Bicycle for my three year old....
 

In a twist of irony my son tells me last night that he wants a "big boy bike":D

Then when I asked what kind of bike he said "A Dora bike would be neat". Ouch:)


Any advice on fitment? Is the old "tiptoes on the ground" rule still in effect? Oh, and there will not be a Dora bike:D

Oh come on Kach, you give my kids bicycle thread one star? That's cold man:)

I bought my son a Trek Jet 16" a few weeks ago for his fourth birthday. He's a bit short for his age & as you can see in the pics, there's still room to adjust it lower. He could have rode it at 3 no problem. It is a good quality & a bit spendy for a first bike at $150. I figure you get what you pay for.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1177610789.jpg

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1177610807.jpg

Edit: On fitment, I adjusted the seat so the his knee is slightly bent when the pedal is at the lowest point. My son watches Dora, but prefers Go Diego. He wanted a battery powered riding John Deere dump truck like the nieghbor has, but he already has a Corvette. I told him that if he whined anymore about it, the car would be sold & he wouldn't get anything. I'm not going to raise a spoiled brat. I didn't hear about the dump truck again.

Here's a pic of the Corvette.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1177611778.jpg

3 year old, his feet shouldn't be on tiptoes, he should be able to easily and firmly reach the ground.

For a 3 yo, just buy the cheapest bike you can find, it's just going to be a throwaway in a year or so. And those small bikes are all just around the same anyways, they all come out of china at a cost of around $15-$20 each, complete.

Unless you just like spending money, go to a garage sale to get one. They are out there by the thousands, almost new, for pennies on the dollar.

We went and let my daughter pick put what she wanted, and luckily for us, she wanted a bike to match her dirt bike (Honda CRF50F), so this is what we got. I love it, since I won't have to buy another one for my son....

She bought the Schwinn Gremlin in Red. I can't get the picture to post so here is the website.

Bill


http://www.schwinnbike.com/products/bikes_detail.php?id=737

It was a long time ago but my son's first bike was a Diamondback Mini Viper, candy red. Cost about $125 in 1985!!! My then wife thought he would do fine with something from Gemco (Remember those? Think a current K-Mart or sorta/kinda a Walmart). I said his first "set of wheels" has to set him on the right path of appreciation for all things wheeled. I was full of it, of course but he's a car nut to this very day!

Holy crap Dan, I still have my Diamond Back Viper. My was silver though. I got mine in 84, smile. It was my second bike though, my first one had a bananna seat and some sweet ape hangers!

Bill

Dan, your an old school BMXer aren't you!!

If it was me, I would search for a pre-80s Schwinn 16" Scrambler, like Dan said, set the path!!!

Thanks guys, I went to the bike shop at lunch and saw the one Schrup posted. It looks like a decent deal and a well made little bike. I appreciate the fact that he doesn't need a decent first bike, but since his little brother is one I'm looking at getting 4 years out of it.

Plus I already told him that we would go to the bike shop and let him help pick one out and he's aweful geeked about it. Had I thought ahead I would have just come home with one but I gave him my word now.

Vamanos! Damn you Shaun:D

We bought our kids bikes from a local bike shop that assembles, fits, adjusts and maintains the bikes. We paid more than we would have at a K-Mart or Sam's Club, but the service and support we got from the local bike shop was great! Daniel now has a full-size bike and Rebecca will probably get a new bike this summer. fitting the bike to the child is important and the local bike shop has the expertise!

I got my son a Redline BMX 16" wheels that is now discontinued but looks a lot like this:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1177614717.jpg

Had to special order it, but worth the wait. He loves his bike, it is way cool. However, a rear coaster brake may be necessary if your son's hands aren't strong enough for hand brakes.

P.S. Oh, wait, your son is 3 y/o? Then this bike won't work, too big.

I don't normally rate threads, but I just had to rate your thread with 5 stars. It's a kid and a bike for goodness sake! :)

Lendaddy,

IMO, $40 at Walmart. You can't beat that price and its not like he's bunny hopping and doing tricks yet. Consider this, you might want to give the next in line a brand new bike rather than his older brother's used one.

I personally have bought 2 12", 2 16", and 2 20" (Plus 2 stingrays) for the two boys (3 years apart). When their friends come over to play you'll appreciate avoiding the "its time to share fights." Having extra bikes around is very nice, although storage can be tricky.

My advice is to buy a spoke wrench. The bikes almost always require some spoke alignment issues. Once sorted the ride is sweet.

I sure hope you don't let your kids ride in the street- they might slow down traffic:)
It will be interesting to see how your attitude changes when you see cars playing with your kids on their bikes.

Keep them safe. If you buy a bike at walmarts or some other large chain go over the bike well yourself- they have probably been essentially thrown together. Check every bolt, check wheel alignment, check brake adjustments, etc. That is one advantage to buying a bike at a good shop- the bike may be almost the same, but it will be assembled with care and experience.
Then buy a good bike helmet that fits. Not one that will fit his brother, or that he can grow into- one that fits now. This I would get at a true bike shop, no matter where I bought the bike. Some of the better helmet used to have an upgrade program for kids- you could exchange helmets for a larger size for like $25- Bell had it in the past and we used it for both of my kids as they were growing up.
Enjoy the sport- but keep them safe.
Gary
gchappel

But bikes are dangerous...you yourself pointed out the statistics. People die on them every day. How could you do that to your kid?

sorry, couldn't resist :p

Didn't you read the first line of my post?:D

"In a twist of irony my son tells me last night that he wants a "big boy bike"

I thought the irony was that he said he wanted a big boy bike, only moments before outing himself!