Sorry to resurrect an old thread but I'm looking at buying my son a second hand Rouen and so it will be hard to try for size.
My son is 4'10" with a 27" inside leg so the 650 15" is probably perfect right now, he is weeney for a 14yo so will probably grow loads in the next year.
The 700c 43cm will last him longer and we can share tubes etc. Will it be massively too big now? I think they messed up the blurb as it suggests 4'6"-5' which is shorter than the info on the 650 38cm frame.
Thanks for any feedback, Ben
That's something of a dilemma, isn't it? Not something we as adults have to worry about.
My 15" 650c Rouen is just right for me, but then I do have the saddle as far forward as it will go, and I don't have the seat post at its maximum extension either. So there is definitely some "growing room" to be had with the stock set-up.
And it's far easier to make a small frame bigger by fitting a longer seat post and stem than to make a big frame smaller. Where your lad might really struggle with the bigger bike is the straddle height. It's not much fun smacking yourself in the nether regions when you get things a bit wrong coming to a stop - and that's the same whether you're a lady like me, or a bloke. I have about an inch clearance when straddling the frame of mine.
HTH
