18" bike?

[emschwar]

We're getting DS a bike for his 6th birthday. He's TALL and needs an 18" bike (we "tried on" at TRU this weekend). He's at the highest height for a 16" bike, but just a little too short to comfortably ride a 20". But I'm discovering that 18" bikes, aside from the 2 they had at TRU are hard to find. Any advice on where to find one? We really want to keep it under $100. I haven't found anything on CL and perusing the local bike shop websites has shown me nothing in the price range we're looking for (we did see a used one for $110, but still, I'd rather pay a lot less, especially for used).

[o_mom]

18" isn't a standard size, which is why you are having trouble finding one. Did he try the 20" bikes at the bike shops? Different brands fit differently. We found that the 14" bike seat actually didn't go as low as the seat on the 16" Trek. The other thing to look at is if the 20" seat adjusts all the way down. Sometimes the seat post is too long to allow it to adjust all the way down to the tube. If this is the case, a bike shop can cut the end of the post off so that you can adjust it lower.

[emschwar]

We didn't go to a bike shop, just TRU. We did only try 1 20" at TRU - it was just too tall for him to ride safely. All the ones I've seen at the bike shop websites are just too spendy.

[o_mom]

Maybe try the 20" ones at Target or Walmart. Or, if you can find a size that works at the bike shop, you can look for it on CL. We had tried the Trek at the bike shop, but weren't quite ready to spend that much. Went home to think it over and found one on CL soon after that while we were still considering what to do.

[emschwar]

Oh, good idea to try the 20" at target. Never occurred to me, since the 20" at TRU was too big. We'll do that this weekend!

[catmele]

Walmart has a few 18" bikes. My soon to be 7-year old also needs an 18" & we have been shopping around for one.

[emschwar]

Our walmart didn't have any 18" ones. TRU had a coupon for bikes on yesterday's member only sale, so we picked one up then.

[pakin]

I've just bought this bike for DS: http://www.walmart.com/ip/18-Razor-Boy-s-Kobra-Bike/10268833

Shipping was only $2.97 so I chose the "ship to home" option. We'll see if the bike is any good.

Pakin

DS 4/2001
DD 6/2005

[catmele]

Funny! I also just ordered the same bike from Walmart as the above poster. We should be getting it anyday now. Will let you know if we like it!

[pakin]

[QUOTE=pakin;2676876]I've just bought this bike for DS: http://www.walmart.com/ip/18-Razor-Boy-s-Kobra-Bike/10268833

Shipping was only $2.97 so I chose the "ship to home" option. We'll see if the bike is any good.

/QUOTE]

The bike was shipped really fast. It showed up at our house 3 days after I ordered. DH put it together fairly easily. (He is an engineer.) The only tricky thing was the handbrake. The bike is a little bit heavy for DS. DH said that's what you get when you want a cheap bike. Generally we agreed with all the reviews on Walmart website. Anyway DS really likes it.

Pakin

DS 4/2001
DD 6/2005

[catmele]

Pretty much have the same comments.... came really quick.. pretty easy to put together & DS loves it! Looks a lot cooler than some other 18" bikes we have seen so hopefully he can keep this one for a while!