Hey everyone,
I'm looking for some real-world advice on upgrading my son's full-suspension bike. He just turned 10, and he's completely outgrowing his current 24" setup (Norco Fluid 24").
He is an advanced rider with BMX background. He’s clearing bigger features (comfortably hitting up to 9m table jumps) and riding red and black DH/bikepark lines.
Because of his riding style and skills, we need a proper gravity machine, but he’s still a 10-year-old kid—so standard adult frames (even smalls) can feel too big, heavy, and sluggish.
What we are looking for:
- Suspension: Full suspension (FS)
- Wheels: 27.5" or a mullet setup (27.5 / 26 )
- Head angle: Around 64° (approx. 63.5° – 64.5°) for high-speed stability
- Frame size: XS or small with a low standover
- Budget/Vibe: Something built for actual park abuse, with a suspension tune that actually works for a lighter kid (not just a stiff adult shock). Price around up to 3000-3500EUR
Context: I ride a Propain Rage (DH) myself (and towing him on my enduro ebike on local spots), so we are a more gravity-oriented. We've been looking at options like the Giant Faith (mullet 27.5/26, 64.5° HA – looks very interesting for this transition phase), XS frames, or smaller enduro rigs, but I’d love to hear from parents of shredders or riders who know the youth gravity market well. I was looking on Propain Youth bikes (Tyee and Spindrift), but they are maybe too big and bulky for 10yrs. He is 145cm now, but the bike is for the next season…
What are you putting your advanced kids on when 24" is done? Any specific models we should look out for? We are based in EU. Thank you for the tips.
Full suspension bike advice for a 10-year-old advanced rider (BMX/bikros background, enduro – up to 9m jumps, red/black DH trails)
byu/Acceptable_Invite_97 inMTB
by Acceptable_Invite_97
9 Comments
i need to step up my game holy
Do you have the option to try some XS frames in a bike park?
Edit: Also consider that he actually might not require a DH bike as he’s only 10, a long travel enduro would work too.
While at Ard Rock Enduro event a couple of weeks ago I saw a lot of young riders in this age bracket on Santa Cruz Bronson/Nomads, obviously from wealthy families who are fully into the sport and trying to give their kids the best chance. Maybe a bit on the pricey side, but hey.
While there I also saw Atherton’s bike stand and they had a purpose build “Mini-Mullet” 26/27.5 bike that was seemingly aimed at younger riders and designed to grow with the rider, allowing you to increase wheel size (to a 27.5/27.5 I believe) as they develop. Again, not cheap obviously.
Commencal has a European warehouse. I think their DH and Enduro bikes come in as small as XS. There have been some complaints about their frames apparently (I’ve actually seen way more posts from people acknowledging that they’ve heard there were issues than posts about actual issues which I’ve not seen any of personally). Not only are they probably blown out of proportion, but at such a light weight it’s unlikely your son will be doing much damage to a frame. I’d still do your homework tho, just throwing the option out there!
I know there are a few other big name brands that sell smaller bikes but Commencal is the only one I can think of off the top of my head. I know several people in the states with their enduro bikes and they all love them.
Also, your son shreds! Sick riding!
Edit: a word
You’ve already identified that a suspension tune will make a big difference. Maybe talk to a local shop that specialises in suspension to ask about what fork/shock would suit him and could be easily tuned.
You could also look at using headset cups to adjust the head angle as required. Also some frames have a lot of adjustability which might help.
For example my ~2022 Scott Gambler has different headset cups to adjust head angle and a 4 point flip chip at the rear to run either coil/air shock, and adjust bottom bracket height to allow for 29/29, 29/27 or 27/27.
If he is 145 now then it’s likely that by next season he will be in the height range for xs frames.
Another option to consider is looking at much older DH frames. The geometry on a ~2014-2016 DH/enduro bike in size small might suit him really well can could possibly be adjusted to run 27/26. Those older bikes have a shorter reach. When looking at the geometry numbers a modern “medium” is close to an older small.
This isn’t an answer to your question, but this kid went through the same thing looking for a bike. It’s an interesting read.
https://www.pinkbike.com/news/bike-check-wes-lukens-custom-frameworks-2624-mullet.html
Look into Vpace, specifically Vpace Fred. Since you gave the price in Euros, I’m assuming you’re in Europe (Vpace is German and ships). They build very high-quality light bikes for advanced younger riders. My son had one for a coupe years. The only downside is that they use some custom parts that you can only get from Vpace (they ship fast, but you cannot pop into a local bike shop and buy a part).
An alternative would be Commencal Clash, but they are heavier.
There are many opinions but everyone else’s is wrong. Get this kid a Specialized Status for $2k and watch him absolutely wreck everyone on it.
Most mountain communities have got a decent network for used kids gear.
If the bike parks near you run summer camps, that would be a place for your kid to meet other shredders and for you to meet other parents.
You’ll hopefully be able to buy a bike (and other gear) used that got out grown, and you’ll have an easy time selling it off when your kid gets too big for it.