Saddle up

[Matt2matt2002]

As well as tweaking my butterfly bars I recently raised my saddle height a few cm.

I had just felt my leg stride could be a little longer - if you know what I mean?

x3 rides later I am a lot more comfortable from the waste down.

However - I now feel as if there is more pressure on my upper back and shoulder blades.

Am I being pitched forward as a consequence of a greater saddle height?

If so - should I raise the bars - so to speak?
If so - how? Spacer adjustment?

Matt

[Danneaux]

Hi Matt!

You'll know best by feel what works for you, but "a few cm" is really quite a lot of change in saddle height. I usually do mine in ~2-3mm increments.

If so - should I raise the bars - so to speak?
If so - how? Spacer adjustment?

You could surely try that, and for minimal fuss and cost. Ultimately, you might wish for a stem with "rise" to get the bars up a bit more.

Are you sure of the frame's fit? These are some pretty large changes.

Best,

Dan.

[Matt2matt2002]

It is the largest frame.
587L I think.
I have always felt comfortable and safe on a big bike.

Not going to change it now but certainly something to consider if ever I do buy another bike.

I'll maybe lower the saddle a cm and see how I get on.

Matt

[Danneaux]

Matt,

Wearing the shoes you usually cycle in and with your foot on the pedal where you normally place it, do you still have a slight bend in your knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke?

That's a gross measure of saddle height correctness, but if you have no bend or a lot or your heel is up or down, it can be an indicator saddle height is less than optimal.

Sometimes, people prefer to pedal with their arches, and this can result in some difference in preferred saddle height, or the saddle can be placed very ahead or back on the post. That can affect saddle height as well.

Best,

Dan.

[JimK]

The general rule is to get the saddle height set to work with your leg length, then tweak the saddle forward or backward if necessary for proper leg function, then move the handlebars to where they need to be - mostly playing games with stem, spacers, etc. to get that right.

If your stem is now like mine is, you can just turn it upside down to get the bars up higher by quite a bit: