[Closed] can you recommend a bike for my girlfriend?

There are 3 Cube FS bikes in the WLS range

http://www.cubebikeshop.co.uk/epages/es137350.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es137350/Categories/Bikes/Womens_MTB_Full_Suspension

Only problem is they only go up to 17" frames.

Santa Cruz Heckler or Orange 5 with a ladies saddle

Worry less about the bike being women's specific and more about the overall fit tbh...

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sorry

well, i'm just wondering what womens specific frames are available. There doesn't seem to be many frames suitable for her,... hopefully a mens frame will be ok!

Tandemjeremy - she says ''the views will be good, but the cranks should be lower!''

HansRey, I bought 3 bikes for my two daughters and my wife, my wife and younger daughter had a good fit on standard (mens) bikes a Meta 5.5 in medium and a Sc Heckler in Medium, and my eldest daughter fitted a Ladies Kona Four Lisa in a 17" , she found the other bikes to be totaly uncomfortable, my friends wife rides a 16" Orange 5 she didn't get on with the Diva 5 , so I'd try as many as you can. 🙂 forgot to mention the saddle makes a huge difference to the ladies 😀 so my wife tells me.. 😀

ey, the orange five is pretty cool, and the specialized myka elite, also kona bikes, there are quite a few, but as she is 6ft, then she could try a few mens bikes too.... tho the reach would be different ( demo alot thats my advice and then get a comfy saddle...i took my orange bike saddle off and replaced it with my specialized saddle..it was comfier... im only 5ft so my choice was very limited, but your girlfriend will have a whole array to look at with her size...so good luck with the bike choice...

I've always been a bit confused by the "what bike for my girlfriend?" questions. The bike your girlfriend needs is exactly the same as the one you need - i.e. the one she falls for and wants.

Send her out to shop 'till she drops and try out as many bikes as she can. Go along on occasion but don't feel the need to advise at every moment, unless asked to. It's her bike, not yours.

That said, I love my Nicolai Helius!!

Rachel

well, it's a bit tricky because she lives in Finland, so it's a case of flying over to UK, booking test rides and then hoping one bike is ok. There isn't much choice here. Having an idea of which bikes are suitable is really helpful, as I've got no idea!

Nicolai Helius you say?! I'd love one too! I'll have a look at Canyon too, they seem to deliver pan-europe, have a wide range and are good value.

Just to confirm, womens bikes generally have a shorter toptube. Is there anything else i should be aware of? Lower seat tube perhaps? What are your experiences of taking a regular mens frame and putting a shorter stem on it?

If your GF is 6'0" most normal frames should be suitable, womens specific models really only seem to be much of a benefit in teeny sizes.
I think the most important component to change would be the saddle, possibly followed by a respray in her favorite colour.

Shorter stems generally improve handling by making the steering response quicker. I'd suggest getting a slightly smaller frame if you think reach is going to be an issue, but as always, it depends on what kind of riding you're going to be doing.

What the others said in terms of fit - if a bike fits and she likes it then it's the right bike. The saddle can be important - I've changed one of mine but not an other. We both ride men's frames - I have found women specific frames too short for me. So it can't really be done as a remote online exercise.

If she lives in Finland and coming over here for test rides would one of the demo days work better? Wider range of bikes perhaps?

can you recommend a bike for my girlfriend?

Is there anything else i should be aware of?

ok, this is very helpful. I'll sort out a few demo days; hopefully taking some featuring Kona bikes so she can try both mens and womens frames. Any recommendations for a saddle? Somethings supportive and comfortable, not too bothered about weight, etc....

I have a male friend who was measured up, the result is that he should ride womens frames.

My wife is just over 5'10" and after trying (and discounting) lots of womens specific bikes, she bought a mens/unisex Giant Anthem X in medium. I'm 6' and it fits me perfectly too. Hers is the X4 base spec, only upgrades have been Elixir brakes and a decent Specialized D4W saddle. Bike weighs less than 27lbs with dirty great flat pedals - and the latest Deore drivetrain is as stiff and shifts as well as my year old XT stuff (with new cables)! Absolute rocket of a bike that performs far better than its 100mm travel suggests.

Depending on where we're riding, she also borrows my Orange Five (18" frame, 70mm stem), which fits her very well indeed. In her opinion, the Five is more difficult to handle in tight twisty stuff, but is really good on longer rides over natural moorland and bigger/steeper descents. She's also had a couple of rides on my Trek EX, which she said is 'OK'. Again, it's a mans 18" frame with shortish (70) stem, but fits her well - kind of a halfway house between the Anthem X and Five, but on ascents its a lot draggier than the Anthem - in fact, I'd say marginally worse than the Five, even with same tyre/wheel combination.

Er....so what i guess I'm saying is that you might be best just going straight for a mans/unisex frame, then just concentrate on finding a bike that suits her and the sort of terrain you'll be riding.

HTH, best of luck!

There's a piece in this month's MBR about lady specific bikes. for anyone over 5'8 you'll do much better to just get a normal bike. My girlfirend has just got a 16" cube fritzz and it's by far the nicest bike I've ever ridden it corners like a go kart and has such a nice position and suspension action you can bomb down black runs sat down.
she's 5'9 so a 18" stereo would be a great value, light and capabale bike for almost all riding styles.