Kids' Riv-esque Bike

[LeahFoy]

Hi, All,

My 6 year old has almost outgrown his little Specialized Hotrock with 16 inch wheels. He will fit the 20 inch soon, if not now. I would like a new bike for him by July, as we have some biking adventures planned and WOW would it be nice for him to have bigger wheels and gears!

Anyway, Specialized and Trek have their normal offerings, but I guess I am looking for a Riv-esque bike. A bike with upright bars instead of those slammed straight variety. Sadly, that is the bar-type on the 16 inch bike, and it's perfect, but the bike companies do away with them on the bigger bikes. And is is maybe too much to ask for something that would eventually take a back rack (cringe)?

Is there some off-brand that would accommodate these wishes?

Thanks in advance!

Leah

[Deacon Patrick]

We simply went with older Trek MTBs in small, mixte sizes. They're a bit big at first, but kids are mighty adaptable. We put Albatross bard on them, with friction shifting. Craig's List is your friend in this endeavor. Grin.

With abandon,

Patrick

[WETH]

Leah,
I did what Patrick is recommending. In my case I had the old mountain and hybrid bikes, I replaced the handlebars with Albatross and bar-end shifters. My sons liked be able to give input on bar tape color.
I'd be happy to answer any questions.
All the best,
Erl

[LeahFoy]

Honestly, I don't even know what to look for. I don't work on my own bikes (my husband is a white collar guy who knows less about bike mechanics than me!) and I wouldn't even know which Craigslist bike would be compatible with albatross bars and bar-end shifters. Who can give me a Old Trek Mtn Bike to Make Rivvy For Dummies checklist?

[Elisabeth Sherwood]

Hi Leah,

I've heard good reports about Torker, but where one finds these I have no idea!

http://torkerbikeco.com/bike/kids/

The bars look more on the straight side, but would be easy enough to replace them with some narrow North-Road type bars if that's would work better.

Good luck!

-- Liz S.

[Deacon Patrick]

Och, Erl! The bar-ed shifters for them would be brilliant! The poor dears often have difficulty getting the leverage to shift while keeping on the road/trail. Adding that to my list. Thanks!

Leah, the list isn't that long, surprisingly. Here's my stab at it:

-- Something equivalent to a Trek 700 or 800 series mixte, or small standard frame (from the 80's and 90's usually). Around here they can be found in good condition (may need a tuneup) for $75-150. Just look for rust or obvious things wrong. Bring along a bike geek friend and if you don't have one, visit the local coffee shop early on a Saturday morning. Grin.
-- Albatross bars fit any Mountain bike with a quill stem (smaller diameter than the modern whatever they're called stems). 
-- Your local shop can swap the bars and do a tune up and you're good to go. If it has index shifting, ask them if they can swap it for friction shifting instead (unless you like the headache of gears out of adjustment).

-- Chances are it will come with tires that are great (a solid-ish middle ridge, knobby tire). Likely no reason to swap them.

-- Enjoy!

With abandon,

Patrick

[LeahFoy]

Ok, this sounds doable, all, but is there a Trek mtn bike that is made small enough for a 6 year old? Aren't they adult bikes?

[Eric Daume]

I wouldn't worry much about bar height if you're moving to a 20" bike. My 90th% son, at just over 7, has a lot of room to grow before his saddle is above the bars when I got him this 20" Specialized (picture a ways down on this post):

http://www.bikingtoplay.blogspot.com/2014/01/bike-and-hatchet-update.html

(and please excuse my horrible mixing of past and present tense in the above sentence).

Eric

Dublin, OH

On Thu, Jan 29, 2015 at 8:20 PM, LeahFoy <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

Ok, this sounds doable, all, but is there a Trek mtn bike that is made small enough for a 6 year old? Aren't they adult bikes?

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[cyclotourist]

If you don't need gears, a vintage Schwinn Bantam is a great bike: https://www.flickr.com/photos/cyclotourist/4338741715

Could even build it up w/ a 3 speed if so inclined. 

--

Cheers,
David

Member, Supreme Council of Cyberspace

"it isn't a contest. Just enjoy the ride." - Seth Vidal

[David Young]

My 10 year old (50th percentile in height) just now fits an extra small adult mountain bike, and it's almost too big. It has a modern diamond frame so stand over issues aren't huge. I would think a mixie would be a must for a normal sized 6 year old. Gears are great and really increase the distance they can go. Off the shelf options aren't very good but I was tempted by a kids sized cross bike by Redline.

[Richard L.]

The Soma kid's frameset has 20" wheels.  Depending on the parts selected, it might be a little pricey for a kid's bike.

http://store.somafab.com/sobakirofrse.html

[Doug Williams]

I have kids myself. I second the mixte...my son has a Trek MountainTrack. It allowed him to ride a bigger bike that he could otherwise ride (better investment as he is now about to outgrow it). Also, his bike actually has a quill stem! Hard; but not impossible to come by. Allows you to raise the handlebars as the kid grows (and get them up high enough to start with). Lastly, my sons bike has a cool feature where the peddles can screw into the cranks in two different positions, effectively changing the crank length (again, adjust as they grow).

I suggest that you look for something like that. Ask for those features when you call the various bike shops or look online.

Doug

[WETH]

Patrick,
http://flic.kr/p/o2ah6o On my younger son's bike (soma swept back bars that don't fit bar end shifters) I forgot that I had installed an old indexed thumb shifter for the rear and a friction sunrace shifter that Riv sells for the front. My older son has the bar end shifters on his albatross bars and loves them!
All the best,
Erl

[Deacon Patrick]

Ahhh. Yeah. The 6-year old detail slipped past me. Sorry. I'm a few years early with my plan. Keep an eye out for Mountain Cub or similar (I think by Trek?) on Craig's list. Or go with what the LBS offers, and ask them to swap handlebars and possibly shifters.

With abandon,

Patrick

[Anton Tutter]

My oldest upgraded sequentially from a 16" bike (Trek Jazz Wizard) to a 20" bike (Specialized HotRock) and now is on a 24" bike (Raleigh Mountain Scout). It's a decent bike, but with the flat bars. You can easily swap them out for more upright bars, although there really isn't a need since the frame geometry puts the bars pretty high up relative to the saddle.  All three bikes were either from friends or obtained very inexpensively on Craigslist.

She has no issues with the grip shifters, although she prefers thumb shifters. I would not suggest friction bar-end shifters this early-- kids tend to drop their bikes a lot and that can damage bar-end shifters. Grip shifters and thumbies are pretty much safe from getting destroyed.

I am reluctant to force kids into really large size jumps because even though you might get them to fit by slamming the seat post and swapping out handlebars, with each increase in size, the crank arms usually get longer as well, and kids' legs haven't grown enough to have the proper range of motion around the pedal stroke.  That was the most difficult change my oldest dealt with when she upgraded from a 20" bike to a 24" bike.  The crank arms had jumped in length from 135mm to 155mm-- pretty extreme!  If I had forced her into a 26" mtn bike it would likely have had 170mm crank arms (adult sized).  Not good.

Good luck!

Anton

[Surlyprof]

Depending on where you live, there are bike shops that sell both new and refurbished used bikes. In the sf bay area they are all over but often around college campuses. Those shops can often refurbish a bike adding additions like specific handlebars and cranks for budget-conscious students. We have one in our neighborhood and he has a range of older frames that he has collected to tailor to various customers' needs.

Any college campuses near you?

John

[Edwin W]

For new bikes, the Raleigh mtn scout in 20" is good: no fd, no shocks. I think specialized might make one. I got an old trek mtn bike on cl for my boys, but that took a little looking. If you post where you live, this group will identify good finds on cl to look into. Then have your lbs clean it up and tune it up.
For really upright with fenders and racks you might have to order from Europe (the euro is dipping!) or get REALLY lucky on cl.
Oh, Isla bikes! Check em out. They have a PDX distributor. I always want to get one for my kids, but keep getting great CL finds.
CL addicted,

Edwin

[Leslie]

A good friend of mine has a couple of daughters older than my daughter, and he's good to find nice equipment for them, and passing it along.  So, for my daughter, I had two really good bikes for her as she was growing, until we could get her onto something that could last.   (And, one of them I've held onto, to pass along to my granddaughter once she's older).

Once my daughter was outgrowing the KHS, at that point, I put her on a Trek 4300, https://www.flickr.com/photos/leslie_bright/5840945443/in/set-72157623199721925 , which could handle her when she was 9, but is capable of adjusting for her.... I can easily ride it if I crank up the seatpost...   

Part of my thought on putting her on a 26" bike, even when she was 9, was that it was like a 29'er for her.   And it's 'upright' for her, too.   Not like she's was doing singletrack at 9.....


But, I suppose, more to the point:   think that, instead of throwing down a lot of cash on a bike that gets them through until they're ready for a bigger bike, might suggest checking w/ friends that have kids a bit older, see if there's something that'll tide y'all over for a couple of years....

FWIW...



-L

On Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 6:52:24 PM UTC-5, LeahFoy wrote:

[mikel...@juno.com]

i have this Trek 220 24" wheel bike for sale. $120 plus shipping

mike goldman
warwick,r.i.
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http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3131/54cb0131b6d0a1310a25st01duc

[Leah Peterson]

I wish! He's much too small for the 24, I'm afraid. But thank you, really!

Sent from my iPhone

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[cyclotourist]

24" is  a great wheel size. I rushed my kids a bit to get them onto it, but left them in it a while before moving to 26". It really rolls over bumps and curbs a lot better than 20". Proportionately like a 29er to them as Leslie mentioned!

Now scouring CL to find the perfect used 27.5" bike for them! Everything is really high end, or really low end, hard to find the sweet spot with that size.

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[Joe Bunik]

Inadvertently, both my kids wound up with older, hand-me-down neighborhood
Novara (REI house brand) frames, Taiwanese-made with likely at least
10 and 20-years on each.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/joe_bunik/15791036815/

As kid bikes go, these get a better-than-passing grade in my book -
well made, durable and not total hogs by any measure. I rehabbed the
20-inch "junior mountain bike" w/ some small uprights and newer
take-off brakes and shifters. Making sure that braking and shifting
are as simple and effective as possible is a must as a kid moves
beyond the venerable coaster.

=- Joe Bunik
Walnut Creek, CA

[Leslie]

Slam that seatpost down, drop the stem and rotate the bars back a bit, and it's a kids 29'er! 

-L

[Jim Bronson]

Nice mini--albas on that blue Novara

Keep the metal side up and the rubber side down!

[LeahFoy]

Well, I started hunting online last night. There isn't much for local offerings around here - and what is offered has some sort of issue. I've looked at Trek and Specialized. I've been a fan of the Specialized bikes (my older son has the 24 inch and the frame accepted a rear rack and the shifting is good) and I've only found this one. I don't like suspension forks, though. I have until July, so I have some time to keep looking.

http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/bik/4811042866.html

[Anton Tutter]

Leah, my oldest's Raleigh Mountain Scout with 24" wheels accepted a rack just fine-- it's a rack made for 26" wheels and sticks up just a little high but works perfectly. She straps her voila to it to transport it to and from school.  We found the bike for $50 on Craigslist last fall. The quality and level of components is comparable to Trek and Specialized. Definitely a couple steps up from the Big Box store bikes.

[cyclot...@gmail.com]

IF kiddo can fit it, the 24" Hotrocks with A1 frames are great bikes: http://lasvegas.craigslist.org/bik/4857987825.html 

Very much on the MTB side of the spectrum, but with the A1 frame and sturdy yet quality components. Fork is unnecessary, but it is what it is. 

We've had three of these at various times, down to one currently, and very impressed with them.

[Dan A]

My 7 year old has the 20 inch Specialized hot rock without suspension. It is a pretty nice bike. It is lighter than a lot of the similar bikes and one of the few kids bikes you can get without suspension. Another option to check out is Islabikes.

Dan Abelson

[Shoji Takahashi]

My 4.5-yo son rides an Islabike (Cnoc14). It's a wonderful bike-- lightweight, good proportions for small bodies, excellent components. It has fender mounts; I don't think the 14" has rack mounts. I know that the larger (16"+?) have rack mounts and specially designed+fitted racks as options.

IMHO, Islabikes are not inexpensive, but worth it.

Leah-- 

(I'm don't think it was covered earlier in the thread.) 

Is your child driving the change to alba-style handlebars? or is it the Riv-thing? There's nothing wrong with flat bars, unless they're causing problems (e.g., hand pain). Many kids bikes seem to have a fairly high handle-bar position as a result of frame design.

Good luck!

Shoji

[Corwin]

The Bantam is a great bike. And Schwinns are indestructible. Great for kids. I have a red girl's Bantam I bought used for $65 in 1991. All four of my kids (including my son) learned to ride on that bike. It survived the fire. I have been told in no uncertain terms that I am not allowed to sell it or give it away.

Namaste,


Corwin

On Thursday, January 29, 2015 at 5:29:06 PM UTC-8, cyclot...@gmail.com wrote:

[Toshi Takeuchi]

I got my son this 24" Diamondback bike.  They also sell it built up at REI. I got my daughter a 20" diamondback, but it's a mountain bike.  Easy to put together--install quill stem, brakes, handlebars and pedals--everything else is pretty ready to go.  Both bikes required a couple of half turns with a spoke wrench to tighten a slightly loose spoke.

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FC1TMSI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#

 

 

[cbone97]

Hi, I have an older (rigid front fork, canti brakes) Trek "Mountain Track 520" kids' bike with new 24" Conti Tour Ride tires, new Alivio derailer, new chain, and Nitto Dove bars. My son only rode it a couple times before moving on to his big brother's bike.   I have converted it to a single front ring, added a SunRace shifter, and currently have it set up with back brake only (I still have the other brake pair).  Color is silverish with beuasage but not abeausage.  It is a sweet Rivvy kids' ride indeed.  Will sell it for $150 plus shipping. Email me at my user name @gmail if interested and I can send pics.

[Jay Norman]

Leah,

You might want to give Electra Bikes out of San Diego a look.  All have nice high handlebars with multiple models in 16" 20" and 24" wheel sizes.  We got our 7 year old a 20" model after she was having trouble learning on the typical  Walmart type bike and within a few days we couldn't stop her. Much more stable platform for kids to learn on and feel secure.  Fits in well with other Rivey type bikes when using for kids or in Cruiser/Townie roles. 

JN