Best list of 20 inch children's bikes: Better light and reduced
Children's bikes test: Parents of five to eight year olds take note: here are eleven 20-inch children's bikes whose sporty, reduced design hides a great deal of utility - at least in most cases. You can also get high-quality material at low prices, which is good for a lot of driving fun.
Designing a good children's bike is either very easy or almost impossible - depending on which of our eleven test bikes you look at. Velomotion had asked various manufacturers for a "sporty" 20-inch model - not a school bike with carrier, mudguard and lighting system, but something for leisure trips and tours on asphalt and unpaved paths, plus maybe for one or the other detour to the Terrain. 20 inches, mind you – a bike aimed at children between the ages of five and eight, around 115 to 130 cm tall and weighing around 20 to 30 kilos. A small person who is still far away from the performance of a teenager or even an adult in terms of motor skills, strength and cognitive ability.
We put that first to make it clear that the demands placed on a children's bike are radically different from those placed on a full-size bike, no matter the make or model. It starts with the fact that a child of this age basically only needs one bike that can be used anywhere – to kindergarten or school, in leisure time and on tours. Small children don’t need a fleet of city bikes, racing bikes and mountain bikes that many adults have in their basements – rather a range of different vehicles such as bicycles, scooters, skateboards, etc.
Children's bikes test: suitable for everyday use, sporty ... or both?
What kind of children's bike is in the basement depends to a large extent on the parents: If they themselves only ride the bike occasionally or perhaps not very much, they will give their child a typical three-speed model with all the trimmings - the typical school bike, with which you can't go wrong. However, if mum and dad are active everyday cyclists themselves or even sporty on the road, they will value other things: low weight, for example, and smooth running - neither of which is exactly the domain of models with hub gears, lights, carriers, chain guards and so on . A lot of it isn't really necessary. Instead of a permanently installed lighting system, battery lights can be installed if required and you can also control their use yourself, especially since a six to eight-year-old child should not be out and about alone on a bike in the dark. A luggage rack is also not absolutely necessary, especially since its use is limited. Parents can transport the children's luggage on tours, and backpacks and satchels can be shouldered on the way to kindergarten and school anyway. And instead of permanently mounted, heavy metal mudguards, plastic protectors from the MTB sector can be attached.
This makes it clear that a "sporty" children's bike can definitely be suitable for everyday use - and with two properties already mentioned, it is superior to conventional children's bikes anyway: weight and smooth running. The former is classified by some experts as rather unimportant, but in relation to the rider's weight, a normal children's bike is extremely heavy. A seven-year-old child weighs an average of 25 kilos, but has to move a bike weighing twelve kilos and more - no wonder if he is struggling with it. In addition, many school bikes are equipped with the already mentioned three-speed hubs - often very simple examples that are real power guzzlers with poor efficiency: They make pedaling difficult, and if the child lets roll, they brake. A light bike with derailleur gears is clearly superior here; high-quality tires with lower rolling resistance also pay off.
At this point, however, the matter of sportiness can tip over - namely if this means the equipment with components that give the appearance of utility and functionality, but are actually a disadvantage. This includes everything that increases the weight without providing a functional equivalent, such as suspension forks with such a high breakaway torque that they hardly respond or only respond to extreme impacts, extremely wide tires that are oversized or complicated for the needs of six to eight year olds Circuits whose scope of translation does not correspond to the reality of use by smaller children. Of course, such components are not specified by mistake. They act as a lure that suggests adventure and off-road fun, but they don't turn the rider into a mountain biker any more than a toy sword turns you into a dragon slayer. And it's not just the kids that fall for it; often enough it is uninformed parents who allow themselves to be dazzled by the flood of technology.
Children's bikes test: manufacturers on the right track
After all: Of our eleven test bikes, six are just under or well under ten kilos; only three move twelve kilos. These three are equipped with suspension forks; one of them even works to some extent. And all but one manufacturer equip their bikes with just one chainring so that the kids don't get lost in the gear jungle. In most cases, common sense also prevails when it comes to sitting posture, and most bikes are equipped with tires that are suitable for the conditions of use of smaller children. And ultimately there are only two bikes in the test field that you really have to advise against. All the others can be used on tours and in everyday life, some can be equipped with fixed mudguards and here and there are even equipped with the practical side stand.
Interestingly, when it comes to children's bikes, you can't necessarily go by the price: the cheapest bike is in the upper middle range in terms of quality, while the tail light is rather expensive at a good 400 euros. This is due to the fact that complex technology costs money, even if it is of no use. In any case, one shouldn't forget that good children's bikes are also in great demand on the used market. After two years of frequent use, half the original price is still possible; So you don't have to be overly frugal. But enough of the preamble - curtain up for the Velomotion best list for children's bikes.
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