I was just about to order an Islabike Cnoc 14 then I saw that the price is now a whopping £169.99! My lad loves his Islabike Rothan but before I spend that much cash I’m going to look around for alternatives.

Has anybody got any experience of a Ridgeback MX14 (£119.99) or a Dawes Blowfish 14 (£109.99)?

there are a few Islabikes knocking about secondhand at fair prices. I’ll be selling a Cnoc 16 in March….

IMHO the thing to do is get a bike that they will ride. If that’s a islabike great, if it’s a halfords special then great. Get them the bike they would choose, as long as they ride it as a kid, that’s what’s important. I want to buy my girl a nice specialized, nice Scott, nice “proper” bike but she wants a pretty pink one with a basket. At the end of the day as long as she is out using it that’s all that matters.

IMO the most important thing for wee ones is the weight, or the ratio of their weight to the bike. I think that’s why Islabikes have a big advantage, particularly in the smaller sizes.

Off to Evans Manchester on Friday for him to have a go on the Ridgeback. I hope that he doesn’t take out a row of display bikes 😯

Was suprised at how few 14″ bikes there are compared to 16″ but I think that the 16″ will be too big.

The little cnocs are ace bikes, my lad still rides his 16 even though he is soon to be on a 24 inch wheels. It is like a mini BMX.

Worth the extra IMO

iainc – I’d be interested in the Cnoc 16 for my daughter (its her birthday in March).

Always a good market on eBay for Islabikes so you’ll get back a decent wedge whence you come to sell, if that sweetens the pill a little?

I’ll check out the other options first. This one has an aluminium frame and all the necessary adjustment. If it fits, the build quality looks OK, there is room for growth and he likes it then I’ll buy it.

We saw a young lad on a Specialized Hotrock the other day and that looked like a nice bit of kit, but it would be too big for my lad.

The Ridgeback bikes are great. Ours have shared a MX16. Yes, the Isla may be a bit lighter and have smaller controls, but I don’t think the advantages stack up to the price.

Ridgeback and Spesh Hotrocks in this hoose.

I wouldn’t believe all the stuff about small controls. The brake lever on his Rothan is the same size as the ones on my FSR! and I’m not 90cm tall.

Christ, they’ve gone up. Think we paid £139 about 14 months ago, for my eldest. Its going to his younger brother soon so we’ll get the use out of it. Luckily the eldest is big enough for the small Bein 20.

For what its worth, on holiday with four other family’s last summer, my lads two Isla’s were very much the favourite of all the bikes there. (Ridgeback & a few cheapo bikes).

I wouldn’t believe all the stuff about small controls. The brake lever on his Rothan is the same size as the ones on my FSR!

The one on my lads is loads smaller. Bar dia too, so they have smaller dia grips to fit smaller hands.

Yes, the Isla may be a bit lighter and have smaller controls, but I don’t think the advantages stack up to the price.

Yep, although the geometry and set up (especially bars and saddles) vary quite a bit too.

I couldn’t find anything to compete with a Cnoc14 when I bought that (a few years ago now), but I did look long and hard a number of alternatives to the Beinn 20 I bought last year – Scott, Cube and Giant especially. I went with the Islabike in the end, but it was a case of lots of little things adding up rather than one killer feature. Geometry, controls, spec details, standover and weight were all “better” (to a small degree). Swung the balance for me but I don’t think I’d have been disappointed with any of the others I was looking at.

Was suprised at how few 14″ bikes there are compared to 16″ but I think that the 16″ will be too big.

Make sure you check standover and saddle heights carefully as if a 16 fits it will be better in the long run, especially if riding off road much. 14 inch wheels get knocked about a bit on rough ground.

terrahawk – YGM

We’ll be trying them all. I can’t afford to get him a new one every year.

He’s only just turned 3 so he’s not grown out of his Rothan physically but he’s ready for pedals.

I’m not knocking Islabike here. The product is superb but I’m starting to get the impression that the pricing may be aimed at the likes of us who would willing spend a silly amount of money on an adult bike.

I remember when it was Tomahawk, Chipper or nowt.

This young fellow doesn’t seem worried that his lovely yellow machine is a million times too big for him.
Kickstand AND stabilisers? Can’t go wrong.

Did he grow up to be Vic Reeves?

not sure, but I also remember that it was the LAW that you had to have your hood up in the 70s.

Just been through this process but my lad could fit on a 16″ wheeled one – ended up with a Merida Dakar 616, best built of the ones I saw in the flesh (compared to spesh, carerra, trek) and had the best position on the bike. Luckily my lad liked it the best as well and he want’s to go out on it most days.

The issue with the controls is more about friction/spring resistance than lever size, I think most kids bike seem to use what we’d consider to be 2 finger levers on them.