Does the manual, or whatever instructions that [might] come with the hub, have all the necessary torque specs, and any specific tool(s) recommendations? I would very much assume so, but I will defer to actual Schlumpf owner’s who would know. Is there an online maintenance manual as well? I also wonder if the torque spec will have to be increased, over time, as natural wear may cause the knurled bearing to become slightly compressed, and the bearing holders (on frame and caps) to slightly enlarge.
Search and ye shall find
Umm, guys, I’m pretty sure MuniAddict’s tongue is firmly planted in his cheek, and he’s just busting on the general complications of the our beloved Schlumpf hub. I don’t think he’s really getting one.
Right, Terry?
Thanks for that! 
Wrong Steve! But kinda right on the first part, haha. 
I’ve already ordered my hub through Bronson Silva, and I also had UDC drop ship a KH 26er frame and spokes to him for the build. I’d say I should be “Schlumpfin” in about a month!
you excited?
You talking to me? But yeah, I guess I’m somewhat curious about experiencing this strange and wondrous new gadget called a “Schlumpf”. I think that unusual name could also describe the sound of my butt hitting the ground after a UPD at high speed! :D:p:o
I figured sarcasm was a possibility, but didn’t really want to leave those comments out there unanswered. 
. . . and I had read somewhere about Terry ordering a guni.
Haha yeah, also just a few posts before yours!
I already wondered when that would happen - unigeezer goes Schlumpf
That will result in some nice videos, I guess…
Whoa! Really? I missed that post!
After you fuss with it to the point of getting the buttons to stay on, and the cranks to stay tight, and (should I go on?)…you’re gonna love it!
I’ll be buying another hub. I miss the geared 36, and I am going to assemble a geared 26er so I can get a fatter tire than the 29er.
Point being: Once you go schlumpf, you never go back. It is game changing.
Yeah. I’m thinking of buying a 3rd hub sooner or later. Don’t want to miss my 36er, or my 29er. But would love to have a 26er too :o
Maybe next year.
Well, if somehow I couldn’t ride my guni 36 anymore I think I would switch to bike rather than go back to ungeared 36 even though I have enjoyed those for way over 10k miles since 1999. The guni is the cycle for me, that’s for sure.
Getting ready for tomorrow’s race, I did my 6-monthly maintenance today. I spent maybe 30 minutes (10 of which were extracting some difficult mud from inside the 2mm hex in one button!). It was nice to see the torque on the crank arms was nearly perfect (1/4 to 1/2 turn on each). And lube it up, and check the bearing block bolts, pump the tire, clean off a bunch of mud, re-install my repaired handle from Bronson. Ryan calls this “Giving a little love” to the cycle, and you definitely have to. At the beginning I had to do it almost every ride, but then after lots of miles, everything settles in and it just works and works and works. I have over 2500 miles on this hub now.
Let’s take a moment and beam some thoughts of thanks and gratitude over to a certain small town in Switzerland…
—Nathan
Well, I’m happy to report that the UCM bearing cap works just fine with the KH/Schlumpf combo. I ride with the knurled bearing on the left so I didn’t expect any trouble. I don’t have the disk, Sinz cranks, or brake set up yet, mostly because I don’t have the brake yet.
But this preliminary test worked fine.
Today I took the 26 Guni for a flat road ride. I rode for 2 hours in 2nd gear. I put 165 cranks on and it helped me with stability and confidence. I took a park trail and it was very crowded with a March of Dimes event. There were thousands of people up and down the several miles of trail. Here are a couple of pictures where it was a bit more sparse. It was great practice weaving in and out. I felt pretty relaxed most of the time.
The best part is that when I got home I practiced trying to shift. The ankle part of my shoes could barely touch the buttons. There is too much cushioning over my ankle and I couldn’t trigger the gear shift. I taped a wrist-guard plastic doohicky to my ankle with a plastic piece of garbage stuffed between my shoe and the plastic thing. I was finally able to successfully hit the button. After 3 UPDs I did 5 successful shifts from low to high. Now I need something to attach to my shoes that are not so difficult to put on and take off. I didn’t try the other button because I was out of packaging tape.
It was a good start. A good beginning day. It only took 9 months to get here:).
Way to own that shifter! Had no idea that plastic packing tape could be so useful for shifting. Its sexy and useful at the same time
Bryce
mbalmer,
If I recall correctly, months ago you were quite discouraged and thinking about selling your Schlumpf. I’m glad you hung in there and are making progress with it!
I had trouble reaching my shift buttons and tried using my ankle and heel at different times. I ended up finding my heel worked best. But early on I didn’t think it would be possible.
Maybe you truly can’t reach your buttons with your heal, but as you get more comfortable, I encourage you to give it another try.
It sounds like you are liking longer cranks, but shorter cranks might help with the heel shifting.
Just some unsolicited advice.
Last year I sent back a hub because it had a bearing loose in the hub case. When I got it back the same problem went back with the larger bearing, as you can see in this video :
Also I bought a 2nd hub for my 36". Now this hub has the same problem than the other hub, leaving me with 2 choices ; 1. Sending the hub back with expensive shipping charges and a long waiting time. 2. Voiding the hub warranty by opening it to clean the space between the hub and bearing to lock it with red loktite.
I’ll chose the 2nd option once again. I hope this will be solved soon with the new hubs, cause I want a 3rd one as a spare hub, that will go on a 12"
Even if these hubs aren’t perfect, I think they are a must to every distance unicycles. Riding a schlumpf is priceless !
Thanks Bryce. Hey, you are a smart guy (except for maybe thinking my old lady, packing tape foot is sexy), do you (or anyone else) know of a good glue that can bond plastic discs to my shoes? It’s quite a pain and expense to use so much tape. I may attach velcro to my ankles and the discs, but I need a good adhesive.
That is right. Up until about 3 weeks ago I was thinking I made a mistake. When I took my 36 out of hiding and found I could climb fairly steep hills with it, I knew that I had taken a jump in unicycling performance. I then started using my 29er for off road climbing and found it as easy as my 24 (nothing technical, just steep). Those improvements gave me some confidence to try the geared hub again. Using the longer cranks has really helped. Once I get very comfortable I can try switching my pedals to the 137 holes. I think that will be awhile, but I’m hopeful. I still am not loving the experience, but I’m liking it and happy with the progress of the last two days. Today was really good again.
mbalmer,
Try Barg’s cement. It’s very gluey and stays somewhat flexible, so it should be a good fit for sticking to the side of a shoe.
A year or two ago I experimented with shoe attachments to improve my shifting. I even screwed the little metal discs from the tops of champagne corks into the sides of my shoe soles. Kind of like spurs. It kind of sort of didn’t really help.
I tried putting Vaseline on the shifting buttons. This allowed the heel of my shoes to slide past the shifting buttons and exert an inward force instead of bouncing off the cranks. This actually did help a little. I think the best solution is just finding the right shoes. 5 10 Karvers are renowned for being some of the best. So you should be good there. I’ve got a pair on order. I decided to wait the few extra weeks to get the blue ones instead of the red and black. I couldn’t deal with the color scheme.
Long cranks rock!
Geoff