Looking for an all around unicycle

General
1

I am searching for an all around unicycle that I can learn how to hop,
ride on light dirt trails, and ride on pavement roads. I don’t want to
spend too much (like $1,000+ US money), but I’m willing to spend a
reasonable amount. $400 - $600 range is probably reasonable.

(1) Pashley 26-inch Power MUni with Miyata Saddle ( $429.00)

(2) Semcycle XLW 24- or 26-inch with Sun BFR Rim, Gazzaloddi Tire, Miyata
Saddle ( $319.00)

(3) United 24-inch Off-Road with Miyata Saddle, Suzue 36-spoke Hub and
Kovachi Wheel ( $159.00)

(4) Wilder Lightrider 6160A ( $595.00)

These models are from the www.unicycle.com web site. I hope they don’t get
upset that I posted their prices, but wanted to do that for comparison
purposes. I want the best bang for my buck.

I’m hesitating to even think about buying the Semcycle Deluxe Custom
Off-Road unicycles because the forks do not look sturdy in the picture;
the forks look weak. Of course, pictures don’t tell the whole story.

I’m leaning towards option #2 (up above). If I want to learn how to hop,
I’m wonder if I should go with 24 instead of the 26 inch?

Thank you.

2

Hi !

I also plan to buy option 2. I want to go with a 24" in order to be able
to perform as well in trials as in MUni. For hopping, I began with my
cheap Taiwanese uni and its ok unless you don’t jump from too high (I
jumped from a 8 inch curb and the wheel came a little bit of of thru… I
think that the axle has bent a little bit also…). Pashley Muni seems to
be a good choice but I want a Miyata saddle and they don’t make a 24"…
As you’re talkin about the Wilder Lightrider 6160A, I guess you’re a lady.
If not, be aware that it is designed for light people… I agree with you
for the look of the Semcycle Deluxe Custom.

Good Luck !

Christian.

Life is that way wrote:

> I am searching for an all around unicycle that I can learn how to hop,
> ride on light dirt trails, and ride on pavement roads. I don’t want to
> spend too much (like $1,000+ US money), but I’m willing to spend a
> reasonable amount. $400 - $600 range is probably reasonable.
>
> (1) Pashley 26-inch Power MUni with Miyata Saddle ( $429.00)
>
> (2) Semcycle XLW 24- or 26-inch with Sun BFR Rim, Gazzaloddi Tire,
> Miyata Saddle ( $319.00)
>
> (3) United 24-inch Off-Road with Miyata Saddle, Suzue 36-spoke Hub and
> Kovachi Wheel ( $159.00)
>
> (4) Wilder Lightrider 6160A ( $595.00)
>
> These models are from the www.unicycle.com web site. I hope they don’t
> get upset that I posted their prices, but wanted to do that for
> comparison purposes. I want the best bang for my buck.
>
> I’m hesitating to even think about buying the Semcycle Deluxe Custom
> Off-Road unicycles because the forks do not look sturdy in the picture;
> the forks look weak. Of course, pictures don’t tell the whole story.
>
> I’m leaning towards option #2 (up above). If I want to learn how to hop,
> I’m wonder if I should go with 24 instead of the 26 inch?
>
> Thank you.

3

On the older Unicycle.com web site layout, I could have sworn … that the
Wilder 6160A was not a lady’s unicycle. I might be wrong, but did they
changed the model name recently so that it reflects a female unicycle?
Beside the light blue color, what really separates a female unicycle from
a male unicycle? I can’t see how there can be a difference.

I also wanted to buy the Pashely, too. They’re nice looking, but I wonder
if they might be too heavy or clunky for beginners who want to learn how
to hop. I haven’t decided yet, but I am still leaning to option #2.

I guess for a beginner, I should start off with a lower priced model
(i.e., option #2) and buy an expensive unicycle in the far future when I
have proven to myself that unicycling is a serious sport for me.

“Christian St-Pierre” <Christian.St-Pierre@fse.ulaval.ca> wrote in message
news:3C0D6CDD.AC5E3406@fse.ulaval.ca…
: Hi !
:
: I also plan to buy option 2. I want to go with a 24" in order to be able
to
: perform as well in trials as in MUni. For hopping, I began with my cheap
: Taiwanese uni and its ok unless you don’t jump from too high (I jumped
from a 8
: inch curb and the wheel came a little bit of of thru… I think that the
axle
: has bent a little bit also…). Pashley Muni seems to be a good
: choice but
I
: want a Miyata saddle and they don’t make a 24"… As you’re talkin about
the
: Wilder Lightrider 6160A, I guess you’re a lady. If not, be aware that it
is
: designed for light people… I agree with you for the look of the
: Semcycle Deluxe Custom.
:
: Good Luck !
:
: Christian.
:
: Life is that way wrote:
:
: > I am searching for an all around unicycle that I can learn how to hop,
ride
: > on light dirt trails, and ride on pavement roads. I don’t want
: > to spend
too
: > much (like $1,000+ US money), but I’m willing to spend a reasonable
amount.
: > $400 - $600 range is probably reasonable.
: >
: > (1) Pashley 26-inch Power MUni with Miyata Saddle ( $429.00)
: >
: > (2) Semcycle XLW 24- or 26-inch with Sun BFR Rim, Gazzaloddi Tire,
Miyata
: > Saddle ( $319.00)
: >
: > (3) United 24-inch Off-Road with Miyata Saddle, Suzue 36-spoke Hub and
: > Kovachi Wheel ( $159.00)
: >
: > (4) Wilder Lightrider 6160A ( $595.00)
: >
: > These models are from the www.unicycle.com web site. I hope they don’t
get
: > upset that I posted their prices, but wanted to do that for comparison
: > purposes. I want the best bang for my buck.
: >
: > I’m hesitating to even think about buying the Semcycle Deluxe Custom
: > Off-Road unicycles because the forks do not look sturdy in the
: > picture;
the
: > forks look weak. Of course, pictures don’t tell the whole story.
: >
: > I’m leaning towards option #2 (up above). If I want to learn how to
hop,
: > I’m wonder if I should go with 24 instead of the 26 inch?
: >
: > Thank you.
:

4

Suzue hubs are not the same width as Profile. The Profile assembly has
some adjustability, but is still about 1/4" wider than the Suzue. It would
take some real creativity on the part of the framebuilder to accomodate
both of these hubs with a single frame.

Chris

Jeff Lutkus wrote:
>
> > On the older Unicycle.com web site layout, I could have sworn … that
> > the Wilder 6160A was not a lady’s unicycle. I might be wrong, but did
> > they changed the model name recently so that it reflects a female
> > unicycle? Beside the light blue color, what really separates a female
> > unicycle from a male unicycle? I can’t see how there can be a
> > difference.
>
> It’s the hub – it’s a Schwinn, I believe, which was not designed to
> take heavy drops. The issue, I believe, was the frame was designed
> with the Profile splined hub in mind, so the first run of those frames
> could only acomodate a Profile, or Schwinn hub. I think it might take
> a Semcycle Deluxe hub, though, I’d check with unicycle.com on that
> one, though.
>
> As I understand it, though, future versions of the Wilder are designed
> to fit a Suzue (and still a Profile) hub. Suzue seems to be the
> strongest or the reasonably priced hubs.
>
> jl
>

> Sent via the Unicyclist Community - http://Unicyclist.com

5

What I was referring to is the overall width between the bearings on a
suzue vs. a Profile axle, Profile is about 1/4" wider. If you were to get
a frame sized for the width of the Profile hub, and if the bearing caps
have one free side like the telford unis do, and if the frame doesn’t hit
the cranks with the narrower suzue hub (some cranks are fatter than
others), it may work. But your frame could start to walk on the bearings
with the Suzue wheel in it, as you would only have friction to restrict
the bearings from moving laterally in the frame.

A Profile and an NK hub may be compatible. You Telford owners, did the
Profile drop right in where the NK was?

Chris

Maxfield D wrote:
>
> >Suzue hubs are not the same width as Profile. The Profile assembly has
> >some adjustability, but is still about 1/4" wider than the Suzue.
>
> Help me understand which dimension causes the problem. At first I
> assumed you meant the thickness of the bearing… Profile bearing is
> 40mm OD and 7/16" thick. SKF bearing is 40mm OD and 10 mm thick.
> 7/16" is 11.11mm, which seems close enough to 10mm to work. Are you
> referring to the length of the axle? Is the Profile 1/4 inch longer
> than the Suzue. Is that enough to cause problems?
>
> thanks for the help.
>
> David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

6

Okay,

As I recall, with this particular Wilder frame, the rim is a steel wheel, is it not? This may be a weak wheel for hopping. Call Unicycle.com and ask them about it. I always wondered about this when I read the description. The frame might be really hardy, but I don’t know. Ask for Mark. He knows his stuff pretty good or ask for John. Don’t worry about the prices, most of the readers shop there and are familiar with the prices. PRices are up on the pages quite a bit.

I have the 24" sem xlw. I really like it, but this is the only Muni I have ever ridden. Kris Holm points out that the 24" wheel is stronger than the 26" simply due to the smaller size. The smaller wheel also means a shorter circumference, which translates to less distance per revolution. So for steep stuff, theoretically, you should have to work less as opposed to the 26". The 26" wheel may be a bit heavier than the 24" wheel, if you compare the same type of wheel and hub, but different size.

I put the sem xlw on the bathroom scale and it weighed in at 13.5 lbs. Even if you assume a half pound error on it, it isn’t too bad. Check with unicycle.com for weight.

The pashley may be stronger, not sure, but, Dan Heaton rides one in UNiverse and does some rough stuff with it.

For starting out, you can’t beat the price of the Semxlw. I haven’t dropped it off of a picnic table, but it has always felt sturdy. I have hopped off of 1 foot curbs before and the wheel remainded fine. Your weight also plays a role in the abuse the MUni will take. I weigh in at 155.

For me, I will stick with the Semxlw for a while, 1 - 2 years. I only get to ride seldom and practice when I have time. My learning curve is long. So consider how much time you have to practice.

Hopefully someone will respond that has beat up the Semxlw and give you info on what it really does. Unfortunately, since the semxlw came out several months ago, there has been little commenting on this Muni. Someone out there must have bought one and hucked it around a little.

Try searching the forums pages under Pashley 26" or SemXLW to find more info.

Keep it up.

7

On my Telford, I switched from the Telford Deluxe (heat treated NK) hub to
a Profile last March - it just dropped right in without a problem. I later
dropped the Profile into a Wilder 6160C frame and it works there
beautifully too. My wife now has the Telford back with the NK hub. Boy is
it great to have swappable Muni components!

Speaking of that I also now have a Carbon seat base that’s drilled in both
patterns (Sem and Miyata) - fits on either unicycle. I was a little
surpised that it is still strong with all that drilling - it also allows
either a Miyata or a Reeder handle - 16 holes total. Thanks again to Roger
for such a great product! Has anyone else double drilled it?

—Nathan

“Chris Reeder” <reed8990@uidaho.edu> wrote in message
news:3C0DBBDD.98091B6E@uidaho.edu…
> What I was referring to is the overall width between the bearings on a
> suzue vs. a Profile axle, Profile is about 1/4" wider. If you were to
> get a frame sized for the width of the Profile hub, and if the bearing
> caps have one free side like the telford unis do, and if the frame
> doesn’t hit the cranks with the narrower suzue hub (some cranks are
> fatter than others), it may work. But your frame could start to walk on
> the bearings with the Suzue wheel in it, as you would only have friction
> to restrict the bearings from moving laterally in the frame.
>
> A Profile and an NK hub may be compatible. You Telford owners, did the
> Profile drop right in where the NK was?
>
> Chris
>
>
>
>
> Maxfield D wrote:
> >
> > >Suzue hubs are not the same width as Profile. The Profile assembly
> > >has some adjustability, but is still about 1/4" wider than the Suzue.
> >
> > Help me understand which dimension causes the problem. At first I
assumed you
> > meant the thickness of the bearing… Profile bearing is 40mm OD and
> > 7/16" thick. SKF bearing is 40mm OD and 10 mm thick.
> > 7/16" is 11.11mm, which seems close enough to 10mm to work. Are you
> > referring to the length of the axle? Is the Profile 1/4 inch
longer
> > than the Suzue. Is that enough to cause problems?
> >
> > thanks for the help.
> >
> > David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

8

On my Telford, I switched from the Telford Deluxe (heat treated NK) hub to
a Profile last March - it just dropped right in without a problem. I later
dropped the Profile into a Wilder 6160C frame and it works there
beautifully too. My wife now has the Telford back with the NK hub. Boy is
it great to have swappable Muni components!

Speaking of that I also now have a Carbon seat base that’s drilled in both
patterns (Sem and Miyata) - fits on either unicycle. I was a little
surpised that it is still strong with all that drilling - it also allows
either a Miyata or a Reeder handle - 16 holes total. Thanks again to Roger
for such a great product! Has anyone else double drilled it?

—Nathan

“Chris Reeder” <reed8990@uidaho.edu> wrote in message
news:3C0DBBDD.98091B6E@uidaho.edu…
> What I was referring to is the overall width between the bearings on a
> suzue vs. a Profile axle, Profile is about 1/4" wider. If you were to
> get a frame sized for the width of the Profile hub, and if the bearing
> caps have one free side like the telford unis do, and if the frame
> doesn’t hit the cranks with the narrower suzue hub (some cranks are
> fatter than others), it may work. But your frame could start to walk on
> the bearings with the Suzue wheel in it, as you would only have friction
> to restrict the bearings from moving laterally in the frame.
>
> A Profile and an NK hub may be compatible. You Telford owners, did the
> Profile drop right in where the NK was?
>
> Chris
>
>
>
>
> Maxfield D wrote:
> >
> > >Suzue hubs are not the same width as Profile. The Profile assembly
> > >has some adjustability, but is still about 1/4" wider than the Suzue.
> >
> > Help me understand which dimension causes the problem. At first I
assumed you
> > meant the thickness of the bearing… Profile bearing is 40mm OD and
> > 7/16" thick. SKF bearing is 40mm OD and 10 mm thick.
> > 7/16" is 11.11mm, which seems close enough to 10mm to work. Are you
> > referring to the length of the axle? Is the Profile 1/4 inch
longer
> > than the Suzue. Is that enough to cause problems?
> >
> > thanks for the help.
> >
> > David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

9

> On the older Unicycle.com web site layout, I could have sworn … that
> the Wilder 6160A was not a lady’s unicycle. I might be wrong, but did
> they changed the model name recently so that it reflects a female
> unicycle? Beside the light blue color, what really separates a female
> unicycle from a male unicycle? I can’t see how there can be a
> difference.

It’s the hub – it’s a Schwinn, I believe, which was not designed to take
heavy drops. The issue, I believe, was the frame was designed with the
Profile splined hub in mind, so the first run of those frames could only
acomodate a Profile, or Schwinn hub. I think it might take a Semcycle
Deluxe hub, though, I’d check with unicycle.com on that one, though.

As I understand it, though, future versions of the Wilder are designed to
fit a Suzue (and still a Profile) hub. Suzue seems to be the strongest or
the reasonably priced hubs.

jl

Sent via the Unicyclist Community - http://Unicyclist.com

10

I was surprised by the “ladies” designation too. I had just recommended it
to a brother-in-law, though he is hanging tough looking for a Telford.

My wife is “very interested” in the Wilder, but I want her to get
something that will allow us to swap wheels. My wheels all use bearings
that are 40mm OD, to fit my Telford. I thought the next generation Wilder
was going to use 40mm OD bearings…

David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

11

>Suzue hubs are not the same width as Profile. The Profile assembly has
>some adjustability, but is still about 1/4" wider than the Suzue.

Help me understand which dimension causes the problem. At first I assumed
you meant the thickness of the bearing… Profile bearing is 40mm OD and
7/16" thick. SKF bearing is 40mm OD and 10 mm thick.
7/16" is 11.11mm, which seems close enough to 10mm to work. Are you
referring to the length of the axle? Is the Profile 1/4 inch longer than
the Suzue. Is that enough to cause problems?

thanks for the help.

David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

12

Is “flange to flange” length the right dimension to compare–to see
whether a hub/axle will fit your frame? For example: Suzue is 61mm Sem
Deluxe is 73mm Schwinn is 79mm Profile is 80mm

My Telford is designed for Sem Deluxe, but I use a Suzue in my Monty
wheel and it works fine on the Telford. I just check periodically to
make sure the frame hasn’t sprung off the bearings–and I had to
loctite the bearings to the axle so they wouldn’t be pulled off. Am I
creating a problem?

David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

13

> My Telford is designed for Sem Deluxe, but I use a Suzue in my Monty
> wheel and it works fine on the Telford. I just check periodically to
> make sure the frame hasn’t sprung off the bearings–and I had to loctite
> the bearings to the axle so they wouldn’t be pulled off. Am I creating a
> problem?
>
> David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

So are you squeezing the fork legs together to make them fit on the Suzue,
or are you just centering the Suzue in the frame and tightening the bolts?

Chris

14

>So are you squeezing the fork legs together to make them fit on the
>Suzue, or are you just centering the Suzue in the frame and tightening
>the bolts?

Squeezing the fork legs–but just a bit. I hardly notice it.

David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA

15

Maxfield D wrote:
>
> Is “flange to flange” length the right dimension to compare–to see
> whether a hub/axle will fit your frame? For example: Suzue is 61mm Sem
> Deluxe is 73mm Schwinn is 79mm Profile is 80mm
>

Flange to flange does come into play sometimes, as the NK hub is wider
flange to flange, also somewhat wider bearing to bearing, but I don’t
remember it being any wider crank to crank. So basically with the NK hubs
you have a lot less space to put bearing holders than other hubs. I had to
grind a set of cheap lollipop bearing holders once to make them narrow
enough to fit an NK.

For anyone who’s wondering what an NK hub is, Sem Deluxe hubs as well as
Telford hubs are just NK hubs that have been re-heat treated.

Chris

16

Life is that way wrote:

> I guess for a beginner, I should start off with a lower priced model
> (i.e., option #2) and buy an expensive unicycle in the far future when I
> have proven to myself that unicycling is a serious sport for me.

There is another advantage to starting with one uni and then moving up
later and that is that you can then get someone else interested in
unicycling as well.

I’ve read a lot of comments from people asking if there is anyone in their
area to ride with. If you have an extra unicycle then you can lend it to
someone until they are hooked, then make them buy their own and lend out
your old one to another buddy.

Christopher

“Be Bold and mighty forces will come to your aid.” -Basil King (Anyone who
can give me more info on THIS Basil King please email
me.)

My small but growing site: http://home.earthlink.net/~crgrove/index.htm

If you are in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti, MI area check out my resume and if
you know of a company that fits me please let me know… Thanks!

17

Hi,

The latest Wilder (the ‘C’ model) does take 40mm OD bearings and has been
designed with the Profile in mind. To this end it won’t take a Suzue hub
due to it being narrower than the Profile.

It had been my thought to have an indesctructible but heavy Profile
wheelset and a lighter Suzue / Kooka wheelset to switch between. Sadly
this won’t work because of the difference in widths of the 2 hubs. This
has all been confirmed by the very helpful Muniac - the Wilder
designer. The NK hub sounds like it might be a viable alternative to
the Suzue in that it should fit. I don’t know how it’d hold up to
abusive riding though.

Cheers, Neil

----- Original Message ----- From: <maxfieldd@aol.com> To:
<rec.sport.unicycling@kildrummy.co.uk>; <rsu@unicycling.org> Sent:
Wednesday, December 05, 2001 3:17 AM Subject: Re: Looking for an all
around unicycle

> I was surprised by the “ladies” designation too. I had just recommended
> it to a brother-in-law, though he is hanging tough looking for a
> Telford.
>
> My wife is “very interested” in the Wilder, but I want her to get
something
> that will allow us to swap wheels. My wheels all use bearings that are
> 40mm OD, to fit my Telford. I thought the next generation Wilder was
> going to use 40mm OD bearings…
>
> David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA
>
_________________________________________________________________________-
__
> rec.sport.unicycling mailing list -
www.unicycling.org/mailman/listinfo/rsu

18

Hey there, What about a Hunter frame, would the profile hub fit into
there? I don’t see why not, but just seeing if anybody knows from
experiance. Dustin Zupancic Uni-Pickle

> Hi,
>
> The latest Wilder (the ‘C’ model) does take 40mm OD bearings and has
> been designed with the Profile in mind. To this end it won’t take a
> Suzue hub
due
> to it being narrower than the Profile.
>
> It had been my thought to have an indesctructible but heavy Profile
wheelset
> and a lighter Suzue / Kooka wheelset to switch between. Sadly this won’t
> work because of the difference in widths of the 2 hubs. This has all
> been confirmed by the very helpful Muniac - the Wilder designer. The NK
> hub sounds like it might be a viable alternative to the Suzue in that it
should
> fit. I don’t know how it’d hold up to abusive riding though.
>
> Cheers, Neil
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: <maxfieldd@aol.com> To:
> <rec.sport.unicycling@kildrummy.co.uk>; <rsu@unicycling.org> Sent:
> Wednesday, December 05, 2001 3:17 AM Subject: Re: Looking for an all
> around unicycle
>
>
> > I was surprised by the “ladies” designation too. I had just
> > recommended
it
> > to a brother-in-law, though he is hanging tough looking for a Telford.
> >
> > My wife is “very interested” in the Wilder, but I want her to get
> something
> > that will allow us to swap wheels. My wheels all use bearings that are
> > 40mm OD, to fit my Telford. I thought the next generation Wilder was
> > going to use 40mm OD bearings…
> >
> > David Maxfield Bainbridge Island, WA
> >
>
_________________________________________________________________________-
__
> > rec.sport.unicycling mailing list -
> www.unicycling.org/mailman/listinfo/rsu
> >

19

“Christopher Grove” <c_r_grove@yahoo.com> wrote in message
:
: I’ve read a lot of comments from people asking if there is anyone in
: their area to ride with. If you have an extra unicycle then you can lend
: it to someone until they are hooked, then make them buy their own and
: lend out your old one to another buddy.

That is an excellent idea. Especially, if I want to get a know a girl
better. :slight_smile: Anyway, I’ll seriously speaking, I might do some sharing like
that. Actually, I tend to shy away from large group of people.

20

On Wed, 05 Dec 2001 01:18:48 GMT, “Life is that way”
<sorry@no.mail.com> wrote:

>Beside the light blue color, what really separates a female unicycle from
>a male unicycle? I can’t see how there can be a difference.
I don’t know if this goes any way in answering the question but… My
12-year old daughter has a 20" Showtime unicycle. AFAIK it wasn’t
specifically made for ladies (or for children), but the seat curvature is
quite pronounced. For me as a male I don’t fit “in” it comfortably if you
know what I mean. So that might be a difference.

As an aside: I have often wondered why unicycle seats aren’t curved a bit
less. Less curvature, in addition to possibly being more comfortable,
would facilitate bringing out the seat for hops, drops and what have you.
And has anyone ever fallen off the seat’s front or rear end?

Klaas Bil

“To trigger/fool/saturate/overload Echelon, the following has been picked
automagically from a database:” “BECCA, IWG, RG”