Im Building myself a custom Muni and i cant decide which rim to go for. Ive narrowwed it down to the Sun Doublewide or the KH Freeride. I just had a few questions about them.
How wide is the Doublewide?
Is the double wide a double walled rim?
How wide is the Freeride?
Which one is stronger?
What have your experiences been with them if youve riden both, or what was your experience if youve only ridden one.
Any help or suggestions would be great. Also if anyone has any suggestions of rims that i could get in Canada that are under $100 that would also be great.
i have KH rim and its 42.2mm wide, as u can see the doublewide is just over 45mm wide. Hmm…well my KH rim has held up great to 6ft drops for awhile now. I think either one will be great, but if u have the money maybe u should try the doublewide. Although the Kh is probably a little lighter if u care about weight.
I dont care about weight or colr…This Muni is gonna be for barreling throught the woods and knocking over all trees in my way:D.
I was already leaning towards the Doublewide even though the KH is cheaper at retail I work in a bike shop so i get everything at 65% of retail plus tax so the Double wide will be about thhe same price in the end anyways.
Primus…i did earlier agree to purchase that uni you had but we agreed on a price that was 250-300 US right? plus i figured in shipping, exchange rates, and border charges and this muni im building came to a bit less cost. Sorry.
And Probailer, Anodized is the way you color Aluminum, it doesnt affect the surface of the metal, its hot the KH frames are colored.
Doublewide has an outside width of 45.9mm and inside width of 33mm, weight is 795g.
KH freeride has an outside width of 42.2mm and inside width of 35mm, approx weight 720g.
Arguably the inside width is the more important width and the KH wins on that - it will give you a wider tyre profile.
Both are double walled rims. The sun is probably stronger although I don’t know of anyone who has broken either.
I’ve ridden KH, mavic and double wide rims.
The mavic DH321 is not as strong as the others but was nice and light. I had no problems with it but was only doing drops up to 1m in height.
My cousin who does freeride biking snapped his mavic rims in 1 hour of riding and has been abusing a sun double wide ever since. The double wide seems to be bomb proof.
I have since moved on to a double wide because I run a 26" wheel set currently and KH don’t make a 26" rim. I would have bought the KH if it was available in that size. I don’t like the weight of the double wide and combined with a 3" wide tyre it is a very hefty wheelset and not as manoueverable as my mavic / 2.65" tyre combo I used to run.
My personal opinion is that either the double wide or the KH will work for you but given the option I would go with the KH. I would also be tempted to run a 2.6" tyre rather than a 3" wide one. You may lose a tiny bit of traction in muddy conditions but you will gain manoeverability.
KH rims are anodized aluminum. A double-walled steel rim of that width would weigh a ton, and also provide a terrible braking surface.
Anodization is a process whereby rims are electrostatically coated to change their surface characteristics. Jobst Brandt is of the opinion that it makes the rim more prone to cracking, but some people think it makes the surface stronger. In any case, it changes the color.
Doublewide is super strong, but if you plan on adding a magura rim brake it’s not good for that. Noisy noisy noisy. I like my doublewide, except for the brake issues.
Wow, I was just going to post basically the exact same point. My doublewide has been untouchable. It has never even needed truing to this date. I have put 2 years of fairly agressive yet sporadic riding on mine. A lot of it is in the wheelbuild, but a well built doublewide wheel will be stronger than a well built wheel with a lesser rim. If you have your heart set on a brake, the Arrow racing DH rims might be good. They are quite strong and light, and have a nice braking surface.
I agree with Peter. I’ve ridden his 26" sun doublewide and it feels like you’re driving a tank - big, heavy and lacking in fine control. Go for the lighter KH rim and your whole unicycle will feel much better to ride.
Pros of KH rim:
Lighter
larger inner width
better braking surface
strong, but perhaps not quite as strong as the Doublewide.
Acctually i was contemplating the LM rim but i have no use for such a huge rim.
Ive decided that im just going to get teh Alex rim anyways. its lighter and more coseffective but just as strong. Plus i was advised by some of my biker friends that the Sun DW is not all its cracked up to be.
I don’t know how your “biker friends” ride but keep in mind that bikers ride much faster and huck bigger drops than unis ever will. I’ve read some comments on MTB forums about DW’s developing flat spots from 15 ft drops… I don’t think it’ll be a problem for muni. I’ve been riding a DW for a couple years now and can say it has taken quite a lot of abuse (two broken cranks and one snapped UDC hub) without deforming… although I agree with Gerble’s advice… it’s extra beefyness is not really necessary for muni; as long as one has a good wheelbuild, you’ll do just as well with a KH or Alex rim.
Ok…Im going to get my wheel laced 4 cross( i cant lace the wheel yet, havent lerned how) then im going to tighten it up real good. Thats what i did with my trials and the wheel is pretty solid.
