# Fx Pro Bike Sizing



## hrumpole (Jun 17, 2008)

I'm not sure which forum this belongs in; a more general one on bike fit or the manufacturer forum. I had a really disturbing conversation in an LBS a couple of days ago, and I wanted to run this by the board (as well as a couple of other bike shops). Here's the story: a couple of months ago, I bought (after a lot of research) a Fantom Cross Pro, 52CM. I sized it a couple of ways--the most important one being that I went to an LBS to test ride a Fuji cross comp--whose geometry is, according to the BD and Moto sites, identical. That bike shop put me on a 52 which I test rode and it felt fine. This was primarily based on standover height, and there's just about an inch of clearance, if that.

It's been awhile since I was really into the sport, and noticed the following two things that I thought needed adjustment. First, in the first few weeks of riding, the handlebars seemed to low, so I got a stem extender, which made things a lot more comfortable. Second, when I went out for a long time (3hrs plus), I found that my hands were weak the following day. This suggested to me that I was putting too much weight on them. Third (and I noticed this recently) when I wanted to stand and really push my hips back, I felt like I was at the end of my arm's length. 

So I walked into the store, and told him about the second and third problems discussed above, and that I wondered what kind of advice he could give me about a different stem. The response was as follows: that he would give me no fit advice, nor would he charge me for retro-fit because, in his view, the frame was simply too small. This was a function of cross-frame geometry, according to him. He also said that my seat was pushed all the way back and it shouldn't be, and that the store that sold me the stem extender did me no favors. He never saw me on the bike.

Now, I know there' s hostility to online bike merchants, and if there's any blame here it's mine: the bike came exactly as described. I'm just throwing this out to the board for their general reactions to the following questions. First, if the bike was in fact too small, what would it feel like? How would I know? Second, is there anything particular to cross geometry that I should have taken into account? Or did I just screw up on geometry via the top tube? Will a shorter stem with a steeper angle than that which came on it fix or ameliorate the problems that I have? 

It's an expensive mistake; the bike at the time that I bought it was 1049, and has since gone up another hundred bucks. I'm more really pissed off at myself for the research errors than anything else.


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## Peanya (Jun 12, 2008)

The top tube length matters most in size. Go to competitive cyclist and do their fit calculator. If you're feeling too stretched out, it might be that you're just needing to get into shape. I'd recommend instead of using a stem extender, to flip the stem over so it's in the "up" position. You also might need a shorter stem, but time will be a better answer. Call up another bike shop and schedule a fitting. Tell them that you have a bike you already own and need to get fit. If they're a good shop, then they'll do it regardless of where you bought it. 
Also, move your hands more when riding, this helps keep them from going numb.


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## hrumpole (Jun 17, 2008)

Thanks. I went to another bike shop, who gave me pretty much the same advice, and were much much nicer about it. It's a top tube problem; one that may or may not be able to be fixed via other adjustments. The most striking thing was that the guy in the other shop was not an a****e about it at all, and there wasn't the hard sell. He was also a lot more encouraging--about putting something together with the parts on the Moto (which he acknowledged were good). Best case, another part; worst case, different frame. 

FWIW, the rep at this store said that these bikes can give you great bang for the buck if you get the sizing exactly right. There definitely seems to be a current in the "bike world" of folks who are "too cool" to answer certain questions from people who don't know as much as they do. It's amazing to me the douchebag factor in this business--(this is not the first time I've had this kind of experience in bike stores, though never at that level of dismissiveness). So I'm headed back to store #2 hopefully later this week to work with them.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

I'm glad you found a shop that was willing to work with you. 

If you get sized again and the person trying to fit you mentions standover, run, don't walk out of the shop..Standover is the most useless measurement in road bike sizing..

In my experience top tube is probaby the most important measurement....

Good luck and please give us a progress report...


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## 20sMotoSpirit (May 27, 2007)

Its not useless... For the bicycle nubies...Stand over is a starting point...

Then comes reach, rise and stack.

However, it only works on traditional Geo frames. 

When I got my Compact 55cm in exchange for my Trad. 56cm.. it felt weird.

Most people are just used to having a bike feel a certain way


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