Maintenance woes

Hottest day ever in the UK, and I went to the coast and it was cloudy and cold. :0(

Got back to where I’m staying, and I was asked to repair a puncture on the perambulatory cargo unicycle.

The PCU wheel has a plain sleeve bearing, with a moulded bearing holder which needs to be fully removed with the biggest screwdriver available, and an adjustable spanner.

The wheel is 8 inches, and the tyre has a 3.5 inch section! That’s one fat tyre, and good for a variety of surfaces, although vulnerable to potholes and not too good up steps.

The wheel itself is a single moulded polythene section, so my tyre levers start to dig in. Then they start to bend - the rim has a deep section, and the 3.5 inch section tyre has a stiff bead.

It took two goes to mend the puncture (right on the welded seam!) and longer to replace the tyre than it took to remove it.

The perambulatory cargo unicycle may have its uses, but for maintenance, give me a Nimbus 24 every time.

I’m sure everyone has heard this before, but got any pictures? I’m intrigued by its name and your description.

I used to operate one of those (the pcu) back in my “common labor” days…must have been an older model, though, had a steel rim as i recall…

I’m thinking that “wheelbarrow” is the US term Paco…