Specialized Tarmac - Sizing for 179cm & leggy

[boyceuk]

I'm looking at a Specialized Tarmac Sport for my first road bike. It looks great and 2019 models are on crazy deals.

I'm 35, 179cm tall (5'10.5"), with a rather leggy 85cm inseam. I'm flexible - can touch my knuckles on the floor, but don't have the strongest of cores.
Going by the Specialized size charts I'd be 56cm, which is for riders 175 - 180cm. Other brands would score me as a 54 or 56cm.

As I'm leggy, one shop recomended a 54cm for less reach, and another a 56cm for higher stack. I've test rode them both and can't pick between them. As a new rider, that previously road MTBs, it feels very different. I'll get used to it, but I'm not sure which is right.

Tarmac owners, what size / height did you go for?

People with similar height / inseam, how did you find the right fit?

[Jugi]

I'm 180 / 84 cm, I'm relatively strechy like you and have ridden a 56 Tarmac for ages. I haven't ever test ridden a 54, but I bet it would fit me as well because my cockpit is completely slammed on the 56.

Being a beginner cyclist, your preference for bike fit and riding style will most likely progress towards a lower and longer position when riding time starts to stack up. If you didn't find anything wrong with the smaller frame, I'd suggest that as it will enable your progression a bit better.

[nova16]

179cm, size 56 on Tarmac, CruX and Allez

[TLN]

If you're flexible before you started riding road bike I'd go with smaller bike, even though I like asthetics of slammed stem and no spacers.

[okimy]

Not an owner but I test rode one. 178cm 87,5cm inseam. 54 was too low for me (even with spacers) and the seatpost was almost at its min insertion. If I had gone with Specialized it would've been the 56.
I would prefer the look of the 56 with less spacers and the saddle a bit further forward to compensate the reach anyway.
Edit: You can also get a 0 offset seatpost if the reach on the 56 is too long. If you're buying from a shop they'll usually do that for you. I wouldn't go below 100mm stem on a roadbike (and not above 130 either).

[calleking]

I was professionally bike fitted a few weeks ago. 177cm, 85,5cm inseam, normal arm length. Avarage/good flexibility. Riding a Size 54 SL6 with 10mm spacers and 120mm -6 degree stem. Pro Stealth saddle makes a lower stack much more comfortable (12cm drop). Position is agressive but comfortable I'd say. A 54cm with spacers and 100mm -6 degree stem should be very comfortable for you I'd say.

[boyceuk]

Not an owner but I test rode one. 178cm 87,5cm inseam. 54 was too low for me (even with spacers) and the seatpost was almost at its min insertion. If I had gone with Specialized it would've been the 56.
I would prefer the look of the 56 with less spacers and the saddle a bit further forward to compensate the reach anyway.
Edit: You can also get a 0 offset seatpost if the reach on the 56 is too long. If you're buying from a shop they'll usually do that for you. I wouldn't go below 100mm stem on a roadbike (and not above 130 either).

This is my worry. I don't want to end picking the wrong size and having to mess about with it loads to get comfortable.

I was professionally bike fitted a few weeks ago. 177cm, 85,5cm inseam, normal arm length. Avarage/good flexibility. Riding a Size 54 SL6 with 10mm spacers and 120mm -6 degree stem. Pro Stealth saddle makes a lower stack much more comfortable (12cm drop). Position is agressive but comfortable I'd say. A 54cm with spacers and 100mm -6 degree stem should be very comfortable for you I'd say.

Thanks calleking, thats good info. Interesting it's the opposite of okimy, just shows how personal it is.
If you increase the steam length by 20mm, wouldn't the fitter have recommended a 56cm to begin with?

You sound quiet experience. Do you still think it would still be comforatable for a new rider? Even on longer rides?

[DaveS]

You really need to know your saddle height and preferred saddle to bar drop. I'm quite a bit more leggy, with an 83cm inseam and 73cm saddle height, at 168cm tall. Since I can handle a 10cm saddle to bar drop, I use a stack height around 525mm. The 54cm has a stack of 544mm. A -6 stem might give you a saddle to bar drop around 8cm, or 10cm with a -17.

[boyceuk]

You really need to know your saddle height and preferred saddle to bar drop. I'm quite a bit more leggy, with an 83cm inseam and 73cm saddle height, at 168cm tall. Since I can handle a 10cm saddle to bar drop, I use a stack height around 525mm. The 54cm has a stack of 544mm. A -6 stem might give you a saddle to bar drop around 8cm, or 10cm with a -17.

On my MTB I have a saddle height of 75cm - (with different pedals / shoes etc, but will give a ball park.)
I don't know my prefered saddle to bar drop as I don't currently ride a road bike.

How do I calcualate the saddle to bar drop on the Tarmac from that?

[Visqu]

I'm 179,5cm and inseam is 86,5cm, saddle height of 76cm.
I'm fitted with a 10cm drop.

I ride a 54 Venge, essentially same effective geo as a Tarmac when the headset bearing top cap is considered.
Used to ride an M-sized (56) Canyon Ultimate.
Could have really gone for either a 54 or 56 but wanted a pretty short wheelbase and I can live with the toe overlap and the ~3cm spacer stack

I suppose if you're in between sizes, it's all down to the handling that you like.

[tonytourist]

I agree, it all depends on your saddle height. I'm 180cm, saddle height of 75.5 cm and I run a 120 Sprint SL stem slammed. I previously used an Enve stem but wanted more drop. See pictures of my bikes here:
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=159028&start=15#p1526013
When I first started riding I was on a 56 but after riding for a few years I decided to try a 54 and I've been on them since.

[guadzilla]

OP, I am 183, with a 90cm inseam - basically, I am you with about 4cm added to the legs.

I ride a 56 Venge with 10mm spacers under the stem and a 120mm stem, which is a fairly aggressive position with a yuge amount of drop - a 100m stem would put me in a more moderate riding position. Given that you are saying you dont have the strongest of cores, you dont want to overdo on reach.

Let's say you were to sit on my bike. Your saddle will be around 3cm lower than mine (approx), putting you closer to the bars - but you may also sit a little further back (I adopt a more forward, hip-rotated position that is midway between a road position and a TT position). So distance to the bars may be a wash (approx). Assuming your arms are also shorter than mine, then you'll want less distance to your bars than me.

Going by this back-of-the-envelope calculation, a size 54 may be a better option for you, I feel. The shorter reach should be better for you and the stack should also be ok, given that your saddle height reduces more than the HT size going from a 56 to 54. For sure, it wont be too big for you and you can always make it longer/taller if need be. To me, overly-long reach is the hardest thing to fix - a low stack or a shorter reach can be adjusted with spacers, a high stack can be compensated by a longer stem. But it is very hard to fix a bike that is too long.

Visually, no one likes a stack of spacers under the bars, but the fact that your seatpost is going to be jacked up to the sky compensates for that to some degree.

Hope this helps.

PS: I find 90mm stems to be more than sufficient for decent handling. The first bike i bought was a horrendously large 60 - i had to put a 60mm stem on it to made it fit. Got used to it fairly quickly but obviously, i was a beginner in those days and not really pushing the bike too aggressively. Later, i got a nice carbon bike and never had any handling issues with a 90mm stem. YMMV, obviously, as this is a pretty subjective area.

[ParisCarbon]

Im 185cm, 92.7 inseam and ride a 58 in the Venge and Tarmac... I don't run alot of spacers under the stem, saddle is at 82cm and change

[sigma]

I'm looking at a Specialized Tarmac Sport for my first road bike. It looks great and 2019 models are on crazy deals.

I'm 35, 179cm tall (5'10.5"), with a rather leggy 85cm inseam. I'm flexible - can touch my knuckles on the floor, but don't have the strongest of cores.
Going by the Specialized size charts I'd be 56cm, which is for riders 175 - 180cm. Other brands would score me as a 54 or 56cm.

As I'm leggy, one shop recomended a 54cm for less reach, and another a 56cm for higher stack. I've test rode them both and can't pick between them. As a new rider, that previously road MTBs, it feels very different. I'll get used to it, but I'm not sure which is right.

Tarmac owners, what size / height did you go for?

People with similar height / inseam, how did you find the right fit?

Sadly there is no standardization of sizing between models, so one brands 54 means nothing to another. People used to look at top tube or effective top tube for guidance, but the easier measure for working out sizing between frames is to look at the stack and reach measurements.

I spent quite a lot of time getting my X/Y coordinates down (meaning where you effective sit in the plane measured in space) with a fitter which then allowed me to move kind of easily between brands. You can then use any of the online calculators (like the one on slowtwitch) to workout exactly how many spacers and length of stem plus bar reach and drop (often overlooked) you need.

To answer your question, I have the Tarmac in both sizes and I am 176cm tall. In the 54, I run it with a slammed stem (120, -6) and a couple of extra spacers. The 56 pretty much a 100 stem and one spacers. Occassionally, I will stretch the 56 out to 110 if I want to be more race oriented. I have toe overlap with the 54 which only bothers me rarely but there are some mountain switchback roads where I really hate it. On both models, I am completely comfortable fit-wise being able to achieve the same effective cycling position. I like having the versatility of the 56 mostly because I can move from being more upright (which was key last year when I had a bad back) to more race oriented whereas on the 54 I need to be running a minimum 120 stem.

Personally I would go to a good fitter and spend the hour. It will pay huge dividends long-term, prevent injury, and lead to many more purchases!

[ParisCarbon]

I forget how long the seatpost is off the top of my head too.. but I remember on my SL5 with the 350mm post I was over extended by a few mm.. I opted to get an FSA 400mm post for the added internal security.. I remember seeing Lars Boom's tarmac SL5 from the TdU when Astana was running Specs with Campy EPS, and he was on a 56.. his seat height is the same as mine at 82 area.. that seat was WAY up there!