Yet Another Ruby Question...measurements

[michelem]

Hmmm . . . I think the WSD-type bikes like the Ruby are made for people with longer legs and shorter torsos - at least that is how I am built and I love my Ruby. I am 5'2" (on a "tall" day) and ride a 48" Ruby with an 80mm stem - interesting to see that nonsmoker3 is 3" taller than me and rides the same size Ruby. Just goes to show you have to get on the bike to see if it fits you . . .

[TriMom217]

I'm 5' 3.5" and ride a 51 cm Ruby. I have a 30" inseam, short torso, and a long reach. My previous road bike was a 47cm Allez which fit pretty well. The other think I love about the Ruby is the way the bars are sized for a woman. You mentioned that you have small hands, so you will love the way the bars are sized and shaped. I can ride the hoods and reach the brakes/shifters or I can ride in the drops and reach them as well.

I'm willing to bet that you can be fit on a Ruby.

[Starfish]

Thank you, this is interesting to me. I suspect a men's frame is better for me (although I have never measured my arms...really don't know how long they are!).

I currently have Shimano 105 levers and although not women's bars, some fairly shallow bars. I still have my brakes double shimmed, and it is not ideal braking, although nice to reach the levers. The short reach set-ups I have felt in the bike shops feel better to me. My longest finger is barely 3" long, and the others are at least a 1/2 in shorter. Most of my fingers are like 2.5 inches long!

So, I'm trying to avoid too much customizing...

Anyhow, just was curious if anyone with a long torso like me fits their Ruby well. Thanks!

Edited to add: Eden, yes, the Tarmac and Roubaix are both on my list to test. Thansk!

[li10up]

I too am 5'6" with a 29" or so inseam. I have a 51cm Ruby Pro and love it!

[malaholic]

I'm about 5'3 and my inseam (to the ground, not to the ankle) is 29. I ride a 51 cm Ruby and I love it....I had a fitting done where they adjusted the saddle fore/aft position, dropped the stem angle, and rotated the bars a little bit to fine-tune the reach, and it works beautifully for me.

I think I'd also have been OK getting a smaller (47 or 48 cm) men's frame, but had I done so I'd probably have had to replace the handlebars to get something narrower and with more shallow drops, as well as shimming the brakes for easier reach.

[Eden]

Just goes to show how different everyone - even with some of the same measurements can be - and why you really can not fit a bike based on standover.

I ride a 44cm- sounds much smaller than most of you here, though my inseam (yup to the ground) is nearly the same as most of you and I have an 80cm stem on it to make it even smaller. I have seriously stubby arms! My hands sound pretty much the same size as Starfish's, yet I feel good with regular levers (this may just be from many years of using them and being adapted) and I know I don't like bars with "ergo bumps" and especially those with a shallow drop - I find them to be quite uncomfortable and I bang my forearms up on them.

[Bluetree]

I'm not a believer that the Ruby is made only for the short-waisted/long legged types. I'm exactly the opposite in that I have a very short inseam 27.5 and the short TT still fits my longer torso. In contrast to Eden's 80mm stem, I have a 90mm, with compact drop bars on my 44cm.

Also, I probably have more spacers on the headtube than she does because my Ruby is set up as a pure climber. (I run a 34/50 compact with a 12-27 in the back. Plus, I have an optional 1295g wheelset with a 13-29 Record cassette.) Having a less aggressive setup, I can get away with the longer torso/shorter TT.

My small hands could never get around Shimano, even with the shims. I fell in love with the Campy thumb shifters the first time I rode them. When I have my hands on the hoods and I'm standing on a climb, I can easily shift a cog or two with my thumb to give me more power. I could never do that with my Shimano levers without breaking my flow.