I am about to buy a bike (KTM Revalator) but live too far away from the relevant dealer for a test ride. I’m 5ft 10, 31 inch inside leg, a bit overweight and not very flexible! I’m coming from a 56cm Specialised Roubaix which needed me to fit a far shorter stem to be comfortable. The bike I’m looking at comes in 55 and 57. The stack height on the 55 is 17mm lower than current bike and the reach is 4mm longer. The 57 is 7mm lower and 9mm longer. There is a special offer on a variant of the 55 which I’m very tempted by! Any thoughts? I guess stack and reach can all be adjusted if needed with spacers and stems.

Personally having blown a load of cash on a road bike online that will never fit and now sports flat bars and bar ends I would not risk another i could not physically try first.

And that’s not a huge size difference your talking about there. I belive stack and reach are less relevant to seated riding than effective top tubes stack and reach mean more out of the saddle that’s why they have become so big in the mtb world, but I may be wrong.

it’s easier to make a slightly small bike fit you that a slightly big bike, assuming the steerer hasn’t been cut too short anyhow.

Thanks folks. I should add that I did ride a 54cm Scott CR1 for a few months recently also and it seemed OK size wise..bit of a larger drop between saddle and bar height than the Roubaix which, when I went back to, felt incredibly upright!

Unless KTM are like Cube in having whacko sizing then 57 is way too big. I’m similar dimensions to you and ride 54 or 55 in standard frame sizes (my Lapierre is a 52 but compact geo so has effective TT length of 54.5). If the 57 is 9mm longer than your current bike, which is already too long/big for you, surely you’d need a crazy short stem on it so it’ll handle like a dog.

To be honest though if the 55 KTM is longer than your 56 Spec, and that’s too long anyway, why are you buying a KTM? It’s not a great deal if it’s the wrong size. I’d look at the dimensions of the 54 Scott if that worked for you and choose a new bike based on that. Saddle to bar drop easily altered with spacers.

is there any specific reason you’re looking at buying a new bike that’s longer and lower than the bike you already have that needs a shorter stem to make it fit you because you’re a bit overweight and inflexible?

what’s wrong with the Roubaix that the KTM addresses?
have you tried losing some weight and doing some work on your flexibility so the Roubaix fits you better (and you’ll be a more comfortable cyclist all-round), that’s a lot cheaper than a new bike, i’m not trolling, it’s a genuine question

Get a fast hybrid with flat bars; these are designed with an upright position in mind. Road bikes are designed to be long and low; by making them short and upright, you just end up with something that rides poorly, particularly at high speeds.

tbh I’m not sure here is the best place to ask for fit advice for a road bike. Most recreational mtbers look like a sack of shite sat on a road bike and don’t have a first clue about the difference in riding positions between the two disciplines. So their concept of what fits is bobbins.

If you already have one bike that does not fit you well, have no roadie friends who can advise you in the real world looking and riding with you on your current bike for comparison, I’d be shelling out for a bike fit before spending more on a new machine.

edit- a quick look at the revelator and whilst not extreme in geometry it’s not got the longest headtube relative to overall dimensions. There would be better frames for a fat and inflexible lad……like a roubaix 😉

Spending that sort of money it’s worth driving to a half decent bike shop to try a bike out or even a bike fit to get it really correct for you.

Cheers, Steve

KTM 57 is like other 56’s I have. I’m 5ft 10too and had a 57 KTM a couple of years ago.

I liked the position but if you don’t like a racy position it might not be for you.

Thanks all..just to clarify. I’m a little over weight but not a heffer (87kg) and typically ride 40-60 miles at 16-17 mph average. The current bike is a 2006 sworks roubaix which, although the frame is fine the wheels and groupset are failing. So thinking is it more logical to relegate this to a winter bike and buy a new one?

The 55 KTM”s reach is only 4mm more than the Roubaix but the horizontal top tube is 15 mm shorter (which seems weird). I guess replacing with a newer roubaix would be a safe options also!

You want a failing winter bike?

Seriously, I’ve never understood the logic…

At 5’10” you definitely need a 55, not a 57.

Don’t worry too much about the stem and bar height, with a Spesh you can make fairly big adjustments and your body will tolerate variations.

globalti – Member
At 5’10” you definitely need a 55, not a 57.

i’m 5′ 10″ and i’d definitely need a 57

there’s internet road bike sizing advice in a nutshell right there 😉

If in doubt, size down. You want an effective top tube of 55cm and a 100mm stem. For that frame you are a medium 55. Buy with confidence. Plenty of people ride road bikes too big.