"You have to heat down the Pro Line with me!" Gustaf is beside himself with excitement. "There's a jump I really want to show you." I take the twelve-year-old's word for it. As soon as he unloaded the test bikes, Gustaf grabbed the poison green Bergamont and showed me how twelve-year-olds ride these days on the "Blue Line" - the "beginners' trail". Every ramp, no matter how small, is used to take off, every berm is circled in adventurous lean angles. Stay on it? Wishful thinking! Okay, Gustaf is perhaps an extreme example. The blonde tomboy from Saalbach Hinterglemm has even won a few downhill races.
But the other test riders, David, Flori and Pauline, also ruthlessly explore the possibilities of the five test candidates. And that was also our plan: to find out whether expensive children's bikes are worth the money. After all, after many years of being in a state of emergency, there are now more and more small bikes on the market that are in no way inferior to exclusive adult bikes. This may be due to the fact that more and more young bike developers have children themselves and want to make biking fun for them. Guys like Sören Zieher from VPace or Sebastian Tegtmeier, the founder of Supurb-Bikes. But big brands like Trek and Bergamont are also committed to providing good equipment for the next generation. Because let's be honest, why should children be deprived of the fun that we adults have? And send them out on the trail on heavy, too big or non-functioning mills?
5 children's bikes in the test
In BIKE 1/2016, our young test riders chased five high-quality and exceptional children's bikes over the trails. Bikes that can make dreams come true - both for children and their parents. The five children's bikes tested are:
- Bergamont Big Air Tyro
- Propain Frechdax 3
- Transition Ripcord
- Trek Fuel Ex Jr
- Vpace Max24
Admittedly, the prices of our five test bikes are towards the upper end of the scale, as recommended hardtails for children are already available for less than 1000 euros. We have listed further models in a market overview (see info box). The biggest advantage of high-quality children's bikes is their sensitive suspension. Our laboratory measurements under children's weight conditions confirm the good impression we already got when tuning them off-road. Some manufacturers develop special suspension forks from scratch for small bikes and light riders. Others modify standard products, for example with low-viscosity oil for less damping. However, the gain in comfort comes at the expense of weight, especially for fullys. A rear triangle with bearings, joints and rockers is always heavier than a rigid frame. Therefore, if you mainly ride with your kids on forest tracks or even on firm terrain, a hardtail is a good choice. Furthermore, disc brakes, which are fitted to many high-quality children's bikes, increase the weight. Although the low hand forces are ideal for little fingers, a lighter rim brake is also suitable for moderate use.
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You can only dream of a total weight of less than ten kilos, which would be ideal for kids, on a 24-inch kids' bike. Unless, of course, the tinkering dads dig deep into the tuning box - and even deeper into their wallets.
Another argument in favour of a high-quality bike is its high resale value. Or siblings can pass the bike on, which increases its useful life. However, the best argument is certainly the shining eyes of the little racers when they come back from another lap on the trail. "What about the Pro Line now?" Gustaf continues to whinge. Okay, I'm already on my way. Hopefully there will be enough chickenways for scaredy-cats like me - getting the kids excited about their own sport is probably the dream of every biking parent. A light and, above all, smooth-running mountain bike undoubtedly helps with motivation. Because let's be honest, why should children be deprived of the fun that we adults have? And send them out on the trail on heavy, too big or non-functioning mills?
We have put together an overview of high-quality children's mountain bikes (not exhaustive). These include rigid bikes without suspension, hardtails with suspension forks and full-suspension children's fullys with wheel sizes from 20 inches (Propain Frechdax from 16 inches) to 27.5 inches, specially adapted to the anatomy of children.
You can download the market overview for children's bikes as a free PDF below.
The biggest advantage of high-quality children's bikes is their sensitive suspension. Some manufacturers develop special suspension forks from scratch for small bikes and light riders. Others modify standard products, for example with low-viscosity oil for less damping. However, the gain in comfort comes at the expense of weight, especially for fullys.
You can only dream of a total weight of less than ten kilos, which would be ideal for kids, on a 24-inch kids' bike. Unless, of course, the tinkering dads dig deep into the tuning box - and even deeper into their wallets.
Another argument in favour of a high-quality bike is its high resale value. Or siblings can pass the bike on, which increases its useful life. However, the best argument is certainly the shining eyes of the little racers when they come back from another lap on the trail.
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CHILDREN'S MOUNTAIN BIKES: BUYING TIPS AND TUNING
The right frame size
Tables where the height of the child is set in relation to the frame size are usually far too inaccurate! This is because children's body proportions are very different. The decisive measurement (as with adults) is the inside leg length. It should at least correspond to the minimum seat height. But be careful! The standover height is almost even more important: when the child gets off, it must be able to stand with both legs on the ground without sitting on the top tube. A significant safety factor off-road! It is therefore better to base the inner leg length on this value (both values are given in the test letter). It is essential to try out and ride the bike before buying!
What size wheel should the children's bike have?
If the frame size/seat height fits, the wheels can be as large as possible. This increases the bike's rolling comfort and riding stability. The bike also grows with you for longer. And this puts the higher purchase price into perspective.
Weight: How heavy can a children's bike be?
The basic rule is: as light as possible! For comparison: If a 30-kilo child rides a 10-kilo bike (which is already considered light!), then a 70-kilo adult would have to balance a 23-kilo bike through the terrain! Weight can often be saved with tuning.
Child-friendly components
All add-on parts must be ergonomic for children. This means small, adjustable brake levers, thin grips and a small, padded saddle. Ensure smooth-running brakes and gears!
Gears: From 20 inches upwards, the bike should have gears, preferably with only one chainring at the front. From 24 inches, children can learn to use two chainrings efficiently on tour. Twist shifters are rarely found on children's bikes. They are often too stiff. Otherwise an ergonomically sensible alternative.
Cranks: How long should they be?
They must not be too long. Guide values (depending on leg length): 95-115 mm (16 inches), 120-150 mm (20 inches), 150-160 mm (24 inches). The smaller the bike and rider are, the more important the so-called Q-factor is. The horizontal distance between the pedals should then be as narrow as possible.
Tuning tips for children's bikes
- Light tyres and tubes save weight. For rigid bikes, always fit voluminous tyres with reduced air pressure (increased comfort!).
- Children can ride lightweight carbon seat posts without any problems.
- Every little helps! Go through your dad's box of discarded tuning parts such as quick releases or lightweight bolts. A large (and exclusive) selection of lightweight children's components can be found, for example, at www.federleicht-bike.at. Owner Alexander Friedl has shown what is possible with a 6.7-kilo bike (24 inches, see photo).
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Suspension - sense or nonsense? Cheap forks are usually just a clunk on children's bikes.
Our test of five high-quality children's bikes has shown: Those who invest in high-quality suspension will be rewarded with function. Then performance and weight are right for the light riders. If you don't want to spend that much money, it's better to do without suspension altogether.
Sebastian Tegtmeier, founder of Supurb Bikes, is launching the JumpBO, a new suspension fork specially designed for children's bikes, for the 2016 season. The developer and father knows exactly what is important when it comes to suspension for lightweight bikes.
What should a suspension fork for kids be able to do?
The typical rider weight of a 20-inch rider is sometimes less than 20 kilos, but the suspension fork must still respond gently and the characteristic curve must not be too progressive. Especially with small wheels, impacts on the child's arms and upper body are much more powerful than those felt by an adult with large wheels. These impacts need to be softened. On the one hand, to protect the child's body, and on the other for better control during the ride.
What difficulties need to be overcome during development?
You can't simply adopt "adult technology" one-to-one. Due to the much lower rider weight and the different riding style, the requirements for response behaviour and damping characteristics are also different. With the JumpBO, we can now offer a suspension fork that solves precisely these problems. Thanks to the use of a carbon/magnesium casting, it is lightweight, and the sophisticated inner workings ensure a lot of usable suspension travel in combination with sensibly tuned damping.
You can read this article or the entire BIKE 1/2016 issue in the BIKE app (iTunes and Google Play) or buy the issue in the DK shop reorder:
