Recommending Cranks for Muni?

Unicycles and Equipment
1

Hi,

Anyone know of any reasonably priced cranks for Muni and where I can get them. Unicycle.com only has a few types. I think I might need to get longer cranks for my 24" Sem XLW. It came with 150mm cranks.

Thanks.

Work the maze.

2

Define “reasonably priced”.

teachndad wrote:

> Hi,
>
> Anyone know of any reasonably priced cranks for Muni and where
> I can get them. Unicycle.com only has a few types. I think I might
> need to get longer cranks for my 24" Sem XLW. It came with 150mm
> cranks.
>
> Thanks.
>
> Work the maze.
>
> –
> teachndad
> Posted via the Unicyclist Community - http://unicyclist.com/forums
> ___________________________________________________________________________
> rec.sport.unicycling mailing list - www.unicycling.org/mailman/listinfo/rsu

3

E-bay, all the way- grind off the spider mount. :slight_smile:

Christopher

4

Dingeman,

I was hoping for under 70 dollars for the pair. Around 50 would be nice. I don’t have 150 smackers for Kooka cranks.

Rhysling,

I remember reading about crinding the spider down, but I don’t have the equipment to do that.

Thanks

5

I was able to get a decent set of Sugino cranks for my Pashley muni for about $40. They were tandem bike cranks. The captain’s (front rider) cranks on a tandem don’t have a spider on the right side like a normal bike does. Find a local bike shop that is willing to order a mixed set of tandem cranks. Get the right crank from a captain’s pair and a matching left crank from a normal bike’s pair. That way you won’t have to grind off a spider.

I was using 170mm Sugino cranks. Decent cranks, less expensive than big brands like Shimano.

Ideal crank length will depend on what type of terrain you ride. But for practicality sake, you’re going to have a hard time finding good reasonably priced cranks that are shorter than 170mm. 160 or 165 might be a good fit for the 24" Gazz Jr. but I don’t think you’ll be able to find cranks that size. You might have to settle for 170.

Muni cranks feel real long when you ride on pavement. However, when you get out on the trail they begin to feel more like the right size. It just takes some practice to get used to them.

Long cranks are really nice if you plan on riding down steep slopes. It’s the steep downhills where I remind myself that long cranks are a good thing.

On my Pashley muni I was experimenting with 160mm cranks (26x2.3 tire). It was a good size for XC style riding. The slightly shorter cranks were a little faster. But I didn’t like it for the downhill stuff so I went back to the 170’s on the Pashley. It all depends on the terrain you ride and they style of riding you do.

john_childs

6

this is good advise!!!

7

Rod -

I’m ordering three sets of 170mm Shimano STX cranks and will be machining the spiders off them. I’d be glad to order a fourth set and machine them for you as long as I’m at it.

I’m getting them from Nashbar for around $25 a set. I don’t have any experience with STX cranks but other STX components I’ve had work fine. I think the STX stuff is heavier than the higher end Shimano parts, but still as strong.

Steve Howard

8

Rod-

Jump all over this. Steve does gorgeous work.

9

Hey all, I just replaced my stock 150’s on my 24 inch Sem XLW with
170’s. WOW!, what a difference they make. I didn’t think they would
feel much different, but really do gear it down a bit. I used some old
SuperMaxy road bike cranks. They’re the ones with the 52 tooth
chainring swaged onto the right crank. I ground off the swaging and
pulled the chainring off. I then gound down the splines with a bench
grinder, so they wouldn’t interfere with the frame.
I just got in from doing it, so I haven’t muni’d them yet, but I
rode around my yard, and they made it easier to power through the rough
stuff. I can’t wait to take them out hill climbing. I suppose the bad
thing with longer cranks is that they put more force into the hub when
jumping. Oh well, the sooner I break it, the sooner I go Profile. :wink:

			Joe in Iowa

-----Original Message-----
From: rsu-admin@unicycling.org ["]mailto:rsu-admin@unicycling.org] On
Behalf Of harper
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2002 10:37 AM
To: rsu@unicycling.org
Subject: Re: Recommending Cranks for Muni?

Rod-

Jump all over this. Steve does gorgeous work.

showard wrote:
> Rod -
> I’m ordering three sets of 170mm Shimano STX cranks and will be
> machining the spiders off them. I’d be glad to order a fourth set
and
> machine them for you as long as I’m at it.

10

Steve,

I am jumpin now! I will be in touch. Thanks for the offer and thanks Harper for the rec.