Cannondale CAAD8 SIZING

arun_caad8

Hi All,

This might be the same question asked millions of times in this forum but i would like to get clarified of my doubt from the knowledge base of this forum.

My Measurements in cm
Inseam:80.5-81
Trunk:61
Forearm:37
Arm:68.5
Thigh:61
Lower Leg:57
Sternal Notch:147
Total Body Height:176(5ft 9.25 inches)

I was riding a compact geometry btwin 54cm for the past 5 years and been bored by the bike ,i recently got the idea to buy a high end road bike and ended up to pick Cannondale Caad8 due to its traditional geometry (i love the vintage looks).I checked in the website such as competitive cyclist that for my proportions ,as per eddy fit i need to got for a frame which got c-c around 55cm.Although most websites online and general fit guidelines suggest me to go for 54 cm frame ,i somehow liked bigger frame and opted for 56 cm caad8 105 2014 model and got the bike after some test driving it(test drove 2013 tiagra caad8).I got too much influenced on a article by road frame selection by rivendell cycles and went for a bit bigger frame for comfort and vintage looks of less seat post exposed.

Now its been 3 days and am finding the bike to be a bit big for my measurements .I got just fistfull of seatpost exposed and is it fine to select a frame size to just expose fistfull(4 inches of seat post?) .Also am finding myself a too much streched only after riding the bike for 35 miles.The stem length is 110 and guess by putting a 100 stem it will be somewhat forgiving.Also the saddle to handle drop is very less ,will this count for comfort as i thought.

Please throw some lights on my selection and cannondale owners share your comments as well.Shall i sell this newly bought bike and go for a 54 cm frame or wait for some more time and find whether i will get used to the new bike and new cycling angling which may be more comfortable over time...

Thanks everyone for reading this huge question and replying me..

Tx
Arun

chemicalviking

Recently took delivery of a 2015 caad8 54cm frame , I'm 5ft 10 and it fits amazing like a glove infact
Great bike and the shimano 105 11 speed is a dream and surprisingly the cannondale saddle is the best I've used and I've tried fizik etc.

Hope that helps somewhat ?

arun_caad8

Thanks! for your comment...i feel i did a mistake by selecting a 56

chemicalviking

arun_caad8 wrote:

Thanks! for your comment...i feel i did a mistake by selecting a 56

Have ordered it already ? If so just give them a call or an email and change the size ??

arun_caad8

I already got the bike on hand ..and was riding for 2 days and found that the frame seems to be little bit big for me..

dj58

Sounds like it is to big. Did you by the bike from a shop, you mention rivendell cycles, If you have only ridden the bike twice stop now. Contact the shop and explain your concern and ask if they are prepared to take it back in exchange for the 54cm. Or is it a sale bike, do they have it in 54cm?

Yes you will have less saddle to handlebar drop with the 56cm, but as you have discovered it will also be longer. You could put a shorter stem on it and that may help. Did you try the 54cm for size?

arun_caad8

@DJ58

Yes i do tried 54 cms while felt ok but when i test drove 2013 caad8 i found its comfortable and hence i opted for new 2014 caad8 5 and the 2014 seems little bit different from 2013 models(Not sure though).Also i read somewhere that bigger is best and due to some personal visual look went for 56cm and now its 2 days and finding the bike is not a profer fit to me after riding it for 50 km.Still some tweaking as u said like reducing the stem from 110 to 100 or 90 and lower the stem a bit may help.But my question is even doing so will it be a bad fit or should i go for 54cm.I need a frame size which is a balance for performance and comfort.Please suggest.i will contact the shop too..

chemicalviking

I would phone the shop to see if they would swap the sizes over , it's worth a try.

darkhairedlord

If you can't swap then flip the stem so its not pointing up and take out some of the spacers. Then you will lean forward more, bringing the bars closer. Alternatively try a shorter stem.

arun_caad8

@darkhairlord

Yes i guess your suggestion were rt.
Am gonna remove some spacers from the stem and would replace a 90 mm stem rather than 110 mm stem.
By the way is there any other drawbacks of riding a slightly bigger frame?

paulmon

darkhairedlord wrote:

If you can't swap then flip the stem so its not pointing up and take out some of the spacers. Then you will lean forward more, bringing the bars closer. Alternatively try a shorter stem.

Is this right? Surely this is what you would do if the frame was too small (move the bars away). If the frame feels to big (over stretching) then flipping the stem so its pointing upwards and adding spacers will make it closer (assuming its a 6 degree stem).

I happy to be told I'm wrong on this though.

P

dj58

Arun,

The general consensus is that if you are between two frame sizes, in this case a 54cm and 56cm, then go for the smaller frame as it is easier to make adjustments to a smaller frame to make it fit than making a larger frame smaller.

Some people do prefer to ride a slightly larger frame because they like the taller head tube and reach, It all depends on your physical make up as everyone is proportioned differently, e.g. long legs, short body, long arms, short legs, long body, short arms, etc. That is why some people recommend having a bike fit before you purchase a bike. A bigger frame will be heavier if that matters to you.

If you cannot exchanged the bike, then you can try fitting a shorter stem and see how you get on with it.

foggymike

5-10 here and have a 54 with a 120 stem as I like a lowish front end. I agree with the folks above you sound like a 54 would be a better bet.

They should swap it if you explain and ask nicely. They can always swap over the wheels and saddle if they show any signs of use. Good luck with it.

arun_caad8

All the primary reason for me to choose 56 cm over 54 cm were highly influenced and with some practical experiences as per the below blogs.

http://bikeretrogrouch.blogspot.in/2013 ... tions.html
http://www.rivbike.com/kb_results.asp?ID=41

All bikers please read and throw some light on the above blog.

Tx

Tjgoodhew

I am 181 cm and ride a 56cm Caad so i would say its too big.

However it does depend on your body proportions. As others have said you can try a few alterations to make the bike slightly more comfortable but if its too big then you are unlikely to ever be truly happy with it.

If you cant change the bike for a smaller size it may be worth seeing what the options are in terms of selling the 56cm frame and buying a 54cm frame and swapping all of your components over. It may put you out of pocket short term but it may avoid the need for constant adjustments, new stems etc....

darkhairedlord

the 54 is has a reach just 11mm shorter than the 56. that's 1.1cm! not very much at all, so just stick a shorter stem on and it will be fine!

pj101

I actually choose to ride bikes with a taller head tube for comfort reasons, and that usually means buying the larger size to lessen the saddle to bar drop. So your reasoning for buying the 56 sounds fine to me.

To me aggressive bent over positions are more suited to short fast races and are not particularly comfortable (for me at least) over 3hrs+, 60mile+ rides.

Another option to reduce a few mm from the reach is slightly less layback on the seatpost. May be worth checking your position in relation to the pedals and seeing if this is an option as it won't affect your handling like a shorter stem may.

arun_caad8

@PJ01

Thanks PJ. I guess i did a mistake intially by saying the shop i will fit the saddle height myself and ask them to keep the saddle height at 73.5 cm from top of saddle to the centre of the crank as per my compact frame(previous one 54cm) which i was riding for 4 years and they have mistakenly set it for 75(they kept 73.5 as of seat post top and missed the saddle) which i have not noticed till the first two rides.Today i set the saddle back to 73.5 cm(top of saddle to crank centre) and now am finding the bike is very much comfortable with not much alterations.I ride 35-40 Miles almost daily and 50 - 60 miles on weekend and on my 54cm compact frame(btwin) i can ride faster but it somehow lack the comfort somewhere(I felt little bit crunched as with 54cm the tt is short too).56 cm as you said for my height 176 cm am feeling really comfortable .I need to check whether it really improves my performance too.

Am a recreational rider(serious) and clearly look for a perfect balance of comfort and performance with more inclination towards comfort as am not going to race but just enjoy the long fitness rides i do everyday.

let me ride more and find whether this option of selecting 56 cm is really going to be revelation to me or not.

I like to quote something from the blog links i posted earlier written by Grant Petersen's
"And yet, riders back then were a lot more comfortable. We aren't suggesting that you go by "a fistfull of seat post," but that simplistic approach was (and still is) successful because it allowed the handlebar to be close to the height of the saddle. So it resulted in a fit that took weight off your hands, and strain off your neck and lower back."

arun_caad8

My caad8 with newly set saddle height.Need to ride more to still fine tune it.
http://postimg.org/image/8q4mwwlor/

arun_caad8

Hi everyone who replied on this thread ,i really thank each one of you for taking time and care to address my query..

Anonymous

I am 6'1" and still find a 56cm Cannondale big.

Height is not everything. but unless you have a long trunk and monkey arms, that bike is too big for you.
Do all you can to swap it now.

Putting a short stem on is a bodge. Get the correct size frame if you can.
If you need a bigger head tube, buy a different bike with suitable geometry.
Buying a frame thats too big just to get a lesser saddle to bar drop seems a bit mad to me.

secretsam

FWIW I used to have a CAAD8 and was told that all 'dales size up "big". Cracking bike mind