Orbea OIZ Sizing

markwb79
markwb79 Posts: 937
in MTB buying advice
Hey,

I am completely new to MTB and looking to get into cross country, with the goal to do some marathon racing.

Looking for a bike, something that can take 2 bottle cages.

I have narrowed it down to the Orbea OIZ or a Canyon Lux. Very much leaning towards the Orbea, just find the design more appealing. Although there is a massive wait to get the bike :(

Struggling to work out the sizing. I come from road racing where the smaller the frame and longer stems is the direction.
But I hear its the opposite in MTB?
I am 170cm tall and inside seam was 78 I think.

Both websites say I am a size small. But read conflicting reports that I should maybe size up?

Any advise would be great.

Thanks
Mark
Scott Addict 2011
Giant TCR 2012

Comments

  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    If your inseam is 78 I'd certainly suggest a small, that's relatively long of leg for the height so you need a small frame to keep your reach (saddle to bars) sensible.

    You fall roughly half way between a small and a medium IMO.

    The Canyon sizing system has a good reputation so why not find the size of the Lux it recommends and compare the reach and stack (vertical height from BB to Bars) with the Orbea sizes?
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • markwb79
    markwb79 Posts: 937
    Love the reply. Thank you very much.

    Canyon also says I am a S, Orbea is a S towards an M. The Canyon M and Orbea M match.

    You say I am half way between a S and M. If this was the case for a road bike I would size down and get a longer stem. Is that the same for MTB, I heard it was the opposite?

    I also just found out that the S Orbea doesn't accommodate 2 bottle cages, that's only from size M and upwards. Totally dreaming of the Orbea, but only if the M can fit, otherwise its a S Canyon

    Thank you again.
    Mark
    Scott Addict 2011
    Giant TCR 2012
  • mattyfez
    mattyfez Posts: 638
    edited November 2019
    Longer stem and/or slightly longer bars, or totally flat bars if the standard bar has much rise and/or sweep.

    Saddle fore/aft and or a lay back seat post rather than a totally straight one.

    All that will make for an effecivley larger bike.

    Longer stem might make steering more wandering which is more of an issue on Mtb if you're going over roots and rocks and stuff, I'd suggest a wider flatter bar and a lay back seat post first if you need to modify.
    That said you may find the small size okif your in-between sizes, I'd sooner size one size down than up.

    Quite a few tweeks there, obviously all cost money to varying degrees which you don't really want to be doing to a brand new bike if you can help it.

    That said it could be a good excuse for a few upgrades to the standard spec if you were already planing doing that, some cheap cheeky carbon bars or seat post from planet x, for example.
  • mattyfez
    mattyfez Posts: 638
    edited November 2019
    Also, if you want 2 bottles, you could always get a backpack with a bladder in it for more water, like a camel bak, or also a lot of cheaper more multi purpose backpacks now come with a an orifice at the top so you can retro fit a water bladder and tube

  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    As above, you can slide the saddle back on the rails (gain about 10mm) or swap in an offset seatpost (although there are few full offset droppers).
    For the OIZ, it has a fully inline dropper the latest Reverb or Brand X give an offset of about 10mm. It has 740mm bars so you probably won't want to go wider, the stem is very short, no dimensions on the website but going up 10mm shouldn't be an issue, so potentially you can lengthen it by about 30mm (typically one size is 20mm) with some tweaks.
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • markwb79
    markwb79 Posts: 937
    Thanks a lot for the advice, it helped a lot.

    In the end though, I didn't go for the Orbea! I tried to buy it on Friday and had a nightmare with the website and the ordering process. The whole consumer experience didnt leave me with a good feeling. I finally got some sort of order placed through a 3rd party, but heard nothing back after a couple of emails.

    I hadn't heard anything all weekend, so I decided that I would go elsewhere. On Sunday morning I ordered the Canyon Lux, in Small. It shipped today and will be with me today!
    Orbea finally emailed today to check on my request, the delivery would have been 30th April! So no way was I going to wait that long.

    Anyway, thanks again, it really helped with picking the size and tomorrow is new bike day! :)
    Scott Addict 2011
    Giant TCR 2012

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