tall riders

[bikemann42]

I know I am in the <1% minority, but is there any demand for Cruzbike kits for (very) long legged riders? I'm talking 49"+ x-seam. I have already home built one FWD'er, but having used the rear triangle of a DF bike, I couldn't push the BB far enough away and still keep the the cranks high enough to suit me...that being level with the seat. I will probably have to build from scratch. Maybe someone knows of a donor bike to form the "drive unit" that has very long chainstays. To see my first build, goto Google - photos, then search jackknife FWD.

 

[JonB]

how about an xtracycle? They are ment for the rear, but arent they longer than normal back parts of the bike?

 

[John Tolhurst]

Hi Bikemann42,
Your jackknife is an early and nice example of the FWD. Many compliments to you for your leadership at the frontier!

Did you see this page? http://www.cruzbike.com/conversionexamples.html

And this example which belongs to a guy 6'3"? I notice that he could still move his seat back another couple of inches if he went for the bent seat post. http://www2.cruzbike.com/cgi-bin/moin.cgi/CroftersCruzbike

 

[John Tolhurst]

Oh, and I should mention I have a design for an extension plate for the chainstay of the Silvio that will enable it to fit you without the crank dropping too much. Then for short people we are working on the FD mounting. The idea is to widen the range of fitting for the single Silvio frame, so that we can cater to 99% of people without doubling up our stock.

 

[bikemann42]

Wow, thanks for the ideas and quick replies. Actually, my x-seam is long, even for my height, so I may have to go from scratch. Not sure what a Cruzbike replica will look like with 22" chainstays or how it will handle. I really think pedal steer will be less with longer stays...not that it matters once you acclimate to FWD. I do want to keep my knees ahead of the head tube for traction and tighter steering circles, so moving the seat further back to keep the BB up may not be a good option.
I just missed getting a donor frame for the rear section on ebay by $2. It was a Softride Firestorm that looks like it was destined to be a FWD'r. It even had the brackets for seat mounting already in place.

 

[Mark B]

bikemann42 wrote: I just missed getting a donor frame for the rear section on ebay by $2. It was a Softride Firestorm that looks like it was destined to be a FWD'r. It even had the brackets for seat mounting already in place.

Don't you hate it when that happens?

Mark