Bike with gears 10 year old

jpower

So my son just got into doing some longer rides and his BMX is not ideal. Looking for bike with gears and wanted to know what people recommend, I would consider second hand too. My instincts say specialized hotrock but that's purely as all past bikes have been specialized but happy to consider anything.

alphacharlie

My lad is currently on a 24" wheeled Carrera Blast having upgraded from the 20" version, no problems to date and quite happy around Sherwood Pines and Dalby Forest. Not the best kids bike on the market but good spec and weight for the price in my opinion.
AC

jpower

That's the other thing not sure on what type, mountain, road or hybrid leaning towards hybrid style if there is one of those for kids

alphacharlie

I guess with all the cycling on TV recently and the launch of more and more kids road bikes it must be a growing market.

andrewc3142

Makes as above, esp Islabikes. Beinn for general use and off-road, Luath for road and cyclecross.

Unless they are really into off-road I wouldn't bother with suspension. Adds weight and cost but little benefit.

For a first geared bike for a 10 year old, based on my kids (who ride a lot) I'd recommend avoiding double cranksets. Whilst they have a certain cool factor very few kids use them effectively. Better to have a cassette with a wide range.

Then move to a double for the next bike.

jpower

andrewc3142 wrote:

Makes as above, esp Islabikes. Beinn for general use and off-road, Luath for road and cyclecross.

Unless they are really into off-road I wouldn't bother with suspension. Adds weight and cost but little benefit.

For a first geared bike for a 10 year old, based on my kids (who ride a lot) I'd recommend avoiding double cranksets. Whilst they have a certain cool factor very few kids use them effectively. Better to have a cassette with a wide range.

Then move to a double for the next bike.

Do canal paths count? We'll be doing a lot of those as still weary about taking him on roads right now, he could do it but that's just mum being over protective, can't argue with that.

What is that makes islabikes so good? See a lot of people say that name.

jpower

So the specialized comes in at £270 or £300 the Beinn is £349 anyone able to say what the diff between them would be? Frog too comes in at £250-260 for his size, so the prices of all are very similar. Trying to see why I'd go for one over another.

I think a road bike will be too impractical at his age so think we've scrubbed that.

Need to size him up he's about 140cm tall

jpower

Current pref towards the specialized just as he's had them before and so does the sister. Just wanting to know if there a strong argument to opt for one of the others? Also wondering as 2015 range is due out this month wonder if they would reduce the 2014

andrewc3142

Do canal paths count? We'll be doing a lot of those as still weary about taking him on roads right now, he could do it but that's just mum being over protective, can't argue with that.

What is that makes islabikes so good? See a lot of people say that name.

Either the Beinn or the Luath would be fine on canal paths. The basic difference is flat or drop bars - I just asked which they wanted. They got those at 8 and 9 respectively.

With either you might want to think about better tyres than the Kenda ones that come as standard, eg Conti Contact or Marathons. I found the Kendas not especially puncture resistant. Also swapping the brake pads for SwissStop Green. But same applies to almost all off-the-shelf bikes.


I know what you mean about roads. However, ours have been riding on road (accompanied) since about age 6 and I think it has helped build their awareness. Started with quiet roads at weekends and on holiday in the country, in the UK and France.

The older ones are now 14 and just 12 and use their bikes to school, around town, etc on their own.

I got my first proper bike for my 10th birthday (a green/gold Elswick Hopper). We lived in Goodmayes then and day one went out for a long ride, taking in the A12 and the North Circular, mixing it up with the cars, lorries, etc. I wouldn't recommend that, but I survived. Mind you, if my parents had known I suspect my biking days would have stopped there and then - they thought I was in the park opposite. One day I might tell them ...

Islabikes are just very well made for kids. Properly thought through, not too heavy, good quality. Not cheap, but depends what you compare them to, how much use they get, etc, and the resale value is good. We've had 3. A Beinn and a Luath, both 26 inch and recently sold, and the 12 year old has just got the larger 700C Luath.

jpower

Thanks for all the advice this is great.

Made a call to my normal spec dealer and he said they tend to sell the 24" hotrock to 8 year olds, and I should bring the boy in as they say you may get more value out of one of the base adult models in the small size.

Sound reasonably the cost would be the same, prob talking about a hardrock or a crosstrial am not sure about that guess trying will be best. Any thoughts 140cm and 10 years old would you think that's the right age? Or is this where islabikes comes into there own?

andrewc3142

I'm sure whatever choice you make your kid will be really pleased and obviously the main thing is to just ride together and have fun.

But a few things to perhaps ponder:

- As far as I can tell the Hardrock comes in at about 14kg, the Beinn large at just under 10kg, and the Luath a tad less. That's an appreciable difference

- I've found the Islabikes size chart, going first and foremost by standover height, to be spot on

- As above, I honestly don't think that for kids, apart from really serious off-road stuff, shocks add anything other than weight and cost

- I would be very careful about advice to go for an adult bike. For example, brake levers on adult bikes tend to be made for adult size hands

- It's a fine line between getting what your kid wants and what you think he should have, but at 10 mine were absolutely fine with drops (and spds). Perhaps see what his thoughts are

- The Hardrock has a triple. Will he be able to use that without getting horrible chain lines and/or being in the wrong gear at the start of a ramp?

- I maybe (OK, I do) have a distinct bias towards road and touring bikes, but some of the great times I've have had with the kids have been longish Sunday rides out and camping/touring round France. If that may be on the horizon, it's hard work on a heavy suspension mountain bike, especially with wide knobbly tyres.

BTW, for alternatives to Islabikes the CTC mag had a good review of some kids bikes, either last issue or the one before, you might want to see if you can get hold of.

bartimaeus

At age 10 a rigid bike will be much better than anything with suspension unless you are prepared to pay a fair amount of money.

A rigid bike like an Islabikes Beinn 26 S (and that's probably what you need if you get an Islabike) will weigh about 20lbs and have kids sized reach and cranks... great for general riding and climbing, and with the 'big' wheels (most similar makes will give you a 24) and some decent volume tyres you will get a reasonably comfortable ride. A Beinn 26s is £350 new.

By comparison, and entry level adult hardtail MTB in a small size will weigh nearer 30lbs if not more - and may well have brakes that are hard to reach. Until you spend enough to get air forks (so say £600+) the suspension won't do much as even the soft springs will be too firm... I have a pair of perfectly good Dart 3s in my garage that are still just a bit too firm for my 12 year old.

At age 7 my lad moved from a Trek MT60 (20") which weighed 28lbs to a Beinn 24 which weighed about 22lbs (so Islabikes must now be getting lighter which is great news) and suddenly he was keen to ride up proper hills (100m in 2k). From there he moved to a Beinn 26 which is the same bike but bigger... and with 26in wheels you get a whole new choice of tyres.

At 12 he's now on a XXS 13.5in Spesh Rockhpper that I've built up with some 100mm Rebas, a short stem and flat bars, as well as XT shifters as they have a light action. Most of this was 2nd hand but it's still about £450. It weighs in at about 26lbs I think and is the sort of bike I'd want to be riding! Islabike's 'equivalent' bike is the Creig 26 which looks lovely, but it's £750, and I'm not sure how easy it would be to upsize... the Rockhopper will last a while and then I'll be looking for a bigger 2nd hand frame to swap forks and whatever will fit.

All that said, it depends what riding kids want to do... any bike can be fun, but light is better than heavy, and the right size is key. You don't *need* a capable MTB for easy trails and towpaths... but my lad comes mountain biking with me and I'm much happier taking him up and down our local trails knowing he's on a bike like mine.

jpower

Thanks for the detailed write ups.

So weight, keep it light. Suspension not worth it at lower price points and adds weight.

So my wife has a Sirrus Sport and I've used this down a canal path and it's horrible, like you've been in a blender, hence I always thought suspension was needed, do I take it this is because the sirrus has very skinny wheels on it, guess at 26-28mm wide slicks. Is it just that without suspension requires a bigger tyre for off road stuff?

andrewc3142

The frame makes a difference, as will other things like the seat post and the saddle.

But basically, yes, tyres will make the largest difference. More air equals more comfort.

And knobbles will make a difference when it gets muddy.

But MTB tyres are hard work on the road.

If the bike is being used for both road and for off-road maybe easiest to get some spare wheels and swap them rather than the tyres. Probably better than a compromise tyre that doesn't really do either job.

jpower

Oh bugger, so showed him pics of the isla and frog an spec bikes, then went down to spec dealer for real look and sizing.

So he liked this crazy coloured 2015 model Spec Pitch 650b, slightly over budget but would last a long time so its a consideration, mentioned we need to check the others out, but he seems to have his heart set on a Spec bike, god only knows where he got that idea (yours truly owns a few). To my mind the bike just looks so much bigger then him, I do believe its just a touch above 26"

jpower

Found details on the USA website: http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/ ... sport-650b

Any thoughts welcome.

poah

my boy rides a carrera blast - didn't want to spend much on him unless he actually got into it. I've modded it over about 18 months.





spec here

viewtopic.php?f=40032&t=12973637

jpower

Prob I got is 24" he would outgrow far too quickly, needs to be at least a 26

poah

you could run a XS frame with 24 inch wheels then increase the wheels to 26 when he is bigger.

jpower

POAH wrote:

you could run a XS frame with 24 inch wheels then increase the wheels to 26 when he is bigger.

They sized him at Small, yeah def at the lowest possible end, but guranteed to get many years of use on that size, would take him a little adjustment to get comfortable.

Just picked up a really good condition hotrock 20 for the daughter, well pleased with that, well when it arrives, again its going to be too big, but just a matter of time and the price was too good to pass.