Well, today I decided to take the uni for a walk to the new M7… it is a 40km freeway with a bike/walk track the whole distance…
I got on the uni and spent a few minutes trying to readjust and get my balance, then I decided to give it a go and let go of the railing, went about 120m before it was too steep uphill to continue going… It’s only been a week but I’m fairly proud of my newfound skills.
I must admit that I’m also surprised with peoples reception of it.
I have never gotten so much admiration from bike riders, I’m sure they can understand the difficulty…
Also, I know I’m a big guy(6’3’’ 85kgs) and as I ride and put all my weight on the seat I can hear some noise from the spokes, as if it’s buckling… Is it just adjusting becuase it’s brand new? Or am I damaging it?
Thanks again…
nice work, but yeah, with new unicycles, they have to be " broken in " the spokes have to be worn in, and for the spokes to be worn in, sometimes they adapt a clicking kind of noise, and the spokes become a bit loose. You can take your uni to the local bike shop and get them to tighten them (it will only take them about half an hour.
Or it could be the cranks, they make a clicking noise if they r loose, tighten them straight away if it is the cranks! If it isnt the cranks then tighten the pedals up to maximum tightness. But apart from those things, the only other thing that could be making a noise on the uni that i can think of at the moment, is the seat, but wen u tighten the screws under the seat, be careful not to overtighten them, or otherwise the hats on the screws will tear off. So just tighten them to a little bit ova hand strength!
I hope this helps 
It’s just adjusting cause the wheel is new.
Machine built wheels and some hand made wheels will creak when new. The creak is the spokes adjusting under tension and evening out any twist that they have. The creaking can also be due to the spokes rubbing against each other. You can get rid of that noise by putting a little drop of oil or a little bit of grease where the spokes cross each other. The noises will go away as the wheel settles in.
Machine built wheels are not tensioned enough. The stock unicycle wheels are machine built. The loose spokes will make noise and loose spokes also affect the strength of the wheel. If you’re a big person or if you’re going to be riding the unicycle hard it is a good idea to take a new wheel to a bike shop and have them hand tension all of the spokes. It will make the wheel quieter and make the wheel stronger.
A properly built hand built wheel should be rock solid and not make any noise. The spokes will all be very tight, tight enough that you can pluck them and they make a nice pling sound. A properly made wheel will also be stress relived by the wheel builder. Stress relieving will even out the spoke twist on all of the spokes so they won’t make noise when you first ride the new wheel.
First of all, you can’t write “6’3’’ 85kgs” in the same phrase. It’s too baffling. Trials2k and JC are right, the spokes like to rub at their contact points and creak. Welcome to the fora and congrats on your ride.
Re: First decent ride… and a small question…
On Sun, 15 Jan 2006 12:57:20 -0600, harper wrote:
>First of all, you can’t write “6’3’’ 85kgs” in the same phrase. It’s
>too baffling.
Hi molab, harper is one of our main characters here. His utterances
usually have to be taken in a particular mood, but harper has a
particularly wide spectrum of moods and it takes some experience to
pick the right one. You’ll get there soon enough though.
Hi harper…
hey molab, if u were riding the M7 that means u must live pretty close to me. its good too see it catching on in my area, keep up the riding mate!