Tipmart

Hello

My son who is approaching 7yrs of age is a very keen cyclist. He's currently the Bay area triathlon champion for his age group and has been on a bike (strider) since he could start walking. Earlier this year while in the UK he sat on a Worx 24" race bike and really liked it although just a little too big.

The cost to bring it over here is pricey despite getting the tax bike and i have checked but no companies or stores seems to have racing bikes that small which is strange as the UK seems to have 4-5 companies making bikes for kids. Specilaized have the allez Jr bike which looks nice but no one has one in stock that we can look at.
Does anyone out there have experience with this particular bike or any of the UK bikes?

Thanks

mgopack42 

I saw you post, and i was thinking...Didn't I just see a junior race bike yesterday?
Argon 18 24

Tipmart

WOW

Thank you

mgopack42 

Looks great, I think if my dad bought me one of those, I would forget I had a mother! Call Wrench Science, Taylor Peliska is the Argon 18 expert; 510-529-3052. tell him Mark Willette sent you! They wont have it in stock(I'm guessing, but he will work with you on sizing, I know he spent about 4 hours on the phone with me). He just worked hard to set me up with a nice Argon 18! Oh and Wrench Science is in Berkeley, so in your sons neighborhood!

justonwo

Also consider R&A Cycles in Walnut Creek. Huge inventory of nice bikes and an Argon 18 dealer. Andy Knickerbocker is great. They have a glorious showroom, too. Very drool worthy.
Looks like they have one in stock.

https://www.racycles.com/bikes/road/...0?sku=10066019

mstateglfr 

Frog bikes
Isla bikes(maybe used since they aren't stateside anymore)

...having experienced some youth tri around me, very few kids under 10 don't ride in a way that is benefitted from a drop bar bike. This is especially true when a lot of what passes for kids road bikes is considered- paddle shifting on the tops, tourney drivetrains, nutted axles, etc.

FYI on that Argon, its listed as 2x7 Tourney, but also listed as Sora shifting. Big difference there.

Good news is that legitimately good mid-level kids road bikes keep their value, so the blow from selling them is lessened a little.

Russ Roth

You have to look a bit but there's plenty out there. The Argon 18 isn't really a good value and comes with cheap cranks that are too long, Giant for example puts 152mm crank on their 26" wheeled road bike vs the 165mm crank on the 24" argon.
Look around at Giant dealers, they were building 24" road and cross till last year. Frog as was mentioned and is a good brand, and check ebay. I recently saw a nice 24" Pinarello on there which I wanted to justify buying for my kids but couldn't. Could also consider buying a frame or cheap used complete if you see one and do a nicer build or upgrades. My 7yo is on a Diamondback podium 24 which has a double in the front and he really struggles with when to use it, the other issue is like the Argon it is using sora shifters which aren't designed for small hands. Other brands go with microshift not just for price but due to the shorter reach and shorter throw that they have available stock. My daughter has a raleigh rx24 which came 10sp 1x and she has a much easier time with it when it comes to piking the right gear. The Sram made her struggle to shift initially but I ordered a new set of microshift which arrived just in time to replace the just busted sram lever that I'd hoped to move to another bike. The microshift has also been more robust which I think shimano matches but sram doesn't for a kids bike.
Kid's bikes also benefit extensively from wheel upgrades even if they aren't much. I managed to get 28h shimano 505 hubs which are 105 level disc and matched them with much lighter and slightly wider sun rims, butted spokes which I got on clearance for .25 each in nice colors, alloy nipples, and a much nicer tire. The result was an over 1lb savings which matters on a 20lb bike for a 50lb kid and an increase in average speed of nearly .5mph. Cost was only a touch over 100.00 with some shopping around.
My daughter is now heading towards 10 and getting to the taller side for 24" so I'm looking for a nice 650c wheeled bike for her, something used that with a couple hundred extra will be fast.
Also pay attention to the rollout of the bike, doesn't matter for tri's and du's but for cross, crits, road, and tt the officials will roll out the bike and disqualify you if it goes even a touch over.

Tipmart

Thanks for all the help. We tried a 24” and it was too big

I liked the look of the Frog bikes so I tried to order one. You cannot do it from their website and you have to try and find a stockiest. No one within 100 miles within me sells one

does anyone know of anywhere to buy these bikes

Frog 58

thank you

CliffordK

I've bought the Fuji Ace 24 & Fuji Ace 650. They're very cheaply built... and reasonably priced.

Maybe not the choice for racing, but they'll make great starter bikes.

My nephew grew up quickly. So, I started with the Fuji Ace 24 at age 8, but wish I had gone directly to the 650.

Tipmart

I don't really expect it to make much of a difference, I'm not boasting but he's fast enough that no one can catch him. He also races a lot of BMX so he is strong. It's more for his long rides he does with us as a family. The BMX bike is not really built for sitting on for long distances so I was looking at something competitive that would get him used to riding a race bike. Other bikes his size are either too heavy or just not up to the job

Tipmart

Thank you all for your replies and help with information

We finally settled for the Frog 58 and ordered it from a store in Colorado

He loves his bike and while as someone said, he's not that much faster on it compared to his BMX bike, he's now able to ride further and go up hills with ease. According to the Frog sizing chart and their system of measuring, this bike should have been too big but it's clearly not and he may only get 1 yr out it. but it's worth it to see him have so much fun cycling. Probably look at the Allez junior next for him. The Frog bike is a little 'rear end' heavy but other than that its a great bike for kids