16" Rad City too small, 19" too big?

[Drew]

Yesterday I test rode the Rad City 16" and 19" bikes, both equipped with the Suntour NCX seatpost. The folks at the Rad City store in Seattle were very helpful!

I rode the 19" frame first and it is a very good fit for me while riding. Standing is another thing: I really could use about 1/2" more clearance. The top bar makes gentle contact with both feet flat on the ground, and that is with my butt up against the front of the seat.

Then I tried the 16" frame. As expected, there was plenty of standover height. And due to the extension of the seat post by the Suntour NCX, I was able to get the seat high enough for the proper fit from seat to pedal. (Without the NCX the 16" frame would be out of the question).

But here's the rub, the 16" bike was not as comfortable for me to ride! Somehow my position was different and it seemed like the Suntour NCX did not operate nearly as fluidly when going over bumps. (By the way, we were swapping the same seat and post between bikes, so at least that variable is eliminated).

So the situation seems to be I am right between sizes, without a really great all-around fit from either.

We talked about the step-thru frame. It's pretty and seems quite rigid, but it's just not for me. Maybe when I'm 80?

I am wondering if any members here have faced a similar dilemma, and would share what they decided, and how it has worked out for them?

 

[Nova Haibike]

Standover clearance is really only an issue if you ride offroad. If you're sticking to pavement or mostly flat and packed unpaved trails, the bigger bike will be fine.

 

[mrgold35]

I have an Radrover and Suntour 350mm seatpost. The Rover is one size fits most for this ebike and I'm a touch too tall at 6'3" for this bike. I had the Suntour 350mm at max height and started to get a slight ache in my right knee when riding more than 1/2 hour. I had to take a day off from riding 2-3 times a week or the pain would increase over time. Decided to purchase the 400mm Suntour seatpost on eBay to go with my Sunlite Cloud-9 12.5X11.5 Cruiser seat and that made the difference. Zero pain after +3500 miles of riding.

You might need to do the same thing and go for a 400mm Suntour NCX if the decide to go for the 16" Radcity.

 

[007vsMagua]

I'm still setting up my 19" RadCity in my living room waiting for the ice and snow to be finally gone. I'm 5'-11" and I also wish the stand over clearance was a little more. I now understand why many complained that the 2017 20" model was too tall. I think once I get used to it, it should be fine.

 

[Drew]

Following up. I test rode a lot of bikes and felt that many times I was on the cusp of this too-big too-small dilemma. Then someone pointed out to me just a slight tilt of the bike frame to the left or the right completely alleviated any "clearance issues". That completely resolved the issue for me ... in fact, after being a cyclist for nearly 50 years, I felt kind of silly for not realizing this sooner!

 

[Ebikefevercure]

Go for riding comfort. You're on the seat most of the time anyways. I took my thudbuster suspension seat off bc it was making my lower back hurt after an hour or so. The OEM post with a thick Selle Royal seat is much better from my experience.