
4

So, I would suggest comparing this to your current bike (which, I assume fits you) and then choose the Bianchi that best correlates to your bike's geometry. Jewel said they do have a new smaller size that will probably work for me (she's working on getting the exact geometry), but I'll probably need to bring my own stem.

Hope this helps!

[ace]

Thank you guys very much. It's down to the wire- I have to decide today

I went to talk to Ian, my lbs guy who so ably fitted my Serotta. He looked up the specs for the Bianchi frames, plugged the numbers into a spreadsheet he'd set up with my target measurements, and said that even with tweaks (and me bringing my own stem, etc.), none of their frames would be comfortable for me, given my knee stuff, my neck stuff, my carpal tunnel, and my looong legs. He also pointed out that I have cheater brakes on my Serotta, and the reach on the Bianchi will be even longer- I'd be pretty stretched out. I'd have to be comfortable riding on the hoods to reach the brakes. I also LOVE the stable feeling of my Serotta. He said the Bianchi will feel less stable because of the geometry. He also reminded me that I came back in serious pain (neck, shoulders and hand) from about 5 short test rides of bikes he set up to be close to my geometry when he was fitting me.

It ain't worth the risk for me, I think. So I'm going with the hybrid. Bummer. But thanks for participating in my last minute hysteria

[michelem]

Call Jewel at CC and see if she has the info on the smaller women's bike yet. You may be able to make that one work for you.

[ace]

I don't think smaller will help- I'm not small (when I was test riding stock frames, the 53/54s worked for me), just short-torsoed. Here's the comparison btwn my Serotta and the Bianchis (that are somewhere around my size). I can't get this to really format, but the numbers for my Serotta are the 480/490/174.8/73.5/11, and the other three columns are for the Bianchi 500, 530 and 550.


Serotta 500 530 550

Seat Tube, mm 480 470 500 520
Top Tube-actual, mm 490 515 527 541
Head Tube, mm 174.8 120 135 145
Seat Tube Angle,° 73.5 74.5 74 73.5
Top Tube Slope,° 11 7 6 5