# To Tagalong...or not?!



## Jet (30 Mar 2008)

So the story is .... my 5 year old is getting a bit big for me to tow in the bike trailer and I was thinking of getting a tagalong/trailer bike. He can't ride his bike without stabilisers yet but I'm itching to go further afield with him (I soooo miss proper MTB riding!) and this seems like the only option until hes able to get around under his own steam. 

Has anyone got an opinion/advice on whether these are a good idea and if so which would you recommend? I've done a little research and see that they seem to be around £100 for a standard gearless model. Is this good value or do kids tend to outgrow these quite quickly? Is a geared model worth getting? Is the towalong sensation of a trailer bike the same as the trailer or can I expect a lot more instability? All advice/comments/guidance gratefully received. Thanks.


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## Crackle (30 Mar 2008)

Welcome Jet

No experience of Tag-a-longs so you'll have to wait for somebody who does but I used to use something called a Trail-Gator http://www.trail-gator.com/ 

The advantage is you can use his own bike, so when he feels like cycling he can. You can get flip-up stabilisers but I just used to carry a spanner and whip them on and off.

The caveat is it depends on the bike as to how well they fit and you have to fit them properly to work. Get it wrong and the towed bike 'leans'. Having said that I used them on both kids bikes, with the longest journey about 17 miles.


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## ufkacbln (30 Mar 2008)

The trailer bike itself is not a problem. Most have a a variable seat height and the handlebars will either rotate or move to allow growth of the rider.

The other thing to consider is the towing bike which should be robust and MUST have good brakes as you are now stopping a lot more weight and momentum.


Handling is sluggish as you are pulling extra weight, but as the child starts to contribute this lessens, however a tired child will always coast and be dead weight.


One snag you need to get used to though is that as the child moves there is a "Flick" transmitted to the lead bike. Manageable but unexpected. 

I used a cheap "Adams Trail-a-bike" and a Cresswell U+2


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## Stig-OT-Dump (30 Mar 2008)

Both my boys (8 & 5) still use a tag-along, in turn. They also ride their own bikes. The tag-along helps us go further and longer. It gets used on trails, road and NCN routes. The kids love it, and it means Mrs Stig lets me get out for some longer (slower) rides without kicking up too much.

They like using the gears on it and they like going over obstacles on the MTB trails too, giving them more confidence when they are by themselves.


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## tdr1nka (31 Mar 2008)

I can echo Cunobelin on all fronts.
I take Ms tdr1nka(6)to school with a tag-a-long and she loves it!

The best way to deal with your child moving around and effecting your balance is to ride as if in blustery wind and just be ready for any unanticipated twitches or 'extra' steering.
If you have ever ridden motorbikes it is very like having a very fidgety pillion passenger.

Have fun!

Tx


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## Bollo (31 Mar 2008)

And another thing....

Have a look for tag-alongs that have a rear-rack type connection, rather than attach to the seatpost. The seatpost connecting ones tend to tilt the tagalong towards the outside of a turn, which can feel a bit disconcerting.

The alternative is to try and find a cheap second hand tandem and fit some kiddycranks. You get much better control, but the nipper might be higher-up than you'd like.

For a very expensive alternative, have a look at a kiddyback tandem. Thorn do a derallieur and a Rohloff option, but there are one or two other makes if you look on the interbob.

I sold a kidney and got a Thorn Discovery kiddyback last year for me and Bolletta (now 6) and I've not regretted it, despite the constant fear of the good Mrs Dr Bollo finding out how much it really cost.


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## Arch (31 Mar 2008)

I don't know where you are based, but do you have a country park or similar nearby that hires this sort of thing out for the day? I would certainly suggest trying a few alternatives (tagalong vs tailgator vs tandem if you can try one) before investing. And get the best you can afford - perhaps second hand? Like bollo says, a rack fixer, like the Burley Picolo, or an Islabike is much better than a seatpost mounted one. And because kids grow out of them, you can get something decent second hand - try looking in CTC small ads, (do C+still do small ads?) or online small ads like Velo Vision, or once ridden...


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## Crackle (31 Mar 2008)

User76 said:


> I We have some friends who bought a bar which is permanatly on the towing bike, but unclips from the childs bike so they can be towed when tired and cycle on their own otherwise. I have not used it, but *whenever they tow their daughters bike it is always at some crazy angle,* and must be horrible to be on for her, I'd not suggest one of those.



Sounds like a tag-a-long and as I warned you have to set it up correctly but if it is it's great. Here's a vid of ours (a few years back now)

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6841283028178049095

Can someone let me know if the vid works as I've not used Google before?


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## HLaB (31 Mar 2008)

Crackle said:


> Sounds like a tag-a-long and as I warned you have to set it up correctly but if it is it's great. Here's a vid of ours (a few years back now)
> 
> http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6841283028178049095
> 
> Can someone let me know if the vid works as I've not used Google before?



It works for me, our IT admin haven't blocked it yet!


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## tdr1nka (31 Mar 2008)

Crackle said:


> http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6841283028178049095
> 
> Can someone let me know if the vid works as I've not used Google before?



Vid plays fine on my browser Crackle!


Going to look into the tail gator as Ms Tdr1nka is growing like a Midwhich Cuckoo and won't be comfy for much longer on the tagalong.
Other Parents I have spoken to about tagalongs that attach at your seat post find they have a tendency to lean, this can be exacerbated on taking corners or by your child leaning into turns.


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## Crackle (31 Mar 2008)

They do if you don't set them up right or the adaptor kit doesn't fit the bike properly - can't stress that enough.

When Son No.1 finally got a bigger bike, we had to abandon the Gator because it didn't fit his bike properly. Likewise I gave one to a friend and gave him specific instruction on fitting. He fitted it and it didn't work, so I got it back. 

THEY HAVE TO FIT PROPERLY IF YOU DON'T WANT THEM TO LEAN.

If they do fit they're fantastic and as I say we had two, did lots of cycling with them, including using trains, try that with a tag-a-long.

I think I have one going spare actually, maybe two. I'll look in the shed.


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## tdr1nka (31 Mar 2008)

Crackle, can I get some advice please?

I got an 'Alley Cat Mongoose' second hand and it came with two different mountings for my seat post, one had a vertical pivot but the pin looked quite corroded(it had lived by the sea before me)so I have used the fixed mounting.
Unless there is twist in either the mounting or the tandem connector I'm utterly stumped as to how I can rectify the 'lean'.

Having looked at reviews etc. I'm going to get a tail gator, Ms. tdr1nka is on her first 'proper' bike now(just an old Universal girls MTB but it'll do for school runs and her learning to ride)and I'm certain she is getting too big for the Alley Cat.

Cheers T


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## Crackle (31 Mar 2008)

Not sure about the lean on your tag-a-long. I would've thought it's got to be the mount. Have you tried shimming it with some washers? Also is the bike straight?

Lean on the Gator was generally down to fitting the bike adaptor kit straight or not as the case may be. I have limited (none) experience with tag-a-longs.


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## tdr1nka (31 Mar 2008)

I think it's a tagalong thing and I'm now wondering about the bike being straight, a closer inspection should show any twist in the boom. TBH it's not the best coupling I've seen but it does suffice and teaches Ms tdr1nka the thrills of counter balance!?!

TY again Crackle!


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## MarkF (31 Mar 2008)

I use a tagalong with my 5 year old daughter, it took a little while to get used to and she now knows not to suddenly turn to look backwards! The only down side for me is trying to get through towpath "gates" without howls of pain as her fingers get caught.

I was told by the LBS that a lot of tagalong tubes (The tube from to seatpost attachment to tagalong frame), even from reputable mftrs, are liable to flex, bend and possibly snap When I bought mine I was surprised to be given a foc replacement "just in case".

That first tagalong was stolen and I bought a Trek replacement, lo and behold, a foc charge "just in case" tube was provided.


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## ufkacbln (31 Mar 2008)

Crackle said:


> They do if you don't set them up right or the adaptor kit doesn't fit the bike properly - can't stress that enough.
> 
> When Son No.1 finally got a bigger bike, we had to abandon the Gator because it didn't fit his bike properly. Likewise I gave one to a friend and gave him specific instruction on fitting. He fitted it and it didn't work, so I got it back.
> 
> ...



Trains can be a problem.... If the policy excludes "Rann trailers" then they will not take a tagalong!

Otherwise just treat it like a bike.


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## ufkacbln (31 Mar 2008)

Should also add a mirror (or two) on the towing bike allow supervision, and communication is good enough to train the child.... Discussion and commentary are a great way to learn. 

"We are going to turn left - do you want to signal now?" 


Develops into 

"We are turning left, when do you want to signal?"

Finally you will find on known routes they can signal appropriately without prompting.

Road sense is very easily taught in this way.


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## BentMikey (1 Apr 2008)

Tagalongs are great, we have a trek one. miniMikey loves going on it. And no, the tagalong should be straight with no lean at all. If there is a lean, there's something wrong.


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## Arch (1 Apr 2008)

On the question of lean, I've seen tagalongs at roadshows where the mount to the seatpost was fine, but the bolt holding the pivot together had worn thin, or the hole had worn bigger, and that was allowing some serious leaning. Worth checking for play in the actual joint tdr1nka? Would think the way to repair would be to redrill the hole straight and use a bigger bolt, but sooner or later you'll run out of metal to play with and you might be best getting the advice of a decent metalworker/engineer... (unless you happen to be one of course!)

Mind you, the worse one I saw, the lad was leaning over at some angle and still merrily powering his mother along as she free-wheeled!


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## sjb (1 Apr 2008)

Tagalongs are great, my 6 year old loves it - did 30 miles yesterday from Patrington to Spurn Point, fantastic day and she even coped with the concrete "cobbles" on the last mile or so of road on the point. 

Only problem is that she has seen me standing up to get up hills and now does it at random to give us a boost! Talk about causing a wobble when you're not expecting it......the rule now is that she has to ask me if I need her to stand up!!!!


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## Jet (1 Apr 2008)

Oh wow!! Thankyou so much everyone for your very useful replies. I just signed on on the off-chance I might have had 1 or 2 replies!!

Tdr... ha ha! That made me chuckle - my motorbike is in the garage and has been for about 3 years. Its amazing the toys you have to give up when kiddiwinks come along isn't it?! Mind you I did dust my leathers off the other day so who knows what might happen this summer.....And I know exactly what you mean about having an over enthusiastic pillion anticipating corners for you!!!

As far as the tagalong debate goes I think I'm now suitably scared off getting a trailgator to attach his existing bike. My boy is very tall and solid for his age and the thought of having his lump of lead bike leaning out along with his solid frame terrifies me!! My poor lightweight stumpjumper ain't gonna cope with that I don't think not to mention my out of condition frame!

On the other hand I do like the sound of the tagalong. The one thats caught my eye is an Adams aluminium 7 speed (it colour co-ordinates well with mine ;-) ) which seems reasonably priced for what you get. I like the sound of being able to go over more lumpy ground with a tagalong.

Ok well thanks for all your replies - tomorrows mission is to buy a tagalong. No doubt I'll be reporting from the nearest A&E tomorrow evening on whether you lot can be trusted or not!

Jet.
x


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## duncan_harris (18 Apr 2008)

*Islabikes trailerbike*



> I coulnd't find the trailerbikes at www.islabikes.co.uk. Has she stopped doing them?



I just bought one recently. 

http://www.islabikes.co.uk/bike_pages/trailerbike.html

It handles very well. The only hassles I have with it are:

gears a bit low would have been better with 7 speed so I could get an 11 tooth cog on the back
a few bits have a tendency to rust (racks, horizontal hitch pivot). Make sure you lube it all if you want to take it out in the rain. We leave ours at nursery all day three days a week so it does get a bit wet.
I have two extra towing racks and the thickness of the mounting plate varies between racks which means you have to adjust the QR skewers when switching bikes.
 Another similar one to look at is the new Burley Piccolo which they have restarted producing this year. It is more expensive, but has 7 speed gears although no mudguard which seems a bit silly. Not sure how easily it hitches on and off.

I have also owned a Roland add+bike which I have since sold on. This one does not handle as well, because the mount point is further back. On some bikes it makes your steering light (less weight on front wheel). However it is very quick to swap bikes and is very rust proof and you can use a child seat at the same time. Also it has a proper chain guard and hub gear which they all should have really.

Duncan


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## mickle (18 Apr 2008)

Right then.

The name 'Tag-a-long' is registered (in the UK) to Paligap Ltd, the UK distributors of Kona bikes (and some other cool stuff).

Many cheap trailer bikes have very poor tolerances in the universal joint, it's this factor which causes the uncomfortable permanent lean and and dangerous wobbles as the passengers centre of gravity shifts from one side to the other. 

We use Avenir (Raleigh) trailers in our demo fleet at the moment. They were purchased by a previous incumbent who knew SFA about the subject and I hate them. I'd like to get rid of them and replace them with gen-u-ine Tagas, Islas or Burleys but hate the idea that some poor kid might actually have to ride one. I think they'll end up being junked.

Hitch and UV play is the major problem with cheapo trailers, I've never seen any evidence of 'boom flex', on the contrary, most of them appear to be massively over engineered. Compare the slender, lightweight and perfectly reliable hitches found on Pashley/Creswell U+1s and U+2s with the enormous lump of steel found on Avenirs for example.

As far as rack mounted trailers are concerned, I think people are drawn to them as a direct result of the wobbly shortcomings of cheapo seat post mounted units rather than a weakness in the actual design- _good quality_ seatpost mounts handle perfectly well. Rack mounts restrict the use of panniers too.


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## GeorgeS (16 Oct 2011)

Hi everyone,

I'm a student at Loughborough University in my final year of a product design degree; as part of this I must redesign an existing product or invent something completely new. I have decided to focus on Trailer Bikes and, in particular, improving the tow bar concept used by the Trail-Gator. I'm not sure whether anyone is still linked to this thread but any answers to some of the following questions would be much appreciated.

I like the fact that the Trail-Gator adds flexibility and allows the child to have freedom, as well giving them the option to be hooked on when tired. Has anyone had any particularly bad experiences with this product?

I've heard and read that they can be really awkward to fit; is there a particular aspect of the design that is most troublesome?

I have managed to get my hands on a second hand Trail-Gator and, having looked closely at it, feel that it actually appears quite cheap - anyone agree? Has anyone had any concerns over the quality of it when in use?

If you have any further input unrelated to the questions above then i would be hugely grateful!


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## Globalti (17 Oct 2011)

Can't remember the make of trailer bike we had but the joint was so sloppy that it wobbled alarmingly and on one occasion as I set off at a junction the "whip" was so bad and unexpected that it actually threw him off into the road in front of the car behind us.

I did see one (again, can't remember the make) which had a much better design of joint with no slop.


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## Bicycle (17 Oct 2011)

I am a fan of Tag-along bikes.


My first child learned to ride the old-fashioned way. The second had some dyspraxia-related coordination difficulties and was finding it very tough. I had no idea about the dyspraxia at the time, but thought a tag-along might help.

It was wonderful. A gearless, cheapo model that's now been handed down several times.

It had just the desired effect on my son, who went quickly from a hesitant and fearful non-rider to a scourge of the local tarmac. He is now 15 and rides with gusto and skill.

My youngest used it too, but just because we had it. 

Advantages:

It is a good way to teach riding in traffic. It's almost like a dual-control car.

It allows youngsters to climb and descend at speeds they wouldn't otherwise manage, so it somehow broadens horizons.

It allows a family to ride together where there is some disparity in age/ability.

You can chat.

On a flat road or mild descent, the child can propel you while you're not pedalling. This makes them feel superhuman! 

They can learn to signal, look behind and similar withoiut the attendant fear of wobbling.


Caveats:

The trailer can bounce alarmingly over deep potholes. Avoid them, even if on an MTB.

You are very long and can pull away slowly. Allow for an extra gap when pulling out. 

It's worth leaving attached the slightly twee hi-vis pennant. Drivers can be surprised to find a trailer behind a bicycle.

The ergonomics are not always 100%. Even though it's 'just a tag-along', do pay attention to saddle height, comfort and all that other gubbins. Mine had a silly handlebar, so I replaced it with an old one from an MTB.

I see many with gears, but when using one I rarely rode across a range of speeds that required them. I think there is much to be said for starting off without gars and moving gradually into them. Many will think otherwise, but clearly they are wrong and I am right.

Mine was always slung out behind an old nail of an MTB. I wouldn't tow one on anything too lighht or fancy as they put stresses on parts that they may not have been designed to take.

If you go off-road with a tag-along, be prepared for comedy moments. Your child will love it, but you might lose a shoe and maybe some dignity.


In a phrase: You won't go wrong buyoing a tag-along and won't regret it.


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## Soltydog (17 Oct 2011)

Whereabouts are you Jet. I have a tagalong that you can have for £30 , i'm near Hornsea East Yorks


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## GeorgeS (17 Oct 2011)

Thanks so much for your responses already guys; the feedback is much appreciated!! keep it coming and hopefully i'll be able to work on a design that improves at least some of these flaws...


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## fossyant (17 Oct 2011)

We've got a six speed Trek tag-a-long that's great. My 8 yrear old uses it when she doesn't want to ride her bike (not as confident as bigger bro).

With the trail-gators, I think something easier to fit correctly (see to many fitted badly) would be good.


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## GeorgeS (28 Oct 2011)

Hi Everyone,

Thanks so much for the replies already, much appreciated.

I am getting into the concept development stage of my project now and just had some questions relating to bags...

*When using trailer bikes/trail-gator, do people tend to wear a rucksack to carry things for the day out etc?*
*
*
*If so, what kind of things would you normally put in there?*
*
*
*Do you feel this could hinder your movement and restrict being able to look over your shoulder to check your child?*
*
*
I am considering adding some form of storage aspect to my design, possibly that then acts as a mud guard... any thoughts?

Thanks again!


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## matthat (9 Mar 2013)

Jet said:


> Oh wow!! Thankyou so much everyone for your very useful replies. I just signed on on the off-chance I might have had 1 or 2 replies!!
> 
> Tdr... ha ha! That made me chuckle - my motorbike is in the garage and has been for about 3 years. Its amazing the toys you have to give up when kiddiwinks come along isn't it?! Mind you I did dust my leathers off the other day so who knows what might happen this summer.....And I know exactly what you mean about having an over enthusiastic pillion anticipating corners for you!!!
> 
> ...


Well Jet the boy did well on Tagalong didn't he!! And A didn't do to bad either as they are both now very competent at riding there own bikes!! Just thought i'd reopen post so any newer readers see it and also I can say that the Tagalong has built confidence and strength for doing longer rides that your average under ten would want to do.


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## mark1974 (10 Mar 2013)

i bought one a few weeks ago cost me 39.99 from rutland cycling i think that was delivery included.
my 4 year old would not get on it after a hour we was away its so much fun
really worth the money.
the stability is no problem little shaky sometimes but nothing to worry about.
this is one we got


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## Ern (14 Apr 2017)

I've had this going for a while now my bike, then tag-along, then first trailer is an old 2 kid carrier converted to luggage hauler, and the second trailer is a garden trolley for if we go to the local boot fair as can haul more cuddly toys or kids games home, but I want to sort some sort of brakes for the rear trailers to make stopping a bit safer.


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