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Thought I would seek some assistance from the ST collective, Mrs Flatlander is after a new bike. She is around 5' 4" but a somewhat nervous rider, especially when it gets steep or exposed. She prefers to be over biked rather than under. I guess we're looking at a 130 or 140 travel frame, capable of coping with alpine singletrack (NOT BIKE PARKS). She would like good standover and a low seat tube, I'm also thinking 27.5" or mullet would give her more clearance too. It also needs to be a good weight and an efficient peddler as we prefer non-lift assisted areas. Looking around the biggest stumbling block is seat tube length, her current bike is 400mm and she finds that too tall when it gets steep and only just takes a 125mm dropper. What are your suggestions?
Ibis mojo, wife has one , great bikes
I'm 5'5" and struggle fitting a dropper in some bikes. As you said the biggest issue is seat tube length. Bird bikes have short seat tubes down to about 380 i think.
if the budget will stretch to it - Starling custom geometry - my Swoop is a long-small/medium with an extra short seat tube at 380mm. I didn't want bottle mounts so dropped the seat tube as far as possible for clearance and because it just looks better.
At 5'8" with an 29" inside leg I could easily fit a 240mm OneUp dropper if I wanted (currently on a 180mm).
A small Swoop with short seat tube would be bang on
Are you considering hardtails? The Whyte 806 is designed for smaller people, the XS has a 381mm seat tube.
Definitely after a full suspension bike. That Whyte has a taller seatpost than her current bike if she goes for the suggested size for her height.
Which dropper does she have now?
The things you need to look at are...
1. Stack height on the dropper - basically how much space is taken up by the collar and saddle clamp bits - OneUp are among the best for this
2. Can you get full seatpost insertion on potential frames? I tend to have my seatpost collars sitting flush with the seatclamp, but some frames have features which prevent this.
My Bird is pretty good for this and with them you have both good drawings on their website and the ability to talk to them. I would measure BB to saddle rails at full height and then work from there with seatpost specs, minimum insertion numbers etc to look at different posts to find the one you can fit with the most drop.
Im 5'6" with short legs and there's quite a bit of room to spare on mine even with a 170mm dropper (Bird own brand which is as I understand it just a rebranded Brand-X one).
Also crank length. BB to saddle rails will stay the same only for a given Crank length of course. Shorten the cranks and you can increase that. And someone like Bird should be able to swap in different cranks. They did for me. I like 165s.
Trek fuel ex?
My wife is 5 foot and rides a small RM Thunderbolt (they do make Xs) with a 125mm dropper.
It's an older Reverb so not the lowest collar height, but a seat post change isn't a solution as the bike is on its last legs anyway. Both good points to take in consideration though.
The Mojo is a contender as it ticks all the boxes and gets the aesthetic thumbs up to. Unfortunately they're aren't any dealers locally to have a proper look at one.
Small Bird Aether 7 - 370mm seat tube, 679mm standover. Seems perfect, and the framesets are £200 off currently.
Almost for got about RM, don't see so much about them these days. Used to love the maple leaf paint jobs. Seems like the Thunderbolt is no more but the Instinct might work.
It’s an older Reverb so not the lowest collar height, but a seat post change isn’t a solution as the bike is on its last legs anyway.
I meant when selecting a new frame.
Definitely look into max seatpost insertion then.
I don't know if you mentioned your budget, but these seem really good bikes and are pretty unbeatable VFM.
The small frame has a 380mm seat tube apparently...
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-escarpe-27-crs-mountain-bike-2022/rp-prod206175
Do check the seatpost insertion though 😉
Not sure on your budget but Pauls Cycles have a small Instinct (C70 29er)in stock with 20% off
Pauls Cycles have a small Instinct (C70 29er)in stock with 20% off
Eldest_oab has an RM Altitude from Paul's. It's a blooming quick bike, really nicely designed, a few good touches on the frame, has an air of quality about it.
Paul's seemed ok as well.