Wet Ears Posted February 12, 2019 Share Hi Did a search in buyers guide and couldn't find anything on the topic. I am about to get my 6 year old a 24", he is currently on a Titan 20' hand me down from his brother and needs an upgrade. Done sizing and 24' fits him, had a look at the Trek and was a lot lighter than his current bike, was a 7 speed with v brakes and no fork. Issue is it was a girls bike/model - the boys version comes with a fork and is 21 speed - on the upside it is only R700 more but I think that a fork and 21 speed is a bit of overkill for a 6 year old. Other downside is there is no water bottle holder. I have had a look at some other bikes and see that the disc brake option is not that much more. So long story short, what should/shouldn't I be looking at and/or worried about? Off the top of my head this would be the ideal set up:Light (compared to old bike) - looking at 11-12kgDisc brake7 speed (not sure if twist grip is best option)No forkWater bottle holder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dust46 Posted February 12, 2019 Share What about this local option? https://momsenbikes.com/shop/2019-bikes/mtb-momsen-24-juvenile-jsl40-2019/ I bought my son the 16" for Christmas and they are great little bikes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skubarra Posted February 12, 2019 Share Just a general comment (maybe a slight hi-jack) - in the past year bought both 20" and 24" bikes for my kids - both came with "grip shifters" - my kids really struggle with them, they just don't have enough power in their hands to use them properly. Would like to know how other hubbers feel about this. In hindsight I would have bought bikes with normal trigger gears. And then just a biased personal opinion - I don't think you really need disc brakes for kid bikes, I think kids are light enough to get away with normal v-brakes. I have never felt the need to upgrade that for my kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted February 12, 2019 Share Maritz has the 2018 model Titan 24'' with V-brake, with a front shock I wanted to buy the disc brake, but he liked the colours of the V-brake model better .... We do lots of trails, with some pretty steep climbs ..... I have done an 8 speed conversion. He now rides up some pretty steep climbs !! Brakes are perfect for the bike. For the trails we do the front shock (as limited as these basic shocks are) really DO help ! For the price the Titan impresses !! and they grow out of these bikes too quickly to pay twice the price .... His next bike may well be the Titan 24-9er ..... but this would be a short term bike, as we already have a very nice 26'' bike for him. So I may be in the market for 2nd hand 24-9er soon .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted February 12, 2019 Share Just a general comment (maybe a slight hi-jack) - in the past year bought both 20" and 24" bikes for my kids - both came with "grip shifters" - my kids really struggle with them, they just don't have enough power in their hands to use them properly. Would like to know how other hubbers feel about this. In hindsight I would have bought bikes with normal trigger gears. And then just a biased personal opinion - I don't think you really need disc brakes for kid bikes, I think kids are light enough to get away with normal v-brakes. I have never felt the need to upgrade that for my kids. 2017 we bought the 20'' ..... replaced the grip shifters with Sunrace trigger shifters 2018 we bought the 24'' .... insisted that the shifters be replaced before we take delivery. This time we got Shimano trigger shifters. EXCELLENT !!! that said, the kids hands are small, and they can just manage the triggers for the rear gears. They have to take their hand off the bar and move their hand to operate the shifter for front derailure .... Maritz is almost 8, and his hands only recently got the hang of that long shift "in the ride" .... But that is not a big issue, as the front gear is only selected for steep climbs, and dropping to the small cogg is easy, it is getting back the big cogg they struggle with - but by now are at the top of the hill, and you can help them while they catch their breath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skubarra Posted February 12, 2019 Share 2017 we bought the 20'' ..... replaced the grip shifters with Sunrace trigger shifters 2018 we bought the 24'' .... insisted that the shifters be replaced before we take delivery. This time we got Shimano trigger shifters. EXCELLENT !!! 20180724_192933 (Large).jpg that said, the kids hands are small, and they can just manage the triggers for the rear gears. They have to take their hand off the bar and move their hand to operate the shifter for front derailure .... Maritz is almost 8, and his hands only recently got the hang of that long shift "in the ride" .... But that is not a big issue, as the front gear is only selected for steep climbs, and dropping to the small cogg is easy, it is getting back the big cogg they struggle with - but by now are at the top of the hill, and you can help them while they catch their breath.Ballpark do you know what it would cost to swop the grips for trigger gears? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMXER Posted February 12, 2019 Share I just moved my 2 kids onto 24 inch bikes. I too hate grip shift but....found that my kids have had no issue with them. In hindsight I have realised that there hands are rather small and the lever throw on a rapid fire leaver may be an issue for there small hands.The shimano grip shift on there bikes is actually fine..!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted February 12, 2019 Share Ballpark do you know what it would cost to swop the grips for trigger gears? About R350 for the parts. Easy to fit. Mark's Workshop had a couple of sets of the Shimano units late last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wet Ears Posted February 13, 2019 Share Thanks all, some food for thought. My son battles with the grip shift on his Titan hence me considering the trigger, that said the Titan is due to be retired so perhaps a new grip shift will be easier. The Silverbacks come standard with trigger and disc brakes by the way. The reason for looking at discs is more that I find vbrakes constantly rub on the rim as opposed to wanting more stopping power. The terrain here in Joeys in my view doesn't really warrant a fork. ChrisF go and look at the Trek as it has two pedal placement options on the crank for when the kid gets bigger - quite nifty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sbloomer Posted February 13, 2019 Share I just "upgraded" my 8yo to a 24" 2nd hand Titan which was barely used (paid R1500). He had a 20" but was riding his sisters 24" more, so I knew he was comfortable on the bigger bike. I've discovered that gripshifts seem to very sensitive to old cables and housings making them very hard to turn. On my daughters bike she was struggling with the gears until I changed the cables (also a second hand bike) So I think they probably need replacing more often than with triggers. One think I don't like is they seem to insist on fitting these bikes with cup and cone bottom brackets, rather than sealed cartridges, so have had those changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sbloomer Posted February 13, 2019 Share The reason for looking at discs is more that I find vbrakes constantly rub on the rim as opposed to wanting more stopping power. But that's an easy adjustment, unless your rim is buckled Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wet Ears Posted February 13, 2019 Share But that's an easy adjustment, unless your rim is buckledAgreed, it's just that my DIY skills suck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wet Ears Posted February 13, 2019 Share Thanks on advice re cables, good to know Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mousea Posted February 13, 2019 Share Just a general comment (maybe a slight hi-jack) - in the past year bought both 20" and 24" bikes for my kids - both came with "grip shifters" - my kids really struggle with them, they just don't have enough power in their hands to use them properly. Would like to know how other hubbers feel about this. In hindsight I would have bought bikes with normal trigger gears. And then just a biased personal opinion - I don't think you really need disc brakes for kid bikes, I think kids are light enough to get away with normal v-brakes. I have never felt the need to upgrade that for my kids. 100 % Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMXER Posted February 13, 2019 Share I ended up with 2 of these- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ispeed_V Posted February 13, 2019 Share Also on the hunt for a 24" bike for our son for his 8th Bday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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