[Closed] 1st Bike Suggestion for a 4 year old

My 2 little ones both started of frog bikes!

I got them both used because let’s be honest a first bike will be crashed, dropped, and scratched a lot!

They are a sturdy bike that can take a great bit of a battering I paid £200 for my sons frog and past it down to my daughter when outgrown!

Good bikes for a starting out bike!

Hope that helps a little

I always comes on to these threads to recommend what we got, we've had a couple of Vitus kids bikes from CRC. They're great and a bit cheaper than some brands. Daughter is on the 16 at the moment, we'll move her on to the 20 next year, selling the 16.

Balance bike and/or no pedals is the way to go. Watch this video, we followed the advice and daughter went from balance bike to pedal bike in a day.

I started ours out on a 16" Early Rider Belter (started out with the cranks removed).

I don't have anything else to compare it to but it still as fully functional as the day we bought it (albeit with a lot of scratches and dings) and I expect to be able to sell it on without too much bother once my youngest outgrows it.

The 16" Carrera Cosmos from Halfords is great value, light and good spec.

Ignore bike snobbery, we have frog, islabikes and the Carrera in the house, all good.

Ours both started on Islabikes, this was almost 10 years ago and choices were more limited (no Frog bikes for example). No bike snobbery involved, I chose Isla because they were light, sturdy, and things like brake levers were sized for tiny hands. What ever you get him make sure it is easy and fun to ride. Friends had very cheap balance and pedal bikes when my two were on Islas and the difference was noticeable.

Anyway, at 4 I’m guessing that balance bikes will be too small (mine were 2 I think when they started) so probably a 14 or 16 inch wheeler. Check the size guides and see if you can find one for him to swing a leg over.

Pedals off would be a good first move I think as he can scoot and learn to lean the bike when steering. Alternatively it’s not the end of the world if you go with stabilisers for a while. My eldest went from balance bike to pedals and was pedalling and riding in about 20 minutes, youngest had stabilisers for a few weeks while he got the hang of pedalling.

Whatever you end up with, enjoy it! I loved watching my two learn to love riding bikes.

My daughter didn't show the slightest bit of interest in the balance bikes we tried her on. Started off with a Specialized Riprock with stabilisers, worked through the next size Riprock then a Beinn 20. From a resale perspective all three were OK. Don't get hung up on getting an Islabike, especially an older one. The competition has caught up now.

Started mine at 4 on a Specailzed Hotwalk balance bike

He is now 5 and still just fits it although he has now progressed to a pedal bike

You can pick them up 2nd hand for around £50 and you dont lose much when coming to sell them from what ive seen

Best thing to do is go try a few bikes out, not only for size but also for weight, if your child finds the bike too heavy then they are not going to enjoy riding it

Really appreciate all the responses so far, thank you.

That video was particularly useful too.

I’ll go and see if we can try some for size locally to get an idea but it feels like a bike without pedals is potential first place to start.

Great to hear all the other success stories of little ones learning to ride, he’s quite enthusiastic about it so will see how it goes.

I have heard great things about Isla bikes but at the same think other brands look more attractive for a toddler.

My mate just picked up a Carrera Cosmos and is very impressed with it. I would have got one bit apparently my daughters had to be pink so she has an Isla Cnoc 14 (large).

Ideally I think a balance bike works well but at his height now I think most of them would be a bit small and twitchy. Eva is almost 5 and her balance bike doesn’t look very stable these days when she gets back on it. She doesn’t seem quite ready to pedal yet so she’s using the Cnoc as a balance bike with the pedals off. Seems to be working fine like that.

So I’d go pedal bike at your sons age but start with the pedals off.

That video is spot on. My advice on the bike is let your kid choose something they really want to ride. I was all for getting a frog or Isla bike but my son couldn’t care less and wanted a Halfords ‘Police Patrol’ as it had lights and a siren. He rode it none stop for 2 years and at 5 has now progressed onto a Scott with fork, gears etc. I’m not sure he would have got ‘the bug’ if I bought him the ‘good’ bike.
Enjoy teaching little one - going riding with your kids is ace

Always worth a look at the Orange Pop 16", very nice bikes, cartridge bearings on everything, bolt-up axles, choice of colours, (and IIRC, a spare longer seatpost, though I may be confusing it with the Zest 20". I've built a few of both recently, and my memory's not as good as it was). Just built to work properly, not as common a feature as we'd hope with kid's bikes.

There is a 14 inch wheel version of the Ridgeback scoot which is a good balance bike for older kids. V light and proper tyres and v brake. Often cheap on Facebook etc

Recommend what you've got, we bought a Black Mountain as it comes with all the parts for balance and pedal bike and grows as you change up.

This suited us as at 3 years our one really needed to start using brakes after some balance bike wipeouts. Introduced the pedalling a few months later as was bit large at the beginning to pedal.

Ours is a 14" wheel as that matched height at the time, but they do them in 16" and 20" too from memory.

However, helping a friend get a similar size bike at the moment and it's down to what you can find and can you accept near RRP for a second hand bike.

snownrock
Full Member
The 16″ Carrera Cosmos from Halfords is great value, light and good spec.

Ignore bike snobbery, we have frog, islabikes and the Carrera in the house, all good.

This is what i got for my girl, neighbour went and bought the same, lovely bike with the same kit as the islabike, just not worth spending too much for a bike that'll be replaced in a year or so with a 20".

I would recommend a balance bike though, it gives them the ability to balance, obviously, but also to move and turn, get them to learn the 'push, push, glide' technique, then look for path with a slight decline, then get them into pump tracks if you have one near!

If you don't go for the balance bike, then removing the crank/chain/etc is worth a go, don't break the chain though, just slip it off after removing the crank/rear wheel.

Squish. Very good. Like Frog, but more affordable.

+1 for islabikes. They hold their value really well so the cost is negligible.

The video further up the thread is very helpful as well - I’ve shared it loads of times and used it to teach both of my kids to ride in under 30 mins. The youngest (then 3) nailed it in 16 minutes!

I have a lovely little 16” wheel Wiggins Macon for sale if any use?
It’s a proper little bike, lightweight and most importantly, it’s RED.

I wouldn't over think it for the first bike. My 4 year old learned to ride without stabilisers this summer and loves her Halfords Carrera Unicorn bike. From memory it was sub £100 last Christmas and is just the job.

Providing she keeps riding we will progress to an Isla/Frog/etc with gears in time but the Unicorn is fine for now.

We didn't bother with a balance bike for our two, we just removed the crankset from my son's first bike and practised down the long hill at the park.

Got my boy a 2nd hand bike Ridgeback in great condition for £40 a couple of years ago before he was even big enough to ride it but someone (me) was keen.

Once he was just about big enough for it, it was still too heavy and he didn't have the leg power. The balance bike was faster, easier and more agile, so he'd choose that every time.

Eventually though, after many refusals and quickly aborted attempts with/without stabilizers, I took the stabilizers off one day and after a couple of times with me pushing him to start he just got back on it pushed off and pedalled away as if he'd been cycling for years 😀

His cousin has a posh belt drive bike, feels really light and is much nicer, but it doesn't matter!

Edit: Ny boy learned to balance on the balance bike. The push bike was heavy and difficult for him to handle and he didn't know how to pedal so stabilizers helped him. I sometimes worried it would teach him bad habits, but he was fine.

Thanks for all the responses to this so far.

Over the weekend, we had the chance to try out a couple of frog bikes for size, the Frog 40 & Frog 44.

It seems the 44 was well sized for him and he liked it (it was orange, the main appeal!).

I have also found some specialized hotrock's (16") that are local, but appreciate these likely don't compare the the more expensive Frog Bikes / Isla Bikes.

The Specialized Hot Rock are only c£40 online, whereas the Frog Bikes are £150.

Any feedback on the Hotrock specifically? The chap in Rutland Cycles suggested going for a 16" bike and removing the pedals too.

Whatever you buy, consider the weight of the bike.
Cheap bikes for kids tend to be heavy and if you compare the bike's weight to a child's weight it is amazing they are able to move the damn things.

I taught both my children to ride by removing the pedals from their first bikes. That basically turns it in to a balance bike but the child gets used to the feel of the bike and it is then easier to transition when you put the pedals back on.

Both of my kids started on a Frog Tadpole (balance bike) before moving onto Frog 40/43 bikes. One thing to remember is that they do hold their value pretty well if you look after them.

Weight is important, they will be more comfortable riding a light bike and able to actually have a good crack at hills with one too.

Have you heard of the Bike Club? They do a monthly payment bike rental system where you can upgrade sizes easily.

My two both started on a Frog Tadpole and moved on to a pedal bike when they were really confident.
An old Islabike (night second hand that weighed a ton, it must have been one of the first Cnoc models they made) came first. Although heavy, it was beautifully smooth to pedal, steer and control and that made a world of difference.
We got a second used one, newer model Cnoc 16” and a later on a Frog 55. They’re on these now and flying.
But used, look after them and resell to recoup most of what you paid.