Help! What should we buy?

[clarion]

You can try them if you are in the vicinity - they are near Bridgenorth. They have a lovely cafe next door as well .

Bromyard.

Best to ring & book a test ride, but (because they were quiet) they were happy to help us when we were looking.

Cafe really rather good (but take cash only).

islabikes – high quality children's bikes for cycling families

Bromford (by Ludlow) - different "Brom" 

d'Oh!

But you're wrong, too - it's Bromfield

[CrinklyLion]

Well, out of a shortlist of these:

http://www.ridgeback.co.uk/index.php?seriesID=44&show_bike=TRUE
Trek Bikes | Bikes | Kids | MT 220
Islabikes Beinn 24 – lightweight bike for kids aged 7+

I strongly advised in favour of the Trek over the Ridgeback if we bought local - primarily based on who was selling what, because one LBS is, well, more local, I've used them before, their servicing prices are a bit lower and they've been really helpful.  So he basically has to choose between the Trek and the Islabike.  Spoke to the Islabike bod on the phone who confirmed the the Beinn24 would be a squeak on the large side (his inside leg measurement is about 1cm under the 'minimum') but he and I are happy to accept that - apart from anything else he's growing like a weed at the moment.  And today he's decided that he likes the islabike best   Of course, he might change his mind before this afternoon, but I think that's a final decision.  I've checked, and I'll have to turn the bars, fit the pedals and fit the front (quick release) wheel.  And they've assured me that if I don't understand their instructions then I can ring them for advice and no question is too stupid - they won't laugh at me til I'm off the phone 

So, customisations.  A propstand was on his list of essential criteria, and he wants a bottle cage.  I want mudguards, and he's happy  to have them.  He fancies a rack, but we've agreed that we'll think about adding one later.  Given that he's not really an off-roader but is hoping to up his distances (short term target is Granny's house, about a 30-35 mile round trip depending on route, and long term target t'other Granny's house - 112 miles) we're thinking about upgrading to the Schwalbe Marathon tyres for an extra £30 fitted - anybody have any thoughts?

And the good news is that Grandad has said that he will contribute half (!) of the price which is incredibly generous, and means that eldest_offspring might actually get some Christmas presents as well this year.

Thanks to all for the help and advice - it's been greatly appreciated!

[Ariadne]

Wow, lucky boy! And I think the Schwalbe Marathons are a good idea - getting punctures is a major pain and could put him off.

[RichMoss]

More praise for the islabikes here (we're working our way up through the range - eldest currently has the beinn 24), and criticism of the Trek.

Personally, I wouldn't bother with the schwalbe marathons unless you feel you are likely to be in a puncture prone area - our  experience with the tyres supplied as standard has been fine - I don't recall any punctures to date).

Also, if you want to change to knobbly tyres, I've found the mudguards also have sufficient clearance for the Continental Explorer tyres (which wasn't the case for the beinn 20).
To me the Islabike wins over the Trek in every respect. Both bikes are similarly priced, yet you get much better quality from the islabike.

The trek and the ridgeback are similarly specified bikes so the comments below will probably apply similarly to both).
If you don't mind my opinions on the Trek - it will be much heavier than the islabike as it has heavy, unnecessary front suspension and heavier steel components eg seat post, handlebar stem.
To me, weight is a key issue as each pound /half kilo extra here makes a huge difference, where it may be fairly insignificant for a 75 kg adult, the extra weight has a greater impact on a smaller, weaker child (eg my 25 kg 7 1/2yr old) - if you see what I mean.

The triple chainset at the front isn't necesary and again this and the derailleur and shifter will add weight.
The trek frame doesn't have space for a bottle cage, the islabike does, and has braze-on bottle cage mounts.
The islabike has quick release wheels which is nice, and makes it quicker to remove the wheels if you need to throw the bike into/onto a car. The quick release is kinder to the paintwork than nutted hubs with spanners
The islabike has a sealed, maintenance-free bottom bracket, the trek has an 'adjustable ball bearing' - the sealed unit won't need adjusting.

We've had excellent customer service from Islabikes, we did have a trek childs bike a few years back and when I contacted Trek about mudguard compatibility I got a useless (and snotty) response.

Finally, as people have noted elsewhere the quality of the islabikes shows in the way they hold their value.

Good luck
Richard

[hatler]

Another vote for Islabikes here.

We got the 20" Beinn a couple of years ago and it is a superb piece of kit. Mini-hatler has covered miles and miles on it. It's been so successful that two of his mates have one as well.

Now (scarily) looking at perhaps the small 26" Beinn next. He may only be 8 but he was happily riding a horizontally top-tubed 19" framed 26" wheeled MTB around this weekend, even though he couldn't get on it by himself.

[CrinklyLion]

He really really liked the look of the Luath too - but I don't think drops are a good plan given that he's never tried them, and is just starting to get a bit of road sense, but doesn't need extra encouragement to not look where he's going!  Although I did suggest he might like to consider the Luath 700 in a few years time.  And then I can have it when he outgrows it - being something of a shortie, I'm somewhere in between the measurements for the small and the large

[clarion]

Kids adapt to drops much better than you might imagine.  If they're not set too low, the brakes are well in reach (they will almost certainly be on a Luath), and you have the top section (not the bottom) of the bars horizontal, they should do fine.

If it's any help, my son, who at the time barely rode at all (and never on drops), got onto a Luath in the bumpy car park outside Islabikes, and rode it round with no problems at all.

[Butterfly]

The luath also has levers on the flat bit of the bars, so they are probably the best way to get used to drops.

[CrinklyLion]

We just went and collected his bike   

A second-hand beinn24, previously enjoyed by the offspring of a most kind member of this very forum who is currently heading away for a (hopefully delightful and cake-fuelled) weekend of cycling.  We arranged a meetup at a train station not too far off their route and an easy, cheap train ride away for us, bought a bike and brought it home on a train - a most excellent first adventure for a boy and his bike.  And I got laughed at quite a lot by random passers by as I cycled along behind him home from the station with my gigantic work rucksack, a spare wheel strapped to my bag and a spare tyre slung over my shoulder.

He likes his bike.  A lot   And was pleasantly surprised at how speedy it is - I may struggle to keep up!  I was pleasantly surprised at being able to lift it one-handed onto the train with my hands full of bags and wheels and tyres, when he found it tricky to negotiate the rather large gap+step and got stuck half-way on.  Compared with his previous (smaller) bike it weighs NOTHING!

So tomorrow we'll have a first proper test ride out, about 4 miles to the pool and then back again.  We will have to put the seat up a bit - it's currently at its lowest, as according to the Islabikes sizing he should be a squeak on the short side for it but actually it could probably do to go an inch or two higher.  And we'd better go and get him a decent back light (by the street lights on the platform and using my work toolkit I couldn't find a sensible non-seat post mount point for the old one as the stays are too skinny for the bracket and even with a bit more seatpost on show I think it might be tricky to fit it there) and a rather better lock!

Yippee!!!  We can cycle together again!

[hatler]

Cool. Nice one. You're right, they really are light aren't they.

[clarion]

Wonderful.  I'm excited!

[Butterfly]

Fantastic! I'm sure he'll have a lovely time on it .

[CrinklyLion]

So much for our first proper ride out... dearly beloved went to a party last night until so far past dark o'clock that it was very very nearly light again when he got home and he was... somewhat the worse for wear, shall we say?  Poor lamb is a leeetle under the weather, so instead of hopping on the bikes to swimming we had to take smallest_offspring with us - and I don't have any pedal powered transport for him    So pushchair and bus it was. 

[CrinklyLion]

Well, he rode it to school today and got a lot of oohs and aaahs in the bike shed and the playground    Several of the older kids were particularly impressed with 24" wheels too.  And we popped into our local bike shop (the one where we would have bought a Trek if we'd gone for a new bike) on the way home to get a new back light that we could mount on the stays (his old one only had a seat post mount and even though we've put the seat up and have plenty of space to mount it it would be utterly invisible) and ended up with three of the mechanics and a couple of customers admiring his bike and taking turns to pick it up and make 'crikey, it must be fitted with anti-gravity devices!' type comments.  My boy loves his bike 

[clarion]

Happy happy happy!

[rr]

Another Islabike fan here, the purchase price may be high, but they normally go for 2/3 to 3/4 their new price on ebay so they are in fact cheaper own than a cheap as nasty halfaulds/tesco special.

[CrinklyLion]

THe littly is getting a second-hand balance bike for Christmas, but next year (when he'll be 3 and a half) I sense a Cnoc will join the heap in the dining room unless I find something else second hand that looks really really nice for less than a quarter of the money.  Probably a new one as the resale value is so good, and the new version has moved away from the back pedal brakes.  So I'd better warn the Grannies and Aunties to start saving

Several people have asked me for kids bike recommendations lately, and I've told all of them that IF you can afford the initial capital outlay, an Islabike is a sound investment - you'll enjoy it more than most other bikes, and get a far far higher percentage back a few years down the line.  See, I've learnt summat!