• This topic has 20 replies, 13 voices, and was last updated 8 years ago by nre.
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  • Specialized Myka 13" build (for my 10 year old daughter…)
  • nre
    Free Member

    Mostly thanks to parts sourced on STW through the classifieds & wanted ads (including some very generous offers) I’m now close to having this fit to ride. While eldest daughter doesn’t need to move off her 24″ Carrera Luna just yet, youngest is going to be outgrowing her 20″ Luna in the next few months so I thought it best to get a 26er project underway so they can both move up a size when the time comes!

    Start point was a 2010 Myka HT (courtesy of ‘MicArms’). Given her 24″ Luna has hydro discs, I wanted to convert the Myka to discs also. Mick helpfully (and generously) threw in a set of old Mavic Crossrides with a worn out cassette bushing to get me started with some disc compatible wheels.

    Ordered a new bushing from the USofA which sorted the freehub wobble.

    Brakes came from ‘cooie’, a set of old Shimano M555s (a set of which I ran a few years ago, so had a spare set of pads already!) ‘Cooie’ threw in 2 further spare sets so sorted on that front!

    Cranks were next on the list. Specialized specced 170mm cranks on this diddy 13″ bike… so I ordered a set of new Suntour XCT Jr 152mm cranks (~£20 delivered from Germany). These are fairly basic, but cheap, and at least have removable rings (unlike the original cranks).

    I pondered a 1×9 or 1×10 conversion (from the 3×7 original), but wanted to at least match the lowest gear of her current bike, and that was only going to be possible with a ~40t sprocket (with a 30t NW front), which then starts getting expensive on a ‘budget’ build. Given the original SRAM X5 rear mech would support 9 speed with just a shifter change, and that I had an SLX 11-32 9 speed cassette sitting in the spares box, 2×9 seemed the way to go… so the outer ring came off the new cranks. The one downfall of the Suntour chainset is that the inner ring and middle ring are a one piece steel affair which is a bit limiting, and a bit hefty, but still lighter than what was on there before. I do at least have the option to swap to a single NW ring in future….

    A wanted ad for a 9 speed SRAM rear shifter resulted in a parcel from ‘househusband’ containing not only an X7 rear shifter, but 2 X7 mechs also!

    Next job was to try and source some lighter air forks (the Luna 24 was upgraded to air forks a while ago), resulting in some slightly retro but VGC RS Duke XCs. The steerer length was spot on, so were an easy swap, 1.4lb saved in one hit, and better tunable to a light 10 year old!

    Final tweaks (all from the spares bin) included fitting some straight bars to get them a bit lower (saved a ridiculous 0.8lb on these alone, original steel risers were 1.3lb / 578g!), a lighter Specialized stem, some Kenda SB8s and fresh grips.

    So, it’s now 26.3lb with a few more tweaks to come to get it to sub 26lb (boat anchor QR skewers, lighter tubes, 2x specific front mech). OK not super-light, but fine for the budget, and slightly lighter than the Luna 24 had ended up.

    Thanks to those who helped out with parts!

    russyh
    Free Member

    Looks really cool, I am in the process (still) of upgrading my daughters Luna, in much the same way. albeit 24″ so parts are harder to source! So far i have changed to the same crankset as you but will be going 1×10 with extender i have some lighter wheels to fit courtesy of this forum and already running 24″ rocket rons. It’s not a cheap build but my boay is now five so my thinking is when he is the correct size a cheeky powder coat in a boyish colour means i will get 2 kids use out of the bike, daughter can then have mums bike and the wife a new one! Its like a circle of life!

    bartimaeus
    Free Member

    Very smart indeed – it’s a shame more kids don’t have the chance to ride bikes like this.

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    househusband
    Free Member

    Awesome; glad to see parts that have been in the spares box for a while being used again!

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Ooooh, nearly a match

    Old Specialized Hardrock (womens) here, with old Crossmax XL’s here:

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/vK36Fr]IMG_3083[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr

    Needs riding pics!

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/zAfybo]Wallace Warriors at Comrie Croft[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr
    [url=https://flic.kr/p/hBUsJo]Dunblane mountain bike ride[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/oV9qJu]Glen Dubh and Glen Kendrum[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/p5b7gA]SBC Wallace Monument Hillclimb[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr

    [url=https://flic.kr/p/kQaLyA]Cathkin Braes Mountain Biking[/url] by Matt Robinson, on Flickr

    pictonroad
    Full Member

    Could you post a Link for the cranks please?

    This looks great, amazing how heavy some of the oem kids components are.

    I’ve bought a worn out aluminium hotrock, everything on it is so heavy but the frame is nice. Plan is similar to yours but much harder to achieve with 20″.

    nre
    Free Member

    russyh – yes decent 24″ parts seem hard to come by, the Luna would have benefited from a lighter wheelset, but I just stuck to lighter tyres (schwalbe table tops), shimano hydros, air forks (retro RST XMO for a 26er that had pretty much the same axle to crown as the original forks), and some lighter straight bars.

    matt_outandabout – your Hardrock is getting more of a workout than my daughter will ever give the Myka, I fear! Has inherited her mother’s genes when it comes to the fear of falling off… and however often I fall off, it doesn’t seem to encourage her 😉

    I’ll post a follow up with some riding pics eventually…

    HH – thanks for your comments & contribution to the build!

    nre
    Free Member

    pictonroad – cranks are these ones:
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kettenradgarnitur-SR-Suntour-T20242-Z%C3%A4hne-schwarz/dp/B0029MP3AO/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1

    Took around a week to arrive from Germany.

    Having been through 20″ & 24″ bikes, I’m loving the compatability of the 26er with the contents of my spares bin 😉

    The frame is indeed nice, I’m a bit of a weight weenie so now have all of the parts catalogued in a spreadsheet. Frame with BB & headset is 3.9 lb…

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    your Hardrock is getting more of a workout than my daughter will ever give the Myka, I fear! Has inherited her mother’s genes when it comes to the fear of falling off… and however often I fall off, it doesn’t seem to encourage her

    We have a girl who started at bike club a year ago – tear because it was grass not road, tears because of riding next to others, tears because gears were needed, tears because everything was intimidating.

    Last week we went to Comrie Croft, where she showed her (nervous, walking down all sorts) mum how you ride a blue route! She loved it, and went back for round two. 8)

    Keep the faith (and the falling demo…)

    nre
    Free Member

    Thanks for the encouragement to encourage, matt!

    To be fair, she is now riding stuff that her mum won’t, so there’s hope!

    🙂

    leggyblonde
    Free Member

    What a great bike! I built up a similar lightweight parts bin Myka for my 5’1″ girlfriend which she loved before it got nicked.

    May I politely suggest SB8s might not be the confidence inspiring tyres for a nervous rider off- road unless it is bone dry?

    nre
    Free Member

    leggyblonde – we don’t tend to ride as a family if it’s muddy, but do have some other more appropriate tyres in the garage if need be. Current 24 is on schwalbe table tops which are similar in terms of tread depth etc and they seem to have done OK 🙂

    JoeG
    Free Member

    Needs a dropper! 😉

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Kids always end up with more bling than parents…

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    Currently watching a 13″ Myka on Ebay for MrsMC, she’s only 4’10”, should fit her….

    NormalMan
    Full Member

    Both my wife and daughter own Myka’s and are really happy with them.

    robdob
    Free Member

    “Currently watching a 13″ Myka on Ebay for MrsMC, she’s only 4’10”, should fit her….”

    I’ve just bought my wife a 13″ Myka for £75 off eBay. Perfect size as she Is 4’11”.

    Her current bike is awesome and I’ll never sell it as they don’t make them in this size anymore:

    It’s a 12.5″ GT from 1999, has Marzocchi Marathon forks on it (wonderful forks).

    poah
    Free Member

    JoeG – Member

    Needs a dropper

    its the way to go for kids bikes – only downside is lewis finds it difficult to press the button with only his thumb

    nre
    Free Member

    Quick update: Picked up a pair of Duke Race forks which are a smidge lighter, have dual air, and fit the colour scheme slightly better!

    Also fitted some Shimano QRs that are half the weight of the originals, so it’s now a smidge under 26lbs.

    Will sell the previous Dukes on…

    LS
    Free Member

    I recently picked up one of the mk1 Islabike Creig 26s for my daughter who is about to outgrow her Beinn 24. It’s barely used but had the SRAM 3×8 setup which I’ve switched to XT 1×10 thanks to the spares box. The Conti tyres had perished on the sidewalls so a couple of new Nevegal X-Pros have gone on courtesy of my team sponsor, and it went tubeless at the same time. Having an air-sprung fork is the big deal IMO, she’s less than 30Kgs and will probably be 50+ by the time she outgrows it so that ability to adjust is vital.

    The new tyres and some T-cut have basically made it look brand new, all ready for the Christmas present!

    nre
    Free Member

    Forks now listed on classifieds section

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