Calder Benson

So I brought home a bike for my 10-year-old son on Saturday. I bought and paid for it last week, but the tires that came on it are really not what I wanted for the type of rides that we do (asphalt trails).


At the time, the shop didn't have the tires that I wanted in stock and had to order them for me (Panasonic panaracers).

Eventually we will ride dirt trails together and at that time I will get proper mountain bike tires, but for now for asphalt trails I think this is perfect.

If you are shopping for a bike for a child in this age range it's an interesting situation.
For a 10-year-old around 4'8" there isn't really a lot out there. You either have to get a 24 inch wheel bike and just wait for him to grow out of it (which will be sooner than later) or you get them something like this 650b (or 27.5?) and they grow into it. The ironic thing about it is that the shop said that this was a perfect fit with those larger mountain bike tires and my kid could get on it to ride but he just didn't look as comfortable as I'd like to see. I wasn't concerned at the time bc we are busy with two sports and could easily let a few months go by and by summer he'd be fitting it better. However with these low profile tires the bike frame is that much lower to the ground and he's ready to rock now.

One interesting thing is that I heard that the hard rock was being phased out in favor of a new model called the Pitch, and I couldn't find the Hard rock on the specialized site as a current model, only the 2014/2015 archive page. The shop owner told me that you could still get Hardrocks, that they were 2016 models and the difference is that the wheels are 27.5 instead of 650b. I know they are phasing out the 650's but the incongruent site info Seemed odd to me.

Anybody know if this is a 2015 or 2016?




Mandatory pics below..

Calder Benson

Calder Benson

Calder Benson

On our way to our first ride with the new bike and my Jamis Coda Sport.

Darth Lefty 

Decent bike... There was still a 26er at the very bottom of the lineup last year but looks like it's gone. You could still go used, I guess. But 27.5 and 650B are two ways of saying the same thing, the ones on the site are current. Your son's looks like the third color option here

https://www.specialized.com/us/en/bik...ardrock-v-650b


They do seem lower on the components than the one I bought 14 years ago. Your son's has Tourney drivetrain with a freewheel. Mine, with Acera RD and a freehub, was about the same level as the basic Pitch.

Calder Benson

I did notice it was outfitted with the Tourney but didn't look up last years specs to see if it had the Acera RD like my Coda.

Maybe for heavy dirt trail use this is an issue, but with asphalt rides and frequent cleaning of the chain and cassette (every 150-200 miles), I see the Tourney performing just fine. Hope I'm right.

Compared to what he was riding before (Mongoose 20"), this is a huge step up.

Calder Benson

I'm surprised this doesn't seem like more popular model around here. Maybe folks opt to get their 10 year old into a 24 inch wheel for a year or so.

VegasTriker

Here's the specs for the 2015 model. Doesn't list one in all black color. 2015 Specialized HARDROCK 26 - BikePedia It doesn't list 2016 as a model year for the bike but Bikepedia may be behind at listing 2016 models that it doesn't show in the box at the right side of the page. If you want a reasonable selection of tires try here: Tires & Tubes - Tires - 650b & 650C - Niagara Cycle I often use Niagara Cycle as a source for tires when I refurbish bikes for kids. Some of the inexpensive tires work really well and it is possible to have multiple sets for different uses without breaking the bank.

Calder Benson

Thanks for the info Vegas Triker...

travbikeman

Strange, thought 650b was 27.5" But I have found it very difficult to find more road going type of tires for this size. My 11 year old son has this size on his GT Backwoods. Wore the offroad tires it had completely out since he rides on the road so often.

But did find Kenda tires at Dicks Sporting Goods in this size and are much more road worthy. Kenda K841A 27.5" Bike Tire | DICK'S Sporting Goods

These tires actually look better on the bike than the picture.

67Vert

I made the mistake of getting too big a bike for my daughter the first time. Now I'm buying used Hotrocks for the boy and girl since they outgrow them so quickly. I got my daugther's used 20" for $120 and sold it for $100, and picked up a 7 Speed 24" hotrock for $120. Trying to do the same for the boy but seem to only find 21 speeds available.