I'm 5'7", 150 lbs, inseam of 31 inches... Will do some cross-country and all-Mountain on it... The 18" feels really thight (about 1 " of standover clearence) and I feel ok with a 80mm stem... The 16.5" seems to have a really short top tube (that I'll must use a 100mm stem to compensate and a layback seatpost). Please, NEED HELP!

inch shorter than me and I'm on a 16.6 '02 Slayer. First off, my upper body is "proportionately" longer than my legs. When I stand up with my legs on the ground, the top-tube is no lower then 3/4".

First thing I noticed was that "tight" feeling you explained when riding. What's your previous ride?

Off the top of my head, I don't know my stem size, or my inseem size for that matter, but I did slide my saddle almost completely back to get the proper feel.

Ride the two sizes again and try to get a better feel for both. The Slayer should feel responsive like an XC bike (with a Lazy-boy-like-ride-quality) yet also like a free-ride bike that you can huck, jump, climb.

Well Im 5-10' with a 32 inch inseam and i ride a 18 inch slayer. It feels perfect for me. Id say that 5-7' with a 31inch inseam means you have long legs for your hight. Looks like your trapped in the middle of these size's. Again ride both you may end up with the 16.5 with a longer stem and offset seat post, like the one Thomson makes. And the Slayer is an excellant ride, I love mine . Good luck John

I currently ride an Ellsworth Id (15", 22,25 top tube) with a 15°X 90 mm stem (fork is a Z150SL, 2 X 5mm spacers underneath, 0 layback seatpost) and let's say that the feeling on this bike is OK... Perhaps needs a 95mm stem...

My cross-country bike is a K2 Razorback (17,5", 23" top tube) with a 10° X 90 mm stem (fork is a Marathon SL, 100mm, 3 X 5mm spacers, 0 layback seatpost) and the ride feels really balanced. In fact, I like it a lot!

My last ride was a Rocky Mountain Pipeline (18,5", can't remember the top tube length) with a 15° X 70mm stem (fork was a Z1 130mm, 2 or 3 X 5mm spacers under, 0 layback seatpost) and the feeling was more freeride oriented, as the bike climbed great but not that great... You know what I mean?

The 16,5 "Slayer" is not actually a real Slayer... It's a K2 Lithium with the same length of top tube (555mm), as I don't have acess to a 16,5 Slayer for size testing. I know that the wheelbase on the K2 is shorter (1054mm, 41,5" vs 1062mm, 41,8" for the Slayer), which will add stability to the ride, which is what I like. Also the head angle is 1° slacker (69°) on the Slayer (which is what explains the longer wheelbase).
I will use a Z1 2002, and as the Marzocchi's get the higher axle to crown lengths, it will add perhaps 0,5° to the head angle, which is good for me.

The 18" Slayer is a 2005 stock Slayer 30, which have a 120mm EXR Pro, that 80mm stem I used for testing and the saddle was slided completely in to emulate a straight seatpost... Feeling was good, but the actual seatpost only shows about let's say 6" off the bike, as on my others bikes showed 8-9"... As I said, the standover was... second to nearly none...

By my own conclusions, I must say that I'll be happy with the 16,5" with my Z1 on it and the use of a long and layback seatpost with the use of a 100mm stem without any spacers under it... :confused:

That's why I need other Slayer owners input!

5'6" on a 16.5 slayer. i am running a real short stem (70mm) but like the upright positioning (better for technical) and tight handling of the bike. i say at 5'7" go with the 16.5. if you were 5'8" i'd say your in the middle, but at 5'7" go small. plus, if you ever want to go with a longer front fork it will lessen your standover.

5'6" on a 16.5 slayer. i am running a real short stem (70mm) but like the upright positioning (better for technical) and tight handling of the bike. i say at 5'7" go with the 16.5. if you were 5'8" i'd say your in the middle, but at 5'7" go small. plus, if you ever want to go with a longer front fork it will lessen your standover.


...since I'm searching a picture over the web of a 16,5" slayer frame for days... I only see some 18" or 20" frames sizes.
By the way, thanks for your input!