RALEIGH Raleigh Bikes Rowdy Kids Bike Boys Youth Years Old Bicycle

I’m an avid cyclist and former bike shop mechanic. I do all my own bike repairs. We bought the 20” for our 7-year-old son on his birthday. I think he should be able to ride it until he’s about 9. The fit’s a bit “old school”, not modern “long, low and slack”. What that means is that his weight is centered forward a bit more than I’d like, but that’s probably not all that important for this age group. It puts him in an attacking position, which he likes, but also makes it easy to get in trouble if he relies on the front brake too much, especially on steep downhills. He’s already gone down once, and although I didn’t see it, what he described sounded like grabbing too much front brake. I learned on XC-style mountain bikes, so he can too.Assembly was typical for a boxed bike. I opened up the headset and added some grease. It wasn’t completely dry but a bit more could help. The wheels were reasonably true. I’ll true them and check the bearings in a couple of months. The bottom bracket was a mess. I noticed some catching when I rotated the cranks, which continued after I removed the chain. When I removed the cranks and bottom bracket, I found the shell was full of metal shavings. They would have destroyed the bearings pretty quickly. I cleaned everything out and regreased.I like the thin handlebars and grips; they’re great for small hands, though the grips tend to slide off easily. I’ll have to find a way to “glue” them into place. The brake levers can also be adjusted in for small hands, though you then have less pull available before the levers bottom out on the bars. The “Grip Shift” style shifters are OK; about what you’d expect at this price point. The rear derailleur is junk. I didn’t realize Shimano made such low-end stuff. I replaced it with a short-cage 105 derailleur I had lying around and the difference is amazing. I recommend the upgrade. Similar derailleurs can be had for about $30.All in all it’s about what I expected at this price. At about 20lbs it’s a lot lighter than his other bike and gets him accustomed to hand brakes and shifting.

We bought the new 20" on January 8th 2020 for our 7 years' old boy. During this Covid-19 time, biking in the community maybe the only activity kids can do under the shelter in place order. My 7 years old rides his bike much more than before, I noticed the bike will stop by itself, and he complaint it to me as well that he tripled couple times because of it. That was my fault, I didn't pay much attention of it. Today, I took him out for biking, and my son ride it on the sidewalk and I was jogging behind him, and all the sudden it stoped. He fell really badly on the chin on the edge of the curb, and leave about 1.5 inch wide, and about 0.5 inch deep open wound under his chip. We had to rush to the urgent care during the Covid-19 time. I write the review now, since feel the sense of urgency that could happen at time to any other kids. Hope the company do investigation with the case, and contact me also please, need to figure the way to ship it back.

After considerable research for a 16” bike for our son who out grew his Cleary gecko we decided to order the Raleigh Rowdy 16”. Our son is a very strong bike rider on and off the road and needs a bike to stand up to his ability and not too heavy to maneuver. At this point another Cleary, Frog, or WOOM was out of our price point. My husband assembled the bike in less than an hour. Twowheelingtots.com is a very helpful site when researching kids bikes.

This bike has amazing value and if it is within your budget for your child and you want to step up to significantly better quality without significantly higher price, this is the ultimate sweet spot IMO. It is a HUGE step up from Walmart/Target/Dicks bikes and despite what a few LBS owners on here are claiming (maybe some margin bias?), a friend with his own LBS has confirmed that this bike has excellent value on par with what he sells. I priced this with some of his own inventory, including Cleary, etc., and for what you get, he recommended to go with this bike. I don't have anything against owning a Huffy, Schwinn, etc. variety from Walmart/Target, etc., and growing up, that's what I learned on. However, if you have the option to spend a little more for a better quality bike that makes the transition from pedal brake single-speed 16" to a handbrake 6spd, this bike will allow for better longterm investment and much better ride for your little one. The biggest benefit outside of improved frame and components is the weight savings compared to cheaper bikes. With an overall weight of 21lbs reported on multiple sites, though I didn't independently verify, seems fairly accurate. You just can't get that weight range in this price point.It has many favorable qualities for a 6-10 y/o in the 20" category and works as a great beginner mountain bike that can easily transition to the road. It matches up very favorably against high-end kid specific brands like the Cleary Owl 3spd 20", for much less than even their single speed, and while not quite as nice as the likes of Spawn, Prevelo, Guardian, or Woom, it also gets you 90% of the way there for more then half the price of many of those! It is also 3+lbs lighter than the lowest tier Trek options like the Precaliber 20", and while that's a nice durable bike, this is $120 cheaper minimum. The Precaliber has a front suspension, but at this age, that is of minimal use IMO. I would take the weight savings over the suspension any day.If you are looking for a solid value bike that gives you mostly quality components, relatively lightweight frame, threadless stem, and Shimano 6spd with dual hand breaks, this bike is a great transition bike. I hesitate to spend $400+ on a bike that my child will at max only use for 3 years, but wouldn't hesitate to spend the $80-120 extra over the Walmart/Target/Dicks varieties. If you have "hand-me-down" aspirations, this bike would be perfect. It offers better components, better frame, better weight savings, and with a decent assembly and tune, can provide years of joy. Two-wheeling Tots has this bike listed as their "Best Value" bike in the 20" category and I can easily see why.The few things I don't like about this bike are:-The aggressive stance means my son sits/leans forward quite a bit in a permanent attack position. My son picked up on it quickly, but it is still a little more aggressive than I would have preferred for 7 y/o. It also means that long rides are a little more tiresome. The handlebar grips are on very securely (someone else said theirs was coming off), but, much like others mentioned, aren't very comfy. Otherwise, no complaints so far.For the price, there really isn't anything to complain about. This bike oozes the "cool" look for my son with the black and orange, which his friends have been envious of, while also being from a reputable brand with solid build. The shifters aren't great, but very easy to work and appropriate for this age. Brakes work perfectly fine after adjusting, and the wheels were relatively true.Great value intro 20" bike, do not hesitate if its in your budget.