Merida Ride Lite 93, Specialized Secteur Sport or Felt Z6?

shulbert

Hi,

I am looking to spend about £800 on a road bike. The last road bike I had had Reynolds 531 tubing as I recall, which tells you how long ago that was! But I am a keen mountain biker mainly on lanes - and want to upgrade to a bike designed for the road. I am rather a small bloke at 5' 8" and also have shorter than average arms. So I am interesting in looking at bikes with a slightly shorter reach.

So far my shortlist is:
Merida Ride Lite 93 which my bike shop recommends. They suggest a 52cm frame. That bike has a reach of 378mm. The snag is that they can't get one until late March!!!
Specialized Secteur Sport Triple. 52cm frame, and this appears also to have a 378mm reach. Available by Jan 3rd.
Then I spotted a good deal on a 51cm Felt Z6 which is obviously slightly smaller and has a reach of 373mm. Available now.

My inside leg is 29".

I was interested in whether anyone was similar to me and has one of these frame sizes, or has tried one. I know that trying a bike is important and it might be personal taste, but any advice would be welcome.

Finally, does anyone know whether any of these bikes have the connections for a rack?

Thanks for and advice you can give....

Steve.

ForumNewbie

I think the Secteur 52cm may be too small for you. I am 5'8", 29in inside leg and shortish arms as well and I have a Specialized Sirrus hybrid 54cm frame, which is the right size for me. I also have a Cube road bike 56cm which is also the right fit for me as Cube sizes are smaller, but probably equivalent to a Specialized road bike 54cm.

mustgettaller

shulbert wrote:

Hi,

I am looking to spend about £800 on a road bike. The last road bike I had had Reynolds 531 tubing as I recall, which tells you how long ago that was! But I am a keen mountain biker mainly on lanes - and want to upgrade to a bike designed for the road. I am rather a small bloke at 5' 8" and also have shorter than average arms. So I am interesting in looking at bikes with a slightly shorter reach.

So far my shortlist is:
Merida Ride Lite 93 which my bike shop recommends. They suggest a 52cm frame. That bike has a reach of 378mm. The snag is that they can't get one until late March!!!
Specialized Secteur Sport Triple. 52cm frame, and this appears also to have a 378mm reach. Available by Jan 3rd.
Then I spotted a good deal on a 51cm Felt Z6 which is obviously slightly smaller and has a reach of 373mm. Available now.

My inside leg is 29".

I was interested in whether anyone was similar to me and has one of these frame sizes, or has tried one. I know that trying a bike is important and it might be personal taste, but any advice would be welcome.

Finally, does anyone know whether any of these bikes have the connections for a rack?

Thanks for and advice you can give....

Steve.

I'm 5' 7", with an inside leg of 29-30" (I think!) and have done 1000s of miles on my 54 inch Secteur, so as someone else has said, I think the 52" might be too small for you. However it may be that your shorter reach mandates the smaller frame. The only way to find out is to try one!

The secteur has rack lugs on it - I've got a rack on mine.