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After that PSA pointing out the very good value Canyon sales, this bike caught my eye.
When I put my stats into the size finder, it’s returning that I would be on a medium size, which, typically, is sold out.
I’m not a serial bike changer and don’t have a 29r at the moment. Current bike is a 2017 Cannondale Habit SE, size large, with 27.5 wheels Previous was a Cannondale Jekyll 800, size large. The canyon sizing chart has me borderline, just inside the criteria for medium, slightly off the cusp for large.
I rented a large Santa Cruz Nomad on a biking holiday for a few days, seemed ok, not too big. Also took a large Scott Ransom out in Madeira which felt big, but generally “big”. Also have had a test ride on a large Orbea Rise which felt ok and a Whyte dealer thought I was a large on an ELyte model.
Is the Canyon chart wrong, or is there something peculiar with their geo/sizing?
Thanks in advance.
There is no right or wrong size for an mtb or emtb. the sizing guides are simply that. a guide.
Go smaller if you want a bike which is more playful, easier to pop the front wheel up, manual and bunnyhop as well as turn in tighter situations. But slightly less stable in rough terrain at speed and less stretched out/roomy. (with modern geometry this will be particularly noticeable when sat down pedalling.
go larger. if you want basically the opposite traits.
There is no standardisation between different bike brands sizing so one brands large may in reality be a similar size to another's M or even XL
Also a 2017 27.5 trail bike will be tiny compared to a 2025 Large 29er trail bike. So both the M and L Canyon will be longer
You typed a lot of information but nothing about YOUR size or how you like to ride. So just be honest with yourself when answering that
180cm tall, 87cm to the crotch/inseam as per Canyon guide.
I’d like to ride fast, but I find it quite scary, and it’s now either trail centres or Pennines steeps. Can’t manual and rubbish at bunnyhops.
Hopefully this link will work
the M Canyon is 20mm longer in reach and 80mm longer in wheelbase than your current bike with the L Canyon a further 25mm longer in both.
With Ebikes being at least 10lb heavier than normal bikes (even lighter ones) combined with the bigger wheels longer reach and longer wheelbase, whatever skills you currently have when it comes to raising the wheels without a lip/kicker will be sadly overwhelmed and you'll become a passenger on a far more stable bike. (you may well like that though). the flipside of this is that ebikes with mid mount motors and downtube batteries are tons more stable than normal bikes of the same length/geometry
seat tube is shorter on both sizes though so theoretically with the longest dropper you can fit you "may£ have more room to move around the bike. unfortunatley drop is determined by seat tube insertion (which is often less on a bike with a motor, and rear wheel clearance (which if it has 29 rear may compromise drop)
I ride a medium Canyon Lux Trail - and I'm 6ft. It fits me perfectly but I very nearly ordered a large because I didn't believe the Canyon sizing recommendation...
Guessing you’re 5’10” ish like me OP?
seems to be the magic height that lands you between sizes for most manufacturers.
these days I tend to look at Reach before most other things and from personal experience/preference I get along with ~460-470mm (again “ish) on MTBs.
your historical preference for size large” would suggest you like having more reach OP, so my suggestion would be start by comparing the reach numbers for the bikes you previously for on with, to the ones you are now considering and go from there.
Remember it’s not really a precise science and stems/bars/seats can all be changed and/or adjusted but the frame needs to be in the ballpark to start with…
You're roughly the same dimensions as me and every MTB I've owned has been a large
I'm 182cm and I would be riding the large, but wouldn't want any more reach.
You've got a double whammy here. Your habit is effectively from a different epoch compared to the geo of the canyon AND you might be between sizes but the Canyons are so radically different from what you know, you have no reference.
Tricky.
Look at the geometry charts for the Canyon and compare it to the large Santa Cruz you rode.
For sizing I personally start by looking at the reach and seat tube length.
Similar experience when buying a Stoic.
Canyon had me firmly on a medium but comparing reach etc from my large Santa Cruz I went with a large and think it fits me well.
In reference to your 'fit'' on a Santa Cruz, I'm 5'10 and that sits pretty firmly in the 'large' size range for SC (I've owned a few and lately they've been large and fit well). Some other brands size up a little larger than SC, as others have mentioned you're better at looking at the geo charts than just the size. Whenever looking at a new bike/frame I always start with a spreadsheet so I can compare what I have / like, with what I am considering. When I looked at Canyon (a Strive a while ago) I was firmly on an M using their guide.
I did buy an eeb 18 months ago (Kenevo SL) and was between sizes (S3 & S4), sat on both and opted for the smaller with the reach being a bit less than my regular bike and am happy with my choice (I did read an article somewhere on why you should size smaller on an eeb - probably down to reasons mentioned above). I'm currently switching out my current regular frame (SC Megatower) for a Raaw, I'm bang between their M & L sizes, but have sized up this time (mainly because the M is further away in terms of reach than the L vs my current frame, plus this will be my uplift bike, so the focus is on stability going downhill which in theory should mean going for the longer platform).
5ft10 / 178cm club here too, as said usually bang on the cusp between most manufacturers medium and large.
Im always changing bikes and I've done it enough I can look at a geo chart and work out which one I need.
Two ways of doing this on a modern mountain bike -
A) Work out how much dropper post travel you want - measure your current bike BB to saddle rail height, and work backwards from there to work out which frame sizes will work with your required level of drop (most manufacturers will make available all the dimensional drawings for their seat posts. Its collar to saddle rail you need mainly). Then from that, decide whether the Reach and Stack are appropriate for your size and the kind of riding you want to do on the bike and how you want it to feel.
B) Go the other way - choose the frame with the Reach figure you want - then work backwards from that frames seat tube length to calculate how much seatpost and dropper travel you can run, and decide whether thats appropriate.
As someone with typically shorter legs relative to my height, it is hugely frustrating that some brands are still sticking great big seat tube extensions on their frames meaning the 'right' frame size in terms of its length, leaves way too little room for a properly sized dropper post.
Some manufacturers are good at this though: Santa Cruz, new Specialized 'S' sizing, amongst others, so well done them.
Example - Santa Cruz's 'large' size typically used a 430mm seat tube. And thus I can ride a large and get the reach length I need for my size. Oranges 'large' size is based around an 18" or 460mmish seat tube.
So on two equivalent bikes, lets say a Hightower and Stage 6, I get 30mm less dropper travel on the Orange. For no good reason. Taller/longer legged people could simply run a longer post or more travel. But shorter legged people have to deal with the compromise of reduced dropper travel.
Bike industry - STOP PUTTING MASSIVE POINTLESS SEAT TUBE EXTENSIONS ON YOUR BIKE!
Comparison against the more 'current' bikes (the SC Nomad, Whyte Eltye and Orbea) will be more relevant than your older current bikes. Something like https://www.bike-stats.de/en/ can be a useful tool:
That suggests the large SC Nomad (assuming that's the correct model year as you rode) is midway between a medium and large Neron:ON. My personal approach is generally to size up rather than down, but it's total personal preference.
Bike industry - STOP PUTTING MASSIVE POINTLESS SEAT TUBE EXTENSIONS ON YOUR BIKE!
That rips my knitting too. Really no need for long STs but equally if they're too short then they don't cater for the proper tall folk. At 187cm I've got very average 34" inside leg length, but I still find mainstream manufacturers mostly have too-long STs compared to reach. I ignored size guides when I bought my SC in XXL (guide suggests I'm firmly on a XL) to get the longer reach, and thankfully the ST length just allows me to run a 210 dropper. 240 dropper would be better but not possible unless I compromised reach on a XL.
It would help for you to tell us your height, and whether you are particularly longer in the leg or torso department. Maybe inside leg.
Sorry if I missed this somewhere?
STOP PUTTING MASSIVE POINTLESS SEAT TUBE EXTENSIONS ON YOUR BIKE!
Germans seem the worst for this.
OK, I'd take Canyon's size finder thing with a BIG pinch of salt as it seems quite conservative. I just put in my stats - 187cm height and 34"inside leg - and it suggests a large for me. Again, personal view, but I'd say even the XL is a bit of the short/small side for me and my preference looking at the geo chart 😀
I've had two Canyon's, a road and a gravel and using the size calculators, at 175cm both times they have put me on a small. I have short legs and long torso and on an mtb I ride a large. I decided to ignore the calculator and ordered mediums and both have been perfect.
5ft10 / 178cm club here too, as said usually bang on the cusp between most manufacturers medium and large.
Being in the same group I do find this somewhat odd and would be fascinating to understand why this is the case from any bike designers.
Since for men 5'9- 5'10 is the average height in most western countries so would have thought it would make sense to have that in the middle of a range vs on the edge.
Admittedly that leaves aside from all the complexities about leg vs arm vs torso and so on but then so does the basic height measurement.
Yep, I've never really got it.
5ft 10 is the 'middle' height for a bloke. So surely that should be what a 'medium' bike is designed for!
Same, I’ve never realised why the average male size isn’t either a Medium or a Large rather than in between.
Personally for me, I want as short a seat tube as I can get away with and run a 170+ dropper (currently have 170 on my YT Decoy and 200 on my hardtail), luckily with e-bikes and hardtails I’m happy with a little less reach and slacker seat angles (-2* on HTs to account for sagged geo and e-bikes are less dependent on perfect geometry for pedalling due to the motor) so the large Decoy worked well for me (I wouldn’t mind it having a bit more reach but wasn’t willing to compromise on the XL’s longer seat tube).
I know what I like and what suits my area and riding style which helps.
I'm 181cm and have gone against Canyon's size guide and got a L Spectral, twice now, and been happy.
I don't think the two sizes are so far apart that you couldn't be happy with either.
Thanks all for the comments.
Regrettably, and also simply because of buying choices, reach\stack\wheelbase\anngles and geometry in general has never ever been a consideration. I’ve just swung a leg over and had a little test ride and if it feels to fit, then it fits. So when it’s posted about what geometry I’d like, I have no idea how that works in reality….
I’ll measure from my BB to seat rails and see if that casts any light on it.
Or maybe tell us how big you are
He already has.
1.80m
Looking at all the large bikes he's mentioned not one of them is longer than a medium in the Canyon he's looking at buying.
OP. Yes. You absolutely could ride the Large as it has a far steeper seat angle than your current bike meaning when sat down pedalling it won't feel too long at all. You will almost definitely need to alter your weight positioning when stood up as you'll be riding a wildly larger bike with wildly different geometry. But TBH from what and how you ride it probably won't be a major issue.
If the deal is as good as you think. Just buy it before they're sold out of L as well . Canyon even have a 30 day return policy
OP. Yes. You absolutely could ride the Large as it has a far steeper seat angle than your current bike meaning when sat down pedalling it won't feel too long at all. You will almost definitely need to alter your weight positioning when stood up as you'll be riding a wildly larger bike with wildly different geometry. But TBH from what and how you ride it probably won't be a major issue.
Good summary.
Just measured,
Centre of BB to seat rails, 73cm. From BB to top of seat tube is 48cm.
Except for working out how long a droppe post you'll be able to fit. Neither of those measurements are useful.And given that both sizes of the canyon have shorter seat tubes than your current bike it's not really something you should be needing to worry about.
I see the "£5k budget for an e-bike. These discounted now, or sit tight" thread from 8 months back is yours too. I see a bit of a theme here. Honestly. Just buy this Canyon. It's an infinitely better bike than what you have just now and life is too short already.
This site gives a ton of info on different bikes geometry.
No guarantees about accuracy etc although the one time I did use it against a manufacturers own it matched. Think does depend on whether they can grab it from the manufacturer or have someone submit values.
I'm ~177cm tall these days (not as tall I used to be!), with stumpy 82cm cycling inseam legs and a long torso for my height.
The Neuron size calculator puts me on the lower end of the medium, but given I'm happy on my 18" Voodoo Marasa with 425mm reach, I'd happily chose the small Neuron that has 435mm reach.
He already has.
1.80m
Apologies. So I'd agree you're a little bit between sizes, but you could ride the large no bother - and it might be less of a problem than if the medium felt too small.
I see the "£5k budget for an e-bike. These discounted now, or sit tight" thread from 8 months back is yours too. I see a bit of a theme here. Honestly. Just buy this Canyon.
Ah, hadn't clocked that. I'd agree with this OP.
Time to shit or get off the pot.
as luck would have it...........
canyon size straddling
Imd just get the large
I'm 177cm and typical prefer a size large (currently ride a trek fuel exe size large), having looked at the canyon neuron on fly geo charts I'd go large on one of those, but (as always seems to be the case with canyons) the seat tube is a bit longer than I would ideally want, but I could probably get over that. and I guess this is the reason that canyon recommend a medium for someone of my height.
If op is near Sheffield there is now a canyon demo centre which has these. Although they only had medium available when I last looked.
https://veloroo.co.uk/testcentre/
Well, to bring this to a conclusion, I went to the Sheffield store today and had a spin on a M Neuron onfly and a large Neuron. The medium immediately felt small, as in I felt too close to the handlebars and my chin felt to be over the stem. Large felt more relaxed, less upright.
Ive just ordered a Large CF9…
Thanks all for the hints and tips on this.