# TREK and Specialized bikes sizing



## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

I am looking at a new bike and I am comparing the Madones to the SL3's. Looking at the Geometries of these two bike, it looks like they are very similar. I am going to go ride both bikes but is there any real difference in the frame as far as sizing is concern? 
I am replacing a 55cm Kestrel RT700 with this new bike and am not sure which will match up better, the Specialized or the Trek. 

Anyone know the geo's of TREK and Specialized bikes to comment on the numbers they post online. Are the sizes going to be the same once you consider the angles of the Head and Seat tubes? Specialized seem to have a shorter chain stay, does this result in fast acceleration?

thanks for the help.


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## ping771 (Apr 10, 2006)

roy harley said:


> I am looking at a new bike and I am comparing the Madones to the SL3's. Looking at the Geometries of these two bike, it looks like they are very similar. I am going to go ride both bikes but is there any real difference in the frame as far as sizing is concern?
> I am replacing a 55cm Kestrel RT700 with this new bike and am not sure which will match up better, the Specialized or the Trek.
> 
> Anyone know the geo's of TREK and Specialized bikes to comment on the numbers they post online. Are the sizes going to be the same once you consider the angles of the Head and Seat tubes? Specialized seem to have a shorter chain stay, does this result in fast acceleration?
> ...


Assuming you are completed dialed in on fit with your Kestrel, I would bring it in to a reputable Specialized and Trek bike shop and have their fitter look at your bike set up. 
For the purposes here though, my gut tells me that on a Tarmac, you would fit better on a 54cm though the top tube on the Tarmac is about 54.8cm, whereas your Kestrel is a 55.4cm. The Tarmac 56cm has a 56.5cm top tube, considerably longer. 

The Kestrel has a short headtube, even for your bike size (14cm on a 55cm bike), but then again, I don't know how many spacers you're running. 

However on a Madone, whether Pro (H1) or Performance Fit (H2) fit, you would likely be a 56cm. On the Performance Fit, you would easily ride a 56cm since the headtube is a massive 17cm, which would shorten your frame reach.


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## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

ping771 said:


> Assuming you are completed dialed in on fit with your Kestrel, I would bring it in to a reputable Specialized and Trek bike shop and have their fitter look at your bike set up.
> For the purposes here though, my gut tells me that on a Tarmac, you would fit better on a 54cm though the top tube on the Tarmac is about 54.8cm, whereas your Kestrel is a 55.4cm. The Tarmac 56cm has a 56.5cm top tube, considerably longer.
> 
> The Kestrel has a short headtube, even for your bike size (14cm on a 55cm bike), but then again, I don't know how many spacers you're running.
> ...


Thanks Ping that was on the same lines that I was thinking/guessing. On the Kestrel I was running close to 1.5-2.0 cm of spacers on top of a Cane Creek headset. I was hit by a car on my bike and the bike is broke in half at the top & down tube. That is also why I am looking at a new bike. One hell of a way to upgrade your road bike that I don't recommend!!! 

I am going to get fit for either bike regardless but more on the back end of things. I am hoping to ride the bikes first for some feel and then narrow it down to which one felt better. I can get a good idea of the ride characteristics and then decide if I feel like there is some tweaking that needs to be done or maybe another size to start from. Either way both bikes come with a free fit from the LBS. I really am interested in getting the fit transferred over to the bike I take home with me from their shop and I am looking to maybe go further and do some more in depth Biomechanical fitting with actually looking at my riding positions on video software for analysis of body, knee, foot angles and knee tracking in a real-time system as I ride the bike that I choose.


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## roy harley (Oct 22, 2006)

So here are the Trek and Specialized bikes I rode. I am still concerned over the ride/feel of both bikes. The Trek was very smooth and stable for me. The Specialized really accelerated but felt a bit twitchy. I was riding tubeless wheels on the trek which really gave a softer ride. The Dura Ace wheels are amazing!

Both bikes were pretty amazing but I was concerned about the stack height on the Trek. It looked like a lot (3cm and a 7 degree stem) but the fit was good. I was riding on a 56cm H2 geometry frame. The Specialize was also a 56cm and it felt a little bit longer than the Trek. Any thoughts on the stack heights? My old Kestrel, like I said before had about 1.5-2cm of stack height. I will need a set back post on the Madone if I go with that size frame.


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