My 6 year old son just learned to ride on a kid's Specialized hotrock 20" wheel BMX bike. It has a coaster and rear V-brake, but no front brake. We went riding on some fire roads that included some pretty steep downhills, where it became obvious that he was going to need a front brake to keep his downhill speed under control in loose dirt or gravel conditions.

I also realized that his little hands are not quite strong enough to squeeze the rear handbrake as hard as needed. For the rear the coaster brake is a reasonable substitute; his legs are stronger than his hands. But for the front, I want to install my old Magura hydraulic rim brake that I no longer use since I bought a disc-brake mountain bike. This should give him a front brake that is easily controllable so he can ride downhill with me.

The fork only has a hole drilled in the crown, I assume for a side-pull brake. Useless for him. The only forks I have seen for BMX bikes are for U-brakes. I heard of one by 'Prism' that was supposed to accomodate V-brakes, but I don't know where to buy it. I have seen cheesy Walmart-type bikes with crappy suspension forks that have V-brakes mounted.

The fork I need must exist, please help me locate a place to buy it. Yes, I know there are adapters availabe, but the preferred solution would be the correct fork. The bike has a Cane Creek threadless headset, so it should take a standard (1" ?) fork.

Thanks,

Lifespeed

Well, Hate to say it but you aren't gonna find you are looking for in the BMX world. Reason: the only BMXers that run V-Brakes are racers. And racers don't run front brakes, so you won't find a race fork w/ V-mounts. Park/Street/Flatland BMXers all run U-Brakes. So any forks w/ mounts would be for U-brakes.
Your solution then would be custom fork (1-1/8" BTW), or V-Brake plate.
-Bill

What about this fork in the upper lefthand corner of the page? Unicrown Hi Ten? Not sure where else to find it, the store proprietor is out of action for awhile.

Looks like just the ticket.

Lifespeed

Well I wouldn't call that a BMX fork either
(Nor would I consider the Specialized Hotrock a BMX Bike either - but that's a different topic)
Regardless, that fork should work for you - I'd just double check that headset needs between the fork & the Hotrock.
-Bill

I don't see what the problem with a fork with u-brake mounts is. There are lots of good u-brakes on the market, and they're probably your best bet if you don't want an adaptor plate.

No, the bike isn't exactly BMX, nor is the fork. It is pretty good for a 6 year old, however.

As for U-brakes, I'm sure they are fine for someone with a strong hand. But for a small child they just require too much force on the lever. I checked. The Magura rim brakes will work perfectly if I can mount them. Hydraulics are wonderful. I do realize they are not really necessary for typical BMX use by teens or adults.

Try running brakes without the return sprimgs. The slight drag will slow him a bit, but he should be able to operate the brakes.