whats the word on oset bikes?

[hooligan420]

hi guys , anyone who has any experience of oset electric trials bikes please let me know

or point me in the direction of finding out.

i am debating getting a 12.5 for my 3yr old son, i guess its a toss up between oset 12.5 or crf50(which will last forever etc but maybe better to start on oset , less intimidating and safer )

what do you's think??

thanks

[telecat]

The OSET does give you a number of advantages. You can lift and carry them with few problems as you do not have fuel in the Tank or oil in the box. The other advantage is that the law sees them as a toy. Hence you can ride them anywhere.

[monsterenergy74]

As above, got my little boy a PW50 for his 4th B'day, loved it at first but after crashing numerous times due to stabilisers he was then too scared to ride it and didnt like the noise, sold that few months back and made few bob on it and took him to Goss Mx to try an OSET 12.5 out and he loved it, no noise, easy to put in car, no petrol and you can use it anywhere without annoying someone. Its for xmas but at the moment its taking pride of place next to his bed in his bedroom all made up, fingers crossed xmas day will be a dry one..

[hooligan420]

sounds great , i bet he can't wait!!!

how long do they take to charge up ? and how long can you ride on 1 chrge ?

do you have spare batterys for it?

[docmikesbikes]

The Honda 50 is a great little bike BUT.... The little Oset 12.5 has many advantages for a beginner rider and the riding teacher (Dad). I bought a used 12.5 for our two boys a while back and was so impressed I recently became a dealer for Oset here in NY.

Here is my list of why the 12.5 is a better starter bike than the old favorite the Honda 50 for a 2,3,4, or small five-year-old.

1. Very small size, 15 inch seat height

2. Light, kids can pick it up without Dad's help.

3. No gas, oil, air filter and very low maintenance.

4. Quiet, does not scare kids, all you hear is chain noise.

5. No hot engine or exhaust to get burned on.

6. No starting problems. Turn the key on and go!

When kids stall the Honda 50 at 3 years old, dad usually has to run out to the stalled bike, take it out of gear and start the flowed bike!

7. Because it's light and much less intimidating kids are more likely to get back on it and ride after a fall off.

8. Take it anywhere to ride! Small size and no fluids allow you lay it in the truck of a car or back seat and take it with you.

9. Crazy high used resale value. You'll get your money back when he, she out grows it.

10. It makes your (dad, mom) experience much better.

11. Most kids who start on an Oset have a better skill set and are better technical riders when they move up to a gas powered bike.

Right now is a good time to buy, the 2011 models just came into the the country. They sell out quickly, and are very hard to find used. We have some 12.5 models inbound as I write this. If you buy 12.5 your kids will love it and so will you! Specially a 3-year-old.

Here is a little tip, if the seat height is too high for your child to touch flat-footed, you can use a few heavy duty nylon cable ties to compress the little Oset 12.5's suspension and reduce height by an inch or so. When you child grows just snip the cable ties.

Hope this helps.

Doc Mike

[docmikesbikes]

Ride time varies with how much the power is turned up, our kids average about 1-2 hours before recharging is needed. They usually tire before battery runs out... Recharge in six hours. A new rider with lots of low speed stop and go can get much more time out of battery charges....

[pete_scorpa3]

A brilliant buy, I've bought both. My girls both started riding at 2 1/2 years old with stabilisers. The older one now has a 16" and loves it, she is just five and has ridden in around ten trials this year.

All thanks to the Oset electric bikes. I can't speak highly enough about them.

[hooligan420]

thanks for the awesome replies..

i am gettin the oset 12.5, i reckon he'll love it ..

i figure get him started on bikes so he can come ride with me.

[docmikesbikes]

You made the right choice! Case in point (I will post a photo later) my neighbor put his 4-year old daughter on his son's (6yo) Honda 50. They put the bike in 1st, she took off and slammed head-on into the side on his parked tractor trailer WFO!. Needless to say it destroyed the front end on the little Honda and she went to the ER with a broken jaw and leg! Open face bicycle helmets don't always cut it!

[hooligan420]

You made the right choice! Case in point (I will post a photo later) my neighbor put his 4-year old daughter on his son's (6yo) Honda 50. They put the bike in 1st, she took off and slammed head-on into the side on his parked tractor trailer WFO!. Needless to say it destroyed the front end on the little Honda and she went to the ER with a broken jaw and leg! Open face bicycle helmets don't always cut it!

yeah good point BUT!!

petrol bikes are sweet for kids , but motorsprot is dangerous, and as unfortuante as this accident sounds ,

it may have been better to start in an open space and reduce the throttle opening.

Josh can control the throttle on a crf70 with me on the back and he slows down when you say ease off..

but if he panics then the throttle goes wide open !! we've all seen it (esspecially girls at parties etc see youtube to get my point.. LOL) full speed feet down no concept of braking or lettin off the throttle, just headlong into what ever they aim at, and as a biker you will notice you go towards what your looking at; so on a sports bike at 130mph you look at something for too long and find yourself heading towards it.

many people start of on quads so the kids get throttle and brake control which is a good idea, and we ride trikes with thumb throttle but not the same as twist grip, so we are straight on the bikes to learn bike control, I only hope i am sensible enough to guide JJ as he learns the finer art of control.

I hope the young lass in question heals up nice, makes a full recovery and is back on the horse in due course.

(obviosly with a full face lid and plenty of open space!!)

I would also make the point, that full face lids are the way for small kids learning bikes . Recently got JJ a full face mx lid by lazer , quality lid reasonable price, its not too heavy n he likes to wear it , wont last him long (as they grow so quick ) but can't put a price on safty.

I know all the trials riders wear OPEN face an i hav 1, but kinda prefer my mx lid for doing big stuff. I dont fancy face planting after a set of doubles in an open lid it nearly knocks you out with an mx lid!!

Again thanks for the replies , but lets not dissrespect honda crf50s or z50s as they RULE!!!

but as DOCmike points out there are many benefits to osets

but there are also down sides

ie need mains power to charge (no mains in the woods)

only lasts for the charge and a long wait for recharge

(can only have so many sets of spare bat's)

and finnally as jj an i love riding in water (so do the hondas not so much the beta's )

i wonder how the oset will react to a foot deep stream crossing!!

I guess i will find out (any comments from experience welcome).

RANT OVER

Edited November 12, 2010 by hooligan420

[pete_scorpa3]

The Osets are brilliant for teaching throttle control, you can set the speed right down to crawling pace and build it up from there.

Full face helmets are certainly the safest thing to go for but they are heavy for a little one and do restrict their vision, I made the descision to give them open face lids for this reason but my two both ride their bikes like trials rather than MX bikes. I hope it's not a descision thatb I live to regret.

The batteries last for about two hours ridden along a cycle path with me on my push bike, but they last for four to five hours at a trial where the rider spends much of the time walking the sections or waiting ain a queue. The Osets are perfect for what I want them to do and it's allowed by eldest to start competing a year early with 2 1/2 years riding experience already.

Thank you Oset.

[docmikesbikes]

The little Z50/CRF is a great bike! We actually own a few of them, but the Oset is the better first bike to learn control and technique on if you are a little tike in my opinion. I also agree that the girl who got hurt should have had more responsible parental supervision. I would never seat a little kid with no experience on any bike and let them go, even in an open space without being right next to them to control the situation.

Doc Mike

[dave horne]

One major advantage is being able to ride the Oset anywhere without upsetting anyone (or the wildlife)

Edited November 16, 2010 by Andy

[fastducs]

As a first bike, Oset is the perfect choice! My son started on an Oset 16 with the 36-volt kit when he was 5. Because the Oset is so quiet, he was able to practice a lot right in our back yard, and in the park where a gas bike would simply not be tolerated. Now he is 7, and moved up to a gasgas-50 trials bike. He also races a KTM-50 in the PeeWee hare scrambles series. I think the Oset is excellent because it teaches kids to ride standing up, which is an advantage on ANY bike that they will move on to. Stand-up get-offs are also much safer than sitting-down crashes. I think the first lesson should be "how to bail off the pegs, then tuck-and-roll safely".

Beware that Osets tend to come over-tightened from the factory. I've seen it on several brand new Osets. Particularly the rear swingarm and suspension is over-tightened to the point that it barely moves. Remedy is easy: take everything apart, re-grease, and reassemble without over-torquing. I don't know about the 12.5 model, but on the 2009 Oset-16 the front fork springs were much too stiff, and the rear shock too. After I re-sprung both ends, the suspension became much much nicer.

[hooligan420]

thanks for everyones comments..

i have decided on the oset 12.5 and am currently awaiting delivery!

will post some pics up when he is riding around.