24" Wheel bike for a nearly 9 year old

[Tom B]

Mr 9 year old needs a new bike, ideally pretty urgently before our hols in August.

He has a 60cm / 24" inside leg so online reckoners suggest 24" wheeled bikes with be the man for the job

He is a confident rider who has been brought up on Frog bikes, but I'm happy to consider something else now, especially as frog parts are a bit in short supply and I don't particularly want to support Frasers group.

He wants something that looks a bit mountain bikey, but he rides mainly on paths roads and light rough off road. He wants something thats as happy playing on the street as it is doing a bit of shopping and going to the park and something he can do 50+ miles on over a day on the camel trail

Ideally I'd want

Not BSO
Decent Geometry / Weight
Disk Brakes
Trigger Grear - NOT Gripshift alike

Normally we buy second hand - good condition or at least with doing up potential but would go new if there was a good deal

I have looked at the Scott Scale 24 which ticks the boxes but there is nothing available nearbyish - ideally I want the alter disk brake fitted versions.

Can anyone recommend anything / seen anything while browsing?

 

[Punkawallah]

The first three requirements are ‘frame sensitive’, but trigger gears you can add afterward. You can now widen your search to include ‘grip shift’ options.

 

[Reynard]

As a rider of junior bikes (undertall lady here), anything remotely mountainbikey won't come with trigger shifters unless you're prepared to spend silly money. Some revoshifts are better than others, but if you're buying used, then just look on the 'bay as trigger shifters can be had there fairly inexpensively.

I'd look for a Specialized Hotrock 24 - it should tick all the boxes except for the disc brakes. I ride one that I picked up at the local tip last summer for £35, and I genuinely can't fault it for both tarmac and farm tracks / gravel. It's a comfortable, easy riding and well-specced bike for what it is - 3x7 Shimano Tourney, Tektro cantilever brakes, Suntour forks, plus eyes for mudguards, rack, and bolts for a bottle cage.

Sure, as an alloy frame it's not the armchair comfy ride of my vintage steel MTB, but then I did chuck a load of fancy parts at that...

I'm 4ft 11 with a 27 inch inside leg btw, just to give you an idea. Am currently still using it on the twist shifters, but I have a set of combo trigger and brake pods in the garage waiting to be fitted for when I've got the time.

Also worth looking at - if you can still find one - is the Wiggins Chartres 24. They're pretty rare as they stopped making them a few years ago, but I have the 26 inch wheel version of the original 2016 release, which was very highly specced and included 3x9 Altus drivetrain, disc brakes and trigger shifters. If memory serves, the 24 inch version was a single chain ring. The later plain grey versions are lower specced but still worth looking at. I've done many an away day on my Chartres bike - mine is set up for utility and touring.