Picking the right size road bike

Apologies as this is not the most retro of questions but I'm currently looking at my first drop handlebar bike, and I'm leaning towards the specialized langster singlespeed. I've been down to my lbs to try sizing but the biggest road frame they had was a 54cm which was way way too small for me. I'm 6ft with a 32 inch inside leg and am thinking perhaps a 61cm is the way to go? My mountain bike is a 19" and fits me beautifully. I know this is a bit of a vague question and the best thing for me to do would be to try one, but I could do with an idea of what size to try so I can phone shops to find out what sizes they've got first. Thanks for any advice guys.

Somebody helpfully posted the Langster sizing chart here:

http://www.retrobike.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=41580

49cm 4ft11 - 5ft3
52cm 5ft3 - 5ft6
54cm 5ft6 - 5ft9
56cm 5ft9 - 6ft
58cm 6ft - 6ft3
62cm 6ft - 6ft3

That puts you borderline 56/58cm, which seems about right based on the top tube lengths in the table on the Specialized site. Specialized use virtual seat tube length, so the actual frame sizes (with a sloping top tube) are smaller than the nominal size.

Do note that different manufacturers use different sizing conventions, so a 54 in one brand may be nothing like a 54 in another.

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-sizing.html

One traditional sizing rule of thumb says your frame size (centre to top) should be about 1/3 of your height. That always worked out okay for me - I'm 6'1" and I'm comfortable on a 23 1/2" traditional frame.

Yes I do feel rather silly, that post was about 15 mins before I posted! What are the odds?! I'm not happy about having to get it through Halfrauds and not being able to try it out first but unfortunately my work only offer their cycle2work scheme and at £24/month for a year it's just too good to turn down!

http://www.strawberrybicycle.com/frames-custom.php

Kind of convoluted process, but it will give ye the exact sizing for everything.

I used to ride a 23" frame back in the good old days and I've also wondered about sizing today's bikes. I've just bought a 57cm Bianchi which fits me very well but not many manufacturers make the 'odd' sizes. A 56cm Specialized or Trek would probably be slightly to small and the 58 to big as top tube length also increases.

The only way to find out is visit the shop with a tape measure, having made a note of dimensions on your current bike (saddle nose to pedal spindle at bottom being important) and ask the shop to play around with saddle and bar heights on various machines.

FYI:

langster has a sloping TT...sizing is not comparable for a bike with horizontal TT.

I have just picked up my new Specialized Langster Monaco.

I am 6`2" and went for the 58 and is a perfect fit.

A Ride a 56 c to c Tommasini and a 19" Specialized Rockhopper.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, I think I'm going to go with the 58cm. Is it as gorgeous in the flesh as it looks in the pictures?

Sizing

Hello all

Try the wrenchscience website, put in all your measurements and it will give you the exact size for quite a lot of models. It also has a few simple tests for flexibility etc and then gives you some setup guides.

I have done it and keep the page with all the setup for future reference.
Hope it helps
Jamie

In inches, the old rule is...

Subtract 10 from your inside leg for road and a further 3 for off road. I feel the road is right, but I always subtract 4/5 for off road.

32'' inside leg is 22'' frame road and 19'' off road (or 17'' if you're like me).

I've applied this to every bike owned, and it works a treat. You should always go for the smallest frame you can fit.

Lighter, tighter and stronger!!