what bike for a 7yr old
 

My son has been on an Oset 16 since he was about 4, and while it is great for the garden, he now wants to ride with me and on an outride the batteries last an hour max and he is always full taps now. (the balance he has developed on the oset is amazing, i would say better than me!)

I am more interested in easy enduro (single track etc) rather than MX. MX is too dangerous IMO and the whole mommy/daddy competativeness is not something i want to get involved in.

he is quite tall for 7 (closer to an average 8 yr old ... hmmm tall, better balance than me ... who is this kids dad!! ;-) so wanted to know what the options are for his size (bearing in mind he has a younger brother who gets all the hand-me-downs so doesn't necessarily need to last very long size wise)
There is a ktm50sx available here that needs some work, but reading up on it this does not seem ideal for trail riding - small wheel and agressive engine - so looking for other options

My 2 cents: Check out a Yamaha PW80
I have my 8 year old one and he's tall too and fits fine. I just got all my boys riding this year and the bike is perfect for them (got my 6 yr old on a XR50 and my 10 yr old on a XR80) PW's are just about bullet proof, its got a 3 speed with auto clutch, and parts are cheap and plentiful too. Heck even I enjoy jumping on it now and then! There is also an exhaust restricter you can swap in and out to slow the bike down depending on your kids ability.

I haven't owned one but I hear the little racing 50's like the KTM, Cobra, LEM like to go thru clutches. They are built for racing.

My son is 7 and started at 4 on a ktm mini sx. He now has a gasgas ec50. The gasgas is a cool bike and has some neat features like high and low range, but the bike is very rare and there is no aftermarket(like spark arrestor, pipes nothing)

I should have gotten him a KTM 50 senior adventure. the adventure is air cooled(like the mini sx we already have) Add the SX pipe and carb for more power if/when needed.
Get the senior model with the 12" front wheel 2007-08 would be first choice.

Being as your kid has skills I would say he is very close to being ready for a 65cc bike.
For this my first choice would again be orange. 2009 and newer has an adjustable power valve. there are a few xc models.

I got my 8 yo a 2003 ktm 50 sr adventure as well and i think the bike suits the riding condition you are looking for. The problem i seem to be facing is that in the way the previous owner had it set up it's a bit small ( he sits on the back portion of the seat). I made a few adjustments and will see on our next ride if its any better.

Basicly i think by next year he will have outgrown the bike. He has only riden it twice but i can already predict by the end of the season he might by ready to move on to something bigger powerwise as well.

For now i have now idea what bike to get him next so ill be following thi thread for sur.

Between my two sons, we transistioned between the following bikes between the ages of 3.5 and 15.
two XR / CRF50
CRF70
TTR90
XR80
CRF100
YZ85
two KX100
EC125
EC200 (now with MC250 engine)
EC300
TXT pro 280

They seemed to physically out grow the bikes quickly. They are 14 and 15.5 now and are keeping up with me really well and I think they may surpass my ability in then next couple years. I highly reccomend full riding gear including neck braces. I also reccomend bark busters and FWW for the two stroke bikes. Since they outgrow the bikes so quickly I bought used and or broken bikes cheap in the off season, fix them up then sell the outgrown bikes in the spring for a reasonable profit and the hobby cost becomes somewhat reasonable. Presently we have eight GG bikes in our riding group so we enjoy the GG parts interchangeability. Offroad riding is an awesome sport that we have shared as a family sport for almost 10 years now and is something we can share for years to come.