What do your kids ride?

True. The timber ones have a high stand over compared to the fancy ones and this can be tricky for the small ones until they are older. Ours sat there unused for a while until he twigged and then was basically killed in just six months because he essentially grew out of it. Fortunately, it was a gift so I didn't have any personal guilt about the wrong bike. He's now got a modified 16" Giant from the tip shop but he's still not keen on pedaling so it remains a balance bike even at 4.5 years.
 
SlowManiac said:
We bought a used Strider, can't see any reason to buy one new.

Balance bikes are freaking awesome, my little guy loves his, he does little drop offs, some little dirt paths and other little bits of 'mountain biking' all before he is 2.
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looking at a strider now - some reviews say the foam tyres are a weakness, but at only $15 to replace the whole wheel is that an issue? also looking at jd bug with the brake, I doubt a 2 year old will be able to use it it may be useful as he gets older.
 
tubby74 said:
looking at a strider now - some reviews say the foam tyres are a weakness, but at only $15 to replace the whole wheel is that an issue? also looking at jd bug with the brake, I doubt a 2 year old will be able to use it it may be useful as he gets older.
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My kid's been on foam tyres for 6 months with no issue, he rides almost exclusively off road (easy ST, pump tracks, BMX tracks, fire roads). Now he's grown a bit I'm thinking about getting air tyres, but it's not a big deal. Main factor with small kids is weight I think. Having a bike they can stop easily with their feet, spin around, pick up, etc without much effort makes it more fun. Check out Cruzee too, they weigh a kilo less than the Strider (also less than those carbon items that sell for over a grand).
 
My 2 are both on Shred 20's... as said, solid but hefty !

Good work on the blinged out one, mine will be riding them standard.

 
angrybadger said:
My kid's been on foam tyres for 6 months with no issue, he rides almost exclusively off road (easy ST, pump tracks, BMX tracks, fire roads). Now he's grown a bit I'm thinking about getting air tyres, but it's not a big deal. Main factor with small kids is weight I think. Having a bike they can stop easily with their feet, spin around, pick up, etc without much effort makes it more fun. Check out Cruzee too, they weigh a kilo less than the Strider (also less than those carbon items that sell for over a grand).
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thanks angrybadger, hadn't noticed the cruzee but that weight was the winner so placed an order. Given the pushys sale I put it in early, would suck if it wasn't here in time for junior's birthday later this month
 
My youngest is 4 1/2, started on one of these JD Bug balance bikes when he turned 2.
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Great little bike, super light with pneumatic tyres, just developed a lot of slack in the plastic headset after being absolutely ridden to death for 2 years. Took him a few months to give it much interest, then he started just walking around with it under him, then rolling down the driveway until he figured out he could push with his feet. He hasn't stopped since then.
He's now on his older brother's hand-me-down Mongoose Pit Bike
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This thing is pretty heavy but will take ANY abuse thrown at it. He's a lunatic on it, and has ridden it far more than his brother ever did.
He'll be the one who wants to take riding further, his brother just sees it as transport. He is on a Trek MT220, 24" hard tail with a fork that belongs on a kmart special.


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Last year I got a Fourty Bikes 540 issuu.com/fourtybikes/docs/2013catalogue?e=3013453/2598956for my 10yo girl, it's no MTB but has good ergonomics for kids between about 9-12yo. Gripshift/Shimano Nexus 3spd hub (freewheel) 24 x 1 3/8" tyres, generic dual pivot brakes. I haven't weighed it but it feels light-ish. Some of the bits are pretty heavy and I'll end up finding a home for some castoffs from my bike. Tyre choice is very limited, as is the clearance but it's a more of a road bike, faster/easier to propel. I've swapped the 38T front ring for a 34 which has made the gears more useable for her and could probably go a tooth or two less on the rear. Should see her right until she's ready for a 26" MTB or doesn't want anything to do with bikes
 
Fourty's are great bikes. You'll have more luck finding a smaller front chainring than a smaller rear cog to fit the nexus. 34t was the smallest I could find though. Tried shimano for a smaller rear cog but none in country, not a regular spare it seemed. If you can get it off the hub, you'll probably find it wouldn't be too difficult to find something that either fits or the grooves can be ground back to fit.
 
I got an email back from Shimano Australia saying they only stock 21 and 23T cogs but wouldn't tell me who stocks them and some googling has turned up a better selection from eBay sellers in the UK. Apparently some Alfine hubs use the same cogs.

I think 34/18 is still a bit high, but she needs to ride it a bit more to give me some better feedback. I want to get it so that she uses 3rd most with the two lower gears for getting up hills, but if I have to order from the UK I might as well get a couple and be able to fine tune it. If Fourtybikes is still going they should reconsider the gearing on these bikes, it's probably OK for a strong 12yo rider which is around the age they would be growing out of it...
 
The giant veer we have was 38t/20t stock. I converted to 34t/20t which proved much easier and better setup with 2 low gears for hills instead of 1 and the 1 high gear seems to be a good setup (not to hard to push over, not spinning to fast) for flat paths/rail trail. Might be worth looking at a 20t - found these guys have stock and shipping isn't too bad.. http://www.jensonusa.com/!18IBwbd5MtQmsS8g6!pLPA!/Shimano-Cog-For-Internal-Gear-Hub?utm_source=FRGLAUS&utm_medium=organic&cu=AUD&gclid=CNXz85D_3r4CFVSSvQod4yYAqQ

Not sure if they need special tools to change?
 
Yep, it's an easy swap out.

I did it for the nexus hub on my wife's Electra Townie. Swapped from a 20 to a 23 tooth cog that I had to buy in from the USA via eBay.

She can now get up most of the hills around home, instead of pushing like she used to have to do.
 
well the cruzee was a hit for little man's 2nd birthday today. as soon as I'd put it together he grabbed it and took off, no prompting or help. 30 minutes of laps around the kitchen dining area.
 
I don't think these have been mentioned before if anyone's in the market for a balance bike.

Avanti 'lil ripper'. After just passing this on to #2 I can still recommend it. I was surprised by the build quality originally & after a good while hanging in the shed between #1 & #2 it's still great. All that was needed was the removal of a few stickers & an old azonic shorty to replace the ludicrously long stem. Was originally ~$120 & so much better built than a lot out there.
 
just finished a full rebuild of my sons 24" Stinky...hes stoked!
respray in 2K, x9/x5 drivetrain, converted front to single speed -mrp guide, elixir 5 brakes, gravity stem and bars, Fox rp23, Rockshox Recon solo air 130mm, etc etc
before
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after
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My daughter is 3 years old and rides a specialized Hotwalk balance bike.
She is quite tall for her age and goes well on 12 inch pedaled bikes with training wheels. I already gave a little 12 inch Mongoose Lilgoose that I found on hard rubbish. Today I bolted on some training wheels and she will have her first ride on it this week.
But damn the Mongoose is heavy. It must be close to the weight of my hard tail and I'm sure it's heavier than my roadie

My thought are moving onto her next bike. I'm thinking 16 inch but want something light weight. It has nothing to do with racing or being competitive but just want something she can handle and enjoy riding.
I don't mind compromising some durability for some extra performance but budget wouldn't be huge.
Are there any 16 inch kids bikes that aren't forged from solid steel?
 
I don't know how else to do the transition to pedals. I tried it without training wheels and it just scared her off.
It's the bloody bike stores fault. Every time we go there she runs over and rides all the bikes around the store and they all have training wheels.
I know it's a backwards step but how else is it done? I thought I would just stick the training wheels on for a short time and set them up pretty high.
I did see the radius bikes but wasn't convinced by the website.
 
Most kids can't get the transition without trauma so they need some sort of backup. Most 12 - 16" kids bikes don't actually have the correct geometry for pedalling either especially without training wheels. My lad has had his 16" Giant Animator for ages ($10 from the tip shop) and despite having pedals fitted, he still uses it like a balance bike. But at least he's riding it. The bike itself is still on the heavy side but not too bad. Strong enough to carry me no worries - I know this because I crashed it on the second lap of the driveway during a game of chasings.
 
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