20 INCH FULL SUSPENSION BIKES
Here is the guide to 20 inch squishy bikes for the downhill/all mountain hungry 5- 8 year old. Keep in mind a hard tail might better suit your little ripper but if gravity is their primary focus...here are the bikes to rip the lift access bike park! Scroll down to bottom of page for a comparison chart.
Spawn Rokk 20/22
A cool convertible 20/22 inch 100mm travel frame that grows a step with your kid. Brood Maxtion 2.2 tires, a 30T chainring with an 11-36 cassette and short 130mm cranks. Trail geometry with a 66.5 HA, 72.8 STA, 365mm chainstays and 316mm reach. OUR FULL REVIEW
Weight: 25 lbs | MSRP: $2500 | Where to buy: Spawn
Propain Frechdax
A light little German full suspension bike with 90mm rear and 80mm front travel, aimed at younger riders who are not ready for a full-on trail bike. Just 22 lbs with short 115mm cranks, a 28T chainring with an 11-27 cassette and moderate 68.5 HA trail geometry. OUR FULL REVIEW
Weight: 22 lbs | MSRP: $1820 | Where to buy: Propain
Norco Fluid FS 20
This is basically a scaled down little enduro bike with the geometry to prove it: a slack 64 HA, 75 STA and 355mm chainstays. The 120mm front / 100mm rear travel setup excels in the bike park and on steeper descending trails. A 30T chainring, 11-36 cassette and 140mm cranks handle the pedalling.
Weight: N/A | MSRP: $1799-2399 | Where to buy: Norco
Commencal Clash 20
Brawler of a 20 inch full suspension bike with 120mm of travel front and rear, great for lift access bike park riding. Schwalbe Big Betty 2.25 tires, a 32T chainring with an 11-36 cassette and 135mm cranks. Slack 65 HA bike park geometry with short 345mm chainstays.
Weight: 25.6 lbs | MSRP: $2800 | Where to buy: Ready Set Pedal
CarbonXSCycles MAD 6 XC
A featherweight carbon XC full suspension bike from Australian brand CarbonXSCycles. Just 17.8 lbs, with 50mm of travel front and rear and an adjustable 65-69 degree head angle. Kenda Small Block 2.0 tires, a 32T chainring with an 11-32 cassette and 135mm cranks. The pick for the little XC racer.
Weight: 17.8 lbs | MSRP: $3050 | Where to buy: CarbonXSCycles
Rocky Mountain Reaper 20
The Reaper 20 shrinks Rocky's versatile trail platform down to 20 inch wheels, with 120mm of travel front and rear. Kenda Regolith 2.4 tires, a 28T chainring with an 11-36 cassette and very short 104mm cranks. Slack 64 HA geometry with a 362mm reach and 360mm chainstays.
Weight: 28 lbs | MSRP: $2699 | Where to buy: REI
Early Rider Hellion X20
We have experience with this great frame from when it was under the Lil Shredder brand. The low standover single pivot design makes for a light weight frame with geometry that just works great for kids: 100mm of travel front and rear, a 30T chainring, 11-36 cassette and 127mm cranks. A great bike at a very nice weight and a good price.
Weight: 22.5 lbs | MSRP: $1899 | Where to buy: Early Rider
Meek MiniBeast 20
Niche bike here. A carbon 20 inch downhill bike with 120mm front / 100mm rear travel is hard to justify for anyone except the full-time racer kid, but it is cool that it exists. Premium components all around, with kid appropriate leverage ratios to make the shock and rear suspension truly track like an adult bike. 66 HA and 360mm chainstays.
Weight: N/A | MSRP: $6875 | Where to buy: Meek Boys
20 Inch Full Suspension Comparison Chart
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RJ! where can i see your build? im about to do the same i think. Been looking at the hellion x20, moritz20 and so on.
Is the finished build on the bxt frame in the same price range as the other raceready bikes? A build thread with pictures would be nice 😀
My kid is 8. I don’t have the budget for a new bike. Where can I find bikes of this quality used? Thank you
Craigslist, and eBay. I’ve bought four used bikes for my kids, as they have grown, from those two sources – each of them is a bike reviewed, and recommended here. If you buy a quality used bike in decent shape, and keep it maintained, you can generally get your money back when you sell it.
facebook marketplace or pinkbike.com buy and sell.
I had what I thought was a fun idea of building up a 20″ full sus carbon mtb for my 6 year old. I did’t want to break the bank on it though so I found a “China bike” frame from what appears to be a reputable company (BXT). I just received the frame and it actually looks great. The problem is, I have no idea what I’m doing or what parts I need or will fit. I’m curious of the specs seem similar enough to some of the mainline 20″ kids bikes out there and I can just copy their build kits or if the dimensions seem more odd and if this may be a more difficult bike to build up.
This is the frame I purchased:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004025218948.html?spm=a2g0o.store_pc_groupList.8148356.3.76a73f94AiB1dw&pdp_npi=2%40dis%21USD%21US%20%241%2C385.00%21US%20%24609.40%21%21%21%21%21%400b0a119a16521296903167965ed3f8%21%21sh
Product Description
Type: Full Carbon Suspension MTB Frame 20er;
Material: T1000 Carbon Fiber;
Frame Travel: 80mm;
Fit for Rear Shock: Length 165mm,Bushing 22mm;
Fit for Seat Clamp: 34.9mm;
Fit for Seat Post: 31.6mm;
Fit for Crank: 125mm;
Fit for Chain Wheel: Max 34T;
Seat Post Depth: 155mm;
Suitable Height: 120cm-135cm;
Max load: 250kg;
Fit for Disc Brake: 160mm;
Fit For Bottom Bracket: Screw-in BSA(73mm);
Recommend Fork Travel: 80-120mm;
Rear Spacing Specification: Boost 148x12mm;
Fit for Headset: Tapered,Top 1-1/8(41.8mm) Down 1-1/2(52mm);
Fit for Tire: 20er.Max 2.4Tire;
Brake,Derailleur Cable: Frame Internal;
Order Contains: Frame+Thru Axle Quick+Seat Clamp+Rear Hook;
I advice or guidance would be greatly appreciated!
It’s all laid out there for you. The Manitou machete will fit for fork as it is tapered head tube. You will need a rear shock with 165mm eye to eye and 22mm mounting hardware. Get the 127mm cranks from trialcraft and there threaded bottom bracket. You will likely need to get a wheelset built for 20 inch/148 mm boost spacing. Looks like a fun project.
Awesome, thank you!
Hey RJ,
I am interested to see how the build is going?
Just read your post and I’m thinking of buying that frame. Did it work out well for you?
carbon xs what a bike ,turned climbs into a pleasure rather than dread for my son ! he would take it to bed with him if i let him !
its weight alone has made the trails incredible fun and to see his face covered in mud with big beaming smile on his face shouting did you see that ? clears another obstacle makes it enjoyable for me too not bad for a four year old either !
As much as the other 99% of us want to help our kiddo on the climb… Check out https://towwhee.com/ !!! A simple and robust solution to get your little ripper to the top of the climb so they can worry about the “lil ripper” part and not their burning thighs and side cramps. It’s less than $50 and made here in the USA. Woot!