jentango

Hi everyone! I am new here. My sons need new bikes and I need advice! I bike but very recreationally. My boys are almost 8, 51 or so inches with an inseam of 22. They are waaay too big for their Specialized 16" (yes, I should have changed bikes a while back, but they love this bike and they had a growth spurt recently). I do not know what to get them. I had them try the Trek 20 and they were at the top end of the seat height. They were able to ride the Trek 24, but they were just a bit above the standover height and I did not feel comfy with that. They are comfortable with standing on the balls of their feet but not on their tippy-toes when stopped on a bike. They are confident riders and we do paved, dirt and (starting to) some trails. They are interested in going to the bike parks to ride some smaller hills. I have been looking at the Priority Start 20 and would love to get feedback from anyone that has purchased this. The seat height goes to 28.5 so that is at least a couple years of riding. Also it seems maintenance free. Most bikes have the chain quite low on the tires and it seems that this can easily be damaged. I am not a bike techie at all and would not know how to fix things if anything goes wrong. I would appreciate any advice/thoughts/reviews for a bike that suits them. Thank you so much!

Illinest

It seems like you already know theyre too big for a 20" bike.

I don't have experience with that bike but I bought a 24" Liv for my daughter when she was 8, and I'm keeping my 7 y.o. on his 18" bike until next spring so that he can go straight up to 24" as well.

I could fit him on a 20” right now - same as your boys - but he'd be too big for it within a year.


I don't think that it's a good idea to look for 20" bikes with taller seats. It might stretch higher for their legs but it won't accommodate their length as they grow. The top tube length is important here. I think they'll end up being cramped in the direction of the handlebars.


A local bike shop might be able to tailor advice to your specific situation. I'd wager that the "correct" answer - assuming you want them to be able to have new bikes as soon as possible - would be to buy 20" bikes now and then buy 24" bikes next spring.

VegasTriker

I've never seen this bike up close but was pretty impressed by the 19 pound weight listed in the specifications. That's a great advantage to a child over one of the obese bicycle shaped objects sold by mass merchandisers. One possibility for prolonging the usefulness of this bike would be to later add a longer seat post and add a stem raiser to the handlebars when your son gets taller. Both are inexpensive and easy to install. That would raise both the seat and the handlebars at the same time while still allowing him the reach the ground firmly.

I think your concern about the chain being "to close to the ground" is overblown. Chains are pretty tough. Think of the pressure a large adult puts on one when they stand out of the saddle and pedal up a steep hill. The rear derailleur is a bit more fragile but even those aren't damaged all that often. I've only replaced two in the past 20 years and one was the result of a rear light coming loose and falling between the chain and rear cluster.

Mir3886

My son is 8, about 49-50” tall and rides a 24” wheeled Trek MTB just fine. While stand over height maybe close remember that the important distances are when they are actually riding it. If they’re confident already and know how to bail or get off quickly a 24” is a good size to last them for a few years.

atbman

Altho' Islabikes don't have a distribution centre in the US anymore, their sizing cart https://www.islabikes.co.uk/product/...ute_pa_size=24 may prove useful.

Just in case you find metric a bit of a problem, divide the cms by 2.54 to give you inches. I may be teaching granny to suck eggs, but I know some Americans find metric baffling/unfamiliar.

Good luck and good riding

PatCodd

I just got my son a Specialized RipRock 20" very nice bike, check it out.

fietsbob

Folding bikes can be adjusted as they grow , but wont hold up if everyone else in their circle of friends ramp jumps with their bikes..

CliffordK

There are small road bikes if you do long distance road riding or commuting.

Otherwise, I agree with others. Look at the 24" MTBs. There tend to be a few on the used market as kids get them and outgrow them. However, kid's bikes are often abused, and show significant wear by the time they pass them on.

Viich

I swapped a Shimano Nexus 3 speed IGH into my kids' 20" bike as an intro to gears - but my 8yo outgrew it when he was 7, last fall.

I've got both my kids (8 & 9) on 24" Specialized Hotrock Street (the rigid fork version) - works a treat. They're lighter than the 20" single speed they moved from was - which was a lower spec bike shop bike. (Miele with quill stem, 1 piece crank - but decent brakes, wheels). When my mother visited, she was able to comfortably ride one of the bikes with the seat raised - she's 5'4".
I thought those bikes were really light until the boys started BMX racing and we got some of those bikes. Crazy light.