# 24 to 26 inch wheels



## dr.dirt (May 4, 2004)

Sorry if this has been asked.
Looking for kids first 24inch bike. Saw that Rocky Mountain Reaper allows you to switch from a 24 inch wheel to 26 when the kid grows. Rad bike but looking for something around the $700 range.
Anyone else making bikes you can convert between 24 and 26.

Thanks


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## svinyard (Aug 14, 2017)

Interesting bike for sure. I think I like it as a 26in but not as a 24". I'd be concerned there would be too many geometry compromises at 24". If you have more than one kid, you might also run into overlap issues. That being said I haven't put my hands on one or my kid.


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## TigWorld (Feb 8, 2010)

There are many 26" frames that will work with 24" wheels particularly if you use disk brakes and appropriate length (short) cranks (because the 24" wheels will drop the bottom bracket height). My first daughter had a 24" FS bike and the second daughter used 24" wheels on her 26" FS frame for a year or so.


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## adaycj (Sep 30, 2009)

Do you really need 24 inch wheels/tires? A downward sloping top tube on a S or XS frame can make up for short legs and short reach. 

I bought a 24 inch bike for each of my kids and they were both a disappointment. One experience was so bad I decided to try a 26+ and the transformation was instant and amazing. I picked a Jamis 26+ Dragonfly, in a size small, but there are many examples of that frame geometry.

Lighter, a real fork, much safer steering, better brakes, improvement in traction. I'm sure a regular 26 or 27.5 would net similar results. 

The added bonus is you can typically extend the growth range with posts, stems, and bars. If you are trying to limit the number of bikes to buy as your kid grows, I think an early 26 makes more sense.


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## thesmokingman (Jan 17, 2009)

Yea, 24in was the biggest waste of money for me times two. Doh, I think one of my kids is already growing out of the 26er. Now he's eying my bike. Joking aside, I really would have skipped the 24in if I did it over again.


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## svinyard (Aug 14, 2017)

adaycj said:


> Do you really need 24 inch wheels/tires? A downward sloping top tube on a S or XS frame can make up for short legs and short reach.
> 
> I bought a 24 inch bike for each of my kids and they were both a disappointment. One experience was so bad I decided to try a 26+ and the transformation was instant and amazing. I picked a Jamis 26+ Dragonfly, in a size small, but there are many examples of that frame geometry.
> 
> ...


What 24in bike did you own? What was so bad about it?


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## GSJ1973 (May 8, 2011)

thesmokingman said:


> Yea, 24in was the biggest waste of money for me times two. Doh, I think one of my kids is already growing out of the 26er. Now he's eying my bike. Joking aside, I really would have skipped the 24in if I did it over again.


On the other hand, I completely disagree with the above two guys. Our kids were on 24" for almost 3 seasons.



adaycj said:


> Do you really need 24 inch wheels/tires? A downward sloping top tube on a S or XS frame can make up for short legs and short reach.
> 
> Lighter, a real fork, much safer steering, better brakes, improvement in traction. I'm sure a regular 26 or 27.5 would net similar results.
> 
> The added bonus is you can typically extend the growth range with posts, stems, and bars. If you are trying to limit the number of bikes to buy as your kid grows, I think an early 26 makes more sense.


Are you suggesting skipping 24" size completely and putting a 4 foot kid on a 26" bike with a 30-40mm stem?

There is so much wrong here (better brakes, really??) I'm not sure where to start aside from fit issues - namely standover height, reach, wheelbase, bars too high, etc..

There is early, and there is way too early. I wouldn't put my 5'2" wife on my XL 29er to put this into better perspective. You can't fix "too big" with a shorter stem to improve reach or inherently longer wheelbase issues on bikes that are just "too big". We buy bikes that fit now, not that they will "grow into" later.

To each their own though.


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## dc40 (Oct 4, 2013)

for me, i got more value out of my kid's Commencal Supreme 24" than his small Kona Process 167 (26"), because of a major growth spurt. He only had one season and half on 26" vs I got 3 seasons of riding on his 24".

You are always going take a gamble when purchasing bikes for your kids, IMO.


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## SactoGeoff (Aug 11, 2017)

Some of the "24 vs 26" issue is also when you buy them a 24". If you buy them a 24" when they're at the bottom of the sizing scale Vs the middle of the scale, well you're going to get more time from it. But throwing a kid on a bike that's too big and taking the "eh they'll grow into it" approach isn't ideal either. 

Lastly, not all 24" kids bikes have the same fit or size range. They're close. But some are slightly bigger than others.

The VPace 24" will fit a very small rider. And the Vpace 26" will fit a kid who would typically fit a 24" - just an example.

Also keep in mind, the above posters may have only had access or desire to buy a POS 24" bike Vs what's available today. There's a pretty big difference in usability. Then stepped up their degree of quality on the 26" bike due to the perceived "value" since the kid is getting bigger and therefore stronger. So it's rationalized as "worth it".


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## jochribs (Nov 12, 2009)

I'm in agreement with GSJ1973, DC40 and Sacto. I would definitely do it again as far as 24" goes. I figure my son has another season after this one on these wheels. Even if not, and he has a major growth spurt over the winter, or heck, even over this summer, he'll still have gotten a solid two seasons out of his MX24. 

As Sacto brought up, keep an eye on the details/geo (reach/stack/effective TT length. I picked my sons Orbea MX24 Team Disc 'because' of its 52cm ETT length...with short chainstays...and because it was a solid platform to build on/upgrade. 

There are some really short TT 24's out there, and there are some that have just absolutely stupid stack heights which force you to have nose bleed seating handlebar height (because they're built around 26" forks).

Look at what your guy/gal is on now, assess their fit, then compare that to what's out there. There might be a good 24 out there which is a good fit and that can also be grown with, or there might be a 26 that covers that same base.

Like Sacto said V-PACE builds around the idea that you are on the next size up wheels while maintaining the reach (and somewhat stack due to really short head tubes) of the size down/size commonly associated with a particular rider height. Looking at numbers, I think Trailcraft kind of works like this too, although I think their numbers are more in tbe middle.


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