UKC

Ok. So the 6 yr old needs a new bike, one that will allow him to bounce around glentress and other trails (hopefully, he will stay upright and it will be the bike that does the bouncing).

Everything I see about kids bikes right now revolves around islabikes, and I can see why - weight, easier braking, and they currently hold re-sale value. The 8yr old has a Specialized and I'm far from convinced its great (heavy, compared to her cuz's islabike, and awkward gears). But before I bite the bullet with the 6 year old, is there any other brands to consider? Someone mentioned Felt, but their Q20 weighs 11kg vs 8.8kg for islabikes. Any others, or any advice?

In reply to mav: Isla is indeed where its at however in my experience the best bike is the one your child loves enough to want to go out and ride. this may mean its pink with place for a teddy or blue and has a nerf gun attached... as long as they ride them and play on them, job done. If during this purchase moment you can steer them to an isla, well done.

In reply to mav:

You will resell the Islabike when outgrown for not much less than you paid for it.

In reply to mav: I'm sure this was asked recently- can't find the thread- but Ridgeback bikes were suggested. Aluminium and cheaper than Islabikes:

http://www.ridgeback.co.uk/

In reply to mav:

Although we've used Isla from Balance(Rothan)-Cnoc-Bienn, our 6 year old lad is currently very happy with this (his 4 year bro has got his Bienn):

http://www.ridgeback.co.uk/bike/rx20-graphite#details


When he get a bit bigger he's getting this though (but don't tell him!):

http://www.islabikes.co.uk/bike_pages/creig24.html

In reply to mav:

Ours both have Islabikes and the cost of them seems insignificant when put against the many hours of fun we've had riding Glentress / Whinlatter / Gisburn / Kentmere etc etc as a family. Having said that I'm going to seriously look at frog bikes next time round. Look to be 95% as good as an Islabikes but £70 - £80 a model cheaper. If you are anywhere near the Lakes Wheelbase have them in but I suspect you can track them down somewhere else, or they sell direct.

In reply to Exile: almost word for word what he said. except my kids havent ridden at gisburn . the weight thing is the crux of the matter. my 5 year covets a creig 24 above all else. after having 3 so far , how can i deny him ? (price is eye watering mind)

In reply to mav: 2nd looking at frog although we bought isla. Seren did 18.5 miles in the New forest no problem

In reply to mav:

Get the kid a BMX. He'll benefit far more from that than a scaled down mtb. Gears are unnecessary at that age. Take him to a BMX track and at least you'll be able to enjoy the experience together.

In reply to Wee Davie:

Nonsense - our 4 year uses gears to full effect!

In reply to ChrisJD:


Not quite the same as saying they are necessary though. Our two (3 and 5) have cheap 2nd hand bmx type bikes. They do them fine for trips into town, school or longer cycles on forest tracks. Kids bikes tend to be geared pretty low anyway, and they are mainly just used for messing about on.

Not to say you shouldn't spend a lot on a top end bike if you want to, but I would be surprised if it meant the kids have more fun.

In reply to RCC:

TBF, some gears are probably useful on the hills of Glentress....

In reply to Rigid Raider:

That doesn't sound likely - if you can get a brand new one for not much more than 2nd hand one, you'd be a fool to buy 2nd hand!

In reply to Carolyn:


Depends on the kid I suppose, and obviously the parents know best what is appropriate.

Kids bikes are geared very low; I would guess that gearing would add to the top rather than lowering the bottom of the range. Our 5 year old can manage 10% gradients on his single speed(never tried him on a geared bike though).

In reply to RCC:

Not sure - my older one switched from single speed to gears at 5, and could certainly get up local hills he couldn't on the old bike (both Islabikes). Possibly other factors like the new one fitting him better, but I suspect there was a lower gear or two. Although the main reason for the new bike was braking power - one brake just wasn't enough.

In reply to higherclimbingwales:


Might not sound likely, but it's true. I've been watching eBay through the summer, and not found one that's gone for enough under the new price to make it worth buying. I've been watching Cnoc 16s - new price £200, and they've all gone for well over £150 (and up to £180), often likely needing a new set of tyres, etc.

In reply to Carolyn:


OK, fair enough. Like I said, I haven't tried geared kids bikes, so I wouldn't know.

Just wanted to make the point that for young kids, being able to enjoy cycling is more important than the technical specs of the bike. Some kids will care about features (more often they go for decoration), other times it might be more driven by the parent (not that there's anything wrong with that)! It isn't necessary to buy a top end bike.

A few shops advertise trade in for Ridgeback children's bikes.
Maybe ask what the trade in value is likely to be to see if it's worthwhile.

If ebay prices are silly then take adavantage of that - buy new & sell on ebay when the child has grown.

In reply to mav:

We're onto our 5th Islabike over 2 children (Rothan, Cnoc 14, Cnoc 16, Beinn 20, and this week's new bike - Creig 24). All have been superb, light, quality components throughout, very high re-sale values). A great biking experience for kids and parents.

Sam (7) was happy riding the easier red sections at Coed-y-Brenin (etc) on a Beinn 20. He's now deliriously excited about taking the new bike back for some more!

In reply to Dave Todd:

Oh dear. Don't tell my 7 year old he's ready for a Creig 24, I've been trying to convince him he's not big enough yet after he spotted it on their website.....

In reply to RCC:


I largely agree, but if they're going to be cycling dedicated mountain bike trails (as the original post suggested - and mine was doing downhill sections of blue trails under control at 4), then having a decent bike is likely to make it easier, and increase their enjoyment of it.....far less of an issue if they're mainly going to be riding flat roads and easy cycle tracks. I suspect, too, kids whose parents are regular mountain bikers are going to be more interested in having a bike like mum and dad than having a bike with Ben 10 or Barbie on it.

The downside is that all the parents I know of older kids who've taken a similar approach are now terrified of the speed their kids downhill.....

In reply to Carolyn:

Dawes Phantom looks like it's about the same weight/size (and without front sus) - possible cheaper alternative.

In reply to Carolyn:

Exactly. Our youngest went from a Cnoc (no gears) to a Bieen-Small just after his fourth Bday early this year and is loving it. We went round the Green at Brefcha a couple of weeks ago (gets a push on the back from dad up some of the hills). He can change down easy enough, but getting into easy gears on the gripshift is tricky for him.

In reply to mav:
When my kids were learning to ride (the eldest two are 16 now), I bought a couple of quite old unisex, step-through Raleighs - a bit like this one http://ebay.eu/17Kvyfv. I know they're not very trendy, but the simplicity of the design (no gears, no cross-bar, 12" wheels) removed all the complexities that often put kids off. It also meant they were relatively light compared to the over-spec'd modern bikes.
I've noticed that all four of our kids didn't really use gears until they were quite a bit older - they were always happier spinning like fury that fiddling around trying to select the right speed. In my view, an ideal kids bike should really only have two gears - one marked 'hills' and the other marked 'everything else'

In reply to mav:
just a quick thank-you to all. Hadn't heard of frog, so that was useful, and thanks for the ridgeback tip too. that's what I was looking for - there are so many brands it's easy for a decent brand to get lost in the crowd.