Trailcracft cycles was born from a kickstarter campaign promising no compromise kids mountain bikes to accelerate young riders' skills and love for the sport. The husband and wife team of Brett and Ginger delivered on their goal and continue to make some of the most progressive kids bikes available. Initially focusing on 24 and 26 inch platforms, Trailcraft released a 20 inch hardtail this year that is going to make a lot of 5-8 year olds catch the mtb itch. Thanks to Trailcraft for providing a bike to facilitate this review.
Trailcraft Blue Sky 20 Pro Deore Build Details:
- Intended Age- 5 to 8 (Minimum inseam 21 inches, Recommended Min/Max height 3'9 to 4'2)
- Weight- 19.0 lbs
- Features- TC30 cabon lower rebound adjustable 80 mm travel air fork, Stans Crest MK3 tubeless wheelset, 127 mm cranks, Shimano Deore 6000 brakes, Vee tire Crown Gem 2.25, 68.5 degree HA, 340 mm Chainstay length
- MSRP- $1699 USD Pro Deore Build, $1449 TCZ Build
- Available- Trailcraft Cycles
The Bike Dads' Take:
"Once in a while a bike comes along and blows your mind, this is one of them. Getting this bike to 19 lbs puts it lightest in class for 20 inch hardtails. Adding amazing geometry, phenomenal fork and a top quality build makes this bike worth every penny if you are a family that lives and breathes mtb." -Colin
What is the max tire width that would fit this?
any idea what the duty/custom fees are like for importing this bike into Canada?
They ship Fedex I believe which bills you for GST (BC/AB) and small Handling fee (around 40-60 bucks). Double check with them as they ship a lot of bikes to Canada.
Is there an after market seatpost you recommend that will bring down the seat height?
We just ordered the pro build of this bike (it’s supposed to arrive today) for our 4 year old son who is just a little under 3’6″, so getting that seatpost lower will be helpful.
Thanks,
Brad
We cut our blue sky post an inch to get a better min seat height but you can also look to a pivotal bmx style post/seat for optimum min seat height due to its lower seat mount assembly.
Tried to get on the Prevelo Pre Orders that opened up a few weeks back and missed it. I found Trailcraft thanks to your reviews and just ordered. Im newer to understanding the specs and geometry and what it all translates to on the trails and what’s best for what my 5yo and 6yo are riding most often.
What defines “Modern Geometry”? I noticed that was in your review of the Prevelo Zulu 3. Would you say that the TC Blue Sky 20 also has “modern Geometry”?
Also 28T Chainring or 30T chainring? I ordered them as 28T since we live in a hilly area – be the trails or the sidewalks and favorite areas for them to ride. Is this the right decision?
Thanks so much. Your website, videos, and content have brought on a whole new world of possibilities and fun with my kids on bikes. Thanks so much for sharing all your insight.
Yep, the Trailcraft has updated MTB geometry. It just means a longer reach, wheelbase and sometimes slacker head angle which makes mountain bikes more stable than years past. It’s more extreme in Adult bikes but also is happening in kids Mountain bikes. The 28T is the right choice if you live where kiddo climbs. You have purchased a phenomenal bike, enjoy!
Propain dreckspatz or Trailcraft Bluesy 20 for a kid who is 3’6″ tall?
Doesn’t fit the Bluesky as 3 inches short of Trailcraft recommendation. The propain is smaller fitting with lower min seat height and shorter cranks. They are both excellent bikes and if kiddo is proficient he/she could probably squeeze on a bluesky now. In a nut shell: Same great fork and tires on each. Propain smaller fitting so you can get smaller kids on, thus makes sense for 115 mm cranks. 127 mm cranks make sense on TC because it will fit a bit taller kids. TC has better drivetrain (clutch derailleur) and better brakes. As said, both great light bikes, if one is in stock…snap it up before its gone.
Great. Thanks! That’s super helpful and makes sense. I also noticed that big difference in crank length.
How would you compare the Vpace max20 with front suspension to the Propain Dreckspatz and the Trailcraft Bluesky 20?
They are all very similar geometry and all very light weight. You have the option for air fork with Trailcraft and Propain. Three of the best in the category.
The Propain Dreckspatz says that the bike will fit kids starting at 3’4″ while the Trailcraft indicates 3’9″ is minimum height for the bike I also noticed 115mm cranks for Propain vs 127mm cranks for Trailcraft. For a kid between 3’4″-3’9″, would you recommend going with the Propain for the better fit?
How would you compare the Trailcraft 20″ to the Propain Dreckspatz? I saw your Frechdax review (which I’m also tempted by… just not sure it’s worth the cost/weight for FS), so maybe you can extrapolate from that experience.
Additional factors are that my son is on the small side for this wheel size–he’s still 4 but very solid on a 16″ ER Seeker 16 and could use some gearing where we live. I don’t have endless funds but am willing to invest to keep the weight down and performance up. Are there other bikes you’d suggest? Thanks!
Hi Dayne, we recommend everything on our site, its just a matter of finding fit and establishing a budget. The Frechdax is an amazing little machine that is for descending trails. For what it is, its light but will not able to beat weight and efficiency of a nice hard tail. It really depends where you are riding the most. Primarily lift access, shuttling or towing up to descending trails…the Frechdax is great. The Dreckspatz and Bluesky are very similar weights and geometry and make amazing all rounders. They also use the same air suspension fork. I wouldn’t hesitate to get either. All 3 of the bikes mentioned will command exceptional resale value.
Thanks so much for sharing those perspectives! Very helpful.
Over the last few days I’ve watched my son carefully on our rides. It seems that even on our smoother trails we hit enough rocks and roots that an efficient FS might be of benefit. Especially since he usually steers for the bumpies. 😉
Would it be fair to say that out of all the 20″ FS bikes–Frechdax, Hellion X20, etc–the CarbonXS Mad 6 XC is the only “trail” bike? I’m thinking the 20″ wheel equivalent of an Ibis Ripley V4 or similar. Given that the Mad 6 is way out of my range, is there another option to consider?
Its tough to beat a hard tail for this age unless they are really descending at some decent speeds. That said, the CarbonXS does look interesting as a trail bike, never tried ourselves. They fixed the crank length problem with original bike and they say they customized fork internal to make it work better. The grind fork is not that good for what else is out there for 20 inch size kids so I hope this is true. All of what we know of is on the FS 20 inch page…
For your younger son that demo’d this coming from a 16” bike, was his inseam 20-21” at the time? Or was it shorter and he was still able to manage just fine?
He was shorter than recommended and could manage but I put on a lower profile seat.
How much shorter? My son is crushing his 16” commencal and completely outriding the wheelsize. Inseam is just north of 18” with shoes on. His commencal seat is at 21.5” level from the ground now. Seems he may be able to start dabbling in the bigger bike. Though with inventory shortages I may be waiting until September for anything anyways!!
He had a 19 inch inseam when I put him on but he was used to riding bigger bikes.
How is it compared to the Spawn Yamajama 20″?
Both Awesome, similar geometry, both have tubeless set ups, similar gear range. The Trailcraft is 19 lbs vs 21.5 lbs for the Spawn. The Spawn has a lower minimum seat height.