why dose everyone use Hydraulic brakes on there unis (other that the fact that there cool) wouldint V-brakes work just as good?
Hydraulic brakes (specifically maguras) don’t have any pointy cables to cut thre inside of your legs. They also won’t engage the rim when yor knees hit the calipers, unlike V-brakes. They last longer. They clear 3" tires better. They can be set for slow, constant drag for long boring descents. They have a more solid and responsive braking action. Most frames are made to only fit maguras, not v-brakes. If you want more reasons, I’m sure I could find some.
A few people do use v-brakes, just not many.
no thats good thanks for the help i think im mite get some now can you help with witch ones
Well the standard for most hydraulic unicycle brakes are Magura HS33s. So I’d go with those. I believe there is one version with a steel cable, but that is a tad overkill in my opinion. I’d say go with the regular brake cable version.
I have a HS33 for sale if anyone is interested.
The steel braided hose is an aftermarket addition. Both Unicycle.com and Bedford have brakes with the braided hose upgrade already installed. Unfortunately it’s an expensive upgrade.
The braided hose is stronger and more flexible. It’s less likely to kink or break compared to the stock black plastic hose.
The main problem is the crossover hose (the short piece that goes over the tire). Rocks or sticks can get stuck in the lugs of the tire and rip the crossover hose. That’s a problem with the stock plastic hose. The braided hose is strong enough that it is less likely to get ripped or pulled out. That’s also why you want to have clearance between the tire and the crossover hose. The stock crossover hose is a bit short for fitting over a 3" tire so it tends to be too close to the tire.
The Magura brand braided hose is expensive. That’s why the braided hose upgrade is expensive. The alternative is to get some braided hose custom cut at a DH bike shop. A DH bike shop should have good quality hydraulic hose and the necessary fittings to fit the Magura brakes. They can custom cut the hose and get it all working. The non-Magura braided hose is not going to be as good as the Magura braided hose, but it will be less expensive. That’s the route I went with.
You can find used Magura HS33 brakes on eBay. But buying from eBay can be a bit messy because there are lots of little details that you’ll need to get right to get the brake working on a unicycle. You’ll need to make sure that the brake is in good condition and that you get the right brake mount. The two bolt trials style Magura mount is $26 at Unicycle.com. Factor that in to the price if you’re buying from eBay and the brakes don’t come with that style of mount. You’ll probably need to bleed the brake if you buy used from eBay. To do that you’ll need to buy a bleed kit which is another $20 or so. If you don’t want to deal with all of those issues then just buy from Darren or Unicycle.com.
do you have a pic and how much