Trek 5500 OCLV or Pinarello Dogma AK61 - RESULT!!!

Stewpot407

Afternoon everyone,

After a 27 years gap I decided to jump back on a bike to get fit, do a bit of touring, the odd commute (27 miles each way) as well as a handful of Sportives throughout the year.

That all started 2 years ago when a fellow Lotus car nut offered me his old (1996) Trek 5500 OCLV for a few hundred pounds. Full carbon, 9 speed Ultregra group set along with some fancy, aero-ish wheels. Even though he’s 6’2” and I’m 5’10” at the time I figured that I could do something with adjusting the seat etc to make it fit me... I took him up on his offer. Forward on two year and I can confirm that, as it stands, the bike is too big for me (just!) and without spending an unknown amount of dosh it always will be uncomfortable to ride for more than a couple of hours at a time.




Now the tricky bit, another friend has a Pinarello Dogma AK61 (I think 2008???). Its the right size for me, immaculate, everything is either Magnesium, Carbon or Titanium and has only been ridden 3 times plus its extremely rare! Oh and he’s after just over a grand for it.

And so the dilemma... spend to make the Trek fit plus update a few of the components or shell out my savings on the Dogma, a lovely but aging bike?

What say you?

Cheers

Stew

lc1981

Is the setup of the Trek in the photo the setup you've been riding it with? Because that stem is at a very odd angle, as if someone has tried to compensate for the frame being too small, not too big (or is it an attempt to get the bars closer to you?). The shifters are also pointing up into the air as a result, which can't be helping with your comfort.

cougie

Why is the bike too big ? You could lower that saddle and get a shorter stem.

TBH I'd not buy an ageing Pinarello, they're overpriced anyway and not really collectors items. A new off the peg bike might not be as flash - but might function better. And you can get it to fit you.

lc1981

Yes, if I had £1000 to spend, I'd buy a new bike that I knew fitted, rather than a five-year-old Pinarello.

sloppyschleckonds

Go to a bike shop and get fitted properly

Stewpot407

The picture was one used to show me what the bike looked like before I tried it a couple of years ago. I've since moved the stem which is adjustable as well as twisted the bars. Fitting wise, the seat is the right height from the peddles but I can hardly touch the floor with my toes if I'm sat on the seat. Also the bars are too far away which in turn puts a lot of strain on my wrists. The Trek size must be a 58-60, where as my LBS measured me on their Trek as a 54.

The Dogma may as well be brand new, it was just bought and stored. It might well have been over priced when he bought it but at just over a grand now I wondered if it then became good value for money...Oh and the Dogma is a 54.

Cheers

Stew

Bobbinogs

Touching the floor with your feet when sat on the saddle is not the mark of a well fitted bike. If you think about it, given that the wheels remain the same size and most BBs are located in the same horizontal area (roughly) then you could be sat on any sized bike and have the same issue if the saddle is set to the same/right height.

It would be interesting to see a piccie of your bike the way that it is now so that we could get a better idea of whether the saddle position (fore/aft and height) look about right for the frame. Also, what size stem is that as it looks pretty long? If it is a 120 (or more) then you could easily drop to a 90 without the steering going wild and that would help with reach. You could buy a cheapo stem off ebay and see what you think. Don't like it? Just flog it again for the same amount you paid for it.

Ultimately though, if the bike is the wrong size then don't put up with it. I swapped a bike (via ebay buying/selling) from a 56 (with a high headtube) to a 54 (with a much lower headtube) and I now simply love riding the smaller frame, as opposed to constantly faffing with setup trying to find the right combination, even with a bike fit. My old bike always felt like someone else's bike, which it is now

lc1981

If it's a 58-60, then it sounds like it's definitely too big and no amount of adjustment will make it fit.

Stewpot407

Thanks chaps all makes sense... I'll be home in an hour or so and will take a piccie just for laughs.

Cheers

Stew

Pooter

The frame in the photo is a 54cm. You could tell the size of these old 5200/5500/5900 by looking at the headtube, and how the toptube and downtube meet. If it feels big it's because of the strange stem .

cooper.michael1

Pooter wrote:

The frame in the photo is a 54cm. You could tell the size of these old 5200/5500/5900 by looking at the headtube, and how the toptube and downtube meet. If it feels big it's because of the strange stem .

Yeah I concur with this, I doubt it is a 60cm frame.

A shorter stem and compact handlebars could be all you require to make it fit.

Stewpot407

I'd be chuffed if the frame was the right size... wasn't sure where to take the measurements from the distance between my thumbs is 54cm's

antonyfromoz

+1 on the value for a proper fitting on the Trek but if this is the Pinarello then it might be worthwhile getting it anyway: http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?p=1311534

Sounds like a fantastic bike...

Edit: Just noticed that one of these bikes had been for sale on Ebay for £1200 - not sure if it sold or not:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PINARELLO-DOG ... 446wt_1200

Stewpot407

Its the same as the blue/black/white one but with a carbon chain ring-inner-cranky-arm-thingy and it still has the original wheels with blue tyres!!! I'm taking it out for a test ride on saturday morning and will take a couple of piccies of that too.

cooper.michael1

antonyfromoz wrote:

+1 on the value for a proper fitting on the Trek but if this is the Pinarello then it might be worthwhile getting it anyway: http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?p=1311534

Sounds like a fantastic bike...

Edit: Just noticed that one of these bikes had been for sale on Ebay for £1200 - not sure if it sold or not:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PINARELLO-DOG ... 446wt_1200

I had one very similar, it is older than 2008 I'm almost certain. I'd date it to 2002-4, it is in the colours of the Fassa Bortolo team, who wound up around that time. See link below Petacchi in 2003.

http://ftp.cyclingnews.com/giro.php?id= ... acchidogma

Stewpot407

after days of looking...

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tech.php ... ogmafp_207

Plus these wheels...

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tech.php ... -07-30-052

And you have the bike I'm being offered. Little surprised at the age, could it still be worth a smidge over £1000 ?

Cheers

Stew

Bobbinogs

Stewpot, the 54cm reading you have taken was off the toptube whereas bike's are usually measured in seat tube length, although this gets a bit vague when it comes to modern compact designs with sloping toptubes...and then some manufacturer's seem to make it up as they go along.

However, your bike is nice and old school with it's flat TT so measure the seat tube from centre of BB to middle of the horizontal plane of the TT (as in, don't go vertical with the measure but follow the seat tube line until the centre plane of the TT). I reckon that the folks thinking this is definitely not a 58-60 are probably right. It would be really unusual to have a such a large frame with a relatively short TT. I see you still have that fugly stem on and a rather strange angle to boot. Also, the saddle is quite high out of the seat tube which, if it is set at the correct height for your legs, would indicate that the frame is far from too small!!

I would double check your seat position, get a decent stem and see how you go before splashing more cash. However, if the post is really about "should I buy a new bike" then the answer is always "yes" and you can dispense with the bike fit stuff.

Stewpot407

Thanks for that, I'll measure up again tonight.

If you look at this one, which I'm guessing is the same as its original set up, you'll see the height difference between the bars and saddle. With my pot belly (its getting smaller honest!) that riding position is an issue ... http://weightweenies.starbike.com/articles.php?ID=82

You can't really see it in my photo but I actually had to raise the stem even further to make it a little more comfortable for me.

As for a new bike...not if I can help it. I spend far too much on running my race car http://www.snappyracers.com/album/2012/ ... P7657.html

Cheers

Stew

gangxu

I'm currently borrowing/ridding a friends Trek 5500 too!!

Its about 9 years old, and has a full DuraAce groupset on it. It's a 60cm frame bike. I have also just bought a newer Trek 3.1 (2011), frame size 58cm, with 105 group-set, and put some DuraAce wheels on it. Despite the 5500 been much older and having a larger frame, the 5500 still fells lighter (just) than the 3.1.

I'm not looking forwards to having to hand the 5500 back to my mate, the way it rides is just fab, so if you can get comfortable position on the 5500, its defiantly worth spending a bit to get the right stem/seat etc. Having said that getting a bike that fits must be a top priority. A 6 cm frame size difference between what your LBS fitted you on and what your current bike is MASSIVE. For me when I tried a 56cm frame it instantly felt far too small, I'm 5'11.

Stewpot407

Right oh...

So what size does this make it?

cooper.michael1

Stewpot407 wrote:

Right oh...

So what size does this make it?

54cm.

Stewpot407

Damn, that means I need to spend money to make it fit me :lol

gangxu

cooper.michael1 wrote:

Stewpot407 wrote:

Right oh...

So what size does this make it?

54cm.

Gosh this really shows how unreliable height is as a guide to bike fitting. I'm only 1 inch taller and there is no way I could be comfortable on a 56cm frame let alone a 54cm one!!

Stewpot407

I went out on the Dogma today, only 5 miles (twice round a little 2.5 circuit) with 50% uphill and the rest pointing downwards. My oh, my oh my...

For an old bike the Dogma was incredibly solid, light and assertive just like my Trek only better

When bought this particular Pina it was spec'd with Campag Record which was top of its game in its day and IMHO is massively superior to the Shimano Ultregra that's fitted to my Trek.

ARGH... I'm no further on really. The Pina is lovely and if money wasn't factor I'd take it. The problem is that at the back of my mind I can sort the Trek to similar spec of the Pina for around £1200 ( not far off the asking price of the Pina) But and its a massive but the Trek will never be as smooth across the tarmac bitchamin.

Oh strewth.

Stewpot407

aaargh! I tried really hard but in the end, looks won over common sense....

just a little teaser :

SheldonCooper

A couple things: my eye and your tape both say 54cm which is good but mabe small for you. To verify, look inside the rear drop out is engraved with the size. You need a new stem is the US $20 would do the trick. The angle is not the problem, its the length. If you are older and or have a belly, getting the stem raised higher gives a more comfortable riding poisition. My guess is you are stretched way too far forward because of the length of that stem. An adjustable 90cm should make you happy. Fyi people tend to hate on treks because they are popular. That 5500 is one of the nicest bikest ever made. It can be build lightening fast and comfortable...a rare combination these days.

Stewpot407

I still have the Trek so may start a rebuild project.