Speaking of handlebars, I decide to re-wrap mine today. I hunted for a while for cool handlebar tape, and settled instead for getting two different colours and manually wrapping them.
I’ve got some yellow pedals on the way too (Nukeproof Electron Evo’s!) so hopefully it’ll match!
EDIT: I should note that the Q-Handle is INCREDIBLY awkward to wrap with bar tape due to the small, tight shape. Wrapping it with TWO pieces of tape at the same time was absolutely painful, hence why there are a few mistakes!
Just realised that I haven’t actually posted my latest 36er in this thread! Her name is Abby and I’ve had her a few months now, and couldn’t be happier! I got her at a bargain price too
Since buying her I’ve added the KH handlebars, 125mm cranks (she came with 100s), the KH Zero saddle and I bought my rack back from the guy I sold Beast to
On the zero saddle… I can ride comfortably with hands on, or off the bars. It took me a couple of days to feel comfortable doing this, and a couple of weeks before I didn’t think ‘damn this is hurting my ass’ on every ride.
Looks great kitted out with all that gear! I’m glad to hear the Zero still works without handlebars, as I ride without sometimes. What’s the furthest you’ve ridden with the setup?
Here’s mine with the latest handle arrangement. I tend to rest my hands on the corners with the heels of my hands on the padded bits, rather than grasping the bars. Either that or use the T part of the handle one handed. As soon as the going gets bumpy, I tend to revert to the the seat handle.
I’ve tried various handle combinations and this works the best on the 36. I came up with this layout independently, but I see it looks quite a lot like the set with the bar ends that KH is now selling.
Here’s mine with the latest handle arrangement. I tend to rest my hands on the corners with the heels of my hands on the padded bits, rather than grasping the bars. Either that or use the T part of the handle one handed. As soon as the going gets bumpy, I tend to revert to the the seat handle.
I’ve tried various handle combinations and this works the best on the 36. I came up with this layout independently, but I see it looks quite a lot like the set with the bar ends that KH is now selling.
The bit under the bar is a bracket for a light. It’s made of two short aluminium bar ends, cut to size.
What they said, it’s a Nimbus Shadow handlebar. It’s still available from UDC.
I took it for a test ride this morning. Random thoughts comparing the new setup to the old:
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The first freemount took a while. I'm used to seeing the bar ends further forward so my brain had to adjust. After the first time mounting was no easier or harder than before.
The whole uni feels stiffer and lighter. The shorter boom definitely is stiffer, but there's negligible weight difference so this is probably just a result of a different riding position.
Very slow speed control (eg waiting at intersections) was a bit trickier. I dismounted on a couple of occasions where previously I would have stayed up.
Accelerating from very slow speeds felt easier.
Climbing hills seemed a bit easier, related to the previous point. I found myself looking for hills to climb. Maybe I was just having a good morning.
Descending felt a bit more secure, probably because the shorter boom is a bit stiffer. I found myself spinning faster down hills.
In fact, I found myself riding more aggressively in general.
My knees hit the edges of the T bar slightly. If I'm careful it's not too much of a problem. I did shift the the whole bar forward ~5mm mid-ride, but still need to watch my technique and seat placement. I might shift the bar back again and see if I can just get used to it.
The brake lever is harder to reach than on the old setup. I have to change hand position to use it, and even then I can really only brake properly with my left hand now. This is the biggest annoyance I've noticed.
Camber still sucks.
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In general it feels more sporty and less cruisy now. I’ll take it for a longer ride on the weekend and see how it fares. In particular I’m curious to see how comfortable it is over a multi-hour ride, as I’ve never found the road bike “crunch” very comfortable. This isn’t quite that extreme, but it’s definitely less upright than before.
Congratulations! Welcome to the club. Its very satisfying to pull away from bicycles on the flats. During my commutes I usually break 20mph at several spots along the way.
Thanks.
I ordered parts, built the wheel and assembled the guni rather quickly, but this was about 17 days ago and only had two occasions to ride it so far but it’s enough to say that this thing is a beast!
20 mph is a round number for people used to this speed unit.
I rather think in km/h and the closest equivalent round and symbolic speed barrier is 30km/h (which is 18.75mph, while 20 mph = 32km/h)
On my very first test ride of course I didn’t have the balls to test my speed limits but I wanted to see if I could reach the 30km/h barrier that I never managed to reach on my G29 (my fastest speed was 29.4km/h with 137 cranks).
I finally reached 30.7 km/h (19.19 mph) with a fast but not extreme cadence
This was a bit creepy but far less than the 29.4km/h on the g29.
I guess when I’m confident enough 20 mph will be my next challenge.
Anyway a good 15/16 mph cruising speed with a non-clownish pedaling cadence is probably the main interest of the second gear on a 36er.
The other good point with this wheel size is that even with 150’s cranks, I don’t feel obliged to shift up, I’m still as fast as an ordinary cyclist in 1:1.
I just have to let myself “fall forward” a bit more when I want to accelerate.
On the G26 and G29 I was feeling much slower than bicycle riders if I didn’t shift up, and even when I was in high gear if I wanted to go fast I still had to pedal faster than bikers.
This is not the case anymore with this lovely machine.
Here is a closer view of the King George tire which rolls pretty well and is absolutely silent.
Hmm… the current condition of my all-silver 36 is holding up suprisingly well I think, after over two years of use. I thought it would be difficult to stop tarnish but even the whitewall is still white!
