The local “antique” shop has a unicycle in stock that I have not seen before.
It has cottered cranks, a sturdy looking frame and a 28 spoke wheel. It also feature surface rust and an old bicycle saddle.
The shop keeper has put AUS$125- on it which is way too much.
The attached photos should help those in the know identify what brand it is and also give an idea as to it’s real value.
The first person to appease my curiosity with a correct reply wins a cute little unicycle model that I had made in Thailand. You will need to collect it from me in Brisbane though
that uni looks almot exactly my first uni that i still have and learned thoe i dont know what its name is cus it was all rusty when i got it heheh so i dont think it is home made
Yes, same bearings as on my Japanese Concord. This suggests possibly the same factory, but who knows? It’s a safe bet you have a Japanese unicycle from the 1970s there. I have seen that fork crown before, but can’t remember the associated name. Like my old Concord, that is just the sticker on top of the metal. The same frame may have been sold under many different names, just like the frames of today.
I would assume the tire, seatpost and seat are not original, but the rest is definitely a manufactured unicycle. I sure hope that’s not the seat that came with it!
So your antique dealer can decide whether he wants to sell his outdated unicycle, which is possibly up to 30 years old or so, or keep looking at it for a long time. It has no intrinsic “antique” value, other than perhaps being a rarity in Australia if few were ever sold there. But it’s not in original condition so its value as an “antique” is even less.
I’d agree that its worth no more than $50. It needs a new saddle and seatpost to make it rideable for more than a few minutes. If you explain this to the seller he might realise that it ain’t worth $125.
