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32x11-36 is fine for my 9yo but we're doing rides where the climbs are short but steep, I can see that having a few more gears could be useful if we went on rides with longer climbs as emergency bail-out gears.
Hmm, I'm at the stage of looking for a bit of reassurance as I'm getting a bit concerned about how long my sprog will be in a 24 inch bike!
Anyone here with tall boys/girls and can advise as to how long their kids have spent on the 24 inch wheel format bike before moving on...
My sprog has just hit six and just over 125cm and going up fast. I only got him a 20 inch bike last Xmas! <span style="font-size: 0.8rem;">I was planning on starting the build (collecting bits and bobs now though but haven't got the wheelset) around December this year so its ready for Spring next year. Just concerned that we will spend effort putting a bike together, respray etc and then he'll be out of it in a year.</span>
my two eldest aged 10 and 12 years old have been on 24" wheels for nearly 2 years. One has a Luna (blast with different colour paint) the other a Hotrock 24, both kids are about 145cm tall and with the scarcity of X-small frames for larger wheel sizes around here they'll both probably be still riding them until they can fit an adult small or medium size frame. Although this may require a 400mm seat post and riser bars to tweak their riding position.
Yeah my lads been on his for 2 years now and i'm just starting to think about building him a 26" wheeler, if I come across the right frame. He's still ok on the 24" and he's just over 140cm, but it will start getting too small now. Although his next bike might be governed by how fast his sister grows as she's starting to get too big for her 20" wheel bike!!
My lad has had his a couple of years.
He's now 11 and needs a bigger bike, plus his 7y/o sister has outgrown her 20" Luna - so she need the 24" blast now!
I have got a small 26'er to build for my lad - just need to get it done.
My 9yo has been on his Blast for a year now. It's still running the seatpost at just a couple of inches up and the stem is just 45mm. I expect he'll be on it for a few more years!
The good thing about doing a 24" build from bits is when they do out grow it, everything but wheels and fork can be moved to a 26" frame. That's how I justified buying reasonable parts anyway 🙂 (Deore brakes, Sora mech, etc).
OK, thanks for the posts, that is somewhat reassuring - although my sprog will be a bit younger and I fear that he won't slow down his vertical aspirations.
Rossburton - that is exactly the line of thinking I have been using to justify this folly to my wife. It's only that I need to invest in some wheels which won't be transferable that I am now pausing.
One other side question - I'm planning on going 1x11 on it. Picked up a decent priced XT mech and a sunrace 11-46 cassette for reasonable money. What the verdict from experience, 32T or 36T front chainring?
Our kid just turned ten last week and has outgrown his blast, should have got him on earlier as he only got a year out of it. I don't think of him as that tall, because he's in a very tall class and a lot of his mates are lanky, but I guess he's at the taller end of things. If you've sprung for a decent wheelset then the biggest difference will be the drivetrain, as 1x7 on the stock wheels is a bit narrow. It's not ridiculous, but a wider range will help for little legs IME when you start to do more longer, hillier mountain biking rides.
Just as a general FYI I've got our kid a secondhand Creig 26 as the next step and it fits him perfectly, which was not what I was expecting. Thought it would be more of a grower, but it looks like he'll be rinsing through this one in short order as well (it seems like a pretty short reach frame). So if there are any Dads out there looking at the Creig as a long term rental, it's prob a good idea to get the bairn on it asap - they might fit it sooner than you think.
One other side question – I’m planning on going 1×11 on it. Picked up a decent priced XT mech and a sunrace 11-46 cassette for reasonable money. What the verdict from experience, 32T or 36T front chainring?
I'd go with what Ross said.... not Blast specific but really what/where he's riding
Jnr uses a 34T for kids XC.... then he only uses 6-11.... but that is only for a few miles and 20-30 mins. He could easily push a 36T but would lose clearance... (and I don't have one spare)
When we go on longer rides though he has a 30/32 Oval... I doubt he would enjoy doing long climbs like the Wall with the 36T or he would end up using 1st (which is pretty much reserved as a bail out gear)??? Either way the 32 is "fast enough" on the way down.
Thanks again all, I have the 32T chainset as that was my thinking, but only have a few days to change my mind; so it is helpful to take stock!
Thanks again all, I have the 32T chainset as that was my thinking, but only have a few days to change my mind; so it is helpful to take stock!
For normal riding the 32T is plenty... they might spin out on long firetrails but at least they get up them.
Nothing worse than a long day and they are worn out so you take a fire tail route back and the last few climbs are misery....
The other thing worth noting is for a 104 BCD crank 32T is about as small as you can remove without having to remove the crank...
So if you want flexibility its a couple of minutes to fit a larger chainring ... without the hassle of removing the crank to do so.
Hi folks, what 24" tyres are around that would be good for a couple of weeks in the Alps?
My daughter's bike has Small Block 8s on it which seem pretty good but I think something a bit chunkier might give her some more confidence on the steeper stuff.
The schwalbe black jacks look ok, but I'd really like something like a little High Roller or Trail King...
"The other thing worth noting is for a 104 BCD crank 32T is about as small as you can remove without having to remove the crank…
So if you want flexibility its a couple of minutes to fit a larger chainring … without the hassle of removing the crank to do so."
I was going to with the hoy crank chainset - so it come in 32t or 36t; doesn't look like an easy switch over for that one.
The Hoy 32t one is out of stock until July
Right....picked up some Reba dual air last night, need some work but hopefully at 80mm they will be great on the upcoming birthday Luna build.
Rocket Rons on the way from Germany too.
In the immortal words of DJ Shadow, it is happening again.
Stock weight: 13.5kg. Let the strip commence!
Actually, whilst this thread is briefly alive again: does anyone know a good source of hot pink parts? My girl wants a pale blue bike with hot pink (not baby pink, not purple) accents. I've got some hot pink chainring bolts already but annoyingly can't seem to find matching touches: seatpost clamp etc.
Sounds good Ross. My Luna build will be going on simultaneously then!
Light blue and hot pink does seem to be the order of the day in our house also.
Looks like we got ourselves a good ole' fashioned Dad build off......
PINKKKKK! http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/dmr-v6-flat-pedal/rp-prod132636
I'd already bought some nice pedals from China (good size for kids feet) but that colour is spot on...
We're going for RAL 5012, btw. Hope to have the frame in the powder shop this week.
Sounds good Ross. You got a link for the China pedals? I did wonder if the DMRs would be too big.
Wellgo KC001. https://gravitykids.wordpress.com/2015/07/15/first-impressions-wellgo-kc001-flat-pedals-for-kids/.
Delivery from Germany...featherlight!
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If you want matching pink then have a look at Santacruz palmdale grips and DMR v6 plastic pedals. The colours are exactly the same. The V6 pedals wont be too big. I just put them on my daughters Luna on the link below.
https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/carrera-luna-build-24/
https://www.evanscycles.com/lizard-skins-mini-machine-single-compound-grip-EV240814
My daugther has these grips on her bike.
So this happened last night to the Blast that started this thread:
The local woods have quite a hill in the middle and 11x11-32 wasn't quite cutting it. I can fully endorse 10-speed Zee kit, available for a reasonable price, has a very short cage so isn't in the way of rocks, and in Freeride mode (the default) will happily shift like a dream over a 11-36 cassette.
And she's stripped and off to be powder coated.
Important question: tyre choice! The other bike is running Rocket Ron's front and back, but I found a pair of Smart Sams for a good price. Any opinions on running Smart Sams front and back on the new bike (which won't be going proper off-road as much yet), or run both bikes with Rocket Rons on the front and Smart Sams on the back, or Sams are rubbish and spend the extra fiver on Rons?
Bump for the morning crowd ^^^^
Smart Sam is a very versatile tyre in 700 and seems to fit the bill. How it works in 24" I don't know.
I have smallblock 8 on my daughter's 24" bike which would also fit the bill.
Okay collective wisdom, let's talk axle-to-crown.
One of our Blasts currently has an Exotic carbon 24" fork, which has a 33.5cm axle-to-crown distance. At the time this seemed a better choice as the original fork looked too long at ~42cm (also being a rubbish coil shock has no sag), but now I'm wondering if the slackness would help with stability and confidence going down.
So, what forks are people riding on their Blast 24, and what is their axle-to-crown?
Not a Blast but my eldest has 475mm a2c XRC100 on his Scale RC24 frame that's designed for a 24" rigid fork.
Its slackened the front end out to a crazy 62deg (unsagged) HA but works surprisingly well up and down. Kind of 'Geometron' type front end geo really.
Might not be for everyone and probably would be a little unweildy on less tech rides.
I've got Fox Float 80's on my kids Blast. Not sure what the a/c is - will measure them tomorrow. From what I remember they're not far off the original fork dimensions.
475! 62 degrees! That's so on trend it hurts. 😉
Okay people, a quick vote. Too slack, or cool slack?
Just for reference I measured the fork on this:
I know its not a blast but the fork is a rigid one intended for a 24" kids bike, it measures 370mm A-C, the listed HA is 68*, not sure how that compares to the stock blast bouncy fork, 62* sounds slaaaak...
Okay people, a quick vote. Too slack, or cool slack?
Depends what for.... if you were raising the front for working suspension then that will help with DH confidence and obviously take a toll on climbing and to some extend undo lots of your hard work and investment.
If you stick with rigid then I wouldn't bother ... 66-67 works with travel... Jnr's Full suss Norco had 69 deg before I added the new fork and raised the front by sticking on a tapered fork. I didn't actually measure the new HA but comparing it to my T-130 with an extra 10mm added to the shock its probably a bit slacker...
My 160mm hard tail 26er is probably closer to that... it is horribly heavy and running a 11-28 but it's a freakin nightmare on any climbs. (Part of the reason for it is giving me more exercise whilst riding with Jnr but its now getting a challenge to keep up - after a few hours I'm knackered - either I get fitter or I'll have to fix his brakes to rub)
At some point you might end up doing what I did and just go for 2 bikes?
can fully endorse 10-speed Zee kit, available for a reasonable price, has a very short cage so isn’t in the way of rocks,
Suprisingly despite running the M8000 mech and previously the M780 Jnr (unlike me) has yet to total a rear mech on rocks or roots. The range is a bit pointless when he's racing DH but it does mean I can swap over wheels easily between bikes. The Zee I had planned is on my only 26er so I don't have any other wheel choices...
Eldest daughters first 'proper' bike (tall 9 year old). It started life as an eBay special, 14" Giant complete bike that was quite unloved but had serviceable wheels, rear mech, chainset. Second hand bits from the lovely STW massive, a few new bits, respray and she has something that is unique for her. Great fun.
This morning I sorted out the seat (correct angle and push forwards) and it's looking a lot better. Then I saw this:
Nice looking bike, with a good slack headangle. 🙂
I still don't get why you'd want such a slack HA on a rigid ???
At the time this seemed a better choice as the original fork looked too long at ~42cm (also being a rubbish coil shock has no sag), but now I’m wondering if the slackness would help with stability and confidence going down.
Adding some extra height and slackening off the HA might be a byproduct of getting some working suspension on the front... and will obviously take its toll on pedalling and climbs... but then you are trading one off for another the bike ends up much better at one and less good at the other.
Adding some extra height onto a rigid fork is not going to do much for confidence descending but affect the pedalling more. You seem to be losing far more than you gain and also what you have invested time and money in. (Or am I missing something????)
Time, yeah I'm not getting that back. Cost, well the new fork precisely matches the a-c of the existing fork on the second Blast I just bought which is being powder coated now, so if I decide it's too long for the old Blast it can go on the new one instead, which presumably was designed around the longer fork (though I'll be able to check that when it comes back).
Has anyone had success getting Rocket Rons (cheapo performance model) going up tubeless? I didn't have any success with my old Islabike rims and my attempt at sealing with tape but it does turn out I'm not very good at that. Currently wondering whether I should rebuild the stock Blast wheels with new hubs and throw a Stans rubber strip in...
Has anyone had success getting Rocket Rons (cheapo performance model) going up tubeless?
They work fine with the right rims.. you need more sealant but our seated fine on Stans Crest.
With the valve cores out Jnr can actually seat them himself with a fairly average track pump.
After you get them to pop they will leak air through the sidewalls... I stuck in about twice the normal sealant first time (it might have been overkill) then you need to give them plenty of shaking about.
I didn’t have any success with my old Islabike rims and my attempt at sealing with tape but it does turn out I’m not very good at that.
I gave up trying to get his rims came with his Norco seated. I since bought a Beco airshot-alike so maybe I'll try again but nothing seemed to work... thin tape/2 layers off gorilla etc.??
Why would you bother rebuilding the stock Blast wheels replacing the hubs which are fine and keeping the rims which are dreadful ( too narrow, gap in the joint where they are pinned together)
I couldn't get the stock rims to go tubeless even with a ghetto rim strip ( 20" inner tube split in half), loads of sealant and pop bottle inflator.
ballsofcottonwool you do have a good point. The hub is 7-speed so I want a modern hub, but the spokes are a bit of a mess and no doubt won't be the right length, and the rim is a bit arse... probably is better to just find new wheels. Either way, glad to hear they do seat with the right rim.
Those meanies at Islabikes won't sell me a wheelset unless I have a Creig, boo. Any suggestions for a good/value wheelset? Those Condor rims at 20 quid each are a reasonable start but are there any prebuilt ones around?
And we're off! One frame collected by a happy girl from the powder coaters (Blastclean, near Falmouth).
This morning I collected it from Unit Cycles (Truro) who faced the headset, bottom bracket, and rear brake mounts.
Just fitted the headset and bottom bracket whilst my daughter is out so she didn't have to hear the swears.
I had the same issue with Islabikes last year trying to get wheels - unless i gave them a frame number they wouldn't sell.
Got some Condor rims and old Deore hubs being built up next week, I'll report back on weight comparison to Islabike wheels once they're built.
I had the same issue with Islabikes last year trying to get wheels – unless i gave them a frame number they wouldn’t sell.
That's interesting! I wonder if they monitor the forums and spotted the number of requests from people on here...
Let's try "Isla Isla Isla".
Has any body bought one of these wheels mentioned a few pages back?
My littlest has a Carrera Abyss and I'm thinking of changing the rear wheel as the current one takes an old school screw on freewheel.
It's basically a hybrid but I've put some proper tyres on it, changed the crank to a Thorn 150mm (or thereabouts) with a 30t n/w ring and changed the stem and bars.
Just weighed the wheels I've had built around the Condor 24" MTB rims and some old Deore hubs I found on eBay. Built-up wheels (hubs + spokes + rims + tape) are ~900g and ~1100g. The wheel builder said the rims are most likely Alex rims from looking at them, which is fairly likely.
For comparison the stock Carrera wheels are ~1kg and ~1.2kg, with a 7-speed hub, fairly unlikely to go up tubeless, and rust patches. The Superstar Fuel/Crest combo are 721g/902g but are also £300 a set so that's ~400g lighter for ~£200.
Also to anyone in Cornwall I can't recommend Shed Cycle Service in Illogan enough. He quickly built the wheels up, but also knew the colour scheme I was going for on the new bike so without asking did blue nipples to mark the valve position and invisible-but-we-know-its-there hot pink rim tape.
Right, i'll jump in here too now!
Blast collected (£31 off ebay).
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Stripped it yesterday and dropped the frame off at my local powder coating place.
Complete bike weighed 13.6kg so got to improve that. The forks alone were 2.15kg! Poor little kids.
For comparison the stock Carrera wheels are ~1kg and ~1.2kg, with a 7-speed hub, fairly unlikely to go up tubeless, and rust patches. The Superstar Fuel/Crest combo are 721g/902g but are also £300 a set so that’s ~400g lighter for ~£200.
Noone pays non-sale at Superstar (do they?)
Sure, they do have good sales now and again: assuming sale and stock align 🙂
Yeah its also worth noting the QR version of the current fuel rear hub is a bit pants... the free hub is only held on by the springs on the QR... so if you transport with wheels off you need to be careful or have to reseat the free hub at the other end... (only on the QR version ... I have a 12mm actually is really nice - given I got the whole wheel set for £100...(when he stars aligned with a sale)
Just weighed the wheels I’ve had built around the Condor 24″ MTB rims and some old Deore hubs I found on eBay. Built-up wheels (hubs + spokes + rims + tape) are ~900g and ~1100g. The wheel builder said the rims are most likely Alex rims from looking at them, which is fairly likely.
For comparison the stock Carrera wheels are ~1kg and ~1.2kg, with a 7-speed hub, fairly unlikely to go up tubeless, and rust patches. The Superstar Fuel/Crest combo are 721g/902g but are also £300 a set so that’s ~400g lighter for ~£200.
The set I built used a Mk1 rear Bulb hub (spares box) a used OEM hub off ebay (~£5) and came out a similar weight to your deore set a little under 2kg for the pair, that was using PG spokes.
It was a similar £££s per gram type calculation, I almost certainly could have saved an easy 200g by buying nicer hubs and I could have had DB spokes for double the price and saved a bit of weight, but I really don't think she would have appreciated the difference and for the price the rims are a competitive weight, not the lightest granted but to save another 100g per rim you are looking at quite a bit more spend...
I suppose if you've got kids already racing at the sharp end a 1600g wheelset is a worthwhile investment for them, but for more "average" kids just riding about with their tubby Dads 1.9-2kg is acceptable IMO...
Back from the powdercoaters and BB installed with lots of swearing!
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Looking nice!
Are you putting on any graphics or keeping it clean?
Custom graphics on the way!
Very fun build so far!
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Has any body bought one of these wheels mentioned a few pages back
Yes, had one on my lad's Hoy Bonaloy after the original Alexa rim wore through. It seems to be standing up to the abuse well enough.
Between a few trips away over the summer and my daughter having her arm in a cast the latest build has been quite slow, but in the last week we've gone from a bare frame to something that actually looks like a bike (albeit without going bits or stopping bits).
Just need some brake calliper bolts, adaptors, and a chain.
That looks class!
Picked up one for boy. Intend to do a rolling restoration. First off, replace the shredded BB...
Had to go a all Archimedes on it.
This seems to be a common trend with upcycled bikes like the Blast! My LBS used an angle-grinder to get the crank off...
Nice work Tom, awesome physics bodging! Those blast BB's are a sod!
Teaser:
My birthday build is all finished for my daughter. The Blast started life at 13.6kg and has finished at a tidy 11.2. Fun build.
Pics to follow once the Birthday girl approves this weekend!
Not sure who was grinning more...me or my lass!
Birthday bike went down great!
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Super job!
Well it's practically done at last.
Carrera Blast frame, Exotic fork, Condor 24" rims on Deore hubs, M615 brakes, 32x11-16 drivechain with Zee mech and SLX shifter, Suntour cranks, Wellgo pedals, Madison saddle, cut-down ODI grips. Somewhat cheeky custom artwork.
Just need to swap the random mix of headset spacers and bleed the brakes.
Very nice!. If its now been outgrown let me know and I will take it off your hands!
Nice Ross