Which Child Seat

Author
Discussion

Hackney

Original Poster:

6,810 posts

207 months

Tuesday 26th July 2016
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Having hired a bike with a seat in my local country park I'm thinking of getting a child seat (and *cough* a new bike *cough*) but have no idea where to start. Halfords has about 30 ranging from £30 to £150+ from memory.

What are the good brands?
What are the features to look for?
Do they tend to fit *any* bike - I'll probably get some kind of hybrid


Antonia

305 posts

160 months

Tuesday 26th July 2016
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I have a Yepp and am very pleased with it. But It is heavy so think about that as you choose your bike.

louiebaby

10,651 posts

190 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
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Have a look locally on eBay and Gumtree, they come up fairly often, normally for about £5, as they're a pig to post!

We have a Hamax, which is pretty good, the boy seems to be happy enough in it for 45 mins at a time...

hantsxlg

862 posts

231 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
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Another vote for a hamax. Our kids loved it from 18 months and eldest at 4.5 has out grown it now so sprog2 gets to enjoy pulling my hair and tickling my back on rides now

Esseesse

8,969 posts

207 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
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Perhaps things have changed, but a pretty significant authority used to swear by 'OK Baby' seats.

Edit: Specifically this one: http://www.okbaby.it/en/products/bike-seats/item/s...

Edited by Esseesse on Wednesday 27th July 16:32

V8_GWA

139 posts

251 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
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I have a Hamax one with brackets for two bikes you can have for free if you're able to collect from Uxbridge in the next two weeks. Our daughter has her own bike now, and we're having a bit of a clear out before moving to Washington DC next month. PM if you're interested.

lufbramatt

5,317 posts

133 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
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I've got a Weeride, and love it, so does the little man. I can see and talk to him, he can see where we are going and point at sheep/ducks/trees and wave at passers by smile It fitted fine to my Orange Evo2 mountain bike, I was a bit worried about the top routed cables but the mounting bar is quite a clever design.

I find it ok to ride with (have to splay your knees slightly) but it's not like you're going to be doing centuries with a kiddie on the bike. I am 6'2" and have quite long arms though.


hab1966

1,094 posts

211 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
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We bought a Topeak Babysitter child ( http://www.topeak.com/products/Child-Carrier-and-R...) seat for taking my daughter out with us. Fitted over the rear wheel using a rack that fixes to the bike. You buy the rack (and seat) for either a disk brake or non disk brake frame. I think the only caveat is not for use on a full suspension bike, so i had to buy another bike.

Its now up for sale, though as one of the other posters has said, they arent easy to ship if you dont have the box (which we dont have).

bakerstreet

4,755 posts

164 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
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We have just bought a used Hamax (SP?) through the lots for tots sales on Facebook. Mint condition and we only paid £10 for it. Local collection too. There are lots on Ebay, but because they are a funny shape, they are awkward to post, so you are better looking at the seller pages on Facebook or maybe Gumtree.

I am in the process of renovating my 18 year old Mountain Bike just so it can carry the child seat. Didn't want to use either or my two road bikes or the CX. MTB should be much more stable and comfortable for the nipper smile

Picking up the bike on Saturday and I'm hoping that the little one will enjoy it. Hes being taken out on it every day when we are at Centre Parks. I certainly won't be able to afford all their activities frown

BoRED S2upid

19,641 posts

239 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
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Don't do it! Little BS2 won't stop hassling me to go out for a ride I'm nackered he's just say there hitting me on the back shouting faster faster! Wait till he grows up I will get my revenge one day.

Can't recall what make his is but it wasn't that expensive and he loves it. Only 1 mounting point though so it can be a bit springy and hit the rear tyre over bumps.

edward1

839 posts

265 months

Friday 29th July 2016
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I'd have to recommend the Weeride, brilliant bit of kit. You can chat away to, the little one, they get to see where they are going, but most important of all they keep the bike balanced. Before getting one I hired a bike with the seat out back and did not like the way they unbalance the bike. With the Weeride even relatively easy off road routes (about blue level at a trail center) were still possible.

JuniorD

8,616 posts

222 months

Friday 29th July 2016
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I bought a Hamax Siesta from Decathlon. It's perfectly fine but I found that my when my son fell asleep he'd be be hanging sideways out of the seat. Like most of these things, it got used a handfull of times and now is consigned to gather dust in the garage

Hard-Drive

4,076 posts

228 months

Monday 8th August 2016
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People with WeeRide seats...help!

I've just fitted one to my full susser (an old 2007 Trek Fuel EX7)but I'm not that impressed. You certainly have to ride with knees splayed, and I'm a bit worried what that will do to my knees even after a few miles. Can you get pedals with really long spindles to help with this?

Secondly, I've only had a quick whizz aroud with just me on the bike. Basically, it's really hard to start and stop...the only way seems to be a "postman" style mount and dismount (left foot on left pedal, right foot to left of back wheel...scoot along and throw your leg over). Even though I have flatties on that bike, I'm worried about the equivalent of an "SPD moment" simply because I can't slide forward off the saddle and get my foot down if I need to in a hurry.

So I can't get on, I can't get off, I can't steer as the fork crown hits the foot rests, and I can't pedal properly. I'm really struggling to see why people rave about these...or am I missing something? It just seems to be a hugely flawed design?

I bought the WeeRide seat as I'd already bought a WeeRide trailer and had concerns over taking an 8 month old out in it. I'm now genuinely thinking he might be better in the trailer on smooth roads/tracks than having me drop the lot of us on the floor!

Any advice?

lufbramatt

5,317 posts

133 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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Hard-Drive said:
People with WeeRide seats...help!

I've just fitted one to my full susser (an old 2007 Trek Fuel EX7)but I'm not that impressed. You certainly have to ride with knees splayed, and I'm a bit worried what that will do to my knees even after a few miles. Can you get pedals with really long spindles to help with this?

Secondly, I've only had a quick whizz aroud with just me on the bike. Basically, it's really hard to start and stop...the only way seems to be a "postman" style mount and dismount (left foot on left pedal, right foot to left of back wheel...scoot along and throw your leg over). Even though I have flatties on that bike, I'm worried about the equivalent of an "SPD moment" simply because I can't slide forward off the saddle and get my foot down if I need to in a hurry.

So I can't get on, I can't get off, I can't steer as the fork crown hits the foot rests, and I can't pedal properly. I'm really struggling to see why people rave about these...or am I missing something? It just seems to be a hugely flawed design?

I bought the WeeRide seat as I'd already bought a WeeRide trailer and had concerns over taking an 8 month old out in it. I'm now genuinely thinking he might be better in the trailer on smooth roads/tracks than having me drop the lot of us on the floor!

Any advice?
I honestly can't say I have had those problems, but I have it on a rigid mountain bike which by the sounds of it has a bigger frame (although Trek Fuels do come up quite short- I have an EX8) so there would be less space. I can dismount to the front of the saddle with no issues and get going as normal, but I can see how this would be an issue on a smaller or shorter frame. I have the child seat as far forward as possible, the footrests don't hit the fork but it is a cromo rigid fork which is narrower than a suspension fork.

I raised the stem up and put the widest bars on I could find in the loft to give me more space (see pic above). I ride it with SPDs and it's been fine so far, have even done a little bit of offroading, hopping on and off kerbs etc, which he thinks is hilarious.

TwistingMyMelon

6,385 posts

204 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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I got the cheapest Hamax one, was good, had it fixed to my hybrid, fixie and road bike ok, you have to point your knees out a bit but ok

Last weekend I got a Raleigh trailer off ebay for £30, much prefer it to the seat, a lot harder work but more comfortable for me and more importantly my daughter, plus she can cuddle peppa pig all the way!

Rear kids seats are good, but on my road bike (steel) the bike was too quick and not really suited, I couldnt get out the saddle on climbs unless I fancied a massive tank slapper and was not that stable, partly because I am quite light.

Trailer is easier to setup (clamp it on any bike 30 seconds) can carry more, its a pain down narrow alleyways and bulky to leave outside shops, but I much prefer it

Hard-Drive

4,076 posts

228 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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lufbramatt said:
I honestly can't say I have had those problems, but I have it on a rigid mountain bike which by the sounds of it has a bigger frame (although Trek Fuels do come up quite short- I have an EX8) so there would be less space. I can dismount to the front of the saddle with no issues and get going as normal, but I can see how this would be an issue on a smaller or shorter frame. I have the child seat as far forward as possible, the footrests don't hit the fork but it is a cromo rigid fork which is narrower than a suspension fork.

I raised the stem up and put the widest bars on I could find in the loft to give me more space (see pic above). I ride it with SPDs and it's been fine so far, have even done a little bit of offroading, hopping on and off kerbs etc, which he thinks is hilarious.
OK thanks for that. I might try sliding the saddle back all the way on the rails, and if I raise the WeeRide footrests it might mean I can get them to miss the top of the fork crown when I turn, which in turn might mean I can get the seat forward an inch or so.

Still not impressed though...if they had put a horizontal bolt across where the clamp goes around the head tube (as they have at the seatpost end), it would have meant that I could have moved the whole thing up a bit and out of the way. As it's just welded on, the WeeRide rail must exit the head tube at 90 degrees and your height/angle is cast in stone. Really annoying when you see a design and think "if only they'd done this"

Mr Will

13,719 posts

205 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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TwistingMyMelon said:
I got the cheapest Hamax one, was good, had it fixed to my hybrid, fixie and road bike ok, you have to point your knees out a bit but ok

Last weekend I got a Raleigh trailer off ebay for £30, much prefer it to the seat, a lot harder work but more comfortable for me and more importantly my daughter, plus she can cuddle peppa pig all the way!

Rear kids seats are good, but on my road bike (steel) the bike was too quick and not really suited, I couldnt get out the saddle on climbs unless I fancied a massive tank slapper and was not that stable, partly because I am quite light.

Trailer is easier to setup (clamp it on any bike 30 seconds) can carry more, its a pain down narrow alleyways and bulky to leave outside shops, but I much prefer it
I'd second this - if you've got the space then trailers are brilliant. Plenty of room for stuff as well as child (or children), plus they are safer if you do something stupid and end up falling off.

TwistingMyMelon

6,385 posts

204 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
quotequote all
Mr Will said:
TwistingMyMelon said:
I got the cheapest Hamax one, was good, had it fixed to my hybrid, fixie and road bike ok, you have to point your knees out a bit but ok

Last weekend I got a Raleigh trailer off ebay for £30, much prefer it to the seat, a lot harder work but more comfortable for me and more importantly my daughter, plus she can cuddle peppa pig all the way!

Rear kids seats are good, but on my road bike (steel) the bike was too quick and not really suited, I couldnt get out the saddle on climbs unless I fancied a massive tank slapper and was not that stable, partly because I am quite light.

Trailer is easier to setup (clamp it on any bike 30 seconds) can carry more, its a pain down narrow alleyways and bulky to leave outside shops, but I much prefer it
I'd second this - if you've got the space then trailers are brilliant. Plenty of room for stuff as well as child (or children), plus they are safer if you do something stupid and end up falling off.
Also lots easier to strap the child in a trailer on your own, strapping a child in a bike seat when you are on your own is a balnceing act...even more so when they are having a meltdown as they dont want to leave the park and are flailing their arms around as weapons!

mike9009

6,917 posts

242 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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Hi

We bought a cheap kids seat from Tesco many years ago. It was fine and the kids regularly fell asleep in it on a ride.

Biggest issue was getting them in the seat if 'they' had decided it was not going to happen. (as mentioned previously in the thread).

Now our six year old will cycle ten miles with me and three year old uses a trailgator which is fine (unless he falls asleep on it!! redfaceredface )

Hard-Drive

4,076 posts

228 months

Tuesday 9th August 2016
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I did buy a trailer, but some people are saying 8 months is too young for it, hence the WeeRide seat. But I'm tempted to just go with it anyway...gently...and see how we do.

I've looked again at the bike, and whilst raising the foot rests allows me to get the seat all the way forward, there isn't even room between the nose of the saddle and the back of the seat for me to get my thigh through the gap, let alone getting rogered by the saddle and squishing the gentlemen vegetables against the back of the seat trying to straddle the top tube. I do have another saddle on another bike that is about 40mm shorter in the "nose to front of usable rails" measurement so I'll try it but I think I'm clutching at straws here. I'm no racing whippet but I'm not exactly a lard arse either.

I might pop the seat on my On-One Inbred and see if that's any better, but I was really hoping to take the full susser to give the little fella a better ride.

TBH if it won't fit either bike I'll probably see if I can return it...it's supposed to be "the safest seat you can buy" which fits "nearly all bikes". It's not like I'm trying to fit it on a folder, recumbent or TT bike FFS!!!