Im debating between spending $100 for a 28" Sun or $300 for a 29" Nimbus. Is there a big difference in quality and speed for the money or would I be better off buying the Sun and upgrading the cranks, seat and tire?
I would say it’s better to buy a Nimbus, Firstly they are ISIS, they already have a better seat, better rim probably. Nimbus unicycles are probably alot better quality than the Sun but I can’t really say because I never rode a Sun, and Nimbus looks cooler also:)
not much difference in speed, they run the same rim from what I understand (correct me if I’m wrong here)
a big difference in quality, if you’re going to be rough on it, the nimbus will hold up better. If you just want to cruise, I would think the sun would be fine for that.
While it’s true that the Nimbus 29 has ISIS cranks, they aren’t any better than stock square taper ones. The rim on the Nimbus is single walled, and not much different than the Sun (if you get one with an aluminum rim). The biggest difference immediately will be the seat. I would definitely get a better seat, and 125mm cranks. You can get decent cranks for between $10-$15 if you shop around. There are some torker cx cranks at Niagara Cycle for ten bucks. I think you could get LX ones for not much more.
If you upgrade later on you can put the stock seat back on the uni to sell it, and move your plush saddle to the new ride.
thanks for all the info. ultimately i want a 36" so i can make the 8 mile trek to school easier than on my 16" torker.
The 28" or 29" will be an unbelievable improvement over your 16" Torker for an 8 mile run.
A 36" would be faster, but I think the difference you will see with the 28-29" will be enough to make you very happy.
Scott
I’ve owned a 24in sun flat top, and now a 24in Nimbus II freestyle. If you are just using it for commuting, get the sun (and upgrade the seat!). If you want to get a little crazy with it, get the nimbus. Im not sure what size tire the 29in comes with, but the 24 freestyle has a 2.5 tire which is really wide, and will increase the rolling resistance a little bit, which could be a problem for commuting. On the plus side though, the Qu-Ax cranks that are stock on the Nimbus have a Q-factor of zero which will make it easier to go straighter and faster.
+1 on the fat tire on the Nimbus II - great all around tire.
If you already know how to ride, get the Nimbus. If you didn’t already know how to already ride I would say take your pick. I bought my GF a Sun and now I keep if to lend to friends to learn to ride on, not that I have found anyone yet, but that is why I keep it. She never did get past riding 20-50 ft, so I made the right choice for her.
I haven’t done the math, have you? How does the price compare to upgrading everything on the Sun or getting the Nimbus? Also remember the Sun comes with the smallest seat post (limited upgrades) and the seat post clamp is crap. You will need to upgrade that as well, but they are not very expensive.
Are you looking at the Club or the Nimbus II? The Club has a single walled rim while the Nimbus II has a double walled hub. At least that is what the UDC web site says and what came on my Nimbus II Cruiser. If you are spending $300 it sounds like you are looking at the Nimbus II. I keep hearing people say that the Nimbus is single walled. Is that just old information that keeps getting repeated or am I missing something?
I love mine (wish it was round shouldered) and so far have not felt the need to upgrade the seat. (but plan to at some time in the future). If you order the Nimbus get them to swap the hookworm for something narrower if all you plan to do is commute on it. Nice thing about the hookworm is that its rated to 60 Lbs. For fitness rides I’ve taken mine to 65 LBS with no problems and I don’t feel much rolling resistance at that PSI. My fitness ride is six flat miles round trip on a smooth bike path. For bumpier rides, I drop to 55 and feel a slight increase in rolling resistance. This is with the stock 2.5 hookworm.
So unless you really want a round shouldered 24"… my pick would be the Nimbus. You many find you never even need to upgrade the seat. The Nimbus seat is worlds better than what many people around here learned on.
One other note" the 0 Q-factor on the nimbus bothered me. My calves rubbed the frame, and my feet always felt like they were falling off the pedals, so I got some cheap, but nicely made pedal extenders off of EBay.
Just saying since it was brought up in this thread and somebody may find it in a search.
If you look at the OP you’ll see he’s debating between the 28" Sun, and the 29" Nimbus. The Nimbus 29’er has a single walled rim. It also has the round crown frame. As near as I can see they don’t have the Nimbus II frame available in 29" anymore, and I never saw that frame offered as a built uni.
I’ve seen the Sun 28" for around $100. That makes it worthwhile even if you change the saddle, and cranks.
8 miles is a good long way on a 36
If your real plan is to do 16 miles/day round trip, save your $. Anything less then a 36 with a KH seat is inadequate. I do a similar commute on a level island, and it gets a bit tiring at the end of the back stretch with the 36 . My ass has felt better. I don’t do it 2 days in a row very often. With padded bike shorts and a KH freeride seat, it is an enjoyable ride.
I also have a Torker ax 29. The seat is the same as the lx (I think) and ok, just not KH. It is more like a large muni than a 36 in feel. It has about half the comfortable range as the 36.
Sun unis are ok for a really cheap uni. I recommend you not buy a really cheap uni, the lx series Torker has every part built to a much higher level for cheap.
If you do get a Sun, buy a better seat a the same time. Save the Sun seat until you find someone you really hate and then give it to them.
Uni riding is about fun and exercise, not hurting yourself with crap gear. For a regular daily 16 mile commute, any 29 would be painful and on a Sun seat it won’t be fun.
For long commutes on the cheap, find a used 36 with a TA tire (silent, lasts forever). It is harder to do any tricks on a 36, or even some basic skills. Very easy to ride in a straight line, it is easy to learn to commute on a 36 (assuming there isn’t lot’s of traffic).
A while back there was a thread about the Coker wheelset, and it sort of morphed into a discussion about a cheap way to build a decent 36’er. I have the Coker wheelset, and it is very nice. I currently have it in a Nightrider frame, and it dropped right in with no problem.
I think if you bought the Titan frame and built it up from various parts from Coker Cycle, and UDC you could have a complete uni for around $350, maybe less. Quite a bit more than a Sun, but my meager 8 miles/day is much more enjoyable with the 36 than it was with the 29’er.
I decided to buy the 29" Nimbus. Quality over quantity. If I do decide to sell it I should be able to get more moneys worth out of it. With a company called Nimbus you should be good.
What part about “You need a 36” did you not understand?
Just kidding. Good move on going Nimbus over the dark Sun.
If you haven’t ordered yet, I say get the KH free ride option. Then look up nerdy looking padded Lycra bike shorts.
A 29 might actually be faster in a tight urban route. On in open route, you will have to spend about 1/3 longer in the saddle to get to the same place than a 36. Doing 16 miles a day on a 29, you should get a great saddle and bike shorts.
Jtrops - thanks for helping me understand what the OP was asking and about the single wall rim. Now that I read the post again I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m on some Med’s that are really screwing with my head.
That round-crown 29" Nimbus with KH Freeride and 125’s is next on my list of Uni’s to buy for my fitness rides.
volkscart - Good choice and happy riding.