OT: Kids' bikes. Islabikes is closing.

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

Well, Islabikes announced yesterday afternoon they are shutting the doors to the US office in Portland. The bikes and gear are all discounted and I was so excited to get my hands on the Beinn 27 for my 7th grader. Alas, they are SOLD OUT. As of now, the UK headquarters does not and will not ship to US. There are 3 companies Islabikes recommended: Woom, Cleary and Prevelo. None have a nice commuter option like Islabikes did. I'm so, so disappointed.

Do any of you have a recommendation for a bike to fit a 12.5 year old? I see that the major bike companies offer only adult sizes at this point. I want something that will take a rack so we can do our school commute. He currently rides a Specialized Hot Rock 24 incher that he's had since FIRST GRADE. It's been a wonderful bike. My younger son rides a little Islabike and needs to size up, so that Specialized is going to be his. Thanks in advance for your help - and if you need a great kid bike at a discount, maybe Islabikes will still have the size you need.

[Deacon Patrick]

We’ve gone Cleary Bikes and then a Clementine we anticipate will fit them when full grown (M so far). As an inbetween step, we could also go with a small Clementine. The “L” allows great flexability in sizing. But we’ve all lassies, and I wouldn’t have been seen dead on a “girls” bike growing up, though I’ve no problem with the idea now and most mountain bikes are nearly girls bikes anyroad. Grin.

With abandon,
Patrick

[Leah Peterson]

Oh Patrick, therein lies the crux. The cool factor for the teen boy. He has been pretty darn accommodating to all his mother’s whims and staunch beliefs. He eats homemade lunch every single day with weird things like fermented pickles and homemade sourdough, and organic everything. He’ll take the probiotics, drink the bone broth, be the only kid in school who bikes with his mother and brother, won’t cuss, loves good, hates evil, wears a matching leather bicycle cuff like mine. But this? Riding a bonafide girls’ bike that appears to be from bygone times? Oh, no. He would love the Clem L but it would offend the aesthetic sensibilities of the jerks that are his peers. I’ve dreamed of him riding my husband’s Clem H but that top tube is just too high for my 4’ 11” kid.

The Cleary bikes don’t take racks, do they?

Sent from my iPhone

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[Deacon Patrick]

Och, well. Worth a shot. He’s well ahead of where I was then. No need to push things over a top tube. Grin. Your shop should be able to mount racks on Cleary Bikes via P-clamps by being a bit creative. Folks here do on Rivs et al without brazons by that method. Call them and talk with them at Cleary. They were great to work with. I’m unaware of those other options. They didn’t exist when we bought for four, and we’ve been able to spread things out well, so haven’t needed more of the same size till their adult bikes.

With abandon,
Patrick

[Shoji Takahashi]

Hi BBDD,

Woom has islets for rack and/or fenders. The Woom6 is for 55" - 65".

https://us.woombikes.com/products/6

Woom used to sell a "commuter"-style bike with racks+fenders, but sadly discontinued it. I think it's a USA market thing-- they can't sell them. (Looks like Woom still offers racks+fenders in EU, maybe other markets.)

This past spring, I bought my 8-yo the Woom5, and purchased fenders+rack from Islabikes. (Woom is a nice bike, and much nicer than most children's bikes. Islabikes is higher quality, IMHO, but I couldn't justify the $100+ difference.)

Good luck!

shoji

Arlington MA

[Eric Daume]

At 12, can he fit on an XS adult bike? My then 10 year old got an XS Trek FX for his birthday a few years back, now he’s creeping up on adult medium sized bikes at 5’1” it so (I buy a size up so there’s room to grow, pretty easy with sloping top tubes these days)

Eric

On Wednesday, October 3, 2018, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

Well, Islabikes announced yesterday afternoon they are shutting the doors to the US office in Portland. The bikes and gear are all discounted and I was so excited to get my hands on the Beinn 27 for my 7th grader. Alas, they are SOLD OUT. As of now, the UK headquarters does not and will not ship to US. There are 3 companies Islabikes recommended: Woom, Cleary and Prevelo. None have a nice commuter option like Islabikes did. I'm so, so disappointed.

Do any of you have a recommendation for a bike to fit a 12.5 year old? I see that the major bike companies offer only adult sizes at this point. I want something that will take a rack so we can do our school commute. He currently rides a Specialized Hot Rock 24 incher that he's had since FIRST GRADE. It's been a wonderful bike. My younger son rides a little Islabike and needs to size up, so that Specialized is going to be his. Thanks in advance for your help - and if you need a great kid bike at a discount, maybe Islabikes will still have the size you need.

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[Leah Peterson]

Shoji, thanks so much for encouraging me to have a second look - if Woom takes racks and fenders, this changes everything. I’m sure you’re at work and I don’t want to take too much of your time, but if you  don’t mind, can you tell me what you’ve liked about the Woom and why you felt it was lesser quality than the Islabike? Thanks!!!

[Shoji Takahashi]

Woom is lightweight-- more important for children bikes to-be light.

Brakes have a nice light feel, easy to squeeze and stop the bike.

Grip shifter works well.

Otherwise, it's a nice bike. Bummer was having to get rack and fenders from Islabikes! With a larger size (e.g., Woom 6), one could probably use adult-size bike accessories (e.g., fenders for 26" wheels, rear bike rack). I wasn't sure about those fitting on Woom5, which is 24" wheels, so I went with Islabikes accessories for 24"-wheel bike.

The quality difference between Isla and Woom is not noticeable unless you have them next to each other. For me, I see slight difference in paint, weld beads. I think most parts, e.g., crank/shifters/brakes, are similar/same. One difference: assembly of Islabikes was with appropriate grease... but the Woom I took off some parts and greased them. 

I have no problem recommending Woom. It's still more expensive than many children's bikes. For 26" wheel bikes, people ~5' or so, I would consider looking at adult-size small bikes. (I know some shorter adults have been recommended to look at Islabikes...)

Good luck!

shoji

[jeffrey kane]

We went with a Fairdale Weekender Archer when my son hit 5' 1" or so -- the Adult small size was designed around 27.5 (650b) wheels and with it's sloping top tube was a perfect "grow into" size. We never did install racks or fenders but there were plenty of attachment points on the fork and seat stays as well as both drop outs. Of course, he grew 4" that year and another 3" the next and already it's too small(ish). He's also going on 14 and pretty much only riding in the summer anymore ... sigh. I'm betting I can switch out the stem and maybe do a bar swap of some sort and he'll eek out another summer on it .... but then he'll likely have outgrown my bikes as well since he's already at least 1/2" taller than me!

[Eric Myers]

We just went through this with my 12 year old, who was maxed out riding his 24" bike.  I looked around at newer bikes and couldn't find anything we wanted in our price range, though I might have reconsidered if I'd seen the info from this thread.  In the end we took a similar route with him that I have for me in the past:  a late 80s to mid-90s mountain bike.  They are ubiquitous, and therefore cheap enough that I can afford to spend money to modify them, and they typically have all the attachment points we might want.  He's only going to fit this bike for a few years, so this is a good time to experiment and find out what he likes.  We ended up with a +/- 1990 Specialized Hardrock.  I'm replacing what is likely the original chain, cables, and brake pads, and adding a stem mounted cable hanger for the front brake, and then swap out for whatever handlebars he wants.  It'll fit fenders, and it's tall enough for a saddle bag if he wants it.  Other models had attachments for front racks, but he was less interested specifically in that.

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

Well, it's done. I hated to give up the hope on the Islabike but the site now says, "SOLD OUT - there won't be any available", and customer service offered me zero hope. Such a bummer. I ordered the Woom 6 in sky blue with the kickstand for just a little more than the discounted Islabike. I debated going with a small adult bike, but light weight is really important here. My son is a 7th grader but he is so slim; he only weighs 70 pounds.

The developing crisis is going to be when I sell my younger son's Islabike Beinn 20 and hand him the old Specialized. It is noticeably heavier and he is going to resent that after his dreamy Islabike ride. He is 10 and only 55 pounds. Oh, how I wish I had ordered Islabikes last night and not waited until today.

[Mark in Beacon]

 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:The developing crisis is going to be when I sell my younger son's Islabike Beinn 20 and hand him the old Specialized. It is noticeably heavier and he is going to resent that after his dreamy Islabike ride. He is 10 and only 55 pounds. 

Don't Despair! Generations of kids have ridden heavy bicycles, and had fun doing it! I had a similar experience this past spring with my son Mack, who is going to be 9 next month. He grew out of his 24" L Islabike over the winter. I looked at the new 27.5" Islabikes and the older 26" Large that the 27.5 was replacing--they had one on remainder special. I was about to place my order but after waiting a day I decided to go with plan B, which Eric M. outlines--fixing up a vintage Mt. Bike.

I replaced most of the components, and I also had a friend shorten a set of cranks down to 152. (That was one of my beefs with the larger Islabikes--the cranks went from 140 something on the Beinn Large right to 165 on the next bike in line.) Yes, it's a few pounds heavier than an Islabike would have been, but I put on a double created from a triple with plenty of gears, and he still flies up the hills. He has not mentioned being less satisfied with his "new" bicycle. I do have an aluminum mt. bike in a small size that I may tinker with in the winter, but really, he's perfectly happy and it's hilly where we ride. Of course has room for fenders and rack, and I will probably put at least a rack on there, but unfortunately he must take a bus to school (1 hour!) so no real need for it at the moment.

[ctifusion]

That's a great retro build. I have an old mtb waiting for when my 8 year old grows a bit more. Couldn't pass up a super high end 1994 diamondback when I saw it on craigslist for $60 (even has some XTR bits!).

I will recommend looking at the Salsa kids mtbs. Rigid, 1x8, 20 and 24 inch wheels sizes that both take 3 inch tires. I think Giant also makes a plus-tire kids bike. The Salsa is a really incredible bike with extremely stable geometry. He loves how it floats on grass like a fat bike would but is still very fast on the street.

I'll post a link from my computer in a bit.

Brynnar
Indy

[Eric Myers]

That's a nice build, Mark.  I've been wondering about shorter cranks.  I may try the shorter ones from his 24" bike and see how he likes that before buying or modifying.

[Mark in Beacon]

Yes, if you still have the 24" you can snatch the crank from that--I sold the Beinn complete, did not want to part out an expensive bike like that. There are shorter cranks around (mostly must import) but they tend to be single speed. I did steal the chainguard from my Silver crank:

 and stuck on my favorite derailleur:

Finished it off with Tioga Power Block 2.1 tires, same rubber we have on the tandem. And of course, this is a true mountain mixte. Or a hill mixte. Maybe Riv should print up a few "Hill Bike" decals, a la "Resurrecto"

[Eric Myers]

The ones from the 24" are 152 which is slightly better sized for his 160cm than the 165 cranks on the 26" bike.  Bikes aren't selling well around here at this time of year, so stealing the others is fine for now.  I may look into buying something others if the market for complete bikes picks up.  

 I love the idea of the Hill Bike decals!  I wanted to repaint a bike just so I could use the Resurrectio ones :-)

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

Now that the Woom 6 is shipped and arriving early next week, I've been shopping Rivendell's site to rig it up for school commuting. It was so much fun to choose the new accessories, and so far I've got these coming: the cool bells with rare earth magnets, a blue basket net (the bike is blue and white, isn't that great?!) and a medium Wald basket (that silver finish will look so sharp!). Now we arrive at the dilemma of the rack. I want a silver one; this bike screams for silver. My current choices are the Pletscher and the Nitto, and that expensive Nitto would just look so much better on the bike because it's smaller and simpler. But there is talk of a new rack designed for baskets, correct? If you were me, would you wait to order a rack until Riv gets their new one? Has anyone any news of that upcoming rack?