Canyon road bike sizing? :/

rhysyd

At the minute I ride a 57cm Btwin triban.

I'm 5ft 9, 32in inseam, and canyon have sized me up for a 53cm (S) ? Just wondering if anybody has a canyon Al ultimate and can comment on the sizing, do diffrent brands vary in size?

Just want to be completely sure before I order!

Thanks

How Far is too Far

I Have large CF SL and I am 5'11" but there when I am racing I think I would have been better of with a Med frame to get the front a bit lower.

I would guess you would be either a small or med depending on how you like to set you bike up. You would be beter off checking the frame Geo against other bikes that you can go and have a sit on.

rhysyd

How Far is too Far wrote:

I Have large CF SL and I am 5'11" but there when I am racing I think I would have been better of with a Med frame to get the front a bit lower.

I would guess you would be either a small or med depending on how you like to set you bike up. You would be beter off checking the frame Geo against other bikes that you can go and have a sit on.

What's the difference between a Small and medium mate in terms of riding style?

redvision

I'm 5ft 10" with 32" inseam and have a medium canyon. Fit is perfect.

Great bikes btw

ravey1981

rhysyd wrote:

At the minute I ride a 57cm Btwin triban.

I'm 5ft 9, 32in inseam, and canyon have sized me up for a 53cm (S) ? Just wondering if anybody has a canyon Al ultimate and can comment on the sizing, do diffrent brands vary in size?

Just want to be completely sure before I order!

Thanks

I'm the same height and inseam as you and usually go for 54,55 or medium depending on bike/brand (they are not all the same). Are you sure you're current bike is right for you? I know the sizing thing for canyon mountain bikes usually comes up small and a lot of people size up on those, not sure if the same applies tho the road frames though. I would go for the medium size if I were you.

Buckie2k5

btwin sizing is wonky. I was a 61 btwin, 58 caad8 and 56 ribble...

supermurph09

If you used the sizing tool correctly it will have chosen you the right size. When I go my Ultimate SL I was on the cusp of Medium/Large so I called them. The guy there had basically the same measurements as me and suggested Large, it was a perfect fit. I'm 6ft.

rhysyd

ravey1981 wrote:

rhysyd wrote:

At the minute I ride a 57cm Btwin triban.

I'm 5ft 9, 32in inseam, and canyon have sized me up for a 53cm (S) ? Just wondering if anybody has a canyon Al ultimate and can comment on the sizing, do diffrent brands vary in size?

Just want to be completely sure before I order!

Thanks

I'm the same height and inseam as you and usually go for 54,55 or medium depending on bike/brand (they are not all the same). Are you sure you're current bike is right for you? I know the sizing thing for canyon mountain bikes usually comes up small and a lot of people size up on those, not sure if the same applies tho the road frames though. I would go for the medium size if I were you.

Im not too sure if it fits me properly to be honest, it was my first road bike. The seatpost as quite alot of clearance, although i do stretch for the handlebars even after i changed to a 90mm stem. If i bought a smaller size surely id have too much seatpost clearance but my reach would be fine how does that work?

Ive just emailed them and they replied saying they would reccomend a Medium. They also said i can try it out and test it (aslong as its dry weather) and the bike is is the same condition it arrived in, they arrange a courier to pick it up for free and to swap sizes.

So think i might go for it! Although i expect theyll be abit of a wait

DeltaOneSeven

I had a similar dilemma to you. If I changed my inseam measurement by 1cm on the sizing guide, it would reccomend a small or medium. I'm 5'9 and my inseam is 82.5.
I decided to go for a small as it's easier to make a small bike bigger rather than a big bike smaller. Either way, if it's not right Canyon will change it for you, so don't worry yourself too much.

My choice is a perfect fit for me - a medium would definatly be too big

DeltaOneSeven

Great choice on the Canyon btw - you'll love it

rhysyd

Whats the best gear ratio to get!?

DeltaOneSeven

It depends in what you want to achieve on the bike and where you live. If you mainly do flat rides a 25 will be fine, if you want a few more hills go with the 28. Ive gone for the 11-28 as it's the most versitile.

wiwaxy

I'm 5'10 with a 31" inseam. Canyon's online sizing system brought me out on a small (53cm) but when I checked the geometry against my 56cm Cannondale it was way out. I rang Canyon with my concerns and was advised to go for a medium (55) as the small would have been for balls out racing. I ordered the medium on the basis I am 50 and wanted a new bike to ride the Etape. I did and the Canyon was perfect!

ai_1

rhysyd wrote:

...Im not too sure if it fits me properly to be honest, it was my first road bike. The seatpost as quite alot of clearance, although i do stretch for the handlebars even after i changed to a 90mm stem. If i bought a smaller size surely id have too much seatpost clearance but my reach would be fine how does that work?...

If you're currently stretching for the bars with a 90mm stem then I'd say your current bike is definitely too big.
The most critical dimension for bike fit is the top tube length. It doesn't generally matter a huge amount how much or how little seatpost is inserted into the seat tube so long as it's within the acceptable range for the seatpost. What does matter is the drop from the saddle height (determined by your inseam) to the bars. Smaller frames will have shorter head tubes and therefore lower bars. If the right size frame (based on top tube) gives too big a drop to the bars, then you should be looking at a different bike design with a more upright position (like the Endurace rather than the Ultimate if you're sticking with Canyon). There is some adjustment available. You can add or remove spacers at the stem or even flip over the stem to change bar height and you can get a different length stem to change the reach to the bars.

diy

I was looking at an Aeroad cf slx 9.0 and the sizing also came up as small. I normally come up as medium on most bikes. To be honest I was put off by the fairly outrageous GBP to Euro Exchange rate and the fact that they wont let you order for UK in Euros.

I'm hesitating as its a lot of money to spend and get wrong.

ai_1

diy wrote:

I was looking at an Aeroad cf slx 9.0 and the sizing also came up as small. I normally come up as medium on most bikes. To be honest I was put off by the fairly outrageous GBP to Euro Exchange rate and the fact that they wont let you order for UK in Euros.

I'm hesitating as its a lot of money to spend and get wrong.

As others have said, their sizing tool is usually pretty close but you can also contact them for advice. Have you compared the geometry to your existing bike? That's probably the best way to be confident in your selection.
Having done the above, it's pretty unlikely you'll end up with the wrong size but if you do they'll swap it for you as long as you don't do a load of rides in the wet and get it dirty before you make your mind up. A little inconvenient but not the end of the world!

diy

Thanks I may well do that - so just the £450 Exchange rate fee to get over

Cayorob

rhysyd wrote:

At the minute I ride a 57cm Btwin triban.

I'm 5ft 9, 32in inseam, and canyon have sized me up for a 53cm (S) ? Just wondering if anybody has a canyon Al ultimate and can comment on the sizing, do diffrent brands vary in size?

Just want to be completely sure before I order!

Thanks

I'm 5ft 8 1/2, 32in inseam and have a small ultimate. Its fits me perfectly. I race it so it's fairly agressive with an 110mm stem and one of their 'plane top covers' to drop the stem further than the i-lock will allow. Depends on your intended use but the medium would be far too big for me.

il_principe

diy wrote:

I was looking at an Aeroad cf slx 9.0 and the sizing also came up as small. I normally come up as medium on most bikes. To be honest I was put off by the fairly outrageous GBP to Euro Exchange rate and the fact that they wont let you order for UK in Euros.

I'm hesitating as its a lot of money to spend and get wrong.

I own an Aeroad SLX (M) and spent a few months last year riding an AL SLX (M). I'm 5'11, 32 inner leg. My other bikes are 55 and 54 respectively. The Aeroad Geom is different, designed to stretch you out. I haven't put a lot of miles on it yet, but it seems right size wise provided you are happy with a longer/lower postion. I tend to ride in the drops quite a lot and am reasonably flexible so adjusting to the Aeroad has been fine. IMHO there's no point in buying an Aeroad and not being stretched out, no point in having an aero bike if the rider is sitting up in the wind.

The AL in an M was bang on perfect. It is also a lovely lovely bike, best Alu frame I've ever ridden.

diy

Thanks for that - yes I'm very similar my current road bike is slammed and has aero clip ons which I use a lot. I also run an inline post.

It was this or a Venge in a 54.

il_principe

diy wrote:

It was this or a Venge in a 54.

Aeroad!

rhysyd

Well ive gone for it, and ive ordered the medium, purely because its what the bloke at canyon recommended i can always change if im not happy. Arrival date is around 14th feb so ill upload a few pictures of it then for anybody who is interested!

cswitch

a little late as you've just ordered but I am the same height as you 5'9 but with 31 inseam. I used to have a medium (as recommended by Canyon) and it always felt too long. Ive since had two Canyon bikes in Small, the Ultimate AL and another CF. Fit is perfect. If you have a 32" inseam I assume you have a slightly shorter body than me so I would definitely recommend the small. You can then swap the stem out for something longer if need be - I'd certainly start off with the 100mm stem and not the 90mm that the small comes with. This will probably give you the same reach as the medium with stock stem (compare Reach between the two sizes and add stem length comparisons to check). Swapping the stem is a lot lot easier / cheaper than returning a whole bike to Germany - and probably quicker!

The Canyons also have quite high front ends so if you go up a size you may actually be somewhat limited with bar height - worth also comparing the Stack. I'm not particularly flexible / aggressive position and I have the stem slammed with the reduced height headset - the saddle to bar drop is not extreme.

From previous discussions with Canyon owners and reading stuff online - sizing advise seems inconsistent. A friend of mine just bought one and was advised to go for a small - he has shorter legs than me, longer body.
If in between sizes go down and increase stem - its also lighter - probably by a whole 20g If your measurements are correct my advice is change the order.

rhysyd

If i ordered a small the seatpost clearance would be huge and i would be really high up over the bars is that not right?

rhysyd

rhysyd wrote:

If i ordered a small the seatpost clearance would be huge and i would be really high up over the bars is that not right?

Is it 'that' much of a difference, the top tube length it 1.2cm longer on the medium then the small?

cswitch

what is your typical saddle height? Mines about 740mm. Obviously varies with type of saddle and setback but just an idea. Theres not that much seatpost showing certainly not excessive looking. Maybe you have your seat much higher than me, toe down pedaller etc.

I don't think you would be high over the bars, Canyons are not particularly aggressive geometries. The headset also has quite a thickness to it so the bars are already raised over 10mm unless you get the low profile headset kit.

Anyway I'll leave you to decide, just calling out the the small is perfectly fine for me but its all very individual. I'm pretty sure you would be able to get the medium to fit if you go that route. Maybe try and get some more findings from other people with Canyons of similar height. You've probably got some time to change the order, they seem pretty good like that.

nammynake

5'8" with 31" inseam and my small (53) CF SL fits very well with a 100mm stem.

rhysyd

cswitch wrote:

what is your typical saddle height? Mines about 740mm. Obviously varies with type of saddle and setback but just an idea. Theres not that much seatpost showing certainly not excessive looking. Maybe you have your seat much higher than me, toe down pedaller etc.

I don't think you would be high over the bars, Canyons are not particularly aggressive geometries. The headset also has quite a thickness to it so the bars are already raised over 10mm unless you get the low profile headset kit.

Anyway I'll leave you to decide, just calling out the the small is perfectly fine for me but its all very individual. I'm pretty sure you would be able to get the medium to fit if you go that route. Maybe try and get some more findings from other people with Canyons of similar height. You've probably got some time to change the order, they seem pretty good like that.

Im in 2 minds I don't know what to bloody do now ha!

sloppyschleckonds

Don't panic, because of the sloping geometry the medium should fit fine with enough seatpost showing to look aesthetically correct. The small frame will look like a childs bike.

ai_1

rhysyd wrote:

If i ordered a small the seatpost clearance would be huge and i would be really high up over the bars is that not right?

The amount of exposed seat post is not really relevant to this. The stack and reach figures for all frame sizes are given on the canyon website.

Ultimate CF SL
Size S (53)
Reach = 375mm
Stack = 546mm

Size M (56)
Reach = 383mm
Stack = 560mm

So the drop from the saddle to the bars will be 14mm greater for size S frame if you use the same number of spacers and same length stem. Also for the same stem length the handlebar is only 8mm closer to you on the small (use a 10mm longer stem and the difference is negligible).
You could possibly get away with either but the small is perhaps likely to be a better fit. If the saddle to bar drop is too much maybe consider the Endurace instead of the Ultimate as it has a slightly more relxed geometry but pretty similar otherwise.