My muni has finally been upgraded! I now have a Magura HS-33 brake running on a new frame. The original frame is still being used by a friend who I sold it to.
The colours in the pictures are a bit out as I took them in lower light with a flash. The real frame colour is more earthy and generally nicer than in the photos. We used a 22.2mm bar end to mount the lever which is shaped perfectly. Haven’t taken it out on the mountain yet…looking forward to it.
The upgraded muni is a heavy beast at 7.5kg (16.5lb) but that’s fine with me. The old frame was about 900g, this one seems double that! I’ve decided to strictly only do drops under 4’ on the muni to keep the wheel true. It will now be used primarily for technical, steep, rutty, rocky stuff…my favourite type of muni.
So here’s my upgraded custom muni all set for the 12hr MTB race this weekend…
Cool. Nathan would love it. Yellow is his favorite color.
Now you need to get it dirty.
You will want to lengthen the crossover line on the Maguras to get it more clearance over the tire. When you catch a rock or stick in the knobbies you can end up ripping the crossover line.
Will do, along with 10 other unicyclists in this weekend’s 12hr MTB race.
I was thinking about that today. Is the crossover line the only thing that gets damaged if it’s ripped out? Also, what do you think of the way the cable is set up at the moment? It’s cable-tied in place but is it worth re-doing it with the cable closer to the frame?
Hub and cranks - 145mm Profile
Rim - Alex DX-32
Tyre - Nokian Gazzaloddi 24x3"
Pedals - Odyssey Twisted Pro
Frame - GP prototype 24" frame (GP is Gary of unicycles.com.au 's brand)
Seat - KH
Seatpost - 22.2mm
Lever Mount - 22.2mm handlebar extension
Brake - Magura HS-33
*Will probably lengthen crossover cable, add lever extender, and buy some really nice brake pads from a friend who makes them.
It’s my custom muni…by far the favourite of all my 6 unicycles.
Hard to say as most of it was bought back before unicycles.com.au wasn’t around and prices were much higher here in Australia. Plus I didn’t get it all at retail price (worked in a bike shop).
You might try twisting the seatpost around once (360) to wrap the loose cable around it. I tried the zip ties first, but then just spun the post around and it wrapped nicely, taking out all the slack. That keeps it from catching on clothing, sticks, your flailing hand, whatever.
Jerry
P.S. I love my brake! Totally saved my quads and knees coming down Snowbird at NAUCC.
If the crossover hose breaks the only thing that gets damaged is the crossover hose. The oil in the brake is harmless (just mineral oil) and won’t damage the unicycle or the tire. If the Maguras used DOT3 brake fluid things would be different.
You can get the brake hose redone by a bike shop that does DH or freeride bikes. They’ll have the fittings and you can get brake hose that is more durable than the plastic stuff. I’ve got a picture of my brake line in the gallery: Magura aftermarket braided hose. It’s cheaper than going with the Magura branded braided hose.
Wrap the brake line around the frame once or twice like jpcycler said. You don’t want big loops of hose sticking out. When you reach out to grab your uni after a UPD you may end up grabbing the looping hose and ripping it out. Keep it tidy and looped around the frame.
Check out the Magura Cult home page for tips on bleeding the rim brake. You’ll need to bleed the brake when you change the brake line. The Magura Cult page also recommends using Finish Line Shock Oil Number 5. It’s cheaper than the real Magura stuff. It’s a brand of oil used for the front shocks of mountain bikes. It should be available in Australia. See the Magura Cult for more info. The viscosity of the oil is important so don’t go trying to use some random mineral oil of unknown viscosity.
Cool MUni, Andrew! Is that your original Muni wheel?
Now all you need for your braking pleasure is a Delta brake lever extender.. www.unicycle.co.nz sells these. I highly recommend these with a brake - they make using yr brake much more positive and sooo much more comfortable!
I had a similar cross-over setup on my Muni and it got busted off the very first ride I went on. Now the crossover is held close to the frame by some nifty steel clips which are part of the frame - a photo would help here, but I don’t have one to demonstrate what I mean.
I reckon if you’re going to get your crossover hose lengthened, then at the same time you should get your main hose shortened. You only need enough hose so that you can set yr saddle at yr maximum seat height and any more is just excess and asking for tangles. See this pic which shows my muni with minimal hose length. With minimal hose length you won’t need to bother with cable tie-ing the hose to the frame.
No drops over 4ft??!? Wheel-trueing is a pretty easy repair and you work at a bike shop don’t you?
Tony,
I have one of those lever extenders on my coker that I may transfer over to the muni if it feels better but given the angle I hold the seat at it I’m not sure if it will be needed.
I will only do up to 4’ drops on the muni and leave the 4-8’ drops to the trials uni. Hopefully it will soon hae a new hub and crank set that Gecko is making that will be as strong as Profiles but cheaper.
Yes, I can build and true wheels but they don’t last forever if you keep re-truing them and I want a reliable breaking surface.
I really don’t think you need to worry about drops pushing yr rim out of true. I’ve done plenty of 5 footers and my MUni’s wheel is still true after two years riding abuse. And its only a measly DM-24. So unless you land a particularly large drop really poorly your chances of putting your rim out of true are small. But hey, its your wheel and your choice how you ride it.
I seem to remember both of us doing 5 foot drops on your Muni at the UNINATs…
