We’re talking about the CNC Miyata handle, not the CNC music factory…
What a sweetheart! Steve sent me a prototype CNC miyata handle/bumper set. I think he did this to get me to stop emailing him. (are they done yet, steve? are they done yet, steve? are they done yet, steve?)
These will go nicely with my new trials yuni, which I will, grudgingly, use them to hop and perform drops. I will also pretend to lose control and drop the unicycle several times, purely to test this handle/bumper set.
Check out the shots I’ve placed in la galleria…
http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery/album94
So far, with one day’s worth of testing, I think they are great. First, the disadvantages:
1- they are not as pretty as the original Miyata handles. The corners are hard and the general look is blocky. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think this is much of a problem. Sure, they aren’t as pretty as the miyata handles, but I think they look pretty good.
2- that’s about it. unless you want to talk about colors, availability, or lack of lemony scent, I’ve got no other complaints.
Disadvantages out of the way, how is it? Its pretty dang solid. I can’t see it breaking. I think it was Harper who said it would probably shatter before cracking. Now I know what that means. The CNC plastic is a hard plastic - not really what I was expecting. Its not like the miyata plastic where you can carve out chunks with your fingernail. Its hard and solid and I would expect to see chunks broken out of it before scratches.
I did a few intentionally evil unicycle slams to test the strength of the bumpers. I even did some bowling-type throws, making the whole yuni skid across the parking lot, scraping along on the bumpers. It looks like its going to hold up nicely.
It is very tight and feels strong. Its so tight it took some extra effort to slide it over where the seat cover wraps around the saddle base. Sure, you could file it down so it would slide on easier, but that would defeat the entire purpose. There’s no shake, jiggle, or bounce. Its on there tight and solid.
The finger cup area is way better than I expected. When I first saw pictures of the handle, I thought there was no way that the blocky rectangle area could be as comfortable as the contoured finger area on the miyata handle. How wrong I was. The miyata contour isn’t all its cracked up to be. Between the shape of the curve and the limited space in there, the Miyata tends to really bend my fingertips the wrong way. The SH handle is much more spacious and despite the blocky shape, the area is big enough and deep enough that my grip is comfortable and secure.
I know Mr. Howard isn’t satisfied with the design yet and is still working on it. From the utilitarian perspective, I have zero complaints so far. Sure, it could be prettier, but I think it looks pretty decent.
Only time and further testing will tell how durable the set is. The handle will migrate to my MUni the next few times I go offroad, and they will mostly reside on my trials Yuni for the forseeable future. I will definitely post updates if anything happens.
Either way, if Miyata insists on continuing with their new disposable saddle design, I think CNC could be a major player in the area of replacement lift handles. (don’t I sound all professional). I don’t know much about the costs involved, but I think CNC handles could be a really great option. I hope Steve ends up producing a production model for public consumption.