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My niece is turning 4 next month and the brother in law has come to me for some advice on which bike she should get for her birthday.
She currently has a balance bike that she skoots about on with a fair degree of confidence.
The sister in law has her eye on some argos princess bike shaped object with a doll seat on the back and a basket for Teddy in the front.
Brother seems to think this may be a poor choice, as he would like something that would take the slightly rougher terrain of the woodland paths near their house.
Obviously islabike seems to be the default answer here but a 350 kids bike might be a hard sell to someone who thinks a 70quid argos effort is the correct purchase.
Are there any quality bikes out there that are close to islabikes without the mumsnet price tag.
I’ve just got our 4 year old daughter a Cnoc 14. Took me a while to get my head round the price too.
Frog are a bit cheaper but not particularly close to £70.
There was a pinnacle girls bike in pink for £180 at one point last year that I had my eye on but then it went out of stock and seemed to vanish from the Evans website.
It seemed to me like it was really expensive or really cheap and not a huge amount in the middle.
There was another bike at Halfords - can’t remember if it was Carrera branded or Wiggins that I didn’t particularly like the look of that reviewed well though (no pink - only white). Might be worth a look.
Carrera star or cosmos is the one from Halfords with all the same kit and weight as Isla.
Good bike and good value in comparison, but still 100 over budget. Their pricing is very dependent on "sales" and that's not happening whilst demand outside supply.
To should get one in budget second hand.
Look secondhand. Early rider bikes are also pretty good. Not sure got the reputation of Isla and Frog so can be a bit cheaper secondhand.
Got the Belter for my boy and it’s great. Belt drive too...
Don't just assume that 14" is the way forward either. Daughter had her handmedown 14" Isla on her 4th birthday and within 3 weeks had graduated to 16", but she is quite tall.
Recently helped someone get a Hoy and was quite impressed with it tbh. Very Frog like - I'd keep an eye out on the 'bay and Facebook marketplace for local pickup only deals.
The Wild bikes at Go Outdoors look good.
One thing to consider is what the child in question wants. The basket and dolly seat might lead to far more rides completed than a double butted 6061-T6 frameset.
Put an advert on Facebook marketplace saying what your after. Personally as long as it fits her and is in good condition and suitable then anything will be o.k. Shes 4 not doing red bull rampage.
That's the issue though - BSO specials rarely do "fit". Case in point, 7 year old son of a friend was struggling to ride after previous success on balance bike. Turned up with something suitably heavy and 16" wheeled with stabilisers on. They'd bought it new and fitted to him from halfords 3 months before.
Suggested using my daughter's 20" 'dale and within 10 trips up and down our road he was just about riding.
His dad went out and grabbed a Hoy Bonaly 20 for £100 locally, he's flying on it now.
Better kit helps IMHO. But I still wouldn't spend 350 on an Isla that was going to see a year's use.
Used Cnoc 16.
Check wheel bearings and headset as they can be nearly dry from factory.
£150 can get a clean one if you are lucky, few Facebook groups where they change hands a lot.
Once outgrown you get most or all the money back unless it's trashed, even then get some.
Islas have a reputation as the best kids bikes for a reason, even a 10 year old second hand one will be miles easier for a new rider than a bso. I think the first bike is the most important, so I'd look for a second hand cnoc16 or beinn 20s depending on size (check the website).
Alternatives are getting much better, wiggins, frog, Hoy, forme and squish all have respectable offerings.
If princess basket and tassles are required, add them (more presents to open) but still get a good bike underneath.
I've got 4 girls, the tiny twins are riding standing up on second hand isla cnoc 14s (s+l) and they aren't even 3 yet. The eldest at 4.5 is now on a forme sterndale 20 in pink and purple.
My 5 year old is going from a Carrera Cosmos (16” wheel) to a Raleigh Performance (20”).
Both have all the things Isla buyers expect (light alu frame, proper Kenda tyres, suitable sized brake levers/cranks, proper aheadset, etc) but not Isla prices. Bought both secondhand, think both were under £75 each in really nice condition.
Islabike are about as good as you can get but it can be hard getting folks heads round the prices. That said you rarely lose much value in them as long as they aren’t completely knackered by the time you finish with them.
Mine started with a carrera cosmos which was fine but the 16’ islabike after definitely brought his riding on a level. We managed to pick that up for 160, he used it for about 9 months then sold it on for a profit but it was in very good condition.
He’s now on a wild bikes 20’ which is really good. I would say on par with an equivalent frog. We bought that new for about 200 ish which isn’t as hard to swallow.
Anything wiggins, hoy, squish (wild bikes I believe are the same bikes as squish) will be perfectly good and no doubt other brands too such as ridgeback etc. Just look out for something of a reasonable weight with suitable components for their age.
Carrera cosmos. It's light and sturdy. No need to spend more.
Couple of other thoughts - if said niece is not an only child, then the more expensive options probably make more sense. Which is also why my lot got bikes in red.
Also Wiggins - start from 16" only, but look good and seem to be 100-150 on the bay.
I spent a long time looking into this for Christmas as wife wanted to buy new. My initial thought, like you, was it seemed to be either crazy expensive or cheap bso; but after guidance here went for a wild bikes 14in. It’s really good, my 4 year old daughter loves it (it helps its pink!). I’ve put stabilisers on it for now.
One thing I will say re. Wheel size; my daughter was on the cusp of 14/16 based on guidelines but we went with the smaller as figures something too big would be more off-putting. I’m glad I did as I think she would have struggled to turn over the pedals on a 16in wheel, she sometimes needs a bit of a push to get going on the 14in.
Picked my daughter up a Ridgeback Dimension 16 when she was 5. I couldn’t quite justify an Isla so this was a halfway house, it was on offer under £150 at the time.
She loves it though and it rides great. Helps that it’s pink too.
Decathlon do some great kids bikes, got one for the granddaughter a few years ago, she was 4 at the time, she went from balance bike straight to it, took her to look at them and and she just simple rode away on it down the shop isle after keeping her steady for a few seconds 🙂 … they even have special brakes levers making them easier to pull on for little hands etc … she's now on a cannondale Cujo , loves it on the beach up here on the east coast
We made the mistake of getting what bike we wanted for our now confident 5 year old. We got him a frog when he was 3.5/4 and wasnt interested, didn't like it. Bought him a halfrauds batman bike, took to pedals like a duck to water. Now rides a 20in hardtail
we had a frog 48 for our boy when he was 4. good bike to learn on and light enough for him to handle./bought a set of knobbly tyres for it so it would be used off road. i bought its second hand for £100. just sold it for £125. if you buy theses second hand....they keep their value. lots of other good similar brans....squish, isla, croc etc. if you buy a Halfords job they are super heavy....pretty cr@p....and have no resale value.
If you’re within collection distance of Matlock, I have a Cnoc16 for sale (just looked on the classifieds but the ad has expired). Good condition apart from a scratch in the head tube caused by a trailgater attachment slipping (PM me if your interested)
anyone had experience with 'Early Riders'? Looked to be well thought out. Not entire convinced on the belt drive over a chain. Appear to be slightly more expensive than most of the stuff recommended above, but only by a few quid.
Got an Early Rider.
We love it, little one wants an Elsa and Ana bike for her next bike 🙄
No oily chain to get dirty with. Lighter than an Isla. Looks good. The big semi slick kendas are great all-rounders, or you can get the properly knobbly tyres (Belter vs. Seeker models). We bought a belter then added a QR seat clamp and change of tyres for the winter.
I got my girl a 14" Frog (Frog40) when she was 3y8m, she's reasonably tall but to be brutally honest a skinny weakling like her dad. Great for her to learn on and she'd got the hang of it by the second try, but she has almost grown out of it less than a year later. So I'd recommend a 16" for a fourth birthday present.
All the alternatives mentioned looked good. Vitus and Pinnacle both seemed similar in weight and design and I only learnt about them after I'd hit buy on the Frog already (should have consulted STW first!)
MY lad has an Islabikes Beinn. I bought it second hand, initially hesitant because of the price. But you will not lose money on it when the time comes to move it on, unless she totally trashes it.
Great bikes. So much lighter than cheaper BSO's.
@v7fmp - we bought the lad (4 and a half) an Early Rider Belter for christmas. Second hand was £150, and we’ll likely get that back when we sell it. He had an ER balance bike before that. Really pleased with the Belter - the carbon belt drive keeps Daddy’s sense of trick satisfied - and the bike is way lighter than the Specialized pedal bike we tried before the ER. He seems to like it, although we haven’t got many miles on it yet.
does anyone know what the tyre clearance is like on the frog bikes? My kid is currently on a 16" riprock which has 2.8" tyres - these are great for the woods as absorb all the low-level bumps better than a fork ever could. I'm looking for a 20" replacement, have spotted the riprock 20, the trek roscoe 20 and the vitus 20+, but wondering if I could just put larger tyres on a more 'normal' bike is an option
We had a 16" early rider, it was a great wee bike. A few non-believers couldn't understand why we spent the money, until they saw how good our daughter was on it. The belt is maintenance free & doesn't get clothes oily.
The 16" belter is significantly lighter than her cousins cnoc 14".
I just wish the prices weren't so crazy on the 20" models.