Islabikes price rises.

Daz555

Huge increases across the range ~ 20%

I think for many, Islabikes will now be a bit too rich to consider. I know from my own perspective I will not be upgrading my son's £160 Cnoc 16 with the now £300 (plus shipping) Benin 20. I know that £160 is not cheap for a 16 incher, but 300 notes for a 20" bike! :shock:

Time to start looking round for alternatives nearer the £200 mark I feel.

othello

Daz555 wrote:

Huge increases across the range ~ 20%

I think for many, Islabikes will now be a bit too rich to consider. I know from my own perspective I will not be upgrading my son's £160 Cnoc 16 with the now £300 (plus shipping) Benin 20. I know that £160 is not cheap for a 16 incher, but 300 notes for a 20" bike! :shock:

Time to start looking round for alternatives nearer the £200 mark I feel.

Adult bike prices have been rising year on year too, and with Islabikes being relatively small, it is to be expected. Even at £300 you'll still get most of that back in aftersale.

Daz555

othello wrote:

Even at £300 you'll still get most of that back in aftersale.

Depends on your child! I'll be lucky if my lad's Cnoc 16 fetches a tenner - too brave, too uncoordinated, too many crashes.

Now, my daughter on the other hand - careful and very coordinated. Kerchiiing!

Underscore

Daz555 wrote:

othello wrote:

Even at £300 you'll still get most of that back in aftersale.

Depends on your child! I'll be lucky if my lad's Cnoc 16 fetches a tenner - too brave, too uncoordinated, too many crashes.

I'm with you there - with 3 boys, there's no way that any bike is going to be in a saleable condition at the end of it! The good thing with Islabikes is that you can get the spare parts so I was able to get a new pair of brake levers for the Cnoc 14 before it was passed on to #2. However, we paused at £250 for the Bienn 20 - at £300, as it is now, the pause (and the internet research) would be longer... What are the alternatives, though?

_

Mr Will

The bikes (or at least the CNOC14) have been upgraded though - the CNOC14 has lost over 1.5kg of weight in the process which is well worth the extra cost (wish I could lose 1.5kg off my road bike for £40!).

I guess this is a marketing decision in reaction to the improved children's bikes from the major manufacturers to ensure that Islabikes maintain their niche as the best, rather than trying to compete at a level where specialized, ridgeback et al can bring economies of scale to bear.

Daz555

Underscore wrote:

What are the alternatives, though?

Weight wise - none.

If however you don't mind an additional kg or two there are some nice 20" bikes out there which I will be looking at for my lad next year.

Ridgeback MX20 ~ £220


Specialized Hotrock 20 ~ £230


Felt Q20R ~ £200


Cube Kid 200 ~ £250


Giant XTC 2 Junior Lite - ~£200


If my lad sees that Cube the discussion will be over! I like the Felt the best.

Underscore

Daz555 wrote:

Underscore wrote:

What are the alternatives, though?

Weight wise - none.

That's what concerns me. We've had some great rides with son #1 on his Bienn 20 small but I wonder if the extra weight would have pushed them beyond what was enjoyable...

Daz555 wrote:

If however you don't mind an additional kg or two there are some nice 20" bikes out there which I will be looking at for my lad next year.

If my lad sees that Cube the discussion will be over! I like the Felt the best.

The Felt and Cube both look interesting. Unlike the others, they look like they might have frames similar in geometry to the Bienn 20 small rather than the large and, as son #1 is not likely to have outgrown the Bienn 20 before son #2 needs to move up, they may be an option.

Note that the Cube seems to be available for £200 from Winstanleys and there is an alternative (read: less leary) colour scheme:



Cheers,

_

Mike Healey

Never having had kids, I'm probably not the best person to put in my two pennorth, but it seems to me there are two factors to take into account: (1) how much parents have in the immediately affordable kitty and (2) how much you can take the lifetime cost of the bike into account.

If (1) ain't up to an Islabike, then game over but if (2) can be taken into account and (1) can be stretched then, as people have posted in Cake Stop, it's perfectly possible to get back as much as 90% back on resale. The other bikes listed may well meet (1) but not, as yet, meet (2). One thing is for sure, Isla Rowntree has shown that there is a market for good, well-designed bikes for kids and this will only be good in the medium- to long-term.

And they do give the younger kids a reasonable chance in youth races against those whose parents have deeper pockets and flashier, dearer bikes.

othello

Daz555 wrote:

Underscore wrote:

What are the alternatives, though?

Weight wise - none.

If however you don't mind an additional kg or two there are some nice 20" bikes out there which I will be looking at for my lad next year.

Both my two children (7.5 and 6) have had Specialized Hotrock 20" bikes and they are really good, and I would put them as top of the 'best of the rest' under the Isla. They are not as light as the Isla, but are a different beast. Heavier tyres, front suspension (which actually works) will naturally add weight. I know there is the argument for rigid forks and less weight but it really comes down to the type of riding the child will do. Road, fire road, smooth trails then the Isla will do fine. Anything rougher and they don't perform as well. My two have ridden MTB trail centres (Swinley Forest, Whinlatter, Grizedale) on theirs without a problem. We've passed children on Isla's trying to tackle that level of trail and they are bounced around like pinballs.

So I rate the Hotrock, and both mine have moved up to the 24" version (an A1 spec and a FSR) which are also good, and we got great resale on the 20" even though they were 'well used'!

Don't get me wrong -- Islabikes are excellent. In fact we've just bought a Luath 24! But the type of riding the child will do can dictate what to go for, along with the amount of budget.

bompington

othello wrote:

We've passed children on Isla's trying to tackle that level of trail and they are bounced around like pinballs.

Bompette cruised down Wolftrax's shoogly reds on her Beinn 24 like she was coasting down the high street - she looked far more comfortable than I felt (admittedly on an adult bike that cost about the same as the Isla).

othello

bompington wrote:

othello wrote:

We've passed children on Isla's trying to tackle that level of trail and they are bounced around like pinballs.

Bompette cruised down Wolftrax's shoogly reds on her Beinn 24 like she was coasting down the high street - she looked far more comfortable than I felt (admittedly on an adult bike that cost about the same as the Isla).

The 24" wheel makes the difference there (I would say).

bompington

Err, yes, but surely in the wrong direction?

simon_e

The price increases will make a fair few people think twice but the value is undeniable - components, build quality and resale are unbeatable.

I still find it odd that plenty of contributors on here spend a fair amount on bikes, kit and riding yet grudge doing the same for their kids (though there's often money for stuff like Xbox, PS3, smartphones, iPad, big TV etc). I don't earn much but I can manage a new Islabike every 2 or 3 years and each one has been worth every penny. My kids understand that the bikes are not cheap, that they are getting something special and not a BSO they can leave out in the rain. They have met Isla several times and know she is passionate about cycling.

Looking at the competing models above it seems that most have finally followed Isla's lead, eventually dropping the stupid triple chainsets & pointless front shifter, slimming the overly fat tubes and shortening pedal cranks. Prices aren't that much less than a Beinn 20 yet the MX20 weighs 11.1 kg, 3.3 kg more than the Beinn. The Hotrock 20 is 10.78 kg. When you're six years old 3kg is a LOT.

The white Cube? I'd flatly refuse to buy my kids anything that ugly.

Daz555

Simon E wrote:

The price increases will make a fair few people think twice but the value is undeniable - components, build quality and resale are unbeatable.

I agree that they are quality. I just think they have moved from being "reassuringly expensive" to "overpriced".

Thinking now I might get my lad the sort of bike I rode as a lad.....maybe a Raleigh Grifter. 35lbs of pure pig iron! He'll have legs like Chris Hoy by Boxing Day.

Simon E wrote:

The white Cube? I'd flatly refuse to buy my kids anything that ugly.

Agreed. That's why I won't be showing my son that one. For a 6yr old boy I imagine it will be his dream bike!

JasonRwmb

We have two Islabikes in the family, a Benin 20 that was bought 2nd hand (although pretty much as new) that my 7 year old rides, and a Cnoc 16 that he used to ride that is now ridden by our 3 year old daughter.

Islabikes are expensive, but in my experience do stand up to heavy use and abuse pretty well. Plus resale prices are good, although our two are now looking a bit tatty so not sure what they will be worth when we come to re-sell them. Not too worried as I am glad we have had our money's worth out of them.

For my son's next bike I am building him up a 24" wheel Kona frame, but even with lots of shopping around I am struggling to build with reasonable lightweight components and keep it to a similar price to the equivalent Islabike.

I have found my son has been fine on rigid forks around Swinley, he doesn't really go quick enough to benefit from suspension. His 24" wheeled bike will be on rigid forks too, although I have got a set of suspension to go on it at some stage.

sfjwatts

I have just looked at the Islabike website as I am about to upgrade my sons Beinn 20 small to a Beinn20 Large. I was initially quite shocked at the 20% price hike then I noticed that you save £12 as p&p is now included thus the increase is more like 15% . Why don't they advertise that UK p&p is included?
I also note that the bike has been improved over the previous model so now that the shock has worn off a bit I will still be buying the Beinn 20 Large (but without any extras!).

p1tse

Thanks for pointing out as looking at cnoc 14 possibly for my little lad

I got him the Rothan balance bike when he was 2yrs 4 months, now he's mastered balancing thinking of moving up next stage with pedals. He's a about average height and Xmas comes he will be 3yrs 4 months so think cnoc 14 will be best bet, but £200 is steep I agree. However there's little option for a pedal bike small and light enough for the little lad

Daz555

I've been shopping around and noticed that Ridgeback also do the RX20 which is the same as the MX20 but without the suspension fork. Still heavier than the Benin of course but then it does look a stronger beefier bike.



Good alternative and about 100 notes cheaper than then the Benin (depending on delivery etc). As long as your kid does not have too many mountains to climb I think it is worth a look.

The RX20 is now top of my list, err Santa's list, for my 6yr olds new bike later this year - unless a better option comes along in the 2014 ranges.

mpatts

To be honest the purchase price is irrelevant - if anything this will bolster the second hand prices.

Amy is on her 3rd islabike, I've sold each one for a very small loss. They are expensive for a reason, and that shows second hand!

I wouldn't consider anything else.

Mike Healey

They're also pretty tough. Ours are in constant use by all sorts of kids, either at our Saturday sessions or borrowed for races. We need to keep up with the maintenance, but that's mostly adjustment and the odd cable replacement, brake blocks and bar end plugs, in other words, the usual.

Daz555

oxoman wrote:

You could do worse than try the frog 55 a bit heavier than Islabikes but a lot lighter / cheaper than Giants, Cubes,Felts etc, available with or without suspension.http://www.frogbikes.com/lightweight-ki ... rog55.aspx
Well worth looking at as recently reviewed in big cycling magazine. Only drawback is colours not as good as cube etc.

They look very nice indeed. Only problem is the tyres would need replacing as my lad really needs grip for the terrain we ride on - nice trails and a pump track within 10mins of our house.