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Paul C. Cox
July 17th 03, 02:35 AM
My kids have been riding since age 3, and two of them are now in the
awkward point of not fitting any of the "standard" sizes. Does anyone
know of a good quality multi-speed 18" (tire, not frame) boy's bike?
Though not quite as critical, I also am looking for a girl's 22" in at
least a six-speed. TIA for any help you may provide! pcc

Chalo
July 17th 03, 09:47 PM
(Paul C. Cox) wrote:

> My kids have been riding since age 3,

Cool.

> and two of them are now in the
> awkward point of not fitting any of the "standard" sizes. Does anyone
> know of a good quality multi-speed 18" (tire, not frame) boy's bike?
> Though not quite as critical, I also am looking for a girl's 22" in at
> least a six-speed.

There is so much variation in the sizes of bikes equipped with 16",
20", and 24" wheels, that they overlap with regard to rider fit.

Any single-speed bike can be fitted with some sort of gearhub, which
you could successively relace into bigger wheels as Junior needs a
bigger ride. This seems preferable to derailleur shifting for kid
use. Tykes and derailleurs are a bad mix, at least from the
derailleur's standpoint. I wonder what use a child too small for a
20-incher has for multiple speeds? Certainly derailleurs, fussy and
vulnerable to damage even for adults, are not something that would
tend to foster a funloving interest in cycling on the part of a small
child.

My corner bike shop hsa a Haro 16" freestyle bike, complete with gyro,
U-brakes, and axle pegs, that is generously-sized enough to entertain
the owner's teenaged sons. It's proportioned larger than many 20" kid
bikes, though not so large as a normal 20" freestyle bike.

Likewise, BMX bikes all feature 20" wheels, but are sized with top
tube lengths from about 16" to about 22" depending on the application
and anticipated rider size. A 20" BMX frame sized XL or XXL would
almost certainly provide more cockpit room than most 24" wheel kid
bikes.

18" and 22" wheels are rare and growing scarcer, and have poor tire
and tube support. They serve no need that can't be addressed by a
judiciously chosen 16", 20", or 24" wheeled bike.

Chalo Colina

Paul C. Cox
July 22nd 03, 03:59 AM
Chalo:

thanks much for the input. We ended up this weekend at a local shop
and a Toys R Us. The former sold us a Shimano-equipped 20" 6-speed
Raleigh (very kewl since that is my old touring bike manufacturer) for
the 5YO, and the latter sold us a 24" Pacific 21-speed ALUMINUM bike,
also well equipped. The kids are LOVING the new rides (some of my
others are quite jealous of the 6YO girl, whose bike is now "the
largest").

Really appreciate your comments; I certainly know where you are coming
from on the "no derailleur" advice. I know it is hard to understand
my situtation, or dilemma in shopping. Not many have 7 kids, let
alone 7 under age 8, and who have been off training wheels since
around age 4 and riding 35 miles a day since they were 6. They are
clearly off on the right side of the bell curve in this regard, and
getting advice on what to do for them at local shops is hard even when
the kids are with us.

Thanks again! pcc

>
> > My kids have been riding since age 3,
>
> Cool.
>
> > and two of them are now in the
> > awkward point of not fitting any of the "standard" sizes. Does anyone
> > know of a good quality multi-speed 18" (tire, not frame) boy's bike?
> > Though not quite as critical, I also am looking for a girl's 22" in at
> > least a six-speed.
>
> There is so much variation in the sizes of bikes equipped with 16",
> 20", and 24" wheels, that they overlap with regard to rider fit.
>
> Any single-speed bike can be fitted with some sort of gearhub, which
> you could successively relace into bigger wheels as Junior needs a
> bigger ride. This seems preferable to derailleur shifting for kid
> use. Tykes and derailleurs are a bad mix, at least from the
> derailleur's standpoint. I wonder what use a child too small for a
> 20-incher has for multiple speeds? Certainly derailleurs, fussy and
> vulnerable to damage even for adults, are not something that would
> tend to foster a funloving interest in cycling on the part of a small
> child.
>
> My corner bike shop hsa a Haro 16" freestyle bike, complete with gyro,
> U-brakes, and axle pegs, that is generously-sized enough to entertain
> the owner's teenaged sons. It's proportioned larger than many 20" kid
> bikes, though not so large as a normal 20" freestyle bike.
>
> Likewise, BMX bikes all feature 20" wheels, but are sized with top
> tube lengths from about 16" to about 22" depending on the application
> and anticipated rider size. A 20" BMX frame sized XL or XXL would
> almost certainly provide more cockpit room than most 24" wheel kid
> bikes.
>
> 18" and 22" wheels are rare and growing scarcer, and have poor tire
> and tube support. They serve no need that can't be addressed by a
> judiciously chosen 16", 20", or 24" wheeled bike.
>
> Chalo Colina

Chalo
July 23rd 03, 01:58 AM
(Paul C. Cox) wrote:

> The kids are LOVING the new rides (some of my
> others are quite jealous of the 6YO girl, whose bike is now "the
> largest").

Glad you got it all sorted out to your collective satisfaction.
Sounds as if you might have found an inexpensive solution too. If you
do bike maintenance, you'll want to go through the Toys R Us bike and
grease/adjust all the bearings, stem quill, seatpost, etc. Those
bikes can be good value if properly tuned, but tend to self-destruct
from poor assembly.

> Really appreciate your comments; I certainly know where you are coming
> from on the "no derailleur" advice. I know it is hard to understand
> my situtation, or dilemma in shopping. Not many have 7 kids, let
> alone 7 under age 8, and who have been off training wheels since
> around age 4 and riding 35 miles a day since they were 6.

Wow. Are you going to field your own family team in the 2020 TdF?

Best of luck keeping that brood in wheels! And my impressed
congratulations to your wife!

Chalo Colina

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