No kids bike at this price point is perfect but I do like the Vitus better. HTA is slacker, wider gearing range and disk brakes. Disk brakes are a game changer for a kid going downhill. You can also get some really cheap hydros and put those on too. There are some flaws but I do think its a better bike. Shipping is free and will be in USA in about 5 days. It's worth checking out too.

Vitus

 

At least one listing I was able to find shows it as 26lbs, which seems pretty heavy for the price:
https://www.the-house.com/qgtstp20cb17zz-gt-bikes.html

At least around here, similar used Treks tend to go for around $50-100 on Facebook marketplace.

From your post a few months back, it sounded like she had a tall enough inseam that 24" bikes might be an option -- had you tried out any 24" bikes locally?

 

Thats a nice deal. Didn't see it was 26lbs tho...that's heavy man. I'm guessing its the Steel frame instead of Alum?

Sizing wise, if your kid is about 50"+, then there is nothing better than this for under 500$ (and most over 500$ too). Very very nice bike.

Vitus

 

While I wouldn't buy a bike from a big box store, Walmart or Targer may have some 24" options that would work to get an approximation for sizing I'd there isn't anything in stock at your LBS.

 

Travelled to another Bike Shop, we tried a Cannondale Quick 24 and it fits her fine. She's is a little wobbly testing the 24 vs the 20 version. You are right, she needs a 24.

 

If you know her height and inseam you can tell what will work size wise without putting her on a bike. Some of those big brand geos are just so weird that it might not be a good test anyways.

 

What do you guys think about this bike for a 24"?

https://www.framedbikes.com/collect...es/products/framed-cable-24-w-rst-fork-mountain-bike-kids?variant=8226155823155

 

Some good but some really bad. Hard pass. Cranks are incredibly long. I know some 6-1 guys that run 165mm cranks. Downright dangerous on this bike, the cranks will hit stuff and the kid will crash. Fork might be ok? If its an airfork it might be. Hard to tell. Geo is getting long out back. Price is nice but hard pass due to the cost of fixing cranks and silly steep HTA 70d+ (also dangerous on hardtail).

 

Thanks for the feedback.

Any thoughts on the Vitus 24?
https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/us/en/vitus-24-kids-bike/rp-prod168788

 

Their out of stock hardtail is the dopeness. That bike there is a road/neighborhood bike. Dangerous for kids MTB (those tires will bring crashes for sure) but for super mellow stuff it might be fine. I wouldn't buy it at all. Not a mtb bike.

 

Update: I got hands on with this GT Stomper Prime 20" bike last weekend. A buddy bought one for about 210$ from Level 9 (he got free shipping too somehow). Its a pretty little bike. I liked it a lot and there was some thought that when into it for sure too.

The thing that immediately jumped out to me, is that the frame and the fork both have bosses built out for disk brakes. Pretty sweet! The bars and seat aren't bad, tires are decent sized etc. Grip shift isn't my favorite but it worked enough. Cranks are nice length too iirc. It didn't have a bunch of BS like kickstand etc either. Sweet ride for the price point and you aren't forced into rim brakes if you could find some cheap 20" wheels and get some cheapo Tektro brakes off ebay.

 

I saw one of these this weekend at a kids bike race (non competitive) and was also pretty impressed that it came with disk brake mounts stock. I am a sucker for GT color ways.

 

Just picked up this bike for my 5 1/2 year old. The LBS had it originally marked at $269 but was having a labor day weekend sale and said he would sell it for $199. I couldn't pass it up. My guess is it's the 2018 model, which might explain the extreme mark down. I couldn't find one online for that cheap when I looked after I bought it. Plus, it's good to support the LBS in my opinion. So far he loves it. Turning that grip shift will take some getting used to though, as it requires a little hand strength. And my only other criticism, which probably applies to most bikes for little kids, is the size of the brake levers. They all seem to come with brake levers that are much too large relative to their hand size. He needs to use all 4 fingers to squeeze the lever. But overall, very impressed with the bike so far.

 

Forgot to ask, any idea what tire pressure to run? We went on a dirt path yesterday and he seemed to be bouncing all around. I know it's dependent on weight, maybe you can just list the rider weight with your tire pressure?

As an aside, has anyone converted this tire/rim combo to tubeless? The tires are kenda small block eights, and the rims are just some no name oem.

thanks!!

 

had this bike for my kid for about 14 months now, its a daily ride to school through every bump and trail feature he can find. only issue we've had was breaking a vbrake noodle which was a $5 part. you can go batty trying to find the perfect kids bike and I'm happy with this one and the kid loves it