T-bar discussion thread

[madc-ccc]

Originally Posted by turtle

my solution:

Hey turtle! Your above setup looks really great to me!!!

Quick question: did you design and make the grey extender yourself, or did you find it off-the-shelf?
[EDIT] You said earlier on: "i'm making a longer lever extender"... I guess this is the one shown above, right?

Also, did you keep this setup, or did you give it up after a few weeks/months?

Cheers, MadC.

[turtle]

perfect timing, yesterday i posted in another thread my prototype (second pic is how i used the kh T-bar the last months which worked perfect!

[Monsieur K]

it looks very interesting but what about jumping ? the first solution seems better (?)

[turtle]

.

[Nurse Ben]

Yeah, jumping is no problem, well that is unless you land poorly

I'm just not into the double hand position for muni, a single hand works best for me when I need extra control/power. I can ride ambidexterous, but what I find is that if the trail is easy enough for two handed riding, then I can ride no hands

[scotthue]

I really like two handed riding for uphills. I find I can get more torque on the pedals for really steep hills. I would never rather ride no handed when I have the chance to ride with both of my hands on. When riding muni, one of my hands is always ready to come of so I can stick that arm out for balance, however I find that I ride smoother (and therefore faster and using less energy) if I have both hands on.

Turtle, how are you liking that saddle for muni? I understand the desire for a slim saddle for distance, but I don't think I would want thinner than a KH street for muni. Also, is the older velo base strong enough for the handle? Does it flex a lot?

[turtle]

i ride also only uphill both handed otherwise always one handed at to lower part of the T that's why i put a bike handle thing on it (on the prototype above also but after i took the pic) like this i've always perfect control.

and yes i love the saddle, i've got fou of them all with fibreglass base (no flex at all) trial, 26" street, 36" road and on the muni. i like it also fir muni because i got a direct response.

[Nurse Ben]

I love riding no handed on trails, I can hang my arms down, fiddle with stuff, stretch out, it's the one advantage unicycles have over bikes: we don't "need" to use our hands.

I can ride some fairly rough terrain free handed, funny how I refused to ride with hands when learning, then developed an obsession with always having a hand on the grab handle, and now might not have a hand on the handle unless I really need to be pulling up or steering.

I am only riding single track, so maybe for double track or road it might be different and I'd have a twin handle, but for the riding I do it's a one handed "all the days" (my son's phrase)

[scotthue]

Turtle, did you drill your bases your self or buy they ready to use? Where did you get them?

What do you mean by the bike handle thing?

[turtle]

@scott: about the bases: i've got 2 from UDC which i drilled myself and two are from Axle (now at Trion/jogi) which have been already drilled.

By the bike-Handle thing i meant this:

[vookash]

I like to keep my hand on a grip and be able to brake at the same time.
Such setup is good enough for my XC riding.

I plan to cut the T-bar in length but after I change my saddle as this one is bit off to the side so I can't decide how much shall I cut exactly. I prefer the bar short and I now ride it shorter then on the second photo.

[turtle]

i have 100% grip and brake at the same time:

[MuniAddict]

Originally Posted by danger_uni

Personally I have 3 setups on the unis I mostly use:

1) No T-bar at all, for pure technical downhill (North Shore) riding on my 24" muni.
2) T-bar in a low, short position, with the brake close to the saddle, for everything else offroad, on my geared 26er.
3) T-bar in low, fully extended position for gravel and paved road riding (e.g. on my 36er)

For #2, the lower position means I can lean forward onto the handle even though it's short, and the short position means I can keep stable and pull up hard on the handles over bumps while keeping hold of the brake. I used to wish I still had the brake lever mounted under the saddle handle for technical riding and drops, but since using this setup I actually prefer it where it is for most conditions.

I cut the T-bar width narrower (to 120 mm) so it doesn't bump my knees in the low, short position, and the excess T-bar tubing is cut off. The slotted tube is flipped backwards (clamp towards the rear) to allow the shorter position. The T-bar is angled up, with the bar-ends slightly down, to move the bar-ends closer to the brake lever.

Attached is a photo of #2. This is in a really short position; often I might move it maybe 10 or 20 mm further forward than this. The bar-ends in the photo are Carbon and have since broken - currently I'm using the standard spec bar ends.

Cheers,

Kris

#2 is exactly my G26 setup, and it works great!

[MadFurai]

I recently bought the KH T-bar and have started using it for technical singletrack Muni. So far I really like it. My pedal strokes seem to be much more efficient. I have considered shortening the bar even more and moving the handles closer to the saddle, but right now my current setup is attached. The one negative about the T-bar is that it's harder to jump/step clear of the Uni during a UPD now.

It's hard to see, but I have a Starfighter on the end of my disc brake lever.

[Nurse Ben]

This is what I'm using for 36er muni in place of my single bar end, it gives me a two handed position for climbing double track while still providing decent grab for downhill. I still ride the majority of the time with my right hand dominant, either grabbing the right side or the center.

The T Bar is narrowed by 1/2 inch on either side, I did this to reduce leg bruising when climbing out of the saddle. I cut the two bar ends with a hacksaw so they match tightly, then wrapped them with rubberized cloth tape.

Replacing the grab handle with a freestyle handle saves weight and makes it easier to get an in-close hand position.