# Early Rider Limited Belter 16"



## jamesjbigler (Apr 26, 2004)

Does anyone have any experience with this bike?

It has a claimed weight under 13 lbs and has a very similar price to the Spawn Banshee.

I saw it listed under the kids bike section on REI's website. I searched on this forum and only found one mention of it with very little details.


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

jamesjbigler said:


> Does anyone have any experience with this bike?


Well, I don't have "experience", but I actually saw one in action and touched it. I was interested in purchasing this bike for my boy, but they were out of stock at the time.

The bike is VERY impressive. Early Rider addressed the major problems small kids encounter in bicycles, and executed good solutions, such as:

Low weight
No paint, just a clear coating (= scratches are less visible; there is no Boys vs. Girls color)
No chain (no greasy pants)
Two pedal threadings on the crankset
Powerful hand brakes

There is a review here (not mine):

Early Rider Belter 16" Kids Pedal Bike Review

The only thing I suspected will be a problem is the tire clearance, in case you want beefier dual-purpose tires. ER may have improved this on '16 models, but I don't know for sure.

The Spawn is a very potent competitor for this bike.

I eventually bought the slightly-heavier-but-cheaper Cleary Hedgehog, another good option for small kids.


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## jamesjbigler (Apr 26, 2004)

Thanks for all the great info. That is a good point about the smaller tires.

It is too bad you can't get a bike you can pedal with the Kenda 14" x 2.5" fatties tires.

Trail Runner XL ? Early Rider

My son loves to ride the pump track but claims our mountain bike trail is too "bumpy".


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## sdm74 (Jan 27, 2013)

oren_hershco said:


> Well, I don't have "experience", but I actually saw one in action and touched it. I was interested in purchasing this bike for my boy, but they were out of stock at the time.
> 
> The bike is VERY impressive. Early Rider addressed the major problems small kids encounter in bicycles, and executed good solutions, such as:
> 
> ...


How are you liking the cleary?


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## oren_hershco (Mar 11, 2006)

sdm74 said:


> How are you liking the cleary?


I wrote a detailed opinion here:
A review of the Cleary Hedgehog- Mtbr.com


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## RMCDan (Feb 28, 2008)

sdm74 said:


> How are you liking the cleary?


I own one. Pros: Great frame, great brakes, great wheels. Cons: Geared too low, stock bars are too narrow. The gearing is the real bugger, 25x16 is just really low.

The Spawn Banshee has a better parts spec and is the better bike off-the-shelf, but I like the geo on the Cleary better (2* slacker HT and longer WB which makes for a more stable ride). I looked high and low for an off-the-shelf wheel that would take a smaller freewheel but found nothing. Eventually Cleary took pity on me and built me a wheel with an M30 hub and 13t freewheel for a very reasonable price. The bars may not be an issue if it's going to be ridden mostly on the street, but wider bars are better for trail riding.

My recommendation would be to contact Cleary and ask if they can do a custom build with a 13t/M30 hub'ed rear wheel and the wide riser bars. If you find yourself wanting more gear inches than 25x13 you'll need a pair of Spawn's 102 mm cranks which are a not terribly expensive (but not cheap) upgrade. Also, if you want some good knobbies a pair of Schwalbe Black Jacks is about a $35 dollar upgrade (another nod to Spawn, the Banshee ships with the Black Jacks). You'll end up paying more than you would have for a Banshee, but IMO you'll end up with a better bike.


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## sdm74 (Jan 27, 2013)

Thanks for the info


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