Can't Decide!

[OakLeaf]

I have over a 31" inseam so basically no torso.

So that means that top tube length is going to be really critical for you, and if they're talking about putting a super short stem on the 52 cm bike to compensate, that could adversely affect the handling.

Seatposts generally have a lot of room to play with, so it's your torso length and arm reach that should determine your frame size, not your leg length.

[salsabike]

Kelly, honest to God, the extra $150 or whatever it is there for a bike fit would be SO well worth it. It's depressing to get a bike and then find out over the next few months that it's really too big--I've done that. Had a bike with a top tube way too long for me and had to get a different bike. And I got a bike fit before I bought the next one, which I love!

[ACiveE]

I've been doing the same thing... going around to different shops, test riding, etc. I would suggest you shell out the $100 or whatever it is and get a professional fit. I actually went to three fitters... paid $100 for one, $50 for another, and the other ended up being free because I just purchased a bike there. Everyone stressed how you need to find a bike that *felt* right but I feared that I didn't really know what *right* meant and that I was going to buy an ill fitted bike. So I got fitted... three times. Excessive? Probably. When all measurements and recommendations came out to about the same, I decided that I had found a match.

Everyone stressed looking at womens specific bike initially but I just ended up purchasing a mens model because it just fit better. I'm not that tall, only about 5'5" but was fit by multiple shops to a 54cm Trek Madone WSD or the 51cm Cannondale Synapse. The Cannondale comes in WSD but the mens model fit better. A little bit of adjustment and I am hoping it'll be perfect. The actual geometry and measurements vary a ton... I thought a 54 was a 54 but that wasn't the case at all.

Gooooood luck!