# Early Rider Belter vs Cleary Hedgehog



## aski (Oct 12, 2006)

Christmas shopping for my 4yo daughter and I've narrowed it down to these two. I'm really torn as both have their pro's and con's. The only thing I'm a bit concerned about with the Belter is the gearing. I've contacted Early Rider and they informed me that it's 46T/22T which results in a gain ratio of approx 4.3. Most of the other bikes are in the 3.4 range (the Cleary included with a 25T/16T). I've read that people say the Cleary gearing is a bit low, but 4.3 sounds a bit high. Anyone out there have experience with the Belter?


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## ClearyBikes (Nov 15, 2014)

*Cleary Hedgehog has variable gear range*

The Cleary Hedgehog comes stock with a 25x16, however by threading on a new BMW-style freewheel cog that ratio can be adjusted from 25x20 to 25x13. 
It's not possible to change the gear on the other bike because you can't change the belt length.
The Cleary Hedgehog chain stays on in every riding condition, which also is not the case with the belt.
The Cleary Hedgehog comes with a real seat and seatpost allowing for fit adjustment, which makes a big difference for power transfer. Again, not available on the other bike.



aski said:


> Christmas shopping for my 4yo daughter and I've narrowed it down to these two. I'm really torn as both have their pro's and con's. The only thing I'm a bit concerned about with the Belter is the gearing. I've contacted Early Rider and they informed me that it's 46T/22T which results in a gain ratio of approx 4.3. Most of the other bikes are in the 3.4 range (the Cleary included with a 25T/16T). I've read that people say the Cleary gearing is a bit low, but 4.3 sounds a bit high. Anyone out there have experience with the Belter?


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

Your concern should be about the ability to change gearing, and not on the specific ratio of the original bike.

Kids differ in strength; your typical riding courses may be different from other persons's choices; and your 4 year old girl will be, well, 5 year old, a year from now. By that time she'll be stronger than today.

When you have only one gear, the possibility to alter it is very important.

My kid started, 1.5 years ago, with the original Cleary Hedgehog (25x16). That was fine to start with. I wasn't aware of any replacement freewheel at the time, so I changed the crankset to Spawn Cycles, which has a standard 64mm bolt circle. The ratio was now 28x16.

Today the ratio is 30x16, as the boy became stronger.

Other than that, I think the Hedgehog is a very good kids bike.

Another modification I did can be seen here (I think the original straight handlebar is wrong, ergonomically): 
http://forums.mtbr.com/families-rid...ksweep-handlebar-problem-solution-980627.html

I started this mod with Spawn's 40cm wide handlebar; today it has Spawn's 46 cm wide handlebar.


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## aski (Oct 12, 2006)

oren_hershco said:


> My kid started, 1.5 years ago, with the original Cleary Hedgehog (25x16). That was fine to start with. I wasn't aware of any replacement freewheel at the time, so I changed the crankset to Spawn Cycles, which has a standard 64mm bolt circle. The ratio was now 28x16.


A very good point, Oren. I had read your thread where you changed the crankset on your kid's bike along with a couple other reviews of the Hedgehog on MTBR. The information I've found here on the message boards have been very helpful. A month ago, I was pretty set on the Early Rider, but I've since learned of the replacement freewheels for the Cleary and that has completely changed my thinking due to the reason you gave. With Cleary's riser bar and the ability to alter the saddle position, the Hedgehog is definitely more fit adjustable.

I was just curious if any MTBR'ers had experience with the Early Rider. There is one kids bike out there (I forgot which one) that had a similar gear ratio as the Early Rider and some parents expressed concern that the gearing was too high. I just hadn't read that concern with the Early Rider in the limited discussions/reviews I've come across.


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## shank3r (Aug 15, 2013)

I got my Kid a Belter 20 Trail 3s for his 6th birthday in June...it's a GREAT bike and none other in it's size range could compare.

In low gear he can climb just fine and on the flats in high gear he can hit 16mph effortlessly


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

shank3r said:


> I got my Kid a Belter 20 Trail 3s


He talks about the Belter 16, which is a single speed bike.

I do have to say: I actually held a Belter 16, and it is an amazing bike. It's VERY light, and the "no color" is a great choice for a kid bike.

Can someone please put a link for these Hedgehog-compatible freewheel?


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## aski (Oct 12, 2006)

Yep, I'm comparing against the Belter 16" bike. Despite having never seen one in person, I'm sure the Early Riders are awesome bikes. They do certainly have a "cool" factor.

Here's that link to the Cleary freewheels that are compatible with the Hedgehog:
https://clearybikes.com/products/freewheel-sprokets


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

OK, thanks. Now: can someone please explain the difference between Standard and Metric? Do they all fit the Hedgehog?


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## aski (Oct 12, 2006)

I've exchanged a couple emails with Cleary regarding the freewheels. It appears that Cleary is now using a flip flop hub for the Hedgehog. One side of the hub accepts the standard size sprockets while the opposite side accepts the metric sizes. What has me now leaning towards the Hedgehog is the fact that you can have two sprockets installed at the same time (one standard, one metric) and by simply flipping the wheel around, you essentially have a two speed bike.

I assume you can only use the metric size freewheels if your Hedgehog has the newer flip flop hub. I don't know when they started using the new hub though.


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

I have the '15 model, without flip-flop hub. So, is it metric or standard?


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## stevelim (Jul 23, 2008)

One thing to consider, having had belt drives before, is that if you want to change the gearing on the Early Rider it will cost a lot more than the Hedgehog as you will need to change the belt as well as the cog. 3 pounds lighter than the Hedgehog sounds pretty sweet though

We had a Hedgehog for our daughter from 3.5-5 y.o. Great bike. The gearing is low which is great initially but she definitely had a period where she was spinning/coasting a lot (more so on paved rides than dirt). I considered building up a 3 speed 16" wheel (hub spacing suits the older Sturmey Archer 3 speed hubs) but we ended up just moving her to a 20" geared bike. T

he new flip flop hub sounds great - might have to look at that when our 2.5 year old is ready for the Hedgehog


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## aski (Oct 12, 2006)

oren_hershco said:


> I have the '15 model, without flip-flop hub. So, is it metric or standard?


I don't have much experience with the thread on freewheels, but what little I have read here lately leads me to believe that you most likely have standard threads. It appears freewheels with 16 or more teeth are generally standard and those with 15, 14 or 13 teeth are metric.



stevelim said:


> 3 pounds lighter than the Hedgehog sounds pretty sweet though.


Yeah, this might be the biggest advantage the Belter has, but I'm not sure it outweighs the ability to alter the gearing. My little girl might feel those 3 lbs initially, but should quickly get stronger and handle it. Still much better weight than the walmart bikes you see most kids on.


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## RMCDan (Feb 28, 2008)

ClearyBikes said:


> The Cleary Hedgehog comes stock with a 25x16, however by threading on a new BMW-style freewheel cog that ratio can be adjusted from 25x20 to 25x13.


Glad to hear you guys made that hub standard. Good move.



oren_hershco said:


> Your concern should be about the ability to change gearing, and not on the specific ratio of the original bike.


This. My boy started at the stock 25x16 and moved up to 28x13, 32x13 and 34x13 as he got stronger. Changing the gear ratio on the Belter will be expensive and a huge PITA. Too bad, they are nice looking bikes otherwise.



aski said:


> There is one kids bike out there (I forgot which one) that had a similar gear ratio as the Early Rider and some parents expressed concern that the gearing was too high. I just hadn't read that concern with the Early Rider in the limited discussions/reviews I've come across.


46x22 is 2.1:1 (approximately equivalent to the 32x16). That's a reasonable middle ground if you had to pick one gear ratio. But, IMO, you're still better off with something more readily adjustable.

If you get the Cleary, I have a set of 102 mm cranks with a 32t chainring I'll give you for free+shipping if you want them. I bought them from a shop in Holland that assured me they were aluminum. Turns out they were steel, so they refunded me in full and didn't want them back. I used them for about 2 weeks while I waited on a set of Spawn cranks and they've been in a box ever since. Funnily, I weighed both sets after the Spawn cranks arrived and they're only 80 grams heavier than the Spawns as-shipped with the steel bashring and chainring.



oren_hershco said:


> I have the '15 model, without flip-flop hub. So, is it metric or standard?


Standard ISO thread. 16t is as small as you can go on that one.



aski said:


> What has me now leaning towards the Hedgehog is the fact that you can have two sprockets installed at the same time (one standard, one metric) and by simply flipping the wheel around, you essentially have a two speed bike.


Keep in mind, you will have to change the chain length when switching between the different sprockets.


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

RMCDan said:


> Funnily, I weighed both sets after the Spawn cranks arrived and they're only 80 grams heavier than the Spawns....


Well, surprisingly the Spawn's chainring is not very light, and the aluminum bashguarg is also heavy. Taking them off and installing a proper chainring, takes off more than 150gr!


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## RMCDan (Feb 28, 2008)

Yeah, that bashguard weighs a ton. In the pics on Spawn's site I had assumed it was plastic. Serious head scratcher considering how weight-conscious the rest of the Banshee is.


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