Bike size

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nowhr2run

New Member
Looking for a bike for a 70-year-old 5'1" female.
She currently has a 26" Schwinn. Now it seems the frame is too big and the bike weight is becoming difficult. We bike between 5 to 15 miles on paved trails.
I am considering a 24" 15" aluminum frame step-thru bike.
It is difficult in locating the 24" bike. One question concerns purchasing a 15" aluminum frame bike with 700C tires. Would this bike be similar in handling even though the wheels are larger in diameter?
What would benefit more a 24" or the 700C with a small 15" frame?
Any recommendations for bikes under $500.00 would be appreciated.
 

Cycleops

Legendary Member
Location
Accra, Ghana
Hello and :welcome: to the forum.

There would be no difference in handling between a bike with 24" wheels and 700c. It would just allow for a lower seat height.
You should be able to find a small frame bike with 700c wheels to fit.
We're mostly Brits on here so we won't have a full knowledge of the US bike market but you should certainly be able to find something from the big manufacturers with your requirements.
@Gravity Aided in in the States so might be able to suggest s model as would some of our other US members.
Have you tried the second hand market?
Good luck.
 

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
Really small frames with 700 sized wheels are a fundamentally bad idea, as they result in compromised geometry - usually ridiculously steep seat tube angles that push the rider too far forward in relation to the bottom bracket. The wheels are disproportionately large in relation to the rest of the bike. Riders of small stature are better off sticking to 26" wheels. 24" wheels are mostly confined to junior sized MTB's and tend to suffer from a relatively poor choice of tyres. Junior bikes are generally of relatively low quaity and high weight, as they are built to be grown out of in a couple of years, rather than being intended as long-term purchases.
Schwinn bikes have never been known for their light weight, and it's ptobably quite possible to find something else in a suitable size with 26" wheels that could eaily be a good couple of pounds lighter. It might mean searching out a high quality secondhand steel frame rather than buying something new though.
 
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Gravity Aided

Legendary Member
Location
Land of Lincoln
I would look around for an older Georgena Terry bicycle, they were built with small women in mind, made for a 26" front wheel and a 700c rear wheel. Odd looking, but they work.
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nowhr2run

New Member
Hello and :welcome: to the forum.

There would be no difference in handling between a bike with 24" wheels and 700c. It would just allow for a lower seat height.
You should be able to find a small frame bike with 700c wheels to fit.
We're mostly Brits on here so we won't have a full knowledge of the US bike market but you should certainly be able to find something from the big manufacturers with your requirements.
@Gravity Aided in in the States so might be able to suggest s model as would some of our other US members.
Have you tried the second hand market?
Good luck.
Thanks
 

youngoldbloke

The older I get, the faster I used to be ...
- propelling it is another matter.
 

SkipdiverJohn

Deplorable Brexiteer
Location
London
I would look around for an older Georgena Terry bicycle, they were built with small women in mind, made for a 26" front wheel and a 700c rear wheel. Odd looking, but they work.

The front wheel on the Terry looks more like 24" to me, but it illustrates the issue. There is a limit how short you can make the wheelbase of a bike without either toe overlap or losing the ability to fit mudguards because the tyre is so close to the down tube.
The weird geometry on small 700c wheel bikes I alluded to arises because on a small frame, you don't want excessive reach, and that means keeping the top tube short, which conflicts with the need to keep the front wheel away from the frame and the pedals. The bodge is to shorten the top tube only at the rear, by steepening the seat tube angle, relative to the head tube angle.
That places the rider further forward in the frame and you get the absurd situation where a small utility hybrid can end up having a seat tube angle more appropriate to a TT bike!
 
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