What do your kids ride?

foxpuppet

foxpuppet

Eats Squid
EZZA 84 said:
Hey guys, my little girls turning 4 in a couple months. She’s on a Cruzee balance bike at the moment and rides it fairly well. She can easily roll along with feet off the ground for a good 15-20m.
Is it too early to buy her a pedal bike for her 4th bday? Straight to no training wheels from balance bike? I figure throwing training wheels in the mix will send her backwards....
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If you can, whichever pedal bike you get. Pull off the cranks and let her use it like a balance bike to get used to the size & feel of it and get used to using brakes etc. while they still can use feet as a fall back. We did this with my daughter (Cruzee to 20” pedal bike) and the transition took very little time.


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EZZA 84

EZZA 84

Likes Bikes
Good idea!
So if 12" bikes are too small then should we be looking at 16" size? Just measured her and she's pretty much bang on 100cm tall.
 
Switch

Switch

huskier headed gent
EZZA 84 said:
Good idea!
So if 12" bikes are too small then should we be looking at 16" size? Just measured her and she's pretty much bang on 100cm tall.
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Dependant on the manufacturer of the bike but these are the sizings from Commencal for the Ramones range. My daughter had the 14" and is about to get the 20" (in a box in the shed) for her 6th birthday. My daughter has been averaging around 10cm per year in growth.
 
ausdb

ausdb

Being who he is
EZZA 84 said:
Good idea!
So if 12" bikes are too small then should we be looking at 16" size? Just measured her and she's pretty much bang on 100cm tall.
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I've just measured my miss 4, she is 107cm. The Byk 350 has 18" x 1.5 tyres which seem to be a Byk specific size. Here's a pic of it against a Superfly 20 for comparison, the top of the tape measure is 48cm.
HTH

Forgot to say little miss 4 is a right little princess and likes pink not green, anyone got any suggestions on a quick and dirty respray for the forks (and chainguard which is off at the moment) I cant be arsed painting the whole frame so will just use stickers to cover the green Byk logos

361818
 
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Milpool

Milpool

Have knuckles, will drag
Do kids bikes go on sale like adults bikes when the latest model comes out? Will be getting my son his first pedal bike for Christmas, he'll be three and a half-ish by then so was thinking 12". It will no doubt end up a hand me down for the one on the way (that poor kid isn't going to get anything new for years) so going to look for best option around the $250 mark.

Did everyone start their kid on coaster brake? Nearly seems only option in 12".
 
EZZA 84

EZZA 84

Likes Bikes
I ended up getting this for my daughter (turning 4), being an older model it's on sale.

www.bicyclesuperstore.com.au

Scott

Browse Scott road bikes, mountain bikes and e-bikes online at Bicycle Superstore or visit in-store at one of eight outlets in Melbourne and across Victoria.
www.bicyclesuperstore.com.au www.bicyclesuperstore.com.au
 
ashes_mtb

ashes_mtb

Has preferences
Milpool said:
Do kids bikes go on sale like adults bikes when the latest model comes out? Will be getting my son his first pedal bike for Christmas, he'll be three and a half-ish by then so was thinking 12". It will no doubt end up a hand me down for the one on the way (that poor kid isn't going to get anything new for years) so going to look for best option around the $250 mark.

Did everyone start their kid on coaster brake? Nearly seems only option in 12".
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Yes, and he was only interested in hand braking. Has taken me ages to get him out of the habit of braking on the front only.
 
ashes_mtb

ashes_mtb

Has preferences
Starting to gather bits for the 7 year olds next bike. He's fairly small (under 125cm) so still well and truly in 20" territory for now.

Picked up an XS Giant 26" hardtail frame and have an old set of RS Recons to go on the front. Have the 130mm cranks from 20" initially and have picked up a 152mm set for later.

Was going to go straight to 26 like many here have, but I'm not convinced it'll be the right fit initially so am thinking of going 24 first and then transitioning him across to 26.

Setup would be something like:

24 f & r, 80mm fork. 130mm crank. 265mm BB height. 69HA

26 f, 24 r, 80mm fork, 130mm crank, 282mm BB height. ~67.5ha

26 f&r, 100mm fork, 152mm crank, 300mm BB height. ~68ha.

I figure with the small cranks the lower bottom bracket will be a good thing initially. 265 is the BB height of his 20" so shouldn't be any different for him.

Can anyone see anything wrong with my thinking on it?
 
ausdb

ausdb

Being who he is
Milpool said:
Did everyone start their kid on coaster brake? Nearly seems only option in 12".
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The coaster brake is an Australian standards thing on some sizes of kids bikes
https://www.productsafety.gov.au/standards/bicycles
I'm trying to replace it on my little misses Byk E350 as it weighs a ton but struggling to find a 28 hole screw on freewheel hub that doesn't cost a squillion dollars. It has a v-brake at the rear and side pull at the front so you can't say it is under braked...
 
Chriso_29er

Chriso_29er

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Milpool said:
best option around the $250 mark.

Did everyone start their kid on coaster brake? Nearly seems only option in 12".
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Both mine started with coaster brakes, cant see any reason it will hold them back.
Both avoided hand brakes as they found them too hard to pull when younger, but then it seemed like a novelty when they got older and loved pulling the front brake for super quick stops.

My eldest is now I think ready for his first real MTB, coming off 20". So going to start looking for an XS adults bike. He is already riding around my 26" retro Medium but is way too big for proper riding.
 
stirk

stirk

Burner
Yesterday I bought a 2010 trek fuel ex 5 26" in small frame for my son Zach today. Funny story is that the bloke I bought it from lived up the road from me until a a year ago. I previously bought his kids 20" bike for my son in the same colour scheme.

I've been looking for a small 26" for a while so this came up in perfect timing, local and a good price. The boys got that new bike feels even if it's an older bike.

The middle pivot of the rear suspension rocker is really loose with 1mm of play so I'll need to check that out and might need some tips from you old farts who know this 2010 vintage.

362795
 
Chriso_29er

Chriso_29er

Likes Bikes and Dirt
stirk said:
Yesterday I bought a 2010 trek fuel ex 5 26" in small frame for my son Zach today. Funny story is that the bloke I bought it from lived up the road from me until a a year ago. I previously bought his kids 20" bike for my son in the same colour scheme.

I've been looking for a small 26" for a while so this came up in perfect timing, local and a good price. The boys got that new bike feels even if it's an older bike.

The middle pivot of the rear suspension rocker is really loose with 1mm of play so I'll need to check that out and might need some tips from you old farts who know this 2010 vintage.

View attachment 362795
Click to expand...
Looks pretty tidy for its age! Lucky kid.
 
Jim Junkie

Jim Junkie

Used to sell drugs, now he just takes them
Milpool said:
Do kids bikes go on sale like adults bikes when the latest model comes out? Will be getting my son his first pedal bike for Christmas, he'll be three and a half-ish by then so was thinking 12". It will no doubt end up a hand me down for the one on the way (that poor kid isn't going to get anything new for years) so going to look for best option around the $250 mark.

Did everyone start their kid on coaster brake? Nearly seems only option in 12".
Click to expand...
+1 for the 16". I had my 2 kids on 12" at 2-3 years old, at which time they moved over to a 16". Just trying the youngest on 16" now (3 in August), but he'll probably stay on the 12" until he hits 3 I suspect. The oldest just turned 6 & is now getting at 20" Polygon Relic, as he's grown out of the 16".

I had to hunt for the 16" to get one with a low stand-over to suit his height at 3, & cut down the seat post a bit too so it could be slammed. In the end though, he had stacks of fun from the word go on that thing.

Coaster brake is an Australian Standard thing line ausdb mentioned, bikes need to have 2 different braking systems or some such thing. Probably good thing though, as at 3 he didn't have the reach or hand strength to effectively use the hand brake. He's worked up to it now though, so it's just a progression thing. Most kids bikes have trash brakes at that size too, so I'm all for something they can use that actually works.
 
Milpool

Milpool

Have knuckles, will drag
Thanks for the info guys, I think I'll be looking at something like a 16" Giant when it comes time to buy. He's getting better on his balance bike, I'm slowly sneaking the seat height up on him so he has to balance instead of walking it. Fun to watch.
 
C

creaky

XMAS Plumper
Proud of my 3yo daughter. Neither my wife or I thought she was ready or interested, though our boy rode easily when younger than this.

She inherited a 16" from her brother, which I set up for her yesterday arvo. She was keen straight away and then proceeded to do a few practice runs on the driveway before heading to the bike path across the street. Did 300m no assistance aside from starting and stopping !

Back at it twice today too, going further. She's loving it !
 
Jpez

Jpez

Down on the left!
363117

Anybody want these kids size 5 gloves for their little shredder? My girl is now 5 and they are too tight. Happy to stick them in an envelope and send em off for free.
 
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