'17 Contend SL 2 Disc - impressions/sizing?

[Ant_S]

Hey fellow Giant owners,

Just wondering if anyone out there has a Contend SL 2 Disc and what your impressions are? Perhaps versus a TCR?

I'm considering one as my commuter. My current is a steel Hillbrick S/S I've upgraded over time. I find it slightly limited with 1 gear, heavy, plus I struggle to get comfy on it - I'm ~172cm, its an 'S-M' with 535TT but I've tried 80 & 90mm stems, different compact drops with my SRAM levers & it still seems off. Plus with a 110mm HT it is pretty low and has a fair bit of toe overlap on 167.5 cranks/SPD SLs.

The Contend seems to tick the boxes for me - decent enough frame & components but nothing to be too worried about knocking or scratching, still aggressive enough to be fun/fast enough but with a bit more comfort.

I've found one in a Small on run-out that I can layby, however its ex-warehouse so I can't test ride it. My 'weekend ride' is a 2016 TCR Advanced 2 with Ultegra. Its actually an M which I've begun to suspect is a bit big (have got a 90mm stem on it now) but not bad. So I am thinking the Contend in S (perhaps with the 100mm stem off my TCR?) may work well?

Just curious of any input really! I may end up having to go to another store to test ride one of these without the intention of buying, just to get sizing right which I don't like to do obviously.

Cheers

[Duck!]

Depending on frame size, there's between 5 &10mm difference in TT, and 10-20mm HT difference between the Contend & TCR, with the Contend being shorter and taller. Yout Medium TCR has a 550mm TT & 148mm HT, where the equivalent Contend is 545mm (5mm shorter) TT, and 165mm (17mm taller) HT. The Small Contend by comparison is 530mm TT (shorter than your Hillbrick) and 145mm HT - similar to your TCR, but the 20mm shorter TT will effectively sit you up more, and 35mm taller than the Hillbrick! According to Giant's sizing guide, you're borderline between Small and Medium sizes. Given how you feel on the TCR, it's probably pretty safe to throw some coin at the small Contend. An 80mm stem on the TCR will give you a very close approximation of the setup on the small Contend with a 100mm stem.

[Ant_S]

Cheers for the input Duck!
Of course I see it now, once I've put a deposit down & lay-byed a Medium! haha

I went to the store to order the Small, and they had a Medium Contend 1 there. They urged me to test ride it so with seat height set, off I went. While it didn't feel 'hand in glove' type fit it did feel pretty good. My eye over front axle view seemed good with the stock 100mm stem, better than on the Hillbrick & TCR in terms of 'axle in line with stem' when in riding position. On both those bikes I feel like the shorter stems bring the bars back to me whereas this I was more balanced over the wheel. The store guy looked at me on the bike, listened to my feedback re axle, measured seat post extension & said in his opinion he would sell me a Medium but obviously its up to me a what I like. He suggested I go see if I could find a Small Contend to ride.

So I went to another retailer who had about the last Medium SL 2 on the floor in Perth, for the same price as the Small. I thought they had a Small Contend too, but turned out they didn't. They measured me up for size (height & in-seam) and also said the M should be right for me. They set seat height and I test rode it, and it did feel pretty good. As per usual, the gears weren't changing that well and the front tyre was a bit low on psi, plus they only had me ride it about 100m up and down a car park. So I didn't get a great idea of it, but the store guy said he definitely felt the Medium was right for me, perhaps with a bit more seat post.

Therefore I've ended up with the Medium on lay-by. I think I have a long-ish in-seam and perhaps shorter reach/poor flexibility as I seem to have quite a bit of seat post out on the frames I have, so I feel like going smaller ends up with even more seat post and saddle-bar drop. I am hoping the Medium will work out, as I can drop the stem if its too high, and still have the option of going down to a 90mm stem if it seems too long.