Pocket bike vs. Dirt bike vs. Pit bike

Last Updated on July 16, 2022 by Nafi

These 3 types of bikes i.e., Pocket bike, Dirt bike, and Pit bike are three famous categories of bikes usually used for amateur and adventure and racing purposes. There is much difference in those 3 bikes. But there is a similarity in those bikes which is very interesting. All of these 3 bikes are illegal to operate on the road. It means that none of them deserves a road permit.

There are many differences between pocket dirt bikes and pit bikes. The difference can be considered in terms of their purpose, use, body-built, and rider’s category. A pocket bike is a small bike that is officially developed for young kids and teens. But Dirt bikes and pit bikes are for adult riders.

The detailed difference can be demonstrated through a comparison table that will project things better than any other way.

Pocket bike vs. Dirt bike vs. Pit bike

Topic	Pocket bike	Dirt Bike	Pit bike
Age group	6 -13+	18+	10 – 18+
Road	Plain road	Off-road	Off-road
Suspension	No Suspension	High quality	Medium Quality
Engine CC	39 to 49 CC	115 CC to 650 CC	50 CC to 250 CC
Engine Starter	Pull Starter	Kick Starter/ Electric Starter	Kick Starter/ Electric Starter
Speed	15 to 28 mph	35 to 110 mph	20 to 55 mph
Horse Power	0.4 to 1.5 hp	13 to 50 hp	2 to 15 hp
Transmission	Chain Drive	2 to 4 speed	4 to 5 Speed
Purpose	Entertainment	Adventure/ Racing	Adventure/ Racing
Clutch	No Clutch	Has Clutch	Has Clutch

Like you have seen, there are some similarities between pit bikes and dirt bikes. But there is no point to resemble a pocket bike with dirt or a pit bike except that none of them has a road permit. The dirt bike is the strongest bike among all. The pit bike is basically used as auxiliary support for dirt bike racing. Later the bike has been commonly a favorite to its riders. Pocket bikes on its journey have joined many racing competitions and gained fame.

Pocket Bike Purpose

Adventure is the basic thing behind riding all those bikes. But a pocket bike is entertainment for young kids on private property. The pocket bike is considered next to a toy bike. Toy is being developed over time a getting the quality of a real object. The helicopter is the last thing maybe that has been built up as toy for children. Similarly, a pocket bike is not considered a real vehicle by many jurisdictions. They are built up for entertainment for young kids of the age range 13+.

The pocket bike has joined a bike racing competition naming Minimoto by which it gained popularity. It has got an individual identity as a pocket bike and doesn’t accept the considering this as mini bile although it was considered so.

Dirt Bike Purpose

A dirt bike is for off road like on rugged passage in locality and hilly area. It is used for an adventure through the place where an ordinary vehicle can’t run smoothly. Dirt bike is designed to cope with the distorted paths of different types. The bike is bigger than the pit bike and has a higher torque. The bike comes with a higher cc-rated engine which is up to 650. If you are the one who loves adventure a dirt bike is perfect for you. You can travel through a forest area which is not plain like a well-constructed road. The high-quality suspension system in a dirt bike absorbs the friction of the ground surface and you won’t get that in you. Also, a dirt bike has a special tire that makes a strong grip on the ground that saves you from losing balance and fall while stepping upward and downward.

Pit bike purpose

The pit bike is also an off-road bike like a dirt bike, but it can be called junior in quality and configuration. The pit bike is less costly than a dirt bike. Although it’s small in size, that doesn’t allow a comparison with a pocket bike. Because the bike is completely for a minor age group of riders and so small that and an adult has to bend his knee while riding. But a pit bike is bigger than a pocket bike in size. It has most of the facilities of a dirt bike but with less capability. The size of a pit bike is suitable for all adults regardless of their height.

If you are an individual to ride a pit bike you have to find the road by yourself that has no prohibition for a pit bike. Commonly these off-road bikes are good to ride in country size muddy roads. A road through a forest is also suitable for a pit bike.

Legal features

There is no permission of a pocket bike, pit bike, and dirt to operate on public roads and highways. These bikes are considered not to caring the street-legal components in them. Street legal components in a  motorbike are a speedometer, horn, headlight, indicator light, and rearview mirror. It’s really true that none of those bikes come with these components. The reason behind removing these components may be their fragility.  A pit bike is prepared for high friction, high fall, and long jump. A speedometer is an electronic device that may not tolerate this pressure.

A rearview mirror and indicator light on both sides are more fragile to break down. In fact, the pit bike and dirt bike often fall. Such frequent fall down is more likely to damage the indicator light on both sides of the pit bike or a dirt bike.

The removal of legal features from a pocket bike seems different. It might be due to making the bike cost-efficient. The pocket bike has been more popular with adults because of its low price. So the addition of those feature normally increase the price and a high price pocket bike will be suitable neither for young kids nor for adult. Moreover, as this bike is not for a public road, these components are not important for the riders.

Recognition

In consideration of the recognition, the dirt bike is a most professional bike which is mostly used in many motor racing championships. It is a full-phase off-road bike capable of overcoming any issue of road. A pit bike is most similar to this but with lower power and size. A pocket bike can be termed as the offspring of a pit bike. It had no official recognition until it gained success in minimoto pocket bike racing.