Kids bike

joelsim
joelsim Posts: 7,552
edited August 2011 in Commuting chat
My nipper Thomas has just turned 4 and loves riding his bike. He started on a wooden balance bike, and we got him a spiderman bike for Christmas from a local 2nd hand shop for £25. He took to riding this without stabilisers in about 5 minutes from first getting on to it.

Now he can ride I want to get him a decent bike that's not as heavy as a tank and has proper components to fit small hands etc. The obvious choice is as Islabike, do you have any other suggestions?

Comments

  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,346
    My boy had a Ridgeback MX14 which was a great wee bike. He's now moved up to a 16inch Carrera Blast (from Halfords).

    Buy a decent one and look after it and you'll be able to sell it on when he outgrows it.

    Stay away from catalogue rubbish and anything with a 'character' on it. It'll be crap.


    Also a safety note. If you're buying second hand make sure that the handlebar grips are in good condition and there's no exposed metal at the end of the bar. A friend's child ended up in hospital to have emergency surgery on their bowel after a quite innocous looking fall. Apparently it was the 10th time the hospital had operated on a similar injury this year......
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • cjcp
    cjcp Posts: 13,345
    Mine have Islabikes. Brilliant buys.
    FCN 2-4.

    "What happens when the hammer goes down, kids?"
    "It stays down, Daddy."
    "Exactly."
  • walkingbootweather
    walkingbootweather Posts: 2,443
    Might be worth checking out of posting in the Family & Kids section.

    Islabikes are pretty much the best kids bikes on the market if you can afford them. Other manufacturers are starting to produce decent kids bikes e.g. kids cube, but these are a similar price to Islabikes.

    Round my way quite a few kids ride Specialised Hotrocks which are a lot better than supermarket BSOs.
    Nobody told me we had a communication problem
  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,346
    Anyone any experience of Decathlon bikes for kids?

    We got 2 wee balance bikes for the twins at the weekend and they seem to be great VFM. We're looking for a 24" bike for our daughter (9) and their selection seem to share a lot in common with Islabikes, especially the simpler 1 chainring : 1 cassette gearing.
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • Gussio
    Gussio Posts: 2,452
    We went for Islabikes too - no regrets at all.
  • SimonAH
    SimonAH Posts: 3,730
    Islabike Beinn, fantastic little bike. My daughter absolutely loves hers.
    FCN 5 belt driven fixie for city bits
    CAADX 105 beastie for bumpy bits
    Litespeed L3 for Strava bits

    Smoke me a kipper, I'll be back for breakfast.
  • PBo
    PBo Posts: 2,493
    TailWindHome wrote:
    My boy had a Ridgeback MX14 which was a great wee bike. He's now moved up to a 16inch Carrera Blast (from Halfords).

    Buy a decent one and look after it and you'll be able to sell it on when he outgrows it.

    Stay away from catalogue rubbish and anything with a 'character' on it. It'll be crap.

    my boy's got the ridgeback MX16. good compromise between cost of islabike and crapness of kiddy BSOs
  • joelsim
    joelsim Posts: 7,552
    islabikes are looking good as the cost wouold be offset by the resale value by the looks of things. I've met Isla too.
  • The Rookie
    The Rookie Posts: 27,812
    My daughter had a Dawes 24" wheeled 'town bike' (MTB style designed for the road) that went through 7 years and both girls without a single fault (we never even had to change a cable) before being sold on ebay for just over 1/3 what we paid for it, so we got 7 years of use for about £100.

    Simon
    Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
  • navt
    navt Posts: 374
    TailWindHome wrote:
    Anyone any experience of Decathlon bikes for kids?

    We got 2 wee balance bikes for the twins at the weekend and they seem to be great VFM. We're looking for a 24" bike for our daughter (9) and their selection seem to share a lot in common with Islabikes, especially the simpler 1 chainring : 1 cassette gearing.

    My DD is on a 20" I think. The one with a 5-speed cassette on the back. Low maintenance and very good VFM. She enjoys it. Gears. Just like dad's.

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