Santa needs advice

Tom-D

Tom-D

Taxi to Parking
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Tom-D
we have a grand daughter that needs a new bike, she rides a 20" now but is growing like a weed.

usage? just around a urban neighborhood.

got link to what we need ?
 
Get her a nice road bike, Giant and specialized make nice ones, but stop in a bike shop and tell them your price range. Give her a picture of it, then bring her to the bike shop and get her fitted. You can drop $10k on a road bike, but they make entry level bikes that should be in the 500 to 700 range. If that's too much and the bike shop doesn't have cheaper then Walmart, but you get what you pay for.
 
Thanks for the advice, we go shopping today. see what we can find in podunk :)
 
Local bike shop has a trade-up program. You buy a 16in and you get full trade on the 20, 24 and full size. The trade up bikes may be used ones that come back to the shop and get refurbished with new saddle grips etc.

You can find good kids bikes on Craigslist. Not everyone rides them to death. Often they are like new.

How old, how tall ?

A small adult frame can be made to fit a tall kid using appropriate spacers etc. As the kid grows you move the handlebars further out and eventually upgrade to a larger frame.
 
weilke said:
Local bike shop has a trade-up program. You buy a 16in and you get full trade on the 20, 24 and full size. The trade up bikes may be used ones that come back to the shop and get refurbished with new saddle grips etc.

You can find good kids bikes on Craigslist. Not everyone rides them to death. Often they are like new.
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I did look at Craigs list, but when you don't know what you are looking for. ?
 
asicer said:
Going from 20" to 700c is a bit of a jump, don't you think?
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Not at all, it's about 4 inches in radius, she is growing like a weed, find a frame suitable to her size and maybe able to accommodate some growth, that's why a fit is important. If 700 is too big, there is always 26 inch.
 
Tom-D said:
I did look at Craigs list, but when you don't know what you are looking for. ?
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Well, the next step up is 24in, 26in and then small frame adult bikes (15.5in 17in) with 29in/700mm wheels.

Its worth taking a trip to a bike shop. A kid doesn't need a formal fitting , but it helps to have someone who knows kids bikes to eyeball and measure her.
 
Get her a Wally World bike and be done with it. A 24-26” bike will likely be fine. She doesn’t need anything more than a 10-speed if that. Paying for a Giant/Trek/Specialized name plate for a kid is silly.


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SoonerAviator said:
Get her a Wally World bike and be done with it. A 24-26” bike will likely be fine. She doesn’t need anything more than a 10-speed if that. Paying for a Giant/Trek/Specialized name plate for a kid is silly.


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What if she is trying to get to the X Games?
 
SoonerAviator said:
Get her a Wally World bike and be done with it. A 24-26” bike will likely be fine. She doesn’t need anything more than a 10-speed if that. Paying for a Giant/Trek/Specialized name plate for a kid is silly.


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It depends on how into it she is, the Walmart huffy will probably weigh about 30 pounds which will be down right discouraging if you are on a ride over a few miles trying to keep up with someone. If she just wants to ride to her friend's house a few miles away, then a cheap, heavy bike is fine. If she is going on riding adventures over a few miles she will be much happier with a lighter bike.
 
PaulS said:
It depends on how into it she is, the Walmart huffy will probably weigh about 30 pounds which will be down right discouraging if you are on a ride over a few miles trying to keep up with someone. If she just wants to ride to her friend's house a few miles away, then a cheap, heavy bike is fine. If she is going on riding adventures over a few miles she will be much happier with a lighter bike.
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No offense, but I think that’s horseshite. No kid pays attention to how light/heavy their bike is. They care about design/color and if it rides without breaking. I rode on a Huffy/Magna/etc until I bought a Robinson 20” bike as a teen. Not once did I think about how nice it would be to ride a lighter bike.

I own a nice light Trek FS mountain bike now when I can appreciate a nicer/lighter bike. Kids don’t care about bike brand unless they are doing it competitively.


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How old is she?

Don't get too expensive - sometimes bikes get legs, if you know what I mean. Look around at what other kids her age are riding and get something that will fit in.
 
If you get her a 24" bike, don't go nuts on quality ($100-150 should do it). She will be ready for a 26" in a few years ($300-400 will get a nice one). Tires/tubes a little harder to find for a 24 vs 26 too.
 
SoonerAviator said:
No offense, but I think that’s horseshite. No kid pays attention to how light/heavy their bike is. They care about design/color and if it rides without breaking. I rode on a Huffy/Magna/etc until I bought a Robinson 20” bike as a teen. Not once did I think about how nice it would be to ride a lighter bike.

I own a nice light Trek FS mountain bike now when I can appreciate a nicer/lighter bike. Kids don’t care about bike brand unless they are doing it competitively.


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I'm not offended, that's your opinion. I've been bicycle riding since I was a little kid. At about 9 years old my dad bought me a 3 speed bicycle, I loved it. At about 11 or 12 my friends all had 10 speeds, back then it was a 5 speed rear and 2 up front. I couldn't keep up with them, so I saved and bought a light weight ten speed and blew them all away, mainly because I was in better shape trying to stay with them on a much heavier bike for so long. By 11 or 12 years old we were going on 30 mile adventures. Tom doesn't say how old this young lady is, but if she is "growing like a weed" I'd guess she's at least 10 or 12. Again, if she is biking to the neighbor's house, buy her a piece of crap, but if she is really into it, encourage her and getting at least a rudimentary fit will make it much less painful. I'm in my 50s now and still ride, it's a great sport. YMMV.
 
PaulS said:
I'm not offended, that's your opinion. I've been bicycle riding since I was a little kid. At about 9 years old my dad bought me a 3 speed bicycle, I loved it. At about 11 or 12 my friends all had 10 speeds, back then it was a 5 speed rear and 2 up front. I couldn't keep up with them, so I saved and bought a light weight ten speed and blew them all away, mainly because I was in better shape trying to stay with them on a much heavier bike for so long. By 11 or 12 years old we were going on 30 mile adventures. Tom doesn't say how old this young lady is, but if she is "growing like a weed" I'd guess she's at least 10 or 12. Again, if she is biking to the neighbor's house, buy her a piece of crap, but if she is really into it, encourage her and getting at least a rudimentary fit will make it much less painful. I'm in my 50s now and still ride, it's a great sport. YMMV.
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My experience was similar, but I never gave a thought to how much it weighed as an 8yr old. I had a 20” huffy, then a 10 speed huffy, then a 26” Magna 18spd w/front shocks (completely pointless), then went back down to a 20” Robinson Rebel BMX bike which I had as a 14yr all the way through college. I now ride a 29” Trek Superfly full suspension bike. I just don’t see the point in dropping $400+ for a bike that a kid won’t likely have for more than 2-3 yrs before it is outgrown.


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SoonerAviator said:
My experience was similar, but I never gave a thought to how much it weighed as an 8yr old. I had a 20” huffy, then a 10 speed huffy, then a 26” Magna 18spd w/front shocks (completely pointless), then went back down to a 20” Robinson Rebel BMX bike which I had as a 14yr all the way through college. I now ride a 29” Trek Superfly full suspension bike. I just don’t see the point in dropping $400+ for a bike that a kid won’t likely have for more than 2-3 yrs before it is outgrown.


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Well, if she is 8 I agree, if she is 12 and almost fully grown, then I disagree. Too many variables, not enough info, but I'm sure Tom has it under control. If you are riding a full suspension bike then chances are weight is lower on your priority scale then the shocks. But riding over 20 miles at thousand or so feet elevation every 10 miles, weight becomes an issue. I went from the 3 speed to a motobebane steel bike, which wasn't the lightest bike, but was lighter than most. Rode that bike for 20 years until I couldn't keep up again, then I finally relented and bought a modern light weight bike, haven't looked back. Now it's just a matter of conditioning.
 
SoonerAviator said:
Get her a Wally World bike and be done with it. A 24-26” bike will likely be fine. She doesn’t need anything more than a 10-speed if that. Paying for a Giant/Trek/Specialized name plate for a kid is silly.


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A reasonably priced bike can be purchased at bike shops. I don't want to sound materialistic, but a kid is going to value a decent bike a lot more than a 28 lb Walmart steel steed. She'll be more likely to use it, take care of it, and get the advantage of learning that trails and bike paths can be fun.
 
The 24" bikes will only fit a kid for about two years, then they are big enough for an adult bike. Most Chinese 24" bikes only last two years anyway...
 
Used small trek Fx.
She can ride 2-3 years, sell for about same price. Hybrid tires
 
When you gonna build her some sweet jumps?

984CF3D4-7A74-4B2E-86FE-C53DDC5103CA.gif
 
CC268 said:
When you gonna build her some sweet jumps?

View attachment 69957
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I did this at about ten years old, the ramp base was a trash can with a 2 X 12 as the ramp, I made it over, but learned the hard lesson that you need to protect your gonads on landing. Never had the desire to do it again.
 
3393RP said:
A reasonably priced bike can be purchased at bike shops.
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Our local bike shop prices start at 375.00, for what looked to be Chinese junk.
No thanks
 
Easy

Pit-bike-de-50cc.jpg
 
That’s Santa F’in problem not yours. He’s real.
 
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