production 650c road frames for 4'11 woman

[ilima]

Terry's Fast Woman. The Isis has the stupid 24"/700c setup.

Merlin Camena/Litespeed Bella. Probably close to the cost of custom.

Those are the ones I think have the best geometry. A lot of women's bikes have really steep seat tube angles, which means that the reach can end up being fairly long once the saddle is positioned.

The Felt's women's bikes look pretty decent, though.

The smallest size in Orbea's Diva comes with 650 wheels, but I don't think it's quite small enough.

If you do go custom, sweetpea bikes look nice, too.

[NbyNW]

If you send her measurements to Smiley at R+E, he would be able to tell you if one of their stock frames would work for her. And if it doesn't I think it's something like $250 extra to build a custom frame.

[emily_in_nc]

Bike Friday -- they can make one as small as you need it, and it folds for travel. I love mine, and there are others here who love them too. You can't mind being different, though, as they get a lot of attention. I don't mind talking about mine one bit!

Emily

[celerystalksme]

Cervelo RS?

I know the smallest size comes with 650c wheels...

[ilima]

Cervelo RS?

I know the smallest size comes with 650c wheels...

I don't think it's small enough. It'd probably be the size I'd get, and I'm 5'4".

[ashwinearl]

thanks all. Keep the suggestions coming please.
Although no Terry for this family. Bad experience years ago been boycotting ever since.

[Running Mommy]

hmm... boycotting Terry?
Funny, I thought I was the only one around here boycotting them.
Tho I do have their test saddle program in my shop. BTW- does everyone know that Selle Italia makes their saddles? I thought they looked eerily similar. And low and behold when I got the test saddles in they came from selle italia.
But I digress...

I forgot about sweet pea. Thats a killer diller bike.
Tho not stock...

[tulip]

Bike Friday -- they can make one as small as you need it, and it folds for travel. I love mine, and there are others here who love them too. You can't mind being different, though, as they get a lot of attention. I don't mind talking about mine one bit!

Emily

+1

I have a Luna and a Bike Friday, and I love them both. I'm not short. Bike Fridays are great for short people, though. Here's a picture of mine in case you've never seen one before.

[Triskeliongirl]

Hmmm, I don't get what the negative terry talk here is about. I love my terry bikes, both with 24" front and 700c rear wheels. They are the only non-custom bikes I know that give you both a slack seat tube (73 degree which is impt. if you are long femured) and short top tubes (mine are 48-49 cm), with no toe clip overlap. I just feel much better in terms of balance and handling on my terrys than on bikes with longer top tubes and itty bitty stems and short reach bars. I have a 2005 titanium isis and 2003 steel isis that I converted to a travel bike with s/s couplers. They fit like a dream.

I had a bike friday pocket rocket pro that was stolen, also a good option and also can be built to fit and handle well, but you pay a premium for portablity and mine never shifted as well as my full size s/s coupled steel isis.

[ilima]

What I don't like about the 24"/700c bikes is that I'd feel like I needed to carry 4 spare tubes. And a lot of shops don't carry 24" tires.

I also think toe-clip overlap is overrated as a problem. I'd rather have a 650c bike with a bit of toe-clip overlap just because it's logistically easier to deal with.

[Ginger]

I'm 4'10 1/2, and I just purchased a Giant FCR2 Women's in size XXS. (It's a 2006 leftover--I think it was just waiting for me to walk into the shop!) This road bike has a flat handlebar; there's an OCR Women's model with drop handlebars in XXS as well. The bike store recommended the flat handlebars because of my small hands and previous discomfort even with compact brakes and handlebars. My riding position is very comfortable, as I can be as low as I would be with drop handlebars, but they pulled the brake levers and shifters in closer and for the first time on a road bike, everything is within easy reach. I had them cut off a bit of the handlebar width, too. I'm happy and I don't feel like I've compromised anything--I don't miss the drops. The wheels are 650c, which is appropriate for these proportions, and there's no toe-pedal overlap.