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  1. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dantheman View Post
    I went with the Cleary since Isla ships their 16" US bikes (they're a UK company with a DC in Portland) with a rear coaster hub.
    curious why you were against coaster brakes. Seems like that would be easier to learn on, but it's not like I can recall what ot was like to learn to ride bikes.

    My kiddo turns 4 this month, she kills it on the Strider but hasn't yet figured out pedaling, so I'm intrigued.

    I'm also intrigued by that indoor bike park, that's cool.
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  2. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by muted View Post
    How many times do they have to mow the lawn and clean the house before it pays off? Or do they have to buy you a house eventually?
    You get paid back in shit-eating grins. You can't wipe the smile off my face when we're out riding together, even (especially!) when I'm huffing and puffing hauling his ass to the top.


    Quote Originally Posted by Danno View Post
    curious why you were against coaster brakes. Seems like that would be easier to learn on, but it's not like I can recall what ot was like to learn to ride bikes.

    My kiddo turns 4 this month, she kills it on the Strider but hasn't yet figured out pedaling, so I'm intrigued.

    I'm also intrigued by that indoor bike park, that's cool.
    I wanted to ditch the coaster for a couple of reasons. For one, they're super heavy and don't roll for shit, which kind of defeats the point of buying a nice lightweight bike. Second, I wanted a front brake so he'd have some extra stopping power on dirt. Having a hand brake for the front and a coaster for the rear seemed like it would be confusing.

    The bike park opened up in September, it's pretty sweet.
    http://wasatchbikepark.com/

  3. #28
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    Quick bump to point out another huge benefit to hand brakes that presented itself over the weekend. Walking their bike down sections they can't or don't want to ride down (too steep, etc.) is soooo much easier since they can still use the brakes while off the bike. With a coaster they are fighting the bike rolling away from them and there's nothing they can do about it.

  4. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sirshredalot View Post
    I'll put myself next in line when it's time to sell. I am so local that I think I saw you hauling your kid via the bungie this past summer at Trailside. Mini Shredalot may be about ready for a pedal bike by the time you're ready to sell the 16".
    Bike swap in the spring has kept my kids in bikes nicer than I have ever had. Like the ski swap you have to get their early and wait in line, But I've gotten treks and specialized bikes for around $125.00. I think it is put on by White Pine. It's at the Yard.

  5. #30
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    Quote Originally Posted by Danno View Post
    curious why you were against coaster brakes. Seems like that would be easier to learn on, but it's not like I can recall what ot was like to learn to ride bikes.

    My kiddo turns 4 this month, she kills it on the Strider but hasn't yet figured out pedaling, so I'm intrigued.

    I'm also intrigued by that indoor bike park, that's cool.
    Just back from a vacation, and my kid has totally killed it on her bike during the vacation; riding around the campgrounds suits her. She has some trouble starting up but she'll get it. She also has trouble braking, and I have a feeling that she doesn't like the coaster brake, that the pedal backwards thing gives her trouble. And we're looking for a 16"er with hand brakes, and I remembered this thread. Any other options out there?
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  6. #31
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    Spawn Banshee. If I had to do it over again this is probably the bike I would get. Their prices are in canadian pesos and the exchange rate is really good right now.
    http://spawncycles.com/ca/bikes/spawn-cycles-banshee

    Commencal Ramones 16 if you can find one. They have either discontinued it or are out for the year. It's no longer on their website and most places seem to be out of stock.

  7. #32
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    This thread is cool. Seeing that mention of the Commencal reminded me of this, which I had intended to post here earlier. With a 1.5 year old who is just starting to walk, this has me pretty stoked for next summer: http://www.pinkbike.com/video/385215/

  8. #33
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dantheman View Post
    Spawn Banshee. If I had to do it over again this is probably the bike I would get. Their prices are in canadian pesos and the exchange rate is really good right now.
    http://spawncycles.com/ca/bikes/spawn-cycles-banshee

    Commencal Ramones 16 if you can find one. They have either discontinued it or are out for the year. It's no longer on their website and most places seem to be out of stock.
    I may be missing something but how would one order the Spawn Banshee? It didn't seem like they had any dealers in the US or ship direct.

  9. #34
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    Weird, they have been shipping bikes to the US for years. They must have stopped quite recently. I would email them and see what they can do for you. Let us know what you find out.

    It looks like they are still shipping parts to the US, so it might be an issue with selling completes and complying with some absurd US safety or import law. Maybe they could ship you a bunch of parts that happens to add up to a Banshee and costs the same.

  10. #35
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dantheman View Post
    Weird, they have been shipping bikes to the US for years. They must have stopped quite recently. I would email them and see what they can do for you. Let us know what you find out.

    It looks like they are still shipping parts to the US, so it might be an issue with selling completes and complying with some absurd US safety or import law. Maybe they could ship you a bunch of parts that happens to add up to a Banshee and costs the same.
    I'm an idiot. The link was to the Canadian site. I just changed it to the good ole US of A and it's 350 plus shipping.

    Why would you choose the Spawn over the Cleary now that you have had the Cleary for a while?

  11. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by concretejungle View Post
    Why would you choose the Spawn over the Cleary now that you have had the Cleary for a while?
    Sorry for the late response here, I was on vacation last week. Here's my reasons:

    Gearing

    The stock gearing on the Hedgehog is 25x16, which my little guy quickly grew out of and was spun out like a hamster. I had concerns about this before I bought the bike and emailed Cleary about it before purchasing. They initially told me the hub would take a freewheel as small as 11t, so knowing nothing at the time about freewheel hubs I wasn't concerned. Turns out you can't go smaller than 16t on the stock ISO threaded hub, and the chainring is non-replaceable. Needless to say I was not happy to discover this.

    Stock gearing on the Spawn is 28x14. To their credit, Cleary built me a new wheel with a M30 hub (takes 13t-15t freewheels) and 13t freewheel for an extremely reasonable price. But, you get the same hub stock on the Spawn, and with the stock Cleary cranks you are still maxed out at 25x13. Spawn’s cranks have a 64 BCD spider that will take anywhere from a 22t to 30t chainring* so you can easily modify the gearing. Spawn sells their cranks a la carte, but with shipping they’re almost $60. I ended up buying them and currently have the gearing at 28x13. I got the impression Cleary is going to start shipping the new crop of Hedgehogs with the M30 rear wheel, but you’ll still be stuck with the non-replaceable 25t chainring.

    * - I'm pretty sure you could go even larger by using an adapter meant for direct-mount cranks, but I've haven't actually tried it yet. See my last post here https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...ht=bcd+adapter

    Bars

    The stock Cleary bars are cut pretty narrow (16”) and he started complaining about it after a couple months. Aftermarket bars with the 25.4 mm clamp diameter and 19 mm ends Cleary uses do not exist, period. Thankfully Cleary now has wider flat and low-rise bars available, but you have to email them to get them and pay extra. Spawn’s stock bars are 20” which is plenty wide.

    Tires

    Spawn has recently started shipping the Banshees with Schwalbe Blackjack tires, which are the best 16” knobbies out there (trust me, I’ve looked, a lot). The Cleary comes with street tires, so if you want good tires for trails a pair of Blackjacks is about a $35 upgrade.

    Price

    Cleary has raised their prices slightly since I bought mine, and the CDN-USD exchange rate has gotten better since then so the Spawn is only slightly more expensive now. Once you add in new bars, tires and cranks for the Cleary the Spawn is cheaper.

    Weight

    The Spawn is about about 1 lb lighter. Not a huge difference, but just one more thing tipping the scale in favor of the Spawn considering everything I mentioned above.


    All that said, I think the geo on the Cleary is better. The headtube is 2* slacker and the wheelbase is longer which I have to imagine makes for a more stable ride which is certainly important for kids this age. The Cleary frame with Banshee parts is probably ideal, which is pretty much what I have at this point. Whether it was worth the extra money I've now spent and the numerous research hours is an open question.
    Last edited by Dantheman; 08-31-2015 at 03:49 PM.

  12. #37
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    Thanks for the thorough write up!
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  13. #38
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    Cleary Bikes - Awesome Kid's Bikes

    Quote Originally Posted by RootSkier View Post
    With a 1.5 year old who is just starting to walk...
    Not to thread jack, but when the time comes for a balance bike check out FirstBike. Plastic frame is very light and durable, the design is super safe (all bolts and other connections are fully recessed, range of motion on the fork is limited for stability and so they can't over rotate the bars and stuff it), and it has a pretty powerful rear disc hand brake that my kid picked up on easily. They run a little big but it's a great item. This is the one Luc has- not the coolest colorway but they have some sweet ones.


  14. #39
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    Quote Originally Posted by Danno View Post
    Thanks for the thorough write up!
    Seconded.

    I had ordered a Cleary and since it was a preorder I went ahead and canceled and just ordered a Spawn which will hopefully ship today. Although OG says she won't fall over once she gets a big girl bike I've been trying to prepare her for the inevitable even after mastering the Strider.

  15. #40
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    Quick bump to say that my idea to use a direct-mount spider adapter to run a 104 BCD chainring on the Spawn cranks worked flawlessly. Have a 32t on right now and there is enough chainstay clearance to run at least a 36t. Huge thanks to rludes025 for hooking me up with an adapter and ring from his parts bin so I could try this out.

  16. #41
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    We decided against a new bike for our tyke. Summer's winding down and her bike is fine, she's not really good enough yet that the bike is holding her back, or at least that's what my wallet is telling me.

    Next spring/summer, she may be big enough for a 20" bike, and we'll look at options then.
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  17. #42
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    I'm not sure where Dantheman's PM with this info went but what's the most effective way to tow a kid? I just want to assist slight uphills so we can get out on the trails. Bungee cord, surgical tubing, etc. and how are setting it up?

  18. #43
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    Quote Originally Posted by concretejungle View Post
    I'm not sure where Dantheman's PM with this info went but what's the most effective way to tow a kid? I just want to assist slight uphills so we can get out on the trails. Bungee cord, surgical tubing, etc. and how are setting it up?
    I go small sling around kids headtube, carabiner, length of tubular webbing, small bungee cord, carabiner, and small sling that connects to the underside of my seat. i'll leave both slings on the bikes if we're lapping something where he needs a constant tow.

  19. #44
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    No gears is biting me in the ass right now. It's been great for learning, but she's spinning out and she is enrolled in a girls development camp this weekend, and gears are "required". I think they're more concerned about the typical, higher gearing on cheaper bikes, and that the lower gearing on the Cleary will be fine, but it would also be nice for her to learn how to use gears during the camp. Also, the bars are shit. I won't be able to get gears on it in time for the weekend, but I'm hoping to fix the bar situation.

    Dan, are there any quick options for upgrading the bars?

    Moving forward, is there any way to put gears on this thing without having Cleary build me a new wheel?
    Remind me. We'll send him a red cap and a Speedo.

  20. #45
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    Quote Originally Posted by bagtagley View Post
    No gears is biting me in the ass right now. It's been great for learning, but she's spinning out
    The hub should take freewheels as small as 16t which would bring the gear ratio up quite a bit.

    Quote Originally Posted by bagtagley View Post
    she is enrolled in a girls development camp this weekend, and gears are "required".
    Wow, that's pretty retarded. Shit man, I feel pretty bad about this.

    Quote Originally Posted by bagtagley View Post
    Also, the bars are shit. I won't be able to get gears on it in time for the weekend, but I'm hoping to fix the bar situation.

    Dan, are there any quick options for upgrading the bars?
    By this Saturday, not good. The wide riser bars are pretty cheap from Cleary, but they're out of stock until June 20. I have a pair of their flat wide bars that I don't need and am happy to give you for free, but UPS is telling me it would be almost $100 to overnight them.

    Quote Originally Posted by bagtagley View Post
    Moving forward, is there any way to put gears on this thing without having Cleary build me a new wheel?
    I think the hub can theoretically take a threaded freewheel cassette since they use ISO threading, but the frame spacing may not accommodate it. I also have no idea how you'd attach a derailleur to the horizontal dropouts.

  21. #46
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    so instead of buying yer kid a run bike buy them a half decent 16" with pedals and take the crank/pedals/chain/ trainer wheels off, when the kid asks you for them put all the parts back on, it will probably be cheaper/less hassle
    Lee Lau - xxx-er is the laziest Asian canuck I know

  22. #47
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dantheman View Post
    Wow, that's pretty retarded. Shit man, I feel pretty bad about this.
    Feel bad cause you suggested it? Shit man, it made - and still makes - sense to me. The gearing is pretty low on those things, really too low for flat street riding, but perfect for moderate climbs. Also, when I bought it, she still couldn't ride a bike, and I certainly didn't expect her to be ready for a mtb camp by Summer. It's still a pretty awesome bike, particularly for the weight and price. It's become clear that if I want light with gears and real components, I'm going to have to pay for it. No surprise there.

    The main coach is a good guy, he just wants her to get the most out of the camp. He's promised to have a geared bike for her to ride by tomorrow, beg, borrow, or steal, so that's pretty cool.

    Thanks for checking the shipping on those bars. I definitely dislike the bars way more than she does, so we'll be fine. I'll probably get some new bars for this thing, but I don't think I'll do more than that. She's growing like a weed, so we'll probably be looking to replace next year anyway. It looks like I could come kinda close to getting my money back on either bike, so I'll probably sell the 16", get her a solid, used 24" bike, and give the 20" to her brother.
    Remind me. We'll send him a red cap and a Speedo.

  23. #48
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    OK, cool. I'll still ship you the bars I have for free if you want them. Regular ground shipping should be cheap. It's probably worth holding out for the risers though, the flat ones don't have any sweep. Here's a link for cheap, high quality freewheels. Just don't go lower than 16t, the 13-15t versions use a different threading and won't fit the hub https://www.amazon.com/ACS-16T-Cross...qid=1465590433

    Let me know if you want that 32t crankset for the 16er.

  24. #49
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    So, moving on from 20" wheels this year, I was looking for something good but not way pricey.

    Enter the DiamondBack Sync'r 24 (suggestion from a friend who said he researched everything and found it to be the best price point available.)

    http://www.diamondback.com/bikes-kid...ds-24-syncr-24

    The bike is full on rad with hydro disc brakes, 1 x 10 (32t), real tires, 80mm shock, good geo, circa 27-28lbs, and miles of smiles.

    $529 (plus tax) on Amazon.
    https://www.amazon.com/Diamondback-B.../dp/B00NCUH5TE
    I applied for their credit card and recieved a $70 Amazon gift card with approval and 5% back (have since closed the card)... to bring the cost down to about $435. Then sold the 20" for $150, so my cost was about $300. I am assuming this will go through 2 kids and still have value, hoping to break even in 4 years.
    the drugs made me realize it's not about the drugs

  25. #50
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    Just wanted to say a thank you to DTM for bringing Cleary bikes into my awareness. After watching my 5yo struggle with the coaster brake specialized I got him for his birthday (he would panic and take his feet of the pedals, crash, hate riding bikes) I popped for a cleary and it was night and day. Kid is killing it now. Funny to see this thread pop up again because I just ordered the riser handlebars because my only complaint about the cleary was the geo was a little wonky. I think getting him a little more upright will make it even better. He had Bike Day at school and he was the only kid on a two wheeler and I already fielded a couple texts from other parents asking what kind of bike he has.

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