A few things from my own experience, mostly obvious but here you go:
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[*]Lightweight kids bikes are great, whatever they might be. You should be looking under 10kg, IMHO, and if it’s more than this, walk away – you can do better.[/*]
[*]On a 24″ wheel, front suspension might well be a good thing if the rider and terrain justify it, but it must be an air shock, otherwise it won’t move under a very light rider and will be just dead weight. If riding on towpaths, forest trails etc. then a rigid bike may well do – it’ll be lighter and cheaper.[/*]
[*]Don’t be scared of used bikes – plenty out there, often only very lightly used and sold very cheaply. Many groups on Facebook selling used bikes cheaper than on eBay, where fees and demand often push up the prices[/*]
[*]Don’t forgot to consider resale value as well as the initial purchase price (aka the Islabike argument) – often a more expensive bike might actually work out cheaper in the long run, if you can stomach the initial outlay[/*]
[*]Look after it as well as you can – a well kept, well maintained bike will always be worth more as it can be given as a gift for xmas or birthday, whereas a battered one, while perhaps nearly as good, will be overlooked[/*]
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