Viewing 38 posts - 1 through 38 (of 38 total)
  • Evans do an Islabike copy.
  • jkomo
    Full Member

    I suppose it had to happen sooner or later.
    They basically copy the light weight, no sus ethos, but then don’t specify a weight.
    Come on Evans, give us some figures.

    timb34
    Free Member

    Just had a quick look at the 24-inch Aspen on their website. Looks OK, but they don’t specify crank length or handlebar width, the gearing isn’t as low at the back, the wheels look heavy and there don’t seem to be bottle cages mounts.

    £50 more for an Islabike seems better, but it’s really good to see manufacturers trying to make better bikes for kids that don’t weigh a ton – the Pinnacle bikes must be better than supermarket rubbish.

    jkomo
    Full Member

    Resale value of the Isla will always make it better value in the long run.
    Try selling a Pinnacle to the Notting Hill mums net crew.

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    neninja
    Free Member

    I’d been lead to believe Forme were launching a kids range in the vein of Isla in Autumn this year but nothing materialised.

    geoffj
    Full Member

    jkomo – Member
    Resale value of the Isla will always make it better value in the long run.
    Try selling a Pinnacle to the Notting Hill mums net crew.

    😆

    The Pinnacles do look VERY nice though

    Good work James 😉

    hora
    Free Member

    Strider all the way. I’ve no idea about resale value. Who cares? The bike should be overused/battered and enjoyed to the max.

    AlexSimon
    Full Member

    That’s what many of us think about our own bikes too Hora.

    hora
    Free Member

    That’s what many of think about our own bikes too Hora.

    Daft isn’t it. How can you relax and enjoy what you’ve bought if you worry about selling it on. My solution is simply raw the frame and then no probs..

    DezB
    Free Member

    Try selling a Pinnacle to the Notting Hill mums net STW bike snobs crew.

    FTFY

    frogstomp
    Full Member

    For the niche-mongers among us, I reckon the belt-driven Early Rider Belter 16 looks great:

    LBS has one and it’s very light too..

    AlexSimon
    Full Member

    hora – Member
    Daft isn’t it. How can you relax and enjoy what you’ve bought if you worry about selling it on. My solution is simply raw the frame and then no probs..

    No, I meant… oh never mind 🙂

    PMK2060
    Full Member

    That Early Rider Belter 16 looks fantastic!

    ir_bandito
    Free Member

    Very taken with the Belter (for obvious reasons), but its only got a rear brake, so would be a downgrade for my lad who’s got used to using 2 brakes on his Cnoc14.

    Jameso to the forum please…

    shotsaway
    Free Member

    The Early Rider looks to be a decent bike. Unfortunately they only seem to do 16″. Islabikes really have cornered the market for premium kids bikes and I can’t see that changing for the foreseeable future. Whist nobody else was looking, they snuck in and made that market their own. That’s why resale values are so high. Although long term I’m sure the other manufacturers will attempt to get a footing in that market.

    Evans and because of their mass coverage and because they are becoming a household name/brand may start to make inroads!

    Although looking at the sales speal, they are indicating that all other kids bikes are toys.

    Pinnacle Ash 20 Inch Children’s Bike.
    Pinnacle children’s bikes are for all-round use and maximising fun. Theyre light and simple, ideal for parents who want small proper bikes[/u] that help children get the most out of cycling at an early age.

    So in other words the other bikes they sell are rubbish???

    vinnyeh
    Full Member

    Whist nobody else was looking, they snuck in and made that market their own. That’s why resale values are so high

    Surely the secondhand pricing is only going to hold up as long as used bikes are in short supply, and Islabikes’ prices keep increasing steeply?

    The old cnoc 14 we’ve got in the shed was £120 4 years ago- they’re now £200- of course it’s going to look like it’s held it’s value well.

    shotsaway
    Free Member

    Whist nobody else was looking, they snuck in and made that market their own. That’s why resale values are so high

    [quote]Surely the secondhand pricing is only going to hold up as long as used bikes are in short supply, and Islabikes’ prices keep increasing steeply?[/quote]

    I totally agree! As Islabikes corner the market and as there are very little other alternatives, that artificially pushes up the resale values. Once other manufacturers start making quality/premium bikes for kids and there is more availability and choice, the Islabikes resale values could drop significantly.

    jameso
    Full Member

    ir_b – No, we aren’t making a belt-drive kids bike.. )

    PS. ‘Copy’? ) I copied mainly my own bikes which are also rigid and SS /1x .. plus we can do more with a rigid fork made to our spec. Common sense says sus forks on smaller kids bikes are daft, not copying (sorry, a little offended but can understand ‘big retailer rips off little guy’ conclusions too)

    theflatboy
    Free Member

    the Ridgeback Scoot Runner looks to me like a pretty good and cheaper Islabikes alternative. lots of pretty colours too.

    edit – sorry, just realised we’re not talking balance bikes!

    jameso
    Full Member

    Although looking at the sales speal, they are indicating that all other kids bikes are toys. – So in other words the other bikes they sell are rubbish???

    Well some are intended to be toys, but they tend to be the smaller ones. Suggesting saying ‘proper bikes’ means all others Evans sell are rubbish is a conclusion too far perhaps, they’re just saying they’re not DH-look-alike-bikes for a reason. Many non-cycling parents expect a sus fork and see a rigid as a poor choice, so we need to explain why these bikes don’t have them.

    jkomo
    Full Member

    TBH, it was only a matter of time. I’m not knocking Pinnacle, I’ve had one and was pleased enough with it.
    As far as resale goes, if I’m skint I will take it into consideration. It doesn’t mean I don’t expect my boys to enjoy their bikes, if they have an off, that’s fine, but I dont expect them to slam the bike to the floor, or leave it out in the rain.
    If I spend upwards of £300 on a bike I expect them to treasure it, so much stuff these days is disposable crap, it does them good to learn to look after their stuff.

    ir_bandito
    Free Member

    No, we aren’t making a belt-drive kids bike.

    go on, you know you want to…
    🙂

    So, at what size do sus forks start to have a benefit that is greater than the negative effect of the extra weight?

    My lad is 4 1/2 and going to outgorw his Cnoc14 in about a week at the rate he’s growing. He’s adamant he wants bouncy forks like my bike (even though Im rocking rigid forks on the 69er at the moment). I also think he’ll benefit from having gears too as he gets a helluva speed on and spins out, but doesn’t have the strength to get up steep hills.

    I’m looking at 20″ wheel bikes , but maybe should go for 18″, which limits choice.

    jameso
    Full Member

    So, at what size do sus forks start to have a benefit that is greater than the negative effect of the extra weight?

    he wants bouncy forks like my bike

    That’s the issue with kid’s bike forks, many parents want them as both they and the kids think they look cool and why not, bikes should look/be fun. We’d sell more kid’s bikes if they had forks. But forks that actually work and last are expensive.
    The kids that need a fork probably have parents willing to spend more and recognise why. There’s good 26″ air forks (at a price) and some workable 24″ forks around. Small 26″ youth MTBs are worth good sus forks, but it’s hard to justify anything but a really supple, light air fork – expensive.

    I don’t think kids bikes need suspension at all, but that’s just from a ‘grew upon BMXs and rigid MTBs retrogrouch’ perspective. In reality, it depends on where/how they ride, a bit more control and fun is worth more than a ‘gotta learn to ride rigid first son..’ Victorian Dad approach..

    Sounds like he needs a geared 20″ with a fat front tyre? ) I wanted to use 2.4″ front tyres on the 24″ bike but it was considered ‘too weirdy-beardy’ by some 🙂

    ir_bandito
    Free Member

    I completely see your point, but it’ll take a bit of persuading to make him see otherwise. He’s desperate to get up into our local woods with me in the summer, where it will get rooty and rocky….

    I’ve seen a few old ‘zocchi’s modified. Might look down that route.

    hmmm, fat front tyre.
    How fat can you go on a 20″ wheel, with a decent (ie not BMX track) tread?

    AlexSimon
    Full Member

    I think a good fat 24″ tyre on the front (and even on the back) would be great. Most of them are dirt jump heavy slickish things. The continentals that you get from Islabikes are great, but narrow.

    (mind you, I have a beard)

    jameso
    Full Member

    give us some figures

    19.5, 22 and 22.6lbs (from the factory so may include some packaging if you’re a weenie)

    mike_p
    Free Member

    I think any of the Ridgebacks look like better bets than those Pinnacles

    tomlevell
    Full Member

    Recent tyre upgrade.

    Tyre Upgrade by tomlevell, on Flickr
    Knobbly tyres needed now the mud is here and slicks just don’t cut it on the off camber stuff.

    The Pinnacles look a bit odd but then I don’t usually look that hard a kids bikes (Well not yet anyway) so no doubt Isla’s look a bit like that too.

    LoveTubs
    Free Member

    If only one could obtain a quality retro ‘upgrade’ rigid fork for 20, 24’s that could take canti brakes – now that would be a winner coz folks like me would happily (I assume) pay 20, 30 notes for.

    Off topic: my awesome super-low geared converted bikes (super low cassette rear, granny up front…there’s an old thread on here) will be up for grabs – the lads now have some respectable climbs notched I tell the!

    😛 😛

    sweaman2
    Free Member

    I’d just like to say that modification is awesome … I don’t even have kids and I love it 🙂

    jkomo
    Full Member

    I squeezed some high rollers 2.0 on my boys Beinn 26.
    Looks ace.

    ir_bandito
    Free Member

    Love tubs – ygm

    BearBack
    Free Member

    Santa’s bringing a green one of these for my 2.5 year old.
    14″ wheels, NO coaster brake – 15lbs!

    Spawn Cycles

    AlexSimon
    Full Member

    One of my son’s never got on with the coaster brake on my early Islabikes, but the other one (the more confident one) absolutely loved it.

    benthebikeman
    Free Member

    I have been harping on about this for years, as I really feel that manufacturers are missing a trick. I work in schools as a Sustrans Bike It Officer with thousands of kids, and most of the bikes I see are shocking, heavy, over geared many have suspension that is ineffective, giros thst are jammed solidetc and these things are one of the biggest barriers to kids being able to get out and about by bikes. this is a good move by Evans. Orbea have some great bikes too and Ridgeback have the RX20. Come on Specialized, Giant, Trek…..Halfords Apollo et al! Simple and light is the way to go! Kids don’t on the whole need front mechs…. Discuss!
    Ben…. First bike Raleigh Chipper 1974

    leffeboy
    Full Member

    I wonder why no-one seems to mention Scott? My girls have had various sizes of Scott Contessa since they were small and they have been awesome. Brakes that work, levers that you can adjust to fit their reach, great standover height so they cover a reasonable range of growing without needing to be changed all the time. Love ’em (the shop even offered to buy one back when I went for the next size but I needed it for the other girl)

    heihei
    Full Member

    It surprises me though that even when the big boys get involved, they still don’t quite “get it”. I had a look at the Specialized Hotrock for my daughter this year, but it has 21 gears! My wife can’t fathom front and rear gears, so how the hell do they expect an 8 yr old to? It’s details like this that mean Isla Bikes still rule the roost.

    BearBack
    Free Member

    Yep, once you hit 20″, soctt have it dialled.
    My lads Voltage Walker is the best run bike I’ve seen over here.
    They are missing a trick with 16 though.. stabilizers, coaster brake and one hand brake.. heavy too.
    They need a 16 with proper bits on it imo as kids are ready for 14 and 16 wheeled bikes without learner components thanks to run bikes.

    20″ and onwards and the spark Jr has been a great upgradeable option for ‘keen parents’ to set up as mini DH bikes, although now there lil ripper, those with cash will go that way, but spark jr’s are still a great option.
    for non FS, the 6spd voltage 20 is the one!

    leffeboy
    Full Member

    Yep, once you hit 20″, soctt have it dialled.

    Just checked and you are of course correct. The one before that was a Giant which was also decent. Back pedal brake, no gears but metal brake levers that you could adjust the reach on. Brilliant bike

Viewing 38 posts - 1 through 38 (of 38 total)

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