Kids Bike - what next?

[Ratty]

My son is fast outgrowing his 24 inch bike.  I'm looking to buy a 26 or 27.5 inch bike.  Scott has some really good options, but unfortunately don't seem to import them into SA.  Specialized don't seem to have stock of the Rockhopper 27.5's which he would fit on.

Please hit me with options.  I'm not looking for an entry level bike, I want something a bit better and lighter as he will be racing XCO this year.  

 

[Bro Derek]

IMHO this is the way to go

Modern ish Geometry, 120mm fork, decent enough components and it carries all the necessary bells and whistles. Low slung so the kid can run a dropper post....

It is also on sale

https://giant-bicycles.co.za/products/stp-26-metallic-black?available%20colours=metallic%20black&available%20sizes=regular

Edited February 2 by Bro Derek

[amac]

Buy 2nd hand. Speak to people close to schools/provincial racing. They will know who will be getting onto bigger bikes and what will be coming available. 

[Ratty]

18 minutes ago, Bro Derek said:

IMHO this is the way to go

Modern ish Geometry, 120mm fork, decent enough components and it carries all the necessary bells and whistles. Low slung so the kid can run a dropper post....

It is also on sale

https://giant-bicycles.co.za/products/stp-26-metallic-black?available%20colours=metallic%20black&available%20sizes=regular

Thanks.  It's a nice bike for a kid, but I don't think the right one for XCO and XCM.  My kids isn't interested in jumps etc, 

[Dexter-morgan]

Trek does a nice 27.5 MTB. I think it is the Marlin.

[Kuys]

How old is he and how tall? 

[Iwan Kemp]

4 hours ago, Ratty said:

My son is fast outgrowing his 24 inch bike.  I'm looking to buy a 26 or 27.5 inch bike.  Scott has some really good options, but unfortunately don't seem to import them into SA.  Specialized don't seem to have stock of the Rockhopper 27.5's which he would fit on.

Please hit me with options.  I'm not looking for an entry level bike, I want something a bit better and lighter as he will be racing XCO this year.  

 

There is stock of the @Titan Racing Bikes Drone Jr 27.5 Team and SE models

https://titanracingbikes.com/bikes/drone-jr-27-team/

https://titanracingbikes.com/bikes/drone-jr-27-se/

[Bos]

7 hours ago, Iwan Kemp said:

There is stock of the @Titan Racing Bikes Drone Jr 27.5 Team and SE models

https://titanracingbikes.com/bikes/drone-jr-27-team/

https://titanracingbikes.com/bikes/drone-jr-27-se/

There are neat! I just built a bike for my son as his was stolen. I had an old GT avalanche 26 but the geo and size was not ideal. It has xt 11speed with a fox fork from bikehub and a bunch of ali express/ temu parts, but I still spent 8k. 

Occasionally some nice 26' bikes come along on here that one has to modernize to 1 by gearing etc, but you're going to struggle to come away for less than that Titan.

[quade]

I have 4 kids, we do all the schools/XCO races in WC and beyond

Over time I've collected the full range from 3-16 years 

We have a mix of rigid Isla bikes, custom builds to full carbon Orbea OIZ M-LTD

I recently transitioned my one son from 24" to a 26" XS.frame 

Its an Orbea aluminium frame, with lightweight Mavic cross max wheels and a lightweight rockshox 80mm front fork, circa 10.2kg

I try and keep all the bikes in the 10kg bracket or below 

My 2 cent:

Older tech still works for the lighties, they don't weigh much and don't fully benefit from boost/30mm rim width etc

Size the kid to the wheel size, I also have a Small 29" sworks hardtail at 9kg, which my son fits, but it's too clumsy, the 26" is very sporty and agile for him at his current height

I would definitely make sure someone knowledgeable sees him on a 27.5 to see if it's ok.

Don't go near full suspension for that age

Carbon frame might be a liability unless he is super careful with his bike

If you insist on a dropper, then get a 50mm gravel one that is half the weight of a normal one, but I don't think it's necessary yet.

I've done 1x12 conversions but kinda regret it on some of the smaller bikes

1x11 or even 1x10 with older tech like XTR, and maybe a goat link on a wider cassette will work if you need the range

If he is only doing schools league you don't need 1x12, but will need a good range for XCO as they do occasionally have steepish climbs for the young ones.

Hydraulic brakes and not cable disc brakes!

Finding a donor bike on here is a good option, then just upgrade what you need 

Rather go for a bike with older XTR than the latest low end heavy components 

As mentioned try and keep the bike weight low as possible, and use some fast light tyres like a schwable combo of racing ray and racing Ralph in red (not blue) speed compound running tubeless

See you on the start line !

[quade]

One thing I forgot to mention which is often overlooked is crank length for the kids
There is a big movement among adults moving to shorter cranks
The 175mm cranks are just too long for kids, getting anything below 170mm is super hard


If you go on Temu or aliexpress you will find GOLDIX cranks which a massive range of sizes for kids (110mm to 165mm)

They are among the lighest i've found for sub 165mm budget cranks,

I would point you to the 150mm - 160mm range for him
Certainly not over 165mm!
ChatGPT his measurements for a recommendation on crank length, Qfactor and offset for crank based on the bike its going on

If you get the the temu one, get the BB as well as I had issues getting my Shimano XT BB to fit nicely with it.

The Q FACTOR is acceptable, i'm sure there are better out there, but its not as bad as the adult ones, the chain guard on the chain ring is a nice touch

https://www.temu.com/ca/-110-127-140-150-155-160mm-aluminum-alloy-square-crankset-104bcd--upgrade-for-mountain-and-road-bikes-with-derailleur-and-derailleur-hydraulic--mountain-bike-crankse-g-601100282093077.html
 

I've also got a kids bike with these cranks on 165mm

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005007240676319.html

They are also good and light, but the metal arm wears quickly so stick some clear tape over the crank arm to keep the appearance looking nice if you do

Q factor is 145mm. Weight for 165mm crankset is +- 550grams

If you have money to burn and can get them, PRAXIS have good options
https://praxiscycles.com/product/zane-m30/

Edited February 3 by quade

[Shebeen]

11 hours ago, Bos said:

There are neat! I just built a bike for my son as his was stolen. I had an old GT avalanche 26 but the geo and size was not ideal. It has xt 11speed with a fox fork from bikehub and a bunch of ali express/ temu parts, but I still spent 8k. 

Occasionally some nice 26' bikes come along on here that one has to modernize to 1 by gearing etc, but you're going to struggle to come away for less than that Titan.

Disagree on this one. My 11yr old is rocking his 3x10 on an XS 26" just fine. FD is the easiest thing to adjust and kids should learn about cross chaining -  the costs to replace this is serious low bang for buck in my mind. (happy to be slated on this one, you guys "upgrading" to 1x makes the 2nd hand market awesome!)

[Ratty]

On 2/2/2026 at 11:12 AM, Kuys said:

How old is he and how tall? 

He is 8 and currently 139cms. 

Wanting to get a bike for his birthday in June.

 

[Ratty]

13 hours ago, quade said:

I have 4 kids, we do all the schools/XCO races in WC and beyond

Over time I've collected the full range from 3-16 years 

We have a mix of rigid Isla bikes, custom builds to full carbon Orbea OIZ M-LTD

I recently transitioned my one son from 24" to a 26" XS.frame 

Its an Orbea aluminium frame, with lightweight Mavic cross max wheels and a lightweight rockshox 80mm front fork, circa 10.2kg

I try and keep all the bikes in the 10kg bracket or below 

My 2 cent:

Older tech still works for the lighties, they don't weigh much and don't fully benefit from boost/30mm rim width etc

Size the kid to the wheel size, I also have a Small 29" sworks hardtail at 9kg, which my son fits, but it's too clumsy, the 26" is very sporty and agile for him at his current height

I would definitely make sure someone knowledgeable sees him on a 27.5 to see if it's ok.

Don't go near full suspension for that age

Carbon frame might be a liability unless he is super careful with his bike

If you insist on a dropper, then get a 50mm gravel one that is half the weight of a normal one, but I don't think it's necessary yet.

I've done 1x12 conversions but kinda regret it on some of the smaller bikes

1x11 or even 1x10 with older tech like XTR, and maybe a goat link on a wider cassette will work if you need the range

If he is only doing schools league you don't need 1x12, but will need a good range for XCO as they do occasionally have steepish climbs for the young ones.

Hydraulic brakes and not cable disc brakes!

Finding a donor bike on here is a good option, then just upgrade what you need 

Rather go for a bike with older XTR than the latest low end heavy components 

As mentioned try and keep the bike weight low as possible, and use some fast light tyres like a schwable combo of racing ray and racing Ralph in red (not blue) speed compound running tubeless

See you on the start line !

Thanks.  He does the schools races but finds them too short and not technical enough so we are starting with XCO this year and he just did the Trailseeker XCM.  

10kgs is nice and light!   

Agree on the hardtail and not a full suspension.   He has been riding a rigid fork and its done wonders for his skills. 

Appreciate all the advice!

[Kuys]

5 minutes ago, Ratty said:

He is 8 and currently 139cms. 

Wanting to get a bike for his birthday in June.

 

The Titan looks like a good bet (27.5). 

Pretty good spec and geometry. I would buy as is, and upgrade fork to something lighter and better at a later stage (if necessary)

[Ratty]

On 2/2/2026 at 10:25 AM, amac said:

Buy 2nd hand. Speak to people close to schools/provincial racing. They will know who will be getting onto bigger bikes and what will be coming available. 

I have been watching what bikes all the slightly older kids are riding.  Doing the XCO race in Feb so will ask around then.

[RahulM]

16 hours ago, Ratty said:

He is 8 and currently 139cms. 

Wanting to get a bike for his birthday in June.

 

Oh wow, he is quite tall for his age. My son is 8 but about 125cm. Would you reckon 20cm for that height is ok ? Sorry for hijacking your thread but google search gives many opinions. TIA.