bike fit with mustache bars?

[jadmt]

do bars change things fit wise? I am 5'9" actually just a fraction under but not much. Using the bike fit thingamabob my inseam is 82cm. the bike I wanted came in either 53 or 56 and the shop talked me into a 56 even tho my gut told me to go with the 53. I have the saddle set to ~72.4cm which feels good and bars are just slightly lower than seat but that feels pretty normal. longest ride I have done is 62 miles and no discomfort. still seems like the frame is big to me, what do the experts say? should I have gone with the 53 or just be satisfied with the 56? I am 64yoa and just getting back into cycling after several years off. I was a fairly serous cyclist in my 30's and raced and did many centuries and doubles centuries. bike stuff has changed immensely over the years since I got back into it. here is a photo of how my bike is now. thanks

[fa63]

I think that answers it

Originally Posted by jadmt

I have the saddle set to ~72.4cm which feels good and bars are just slightly lower than seat but that feels pretty normal. longest ride I have done is 62 miles and no discomfort

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by fa63

I think that answers it

maybe I am overthinking things . I was always used to riding a 54cm seat tube center to center (last bike was mid 90's ritchey road logic) and 54cm tt so this seems really long. I guess in reality they measure different as they are measuring from bb to top of seat tube.

[Frankwurst]

Originally Posted by jadmt

maybe I am overthinking things . I was always used to riding a 54cm seat tube center to center (last bike was mid 90's ritchey road logic) and 54cm tt so this seems really long. I guess in reality they measure different as they are measuring from bb to top of seat tube.

You are. If you want a smaller XOXO order one up and I'll take your 56 frame off your hands. I'm 5'9" and my saddle height is 75 You'll be fine. Tweak it to your liking or try new bars. FWIW I've had mustache bars on 4 different bikes.

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by Frankwurst

You are. If you want a smaller XOXO order one up and I'll take your 56 frame off your hands. I'm 5'9" and my saddle height is 75 You'll be fine. Tweak it to your liking or try new bars. FWIW I've had mustache bars on 4 different bikes.

I like the mustache bars. I might try a different stem with a positive rise vs the -17*. I would almost be tempted to do that but only size left in 53 is tusk.

[tellyho]

Judging by the amount of seatpost and stem you have showing, that setup looks appropriate for you. You could try to shorten the cockpit by raising the bars some more.

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by tellyho

Judging by the amount of seatpost and stem you have showing, that setup looks appropriate for you. You could try to shorten the cockpit by raising the bars some more.

that probably is my plan. this stem is up about to the max line. I think I will go with a stem that has a positive rise. thanks.

[jadmt]

Test

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by Frankwurst

You are. If you want a smaller XOXO order one up and I'll take your 56 frame off your hands. I'm 5'9" and my saddle height is 75 You'll be fine. Tweak it to your liking or try new bars. FWIW I've had mustache bars on 4 different bikes.

question being you have had mustache bars on 4 different bikes, how does the stem specs change between mustache and drop bars? Ie if decide to try drop bars say something like nitto 132 or 135's or something like those would I have to change my stem if the mustache bars and current stem seem to be a good fit? thanks. long winter is here so getting bored I guess.

[thew]

Originally Posted by jadmt

question being you have had mustache bars on 4 different bikes, how does the stem specs change between mustache and drop bars? Ie if decide to try drop bars say something like nitto 132 or 135's or something like those would I have to change my stem if the mustache bars and current stem seem to be a good fit? thanks. long winter is here so getting bored I guess.

I’ve generally found that I want slightly more stack and less reach at the bar clamp with mustache as compared to drop bars (ie switching to drops I’d use a slightly longer stem, with less espoused steerer). Don’t forget to factor the reach of your drop bars in though—I just swapped mustaches out for super long-reach maes parallel drop bars on my fixed gear and had to switch to a shorter stem to maintain a similar riding position.

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by thew

I’ve generally found that I want slightly more stack and less reach at the bar clamp with mustache as compared to drop bars (ie switching to drops I’d use a slightly longer stem, with less espoused steerer). Don’t forget to factor the reach of your drop bars in though—I just swapped mustaches out for super long-reach maes parallel drop bars on my fixed gear and had to switch to a shorter stem to maintain a similar riding position.

Thank you. So would you say 90 or 100mm length would be close?

[thew]

Originally Posted by jadmt

Thank you. So would you say 90 or 100mm length would be close?

Can’t say without knowing more about your current setup and the drop bars you hope to use. Here’s a neat online tool that calculates the difference in in height and reach for different stem lengths and heights—add in bar reach and you should be able to get a sense of your hand position in different setups: http://yojimg.net/bike/web_tools/stem.php

[pdxharth]

Think about how high that stem would have to be jacked up to get the bars in the same place with a 54. It's already up there pretty high.

When I used mustache bars, I used a shorter stem, which helped me feel more comfortable because the reach is greater than with drop bars.

Grant Peterson always said that mustache bars are best when they are at seat level or higher, so it looks like you nailed it since you went over 60 miles with no issues.

Originally Posted by jadmt

maybe I am overthinking things . I was always used to riding a 54cm seat tube center to center (last bike was mid 90's ritchey road logic) and 54cm tt so this seems really long. I guess in reality they measure different as they are measuring from bb to top of seat tube.

[jadmt]

Originally Posted by pdxharth

Think about how high that stem would have to be jacked up to get the bars in the same place with a 54. It's already up there pretty high.

When I used mustache bars, I used a shorter stem, which helped me feel more comfortable because the reach is greater than with drop bars.

Grant Peterson always said that mustache bars are best when they are at seat level or higher, so it looks like you nailed it since you went over 60 miles with no issues.

thank you and very true. I probably need to look for a new stem with a positive rise angle. I tried to post a video of me riding on rollers to get some input on fit but won't let me post a video. I gotta be honest I did not really think I was going to get hooked on cycling again after all these years but got the bike bug bad.

[Pegoready]

Echoing what everyone else is saying, the 56 looks right for you. The post exposure looks good. You're on the very edge of being able to get your bars up to a comfortable height with the 56's head tube length. On a size smaller you'd have to run a lot of stem quill out of the frame and/or use a dirt drop style quill stem which would look odd and add flex.

The fact that you can ride that bike 62 miles comfortably tells me everything-- the fit is pretty close to perfect. I think a lot of riders would struggle to ride a 26" wheeled, heavy gauge steel frameset bike 62 miles no matter how well it fits. Bravo!