My newest 36er adventure begins today...

Unicycles and Equipment
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Inspired by Waalrus’s freewheel experiences, and with a bit of Nurse Ben’s encouragement, I’ve purchased a new hub for my 36er. A freewheel hub. That coasts.

I figured I’d post up the progress in it’s own thread for others who are interested, but mostly so I can go back and search stuff for myself. :smiley:

I received my new hub and spokes last night (yippee!).

Today will be day one of the build, and I’ve got everything stripped off of my frame, and tonight or tomorrow night, I’ll coldset the frame to fit my new hub.

I’ll be going from 125mm down to 100mm. Then I’ll begin the process of tearing down my existing wheel to build up the new one.

I’ll also be experimenting with a different method of tubeless using Gorilla tape, in hopes of being able to easily seat my beads anytime they come off.

Pictures to follow later on.

This is my first wheel build, and as far as I know, will be the first freewheeling 36er.

Some say it can’t be done, I’m here to prove them wrong. :roll_eyes:

I’m excited and a bit aprehensive. This will either be really cool, or an epic failure. Wish me luck, I’ll need it…

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good luck

no pressure, everyone is watching :stuck_out_tongue:

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Luck wished.

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Good luck!! Waalrus has shown us freewheel uni’s are at least possible, a 36er would be awesome :smiley:

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Fantastic! Good luck!

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Frame has been cold set.

I put a block of wood in the crown of the frame so I don’t lose any tire clearance, and used 2 bar clamps to get somewhat symmetrical pressure.

I actually bent the frame past what I needed, and used my hands to pull the legs apart to the hub width. Really not that hard. Hub fits great now.

I did get some indentation from the block of wood, but I don’t think I should be that concerned. The frame still feels solid, and I don’t see it flexing too much that way. If it was in the front or back I’d be more concerned. Also, it’s a 70$ frame! So even if it get’s FUBAR’d, I can begrudgingly spring for a new one. The plan is that if this works out, I’d get a nice 100mm aluminum one anyway. I figure this is experimental, and if this is all that goes wrong, I’m doing pretty good.

Moral of the story: use something round to get your clearance. :slight_smile:

Here’s some pics:

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Looks like you had fairly minimal strength loss there.

Now for the fun/hard/awful(?) part!

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I hope you have checks in place to make sure the hub’s in the right way… That could end badly :roll_eyes:

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Kinda what I thought. It’s not like 36er frames are super strong to begin with…

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You are one nutty man!!!

Ill have that cookie on standby

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Is it a good cookie?

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I wish you the best! Have you ridden a BC to get a “feel” for what it will be like?

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Never. I have absolutely zero idea what I’m in for other than my Muni experiences of ‘no foot’ coasting that usually results in a major UPD.

Anyone here think that the indentation in the frame will be a problem?

My mindset going into this is that learning to ride seemed impossible in the beginning, and this should be no different. It’ll seem impossible, but I think it will get easier.

Edit: BTW, bearing alignment was a nonissue. My bearings appear to be square in the holders making the second frame bend unneccessary.

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If you’ll only be doing non-impact riding, i.e., no drops or rough terrain, you should be ok. You might think about adding some reinforcement in that area of the frame, but not sure exactly what that would consist of. Maybe something like thin steel strips on each side (like a sandwich) and using c-clamps to secure them. And I would say that going directly to a coasting 36er without any previous freewheel uni or bc experience, might be a tad scary, but you will find out very quickly as soon as you stop pedaling! Good luck and try to get video of your attempts.

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So, I’m wondering if it wouldn’t actually be easier to learn to freewheel on a 36er wheel. Since the wheel has more rotational mass it would seem like you would need less backward resistance. Of course the trade off is that once you get coasting there would be more momentum…

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what sort of brake are you planning to use?

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I have a sunlite mechanical sidepull brake that I’ll be using…

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All I see is a hub and a frame, where’s the wheel?

So you are going to use a rim brake vs a disc brake?

I want pics of you’re first attempt at mounting this thing, make sure your parents are watching, it should be priceless :smiley:

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For now yes, I’ll use the rim brake.

You can’t see the wheel? Maybe you are getting old. :wink:

If I get real crazy about it, I may go with a UCM and some Sinz cranks. I think I’d probably have to get a Qu Ax frame to fit the 100mm hub.

I’ll have pics, not sure if I’ll be able to get video. My camera may be broken… :wink: I plan to mount the thing like a stallion and ride off into the sunset.

Whaddya think of the frame job?

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I cried a little when I read this :frowning: Please fix the camera so we may watch the hilarity ensue :slight_smile: