Sigma (London) bike fit...

[CAB]

Based in west London and was looking to have an existing bike refitted (having purchased many additional parts since new), frustratingly the bike whisperer who i believe was very highly rates has moved out of town so the question(s) is;
- Sigma - do you rate them (for bike fit specifically)?
- who is the best/who should i ask for?

many thanks in advance
CAB

[The Walrus]

Sigma do the BG Fit which when I went for earlier in the year and it took around 2.5 hours.

I dealt with Jimmy Wilson who was helpful and honest with equipment upgrades etc, I have since been back for a different saddle and was there for nearly and hour tweaking to get it right with no extra charge but I did buy another saddle !!

You have other options locally in sheen you have Pearson who I think will do one not sure on price and Velosport in Putney I think can also help.

[okgo]

Do not go to a shop like Dizzie has said, anything that takes half an hour and £50 can be done yourself by looking on the internet. Actually go and see someone trained who knows what they're talking about.

Sigma wouldn't be a bad shout, I had one done at Velosport just down the road in Putney from Adam who I know well and is very good at what he does.

[CAB]

Many thanks for the responses, have a Cervelo that was originally fitted at Condor 3-4 years back. Have since changed/tampered with many parts and with more miles under my belt wanted to get a full fit, encompassing the speed play pedals. Sigma sound good, would have preferred to have used a smaller dedicated outfit such as the bike whisperer but avialibility and the fact they have moved would make it difficult.

Will check out Velosport, as would be keen to get the Single speed done at the same time.

many thanks
Colin

[simonk68]

Re-fitting you on to an existing frame? There isn't all that much that a bike fitter can do for you apart from adjusting the saddle height, which you can work out and measure up pretty easily for yourself ; the drop to the bars, which is a doddle to change and you can judge by feel; and the length of the stem, which is usually a choice between two or possibly three.

I reckon you could work this out yourself. Bike fits are great - and really important for time trial setup - but I'd argue the main value for road bikes is making sure you get the right size frame if you are between two sizes, or possibly the right choice of frame if you're undecided as to what to buy.

That said, if you want to go down this route I can heartily recommend Richard Melik at Freespeed in Chiswick http://www.freespeed.co.uk/ who uses the Retul system. Really nice guy, knows his stuff and takes his time to get you set up properly.

[Hobzy]

+1 for a retul fit.

[HowMuchLonger]

simonk68 said:

Re-fitting you on to an existing frame? There isn't all that much that a bike fitter can do for you apart from adjusting the saddle height, which you can work out and measure up pretty easily for yourself ; the drop to the bars, which is a doddle to change and you can judge by feel; and the length of the stem, which is usually a choice between two or possibly three.

Cleat position...
saddle position (more to it than up down of the seatpost.
Crank length
stem..more tHan 2 or 3 lengths

[CAB]

HowMuchLonger said:

Cleat position...
saddle position (more to it than up down of the seatpost.
Crank length
stem..more tHan 2 or 3 lengths

Recommendations??

Suspect we will spend most time on crank length and pedals - which I know little or nothing about.

Also keen to get both bikes sorted.

[CAB]

Hobzy said:

+1 for a retul fit.

Any specific fitter??

Many thanks.

[Carl-H]

Can anyone recommend the planet-x retül fit? I can get it half price for £92.50 as I bought my bike from them. Worth the money for commuting and weekend rides?

http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/x-fit

[jodypress]

I've used Cyclefit in Covent Garden for last few years and swear by them.

http://www.cyclefit.co.uk/home

Recently had some new shoes set up. They've got all my details on record, went in for my appointment, 2 sets of e-sholes fitted. Saddle tweaked by 2mm and cleats set up and fitted. All in was about £70.

Just came back from a week in the Alps, climbed Alpe D'Huez and Col du Galibier. Spot on riding position, just wish I had the climbing skill to do it justice

[Hobzy]

CAB said:

Any specific fitter??

Many thanks.

Garth kruger at vankru cycling did mine, but he's Southampton based so a long way from you.

[simonk68]

HowMuchLonger said:

Cleat position...
saddle position (more to it than up down of the seatpost.
Crank length
stem..more tHan 2 or 3 lengths

Saddle pitch I would argue is nigh-on impossible to determine correctly in a bike fit - you need a good few hours in a particular saddle at a particular angle to work out whether it's right for you. Put the rails flat and ride for a while, adjust the nose down if your bell-end goes numb or up if you keep sliding off the back. Fair point on saddle fore/aft position, but if the OP changes saddle, all bets are off.

There are more than 2 or 3 stem lengths available, but only 2 or 3 on a given frame size that will allow the bike to handle reasonably (too long = steers like a bus, too short = twitchy nightmare)

Cleat position - again, fair point, but in my experience bike fits don't satisfactorily address this, and basic housekeeping like replacing cleats before they wear out, and putting the damn things on straight, are more important.