Fit was what brought me to dial Grant at RBW. I have your same physiology and production bikes have never been optimal for me. Reaching an effective seated pedaling position and not having a huge drop or reach to the bars felt like a crusade and before the internet you had to carefully consider your sources. I thought I was calling to order a custom frame.
I really liked and had several Bridgestones, an RB-1, an MB-Ø and an X0-2. I sized those based on the option to try stock sizes at the shop where I worked, the big difference was that each of the three had pretty separate use riding intentions. Optimizing the fine adjustments of fit didn't always happen. I sold the MB-Ø because its frame was too light for the steep climbs of my region's trails. The XO-2 I bought for a silly low price from Bridgestone's garage sale clearance and went on permanent loan after realizing that the top tube fit was a good idea but in this format of bike it hobbled the riding position for my legs. The 26" wheels and level top tube required that I used a really long setback seat post and periscope-like stem to get myself on the bike effectively as regarding pedaling. I suffered a number of what are now "gravel" or "bikepacking" routes with this bike. My most miles were on the RB-1 but an opportunity to ride across the country with some folks made me focus on this bike's fit, bringing what I'd figured out from the others. I needed a medium stout tube set for my frame size and climbing, more so if carrying a load. The 700C level top tube format made stems less of an oddity for my fit but it still just wasn't right. Grant sold me on the Rambouillet for both fit and use. My cross country ride group was riding light, credit card camping in cheap motels and eating local along the way. He described the bike as perfect for my fit and this sort of riding, day in and day out. The secret sauce or prioritizing of geometry features of Riv models has sparked conversations here and otherwise for years. Compared to my RB-1, the Rambouillet had stouter tubing, longer stays, clearance for 700 x 32 tires with fenders, slacker head and seat tubes, shorter top tube, a bit more fork rake, a 2 cm head tube extension above the lug with the top tube and a 2° upslope of the top tube. The motive being to give the rider a more upright riding position for longer riding, for me it ended up perfecting my fit to the bike. Rivendell's hierarchy of all the geometry and tube spec details of a frame and fork come from the intended use and fit of a rider. They have been true to this through periods of other emphasis in the greater bicycle marketplace. A phone call or email to Riv to discuss your particular fit and model choice based on your actual and intended uses will advance your decision greatly. These are not self-sell bikes like those in rows at your local shop, they are detail-requisite bikes that require qualifying the buyer. As my riding evolved to include more unpaved miles and cargo for overnights (I'm 20 minutes from the Great Allegheny Passage), I began to have needs my Rambouillet couldn't accommodate. I envisioned a custom 650B front load preferring format to bring the loaded bicycle's front/rear balance closer to even. The wider tires permitting lower pressure and tubeless installation. Grant doesn't agree with 650B wheels in my frame size or the geometry for a front load favoring bike so a RIv custom wasn't to be. That's when after some talk, some measurements and some video of me riding my Rambouillet Johnny Coast build me a 650B custom low trail rando frame fork and stem. Results have been fantastic. Bicycle Quarterly's summer edition had a some lines about fit from the perspective of Albert Eisentrout and the proposition that in an optimum riding position on a well designed bike includes an imaginary line projected through the steering axis to the rider's ear. The idea being that sense of balance and spatial orientation comes from the inner ear structures and if those are as close to the point of articulation of the bike, the rider will be more "one" with the bike while riding. Anyway fit is everything once you've found your frame format, comfort with be the product. I vote you start a dialog with RIv about models and sizing. Andy Cheatham Pittsburgh On Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 1:26:19 AM UTC-4 [email protected] wrote: > Hello everyone, > > Keen to jump on the Riv bandwagon, I have some questions I would > appreciate your opinion on. > (Although opinion is a strong word for cyclists, let's say your > *thoughts)* > > 1. PBH vs height - Do you also look at the height when selecting a bike > size or only pbh? I have an unusually high pbh it seems - around 86 cm at > 5'7" - and have my saddles and bars pretty high. When selecting a Riv frame > size should I just look at the pbh and go for it - or should I factor in > the height somewhere too? > > 2. 650b vs 700c - For those who have ridden both, would you have any > suggestions for going either direction if one could choose between two > frame sizes? I think the tyre and rim options for 700c are quite high and > solely based on that I would consider this size. > > 3. JA/Atlantis go big or small - Considering how long the top tubes on > these bikes have gotten do you think they lose the option to convert to > drop bars? Analog cycles is a strong proponent of going as short as 0mm on > the (threadless) stem and they are happy running flared bars on their > really long bikes so probably there is room to push anyway.. > > 4. long (er) chainstays - same as above, the chainstays are longer as > compared to the previous models (for these bikes).. I read through older > forum posts that have compared ride experiences with both and it seems > there is a noticeable (good?) effect. For those of you who bought the newer > versions for touring - is the longer chainstay a significant hindrance in > transporting bikes or flying with them? > > Thank you for helping out, > peter > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/10a40c07-d7f6-44d6-b4fa-d8ad17fd78f0n%40googlegroups.com.
