Kids bike recommendations, for a 5 years old...

[Pothole]

mattnunn said:

Balance bikes seem like a waste of time and effort to me, not to mention money, I don't get the idea of buying something with the intention of trying to get the kid to stop playing with it as soon as possible. Having said that I have taken the pedals of our boys bike as he's only 2 and kept ttting his shins on them.

Decathlon do the best kids bike in my opinion, the 16" ones should be fine for a 5 year old but they do a 14" one aswell.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/C-10829-bikes

So you want your child to take ages to be able to ride a bike properly? There's a healthy second hand market in balance bikes, too.

[mattnunn]

Pothole said:

mattnunn said:

Balance bikes seem like a waste of time and effort to me, not to mention money, I don't get the idea of buying something with the intention of trying to get the kid to stop playing with it as soon as possible. Having said that I have taken the pedals of our boys bike as he's only 2 and kept ttting his shins on them.

Decathlon do the best kids bike in my opinion, the 16" ones should be fine for a 5 year old but they do a 14" one aswell.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/C-10829-bikes

So you want your child to take ages to be able to ride a bike properly? There's a healthy second hand market in balance bikes, too.

My eldest was riding her bike with stabilisers at 3 and over the summer we just raised and then bent the stabilisers up until she asked to take them off before her 4th birthday, but she is a little madam, the lad might take a bit longer I don't know yet. I'm just not sure that balance bikes are really needed or that they really accelerate anything, seems to me it's a completely different kettle of fish when you start to peddle, we certainly never had them in the good old days never did us any harm except for a few bangs on the head (never had helmets either)

[Pothole]

mattnunn said:

Pothole said:

mattnunn said:

Balance bikes seem like a waste of time and effort to me, not to mention money, I don't get the idea of buying something with the intention of trying to get the kid to stop playing with it as soon as possible. Having said that I have taken the pedals of our boys bike as he's only 2 and kept ttting his shins on them.

Decathlon do the best kids bike in my opinion, the 16" ones should be fine for a 5 year old but they do a 14" one aswell.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/C-10829-bikes

So you want your child to take ages to be able to ride a bike properly? There's a healthy second hand market in balance bikes, too.

My eldest was riding her bike with stabilisers at 3 and over the summer we just raised and then bent the stabilisers up until she asked to take them off before her 4th birthday, but she is a little madam, the lad might take a bit longer I don't know yet. I'm just not sure that balance bikes are really needed or that they really accelerate anything, seems to me it's a completely different kettle of fish when you start to peddle, we certainly never had them in the good old days never did us any harm except for a few bangs on the head (never had helmets either)

Do these peddlers have those bikes with the big basket on the front? No wonder it takes them longer!

[Steve Evil]

mattnunn said:

My eldest was riding her bike with stabilisers at 3 and over the summer we just raised and then bent the stabilisers up until she asked to take them off before her 4th birthday, but she is a little madam, the lad might take a bit longer I don't know yet. I'm just not sure that balance bikes are really needed or that they really accelerate anything, seems to me it's a completely different kettle of fish when you start to peddle, we certainly never had them in the good old days never did us any harm except for a few bangs on the head (never had helmets either)

It's simple physics, a bike steers by leaning and counter-steering, whereas adding a wheel either side means that it steers in the direction you move the bars, by putting stabilisers on you're adding a confusing element to proceedings, as anything learnt with stabilisers attached will have to be un-learnt when riding with just two wheels.

Eventually it will be picked up as you say, the further up the stabilisers are, you'll slowly pick up on the constant corrections and leaning necessary when riding a bike, but it's going to take longer than simply starting off on two wheels and taking it from there.

[Vladimir]

The rule seems to be; balance bike riders quickly get the balance and steering right but struggle to get the hang of pedalling (a trike or tag along bike both help). Stabiliser riders are fine at pedalling but struggle with balance and steering.

IMO balance bikes are brilliant.

I learned to surf on a short board but wish I'd had access to modern beginner boards; would have been much less frustrating; balance bikes are in a similar vein: progress.

[Maracus]

Minemapper said:

I'll second the Islabike recommendation, and give you a dose of man manths to go with it.

We've got the balance bike for the 4yr old, a Beinn 20 for the 8yr old, and a Beinn 26 for the 10 year old. Compared to what their mates are riding, these are a cut above. They weigh nothing, and all the components are sized to kid fingers, legs and bums. I would not buy anything else for a kid, having experienced these.

Here's the man manths bit. Having looking for an age on eBay, I realized that yes, the cost of entry is steep, but I'll be able to run all 3 of my kids through these bikes, and still be able to sell them for at least 50% of the purchase price in 10 years. So really, it's not a £200 (or £300) kids bike. It's more like £100, and your kid gets to ride the best bike in the school bike shed, bar none.

^^^ Speaketh Sense ^^^

My 10 year old has a Beinn 26, this will go to my 4 year old in a few years (£350 new, will be used by the two of them, in good condition these sell on eBay for over £200).

We've just bought a second hand CNOC Islabike for my 4 year old for £125 from eBay, these are £200 new. He'll get a year or two out of it and we'll hopefully sell it for £100.

Man maths - it's the future

[Iklwa]

Well, looks like the Islabike will win out, although I say that tentatively as I havent discussed it with her indoors.

The potential resale value and quality makes it a good buy, and as our youngest daughter is only 1, it will be ready for her when she gets to 4/5 years old, and hopefully lasts her a good few years. That means potentially we will have many many years of use out of it, and also know all three are learning on a bike that helps them.

Thanks for the advice, as had never even heard of islabikes before.

[Minemapper]

Our work here is done, gentlemen.

[Mr Will]

mattnunn said:

Pothole said:

mattnunn said:

Balance bikes seem like a waste of time and effort to me, not to mention money, I don't get the idea of buying something with the intention of trying to get the kid to stop playing with it as soon as possible. Having said that I have taken the pedals of our boys bike as he's only 2 and kept ttting his shins on them.

Decathlon do the best kids bike in my opinion, the 16" ones should be fine for a 5 year old but they do a 14" one aswell.

http://www.decathlon.co.uk/C-10829-bikes

So you want your child to take ages to be able to ride a bike properly? There's a healthy second hand market in balance bikes, too.

My eldest was riding her bike with stabilisers at 3 and over the summer we just raised and then bent the stabilisers up until she asked to take them off before her 4th birthday, but she is a little madam, the lad might take a bit longer I don't know yet. I'm just not sure that balance bikes are really needed or that they really accelerate anything, seems to me it's a completely different kettle of fish when you start to peddle, we certainly never had them in the good old days never did us any harm except for a few bangs on the head (never had helmets either)

I wouldn't buy a balance bike for a 4 year old, but for little ones they are great. My daughter was riding a balance bike at 2, got a whole years use out of it and then took to a proper bike (without stabilisers) like a duck to water shortly after her third birthday. She knew how to pedal from the tricycles at nursery and balance from her balance bike and that was that.

I don't see any possible advantage to stabilisers except "that was the way I did it when I were a lad...".

[Ianeire]

Another vote for Islabikes. I bought a Luath 24 from them recently and it is a fabulous, quality item. Kept in any sort of reasonable condition it should sell itself second-hand very quickly.

[Kermit power]

The biggest mistake I made was buying new bikes for my kids. Whatever sort of bike you ultimately decide is right for them, they're going to outgrow it very quickly!

Lots of people are suggesting buying an Isla bike for £350, which you'll be able to sell for £200+ on eBay when your kids have outgrown it. This is very true, but why not be the person buying second hand? If you then sell it yourself a couple of years later, you'll probably still get around £200, so the maths just stacks up even better.

[Pothole]

Because the OH insists on buying everything new?

[Iklwa]

Kermit, I get what you're saying, but sometimes because of the second hand value, it makes purchasing new almost seem worth it. For example, say a £200 Islabike sells for £150 on eBay. The ones I have looked at want £20 postage, so that takes it to £170, and then you have to consider it is probably at least a couple years old, so will carry that wear and tear as well.

For something we want to use for the next 8 years, the additional £30 (£200 includes postage) I'd rather buy new, though I am currently watching one on eBay that hs a few days left to see what sort of money it reaches, if I could get it for £130 or less then I'll probably go for it.

[Maracus]

I saw a CNOC14 Islabikes sell for £170 on eBay last week, if you add postage/courier then it's £197.

You can buy them brand new and delivered for £200 direct from Islabikes.

[boyse7en]

I bought my five year old a second-hand FELT G20. She could already ride her 12" wheel Argos special without stabilisers.

I'd say go with the man-maths option. A good-quality bike makes cycling easier, more fun and will ultimately make them more confident. It's the basics that are important - easy reach levers, brakes that don't need a lot strength to stop the bike, bearings (headset, pedal and wheels) that are smooth.

The G20 cost me £95 (immaculate, despite being used by two kids. Probably because the owner (and his kids) were well into their bikes) and It should see my eldest up until shes about 10 at a guess. Then I'll sell it on and should be able to get £50 for it.

[Silver940]

Have a look at Frog Bikes too, similar in ethos to Isla Bikes, Light etc. May have a distributor nearby?

[Iklwa]

Those Frog bikes look great, I know she'd love the spotty one, and look to be dedicated to the same sort of quality the Islabikes are.

Will see which she prefers he look of I think.

[Kermit power]

Iklwa said:

Kermit, I get what you're saying, but sometimes because of the second hand value, it makes purchasing new almost seem worth it. For example, say a £200 Islabike sells for £150 on eBay. The ones I have looked at want £20 postage, so that takes it to £170, and then you have to consider it is probably at least a couple years old, so will carry that wear and tear as well.

For something we want to use for the next 8 years, the additional £30 (£200 includes postage) I'd rather buy new, though I am currently watching one on eBay that hs a few days left to see what sort of money it reaches, if I could get it for £130 or less then I'll probably go for it.

I'm amazed at that!

I've been looking at prices of the Islabike Beinn 26 on eBay for my daughter, and there's a couple which are already up to £300 including postage with 15 hours of bidding still to run. They cost £350 new! Even allowing for eBay fees, the seller isn't going to be too far off getting his money back.

Setting aside antiques and collectibles, I don't think I've ever seen anything which suffers so little depreciation!

[Ianeire]

Such is the market for quality childrens bikes. It's high time that people copped onto the absolute muck that is for sale in most LBS.

[Kermit power]

Ianeire said:

Such is the market for quality childrens bikes. It's high time that people copped onto the absolute muck that is for sale in most LBS.

A high quality adult bike will lose most of its value over 3 years though. Why should a quality kids' bike lose effectively nothing?

It might make sense if Islabikes had gone bust and second hand was the only way of getting one, but that's not the case. It makes no sense for someone to pay the same amount for a 3 year old bike as they could pay for a new one.