At a glance Superbly built, lightweight children’s bike with 7005 aluminium frame, 16in wheels and scaled-down components for small hands
Tested by
Chloe (aged 5) and Jon Adams
Performance
Islabikes was set up by former Raleigh team pro Isla Rowntree
back in 2006, and the company only makes bikes for kids. The idea
was to ensure that bikes for li
ttle people were as well thought through as the
ones for adults, and that components like bars and brakes were
appropriate for small hands to use. The full Islabikes range
comprises 14 models, from the Rothan balance bike to the Luath
junior road bike, and the Cnoc sits at the smaller end of the scale
in either a 14-inch or 16-inch wheel version. The Cnoc 16 on test
here is suitable for kids with an inside leg measurement between 42
and 52cm - bang on track for our tester, Chloe, who has just turned
5.
Adult enthusiasts all know that having a nice bike makes you want to ride more, and judging by Chloe's reaction to the Cnoc 16, it's no different for kids. She simply can't get enough of it! This hasn't always been the case, though. She had her first bike - a 12-inch wheel model - for her third birthday, and after a brief honeymoon period, her reaction to cycling was lukewarm at best. The bike was heavy, the brake levers were too far away and too hard to pull, and once the handlebar tassles fell off, it just wasn't much fun. Strangely, she'd leap at the chance of riding behind me on a trailer bike, but wasn't too fussed about riding her own.
With the Cnoc 16 this attitude has inverted, and all she wants to do is ride. Prior to trying the Cnoc, she could pedal a little way unaided, but couldn't start off by herself and wasn't all that confident without one of us very close by. This changed in her very first session on the Cnoc, where she pedaled without assistance for two miles, learned to brake, and taught herself to get going from a cold start without any help. I was amazed at the transformation, and naturally spent a lot of time running after her yelling 'SLOW DOWN'.
Chloe told me that the Cnoc is much easier to ride than her old
bike, and for the first time ever, she can use brakes properly. The
Tektro levers have an ultra-short 
reach and are very smooth and light to pull, so
slowing down and stopping is easy. We actually had a go at a
controlled descent with her feathering the rear brake, and she
pulled it off after just a few seconds of getting the feel for it.
As you can imagine, though, once she discovered how to lock the
rear wheel into a skid, that was much more fun and became the
favoured way to stop.
Of course, she's fallen off many times, but the joy of riding independently makes her get straight back on again. She can do this unaided, too, because the Cnoc's lightweight 7005 aluminium frame makes it easy to lift. The components are all good quality, and there are 4 and 5mm hex bolts in all the places you'd find them on a good adult bike - seat clamp, seatpost collar, V brakes, stem and Aheadset - so you don't need a second tool kit of weird spanner sizes to be able to carry out roadside tweaks.
Aside from a 16-inch tube, the only extra you'll need to carry
in your tool kit is a 15mm spanner for the wheel nuts. The savvy
will note that this isn't an arbitrary 
choice, as it's the same size as you'd use on your
pedals. All you have to do is throw in a combination spanner and
you can use the open end for everyone's pedals and the ring end for
the Cnoc's wheels. Easy! Further up the Islabike range, quick
release skewers are standard issue for the bikes with gears, but
the Cnoc is a 'fixie', so they bolt on.
All in all, the Cnoc 16 is a real joy. The chromoly forks and bars dampen vibrations that haven't already been soaked up by the 1.5in wide tyres, and all the components are simply miniature versions of those found on adult bikes, so servicing and adjustment is nice and familiar, and doesn't require a mishmash of tools. The only downside is the £150 price tag. It seems like an awful lot to spend on something that'll be outgrown in about two years flat, but if you want your child to really enjoy their cycling, and have a bike that's easy for you to look after, the cost suddenly doesn't seem so bad. Sure, it's about £50 more than you'd spend on a heavy carbon steel bike with tassles and plastic 'bearings', but in total it's just £75 a year, which works out at less than £1.50 per week. For the build quality, ease of use and enjoyment it'll bring to you and your little one, the Cnoc really is worth every penny.
Find out more and buy from www.islabikes.co.uk
Islabikes says:
Your kids won't get a better introduction to cycling than this delightful little starter bike. Beautifully scaled down components and very light weight make learning confidence inspiring and safe.
- Lightweight 7005 T6 aluminium frame, proportional geometry
- Cro-moly forks
- Exclusive ultra short reach aluminium brake levers with V brakes give powerful, light action braking for tiny hands
- Small diameter cro-moly handlebars give tiny hands a safer hold
- Handlebars adjust for height and reach
- Sealed cartridge bearing headset with integral steering limiter
- Has fittings to accept 'no tools' stabilizers
