Womens frame that has a dropped top tube but isn't awful?

[Golaboots]

My wife has a Specialized Hardrock womens specific design. At 15" its too small for her really so she doesn't use it.
I was thinking of changing the frame or even the whole bike but she wants a really low step over height (sadly she's not the most flexible.)

My understanding is that the dropped top tube was for ladies who wear skirts to gracefully mount a bike for popping to the shops. Women who go mountain biking usually want a proper frame that fits them, as such I've not been able to find any frames that offer a low step over with the ability to take a 100mm suspension fork.

Anyone know of any frames/bikes that offer this?
Is my idea of an old school full suspension frame that has a semi dropped bar a good one?

[Kell]

Something like an Orange Ms Isle (if you can find SH) or an Orange Diva?

Ms Isle:

[wobert]

Orange Diva HT or Five Diva?

[nammynake]

Canyon do quite a few female-specific models and are good value for money.

http://www.canyon.com/en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b...


http://www.canyon.com/en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b...


This isn't female specific but standover height looks quite low:

http://www.canyon.com/en/mountainbikes/bike.html?b...

[yellowjack]

Golaboots said:

My wife has a Specialized Hardrock womens specific design. At 15" its too small for her really so she doesn't use it.
I was thinking of changing the frame or even the whole bike but she wants a really low step over height (sadly she's not the most flexible.)

My understanding is that the dropped top tube was for ladies who wear skirts to gracefully mount a bike for popping to the shops. Women who go mountain biking usually want a proper frame that fits them, as such I've not been able to find any frames that offer a low step over with the ability to take a 100mm suspension fork.

Anyone know of any frames/bikes that offer this?
Is my idea of an old school full suspension frame that has a semi dropped bar a good one?

Get your 'bird' a Bird? http://shop.birdmtb.com/zero.html

No 'womens specific' frames, but a lower top tube for better standover clearance, and a number of "default" build lists from the Zero.3 at £995 to the Zero.AM at £1850. Plus heaps of customisation options, fork choices, some options cost, some are no-cost options, bigger number of choices the further up the range you go. Options even include a dropper seatpost. Frame sizes are 15", 17", 19", and 21", all with 650b (27.5") wheels and a 140mm travel fork.

Bird cycleworks said:

"We dropped the top tube by nearly 100mm over a 'standard' frame design, and kept the top tube generous but not the longest out there. Why? To make the sizing of the Zero as flexible as we could. Like your bike long and more progressive geometry? Size up. Like a more traditional geometry? Size down. Its a simple design feature that makes the Bird Zero the most versatile hardtail frame in the market."

It reviews well, and is put together here in Hampshire (Eversley, between Farnborough and Reading). The boys have a pretty extensive demo fleet too, so if you are close enough, you could book a demo day and bring the wife up to try one out.

I'm not connected with Bird, by the way, but the Zero.1 is top of my target list for my new MTB.