I’m swithering between two sizes of Cannondale CAAD8, one has a 56cm top tube and 17.5cm head tube, the other has a 57.5cm top tube and 19cm head tube.

I used to ride a CAAD9 with a 57.5cm top tube, lay back seat post and 110mm stem. My very helpful local physio (who resides on this forum also..) identified that this was too long for me.

The obvious choice is to go for the frame with the 56cm top tube, but the head tube is shorter than I would like, a recent back injury has put me off attempting a true ‘race’ position. The bike comes with a tonne of spacers and I’m sure I could flip the stem, but I would prefer the taller head tube of the bigger frame size.

I’m thinking a shorter (say 100mm stem) and inline seatpost with the saddle perhaps 10mm forward of centre would make all the difference to the reach, but what are the negatives to sliding a saddle forward in the rails?

but what are the negatives to sliding a saddle forward in the rails?

You may be moving it to the wrong poistion and it will be uncomfortable on long rides.
I always thought that the ‘knee in line with the pedal axle’ was the first rule of setting up a bike*, then move everything elase around that position.

* it’s always worked for me

What about a synapse as a curve ball ?

I really wouldn’t recommend sliding the saddle forward to reduce reach. The saddle position really relates to having your knee positioned correctly over the bb/pedal spindles. What you’ll find is you will get calf, ankle, knee issues doing that. Get the larger sized bike but stick a shorter stem on it.

Of course internet bike fits are not the way to go however and you should try to test ride if you can… Blah blah

Also, a stack of spacers/up turned stems don’t look so cool either.

Firestarter, I’d been looking at Synapses all along but the 2015 models are all disc only, and I’m not quite ready for discs on my road bike, especially not the cheap cable discs you’d get at £1000.

I’m also trying to buy local and they are now sold out of the 2014 Synapses. The CAAD8 is still more upright than the CAAD9 I used to ride so seems a good compromise.

Fasthaggis, I’ve always subscribed to that rule as well, but was given to understand it’s fairly approximate, so 10mm here or there wouldn’t hurt.

I guess ChrisR maybe has it, a 90mm stem and saddle in the centre would still work fine I’m sure. And yes, I hope to test ride both sizes, just need to wait for the shop to get 2015 stock in as they won’t be special ordering two sizes of the same bike for me!

Cheers

There is a very obvious answer to this question I’m afraid, and it’s that the CAAD8 and other similar frames with racey geometry aren’t for you. You need, and I hate to use the term but, a more “sportive” geometry bike. Something with a longer headtube and slightly shorter TT size for size. The Cannondale Synapse would be an obvious answer if you like Cannondale, but there’s lots of others too.

Buying the wrong size bike and then bodging it to fit is a disaster waiting to happen IMO. You should be buying a bike you feel immediately comfortable with the moment you sling a leg over it, or move on and find another… There’s a road bike out there for everyone!

EDIT: Beaten to the mark… Doh!

I would be wary of shortening the stem on a road bike. The longer stem is there to give stability at speed, and that’s a good thing.

mboy, I know what you mean and deep down I guess I agree, the problem is I’m getting so fussy about brand/where I buy it from/absence of disc brakes that I’m sort of narrowing my field significantly, entirely a problem of my own making! 8)

I’m also telling myself that the CAAD8 is still more relaxed than what I’m used to (the CAAD9) so is a step in the right direction.

Maybe I should just accept that I should buy a Giant Defy and be done with it…

edit: oh, and I like sportives, so am not afraid of the term, I just think of them as long distance mountain time trials 8)

I went from a 100mm stem to a 90mm and it made a huge difference. Small changes make big differences on a road bike.

I moved my saddle about 15mm forward and its made a big difference to both power and comfort. I seem to be climbing better than I have for a while and not getting such bad back/neck ache.

The Supersix is a very relaxed frame to ride, so I wou;dn’t worry about getting something more “sportive orientated” as has been suggested.

It has a relatively long headtube, which is why you see the pros using negative rise stems on them.

Personally, I’d go for the smaller one – longer stems handle better.

I ride 56cm frames with 130mm stems. It’s easier to go a bit shorter if necessary and still have a decent stem length. If you start out with an 80mm stem on a bike with a longer t/t, you’re going to compromise handling if you try and go any shorter.

The right seat position is the right seat position.

Cleat for foot position
Seat hight for correct leg extension
Seat fore/aft for correct knee to pedal axle position
Spacers for torso angle
Stem for reach.

and in that orderish…I think.?

which position are you struggling with. Bars, hoods or drops?

What about changing the bars for a shorter reach? Some shallow drops

I’ve just been looking at some new bars and compared to my current ones comparing where the hoods go they are an inch shorter.

Changing the bars would mean you keep the seat post and stem the same but have a shorter reach.

Normal handle bar position would be unaffected

Nobody likes discs on road bikes do they. Especially the three roadies I was catching up on the flip side of Crow Road a few weeks back. Don’t rule a bike out because of the brakes.

^ It is all interlinked but essentially that isn’t an unreasonable order of attack. The only thing to bear in mind that it isn’t a linear process but more a feedback loop where a change in stem affects all previous steps.

Buying the wrong size bike and then bodging it to fit is a disaster waiting to happen IMO.

Exactly. You’ll be back on the forum and everyone will accuse you of being related to Hora 😀

The obvious answer is to get a decent bike fit before the purchase of a new bike because you may well find that your saddle is too far back on the current bike for example and sliding it forwards gives you the optimal position over the pedals plus optimal reach (not saying this is the case just something to consider).

Similarly, are you 100% sure you position on your current bike is perfect except the reach? A shorter stem on the current bike will be the best indicator I’d have thought even if the handling goes out of whack in the short term. I’d personally want to get my position dialled on the existing bike even if it makes the handling awful then use the new bike purchase to replicate the position but correct for the possible poor handling issues

100mm isn’t silly short for a road bike in your size but it’s certainly getting towards the lower limit of what I’d want to be using for road riding.

As most above, I wouldn’t adjust reach with saddle position though again, 10mm may well not actually be that much of an issue depending on how sensitive you are to fit and also how accurate your current position is.

A different brand/model of frame would seem like a much better bet than trying to get a specific frame to fit you when it doesn’t really seem to.

Also, when you are not reaching so far forward, you might be more comfortable with a lower bar. I basically think you need to get to a shop which will let you play around with such things, either on a rig or the bike in question.

The danger of referencing ‘setback’ in bike fit

http://www.bicycling.com/beginners/bike-fit/your-road-bike-handlebar-guide

If you’re not raceing then what’s the downside of disks? OK they’ll be cheap and nasty <£1k, but you’re only £50 on ebay away from BB7’s, and either will probably be better than the cheap brakes the bike comes with.

After a year off the bikes I got back on my CAAD4 the other week, the position and saddle are killing me 🙁 Trouble is I know it was perfect last year so it’s just down to fitness and MTFU but I seem to have gotten stuck between a rock and a hard place, can’t do long rides, so won’t do long rides, so won’t get fit to allow me to do long rides.

Might have to embrace the shame and humiliation and get a big padded gell saddle and flip the stem upwards 🙁

BigJohn – Member
I would be wary of shortening the stem on a road bike. The longer stem is there to give stability at speed, and that’s a good thing.

This +1. Due to a (very) bad back, I swapped the 120mm stem on my road bike to a 70mm, in order not to bend so far at the hips. The speed wobbles this gave me scared he shite out of me. I’d rather have a bad back than be spread over the tarmac! This may have been quite a short stem on a road bike, but the point was made for me, swapping back I got used to the reach on the hoods first before starting on the drops

If you’re not raceing then what’s the downside of disks?

It’s not the weight thing, it’s more the likelihood of rubbing and squealing which puts me off. The BB7s on my Salsa Vaya are very powerful, but within 6 weeks of owning them the front disc has picked up a weird wobble and skims the pads once a revolution. Also, no matter how many times I follow the Avid instructions (and I’m a reasonably competent mechanic) the calliper never seems to sit square. Finally, they’ve begun to squeal, despite very little wet use, no contamination, as perfect alignment as I can achieve etc etc etc.

None of these are issues I want to have to deal with on a road bike, I want it free running, smooth silent and simple. I could achieve this with my old Ultegra callipers and basic Shimano R500 wheels and don’t feel any need of the extra power discs might offer me.

Re: sizing, I have no intention of going shorter than 100mm on the stem. I do accept that I’m maybe trying to make a square peg fit in a round hole though. Might have to bite the bullet and buy elsewhere, get myself a Veloce equipped Bianchi instead 8)

Saddle fore and aft adjustment is about getting the rider’s weight balanced on the bike, this is often around where the Tibial tuberosity is directly over the pedal axle, but not always, sometimes way off.

Basically you shouldn’t be adjusting this to get your reach correct, that comes from stem length, bar reach etc (though changing this can lead to needing to adjust fore/aft and therefore saddle height adjusting too). So if you are over reaching, shorten your stem.

Also worth considering that a defy or domane etc would suit you better, latter in 58cm would should work.