Well I sold my telescope equipment on craigslist, and as I promised my 11 year old, I took the money to the LBS and got him the 20" uni that was there so he wouldn’t have to wait for UPS for a week from UDC.
$100.60 I think was the total for it, and then I added on a head and tail light for my 29" Muni.
Looking it over in the store I noticed that it was a 20" Sun with 36 spokes and a tire that looks like what I would call a hybrid… Sorta smooth center with a decent bite on the turning edges for light Muni possibly. Something was amiss… The seat post clamp looked backwards!!!
So I rode it from the store to my car (25 yards or so) to a round of applauds (some special radio station event in that strip mall) and all felt well. But upon getting home and looking it over the LBS had managed to put the wheel on backwards compared to the welded on clamp which is why they put the seat in backwards… So I swapped them around and went for a ride…
GOD I miss riding 20"!! It’s what I learned on. So much fun having that much control… This cycle seems really strong for it’s intended use, putting up with a 180 pound 40 year old fart (yes todays my birthday) doing 6 inch curb drops…
My ONLY complaint is the clamp… No matter what I do it never really gets tight enough to take a fall. When my boy UPD’s he has to undo the clamp and turn the seat back to straight, and it’s getting annoying. Off to UDC to order a better clamp I guess…
But all in all, in the 24 hours he’s had it, I think I have just as much time on that saddle as he does. Including riding the 20 home from the park while pushing my 29 infront of me.
So this makes 3, and I still want a 36" and a giraffe… Where does the buying stop my wife asked.
I had the same problem with the clamp on my Bunnycycle. I find that quick release clamps are pretty useless - I always carry a multi-tool with allen keys on it anyway so I swapped it for a twin bolt clamp like on my other uni.
I very carefully cut the small spot welds with a hacksaw and prised the old clamp off. I was going to use a dremel to grind the spots down but they don’t get in the way of the new clamp so I left them on. Hardly noticeable unless you look really close.
(By the way, the pic in the link above shows the old clamp - I need to get a new pic with the new clamp at some point!)
I am planning on doing this as soon as I measure this seatpost to see what size clamp I need… Probably the 22 mm
I want a 12" bunny cycle now that I have seen yours, but what is the weight limit on it?
Fortunately I’m not all that heavy… around 150 lbs in American ;). I’ve done some hops and drops (around 2ft) on it and it has survived unscathed, but I’m not really sure what the weight limit would be.
It’s a cool little uni and a real head turner, and it’s quite capable too, although very tiring to ride any kind of distance. I know the Bunnycycle is popular with some of the trials guys in France so it can definitely take some abuse.
Tom… careful on the 20" Sun doing any drops. I have a 24" Sun and have bent 2 rims!!! They are great learners, but not made for any abuse from an adult… for your son, should be sky’s the limit. Your LBS may have a better clamp like a Salsa brand.
I bought a Torker LX from Amazon before hearing about this site or UDC. It has a dual Allen screw clamp, but I’m always having to unscrew it to straighten my saddle after UPDs–it’s a real pain when I’m trying to practice something. So it’s not just the quick-release clamps that give people trouble. I’d guess the more expensive stuff doesn’t have this problem, since I never read about it.
If this forum is any indication, it doesn’t. It just doesn’t. You might reach some equilibrium by starting to sell what you end up not riding any more, but I think that’s the best you can expect. Just tell her that since you’re a mechanic, she should be happy you’re collecting something cheaper than cars!
