Have a read of the below to find out if your bike works with Mac Ride. Check out the many bikes in action with Mac Ride from around the world here, in our compatibility gallery!

Any further questions, please reach out--- info@mac-ride.com. 

1. WILL MAC RIDE FIT ON ANY BICYCLE?

Mac Ride will fit on any bike--

A- With STEERER TUBES that are: 

• 1 1/8" (2 front mounts are included with each Mac Ride seat)
• 1 1/4" (order online)
• 7/8" (order online)
• 1" (order online)

AND

B - With DOWN TUBES that are 60mm wide or less.

AND

C - Have sufficient SPACE UNDER YOUR STEM for the Mac Ride Front Mount Spacer

You will need at least a 10mm headset spacer under your stem. This original spacer will be replaced by the Mac Ride spacer bracket. Please check that you have at least 10mm of spacers to enable the Mac Ride spacer to fit. 

Important re SHORT STEMS-- Mac Ride can fit with a 50mm stem, but only if there is more than 10mm of spacers. If you have only the minimum, 10mm, and the shape of your stem extends downward, then there might not be enough room for the the Mac Ride bolt to fasten the front mount to your stem. One possible solution-- if you have spacers above your stem, you can move them below your stem instead, creating more room for the swap with the Mac Ride spacer. 

2. WHICH MOUNTING BRACKET SPACER DOES MY BIKE NEED? 

Mac Ride comes with two mounting bracket standard spacers-- 1 1/8". If you do not have a common bike, you will need to purchase different mounting spacers. Which ones? The answer lies in the steerer tube. There are four main steerer tube sizes, below.

What is a steerer tube?

Great question! It's the silver part of your bike, below, that goes down and connects to your forks.

You are looking to measure the diameter of the steerer tube at the portion that sticks out from your frame (where it says 1 1/8", below). This is the part where the Mac Ride front mount fits, so it is the part that counts!

 

How to know which one you need?  Sometimes the size is marked on the shaft of the stem (inside the steerer tube), but not always. If you have calipers, you can check this out (the measurement is the diameter), otherwise, it might be worth checking things out with a bike shop before you order.

 

• YES: 1 1/8" (28.575mm) - Threadless steerer tube - the most common - on most modern mountain bikes, most road bikes and many commuter bikes - Mac Ride compatible; 2 provided with a Mac Ride purchase.

• YES:  1 1/4" (31.75mm) - Threadless steerer tube - less common, only Giant bikes ~2011-2014 (Overdrive 2) - Mac Ride compatible. Must be purchased online.   

                                        

       

     

Some commuters will take an adapter that looks like this. There are 2 sizes. 

• YES:  7/8" (22.2mm) - Quill type stem with threaded steerer tube for commuters and certain older bikes (check carefully for a 7/8" sizing, rather than 1" and order appropriately.) Must be purchased online. 

• YES: 1" (25.4mm) - Quill  type stem with threaded steerer tube for commuters and certain older bikes (check carefully for a 1" sizing, rather than 7/8" and order appropriately.) Must be purchased online. 

• NO: 1.5" - Threadless steerer tube - less common and being phased out - not compatible with Mac Ride (some Cannondale Leftys have this tube).

• NO: Spacers that are not round, as is the case for example, with some Scott Genius and Scott Spark spacers (note in the image below that there is a flat edge; this is not compatible with Mac Ride's front mount).

• It Depends: The Knock Block spacers used by Bontrager, Trek have a spacer surface with notches, ie, the spacer is not flat. As it stands, these are not compatible with Mac Ride's front mount. If your spacers do have the notches, there is a work around.

• You can convert from knock block to normal spacers-- with a part--
  • Knock Block Lockring Spacer Part #545523

  For example, in the EU, the part is available here. And it looks like this, mounted. The lockring goes below your Mac Ride front mount.

What is a "Tapered" steerer tube?

Sometimes the spec on your bike will say 1 1/8" with a "tapered" steerer tube, and then give additional dimensions, which can be confusing. As long as it's 1 1/8" at the part above your frame, the rest doesn't matter for fitting Mac Ride. So don't be worried about "tapered".

3. WHAT ARE THE IMPORTANT MAC RIDE MEASUREMENTS?

3.1 WHAT IS THE MAXIMUM WIDTH FOR MY TOP TUBE AND DOWN TUBE?

Under 60mm wide = Mac Ride compatible, no e-bike adapter needed

The width of a Mac Ride seat's stirrups is 70mm; to allow for wiggle room and to ensure Mac Ride's stirrups don't touch your frame, we recommend a max top and down tube width of 60mm or less. It is true that riders use Mac Ride with tube widths that go to 68-69mm. Some put tape or mini grips on the stirrups to protect possible touching between the stirrups and their frame. It is their decision to do so, but it's not recommended.

Over 60mm (and under 90mm) = Mac Ride compatible WITH e-bike adapter.

If your top and down tubes are over 60mm, we recommend the e-bike adapter.

The adapter offers you an extra 30mm. The width grows from 70 to 100mm, and the recommended width of your top tube and down tube grows from 60mm to 90mm or less. 

Again, it is true that riders use Mac Ride with tube widths that go to 98-99mm. Some put tape or mini grips on the stirrups to protect possible touching between the stirrups and their frame. It is their decision to do so, but it's not recommended.

WITH e-bike adapter:

Please measure your frame carefully before buying Mac Ride and the e-bike adapter to ensure the added width is sufficient to enable Mac Ride to fit on your bike! (We can help; if you would like to chat about bike compatibility, please email info@mac-ride.com.)

3.2. WHAT ARE THE DIMENSIONS FOR MAC RIDE'S REACH FROM STEERER TUBE TO SEAT POST?

The main Mac Ride frame is made of two telescopic bars.

Measuring from the center of the steerer tube to the centre of the seat post--

• The minimum top tube length required is 48cm.
• The maximum top tube length is 66cm.

3.3. WHAT ARE THE DIMENSIONS FOR MAC RIDE'S STIRRUPS FROM SHORTEST TO LONGEST?

Mac Ride's stirrups have a number of buttons for extending the leg so the seat grows with your child. At their shortest, the stirrups are 230mm. At their longest, they are 320mm.

3.4. DO THE FOOT STRAPS ADJUST? 

Yes! Little feet grow quickly. And sometimes they are in light shoes; sometimes they are in big winter boots. Mac Ride's foot straps can be adjusted by pulling the rubber foot strap down and out, away from the metal "hook" at the end of the foot rest.

There are four sizes for each foot- extra small, small, medium and large. 

3.5. WHAT ARE THE DIMENSIONS OF THE MAC RIDE REAR CLAMP AND WHAT IS THE MIN & MAX DIAMETER FOR THE SEAT POST TO WORK?

Rear Clamp Dimensions

The depth dimension of the rear clamps is 20mm, so you need at least that much space on your seat post. The thickness of the clamp is-- 7.5mm.

Seat Post Diameter Range

The range for the rear mount that fits on the seat post is 27.2 to 31.6 mm (this should cover 99% of all seat posts). Thinner seat posts can have a rubber patch to thicken the post. 

We have recently heard that some 2019 bikes might be using a larger 34.9mm seat post. Mac Ride was not built for this, but there is a fix-- 
Remove the domed nut from the end of the Mac Ride rear clamp hand screw. This will allow the clamp to open up to 34.9mm. The domed nut is only there to protect the riders inner thigh from the potential sharp edge of the screw when clamped to very small diameter (27.2mm) seat posts. It serves no other purpose. As long as you don't need to go larger than 34.9mm, by removing the domed nut, there are no changes to the function of the clamp. 
A heads up-- the nut may be stiff to unscrew as there is a small amount of threadlock on the inside.

This fix is not suitable for seat posts that are larger than 34.9mm (although we do not know of any... at this time!)

4. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH A DROPPER POST?

Absolutely! When mounting the rear clamp, be sure to go on to the base of the post, and not the part that drops.

5. HOW DOES THE MAC RIDE REAR CLAMP WORK ON A "NORMAL" SEAT POST (NO DROPPER)?

That's easy! Mac Ride simply clamps to the seat post itself.

6. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH A DOWNHILL BIKE THAT HAS A DOUBLE CROWN?

Unfortunately not. The area becomes more crowded and you need space for your front clamp to close around the Mac Ride front mount spacer on the steerer tube. In any case, Mac Ride is better on a more low key bike for cruising child-friendly trails :)

7. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH AN E-BIKE?

You can use Mac Ride with an e-bike, but as e-bikes are so varied, a careful read through of all the compatibility information is advised before you make a purchase. We've seen Mac Ride work brilliantly on many e-bikes and were delighted to be featured by Giant Europe as they demonstrated the benefits of Mac Ride for riding with your children. Read on if you have an e-bike, and learn more about our "e-bikde adapter", also available on our shop!

There are other e-bikes shown here--

However, there are some potential challenges to look out for:

• The shape of the top tube (if curved upward in parts, rather than flat, it can interfere with Mac Ride installation)
• The width of the top tube (if too wide, the stirrups will not fit around it)*

• The down tube often has a battery pack on it and the stirrups need a certain width and buffer for movement side to side, which the battery doesn't usually allow for (if riding without an e-bike adapter, tubes should be no more than 60mm*)

*E-BIKING WITH OUR E-BIKE ADAPTER
When you purchase Mac Ride AND the e-bike adapter, you get an extra 30mm. The width grows from 70 to 100mm, and the recommended width of your top tube and down tube grows from 60mm to 90mm or less. Some customers ride with the top and down tubes as wide at 99mm and take their chances with the Mac Ride stirrups running down the sides of their tubes with a tight fit...we don't want you to scratch your frame!

8. IS MAC RIDE COMPATIBLE WITH A CARBON FIBER BIKE?

Yes. As long as the stem, top tube and down tube parts meet the above requirements, carbon fiber bikes are fine, including carbon fiber seat posts.

9. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH A BIKE WITH DROPPED BARS?

Mac Ride is not recommended for bikes with dropped bars. 

10.  IS MAC RIDE COMPATIBLE WITH A TREK KNOCK BLOCK HEADSET SYSTEM?

Ouff - tricky question. There's only one way to be sure, and that's to look inside your spacers and make sure they are completely smooth. These ones are not smooth, and would not work with Mac Ride-

 

From our research, it looks like the knock block spacers have notches inside, behind the scenes. To check your own spacers, take off your top cap, stem, and your spacers to have a look inside. We think they will have notches, but if we are wrong, and if your spacers are clean and smooth all round inside, you are good to go!

If your spacers do have notches, there may be a work around. You can convert from knock block to normal spacers-- with a part--

• Knock Block Lockring Spacer Part #545523

For example, in the EU, the part is available here.

We think this may work if you use it on the bottom spacer, then Mac Ride spacer above. Unfortunately we don't have much experience with this type of headset.

11. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH A SCOTT SPARK 2017 OR A SCOTT GENIUS?

We have seen some where the spacers are not round. Then, Mac Ride is not compatible. For example, here -

 

Yet, we have seen others and they are round, and Mac Ride is a YES! Send us a picture and we'll try and help you out! info@mac-ride.com. 

12. CAN I USE MAC RIDE WITH A BIKE WITH A CANNONDALE LEFTY OR A BRAMPTON FOLDING BIKE? 

Mac Ride can be made to be compatible with a Cannondale Lefty, however a part is needed - a special Lefty fork shaft, for example, here. 

"Now you can install a standard 1 "1/8 stem on your Lefty® fork (OPI and 1"½). This new tube gives you access to shredding with Mac Ride, and to lighter stems, of the brand you like best and with any angle/length.Valid for any Lefty® fork, just check the size of your original tube." 

Mac Ride is not compatible with Brampton folding bikes, or other folding bikes.

13. IS MAC RIDE COMPATIBLE WITH A MOPEDS? 

Mac Ride is not suitable for mopeds.

IMPORTANT

If you are unsure whether Mac Ride is compatible with your bike, using the online specification sheet for your bike, you can try measuring with a ruler, or talk to your bike dealer or local bike shop. Feel free to email us with questions as well - info@mac-ride.com.