I’ve been thinking about trying a handle on my Muni for longer trail rides but checking out unicycle.com I’m just trying to work out if your options are dictated by your saddle or if any handle fits any saddle
I see there are a couple of T-bar kits from Kris Holm but will those fit Nimbus seats? I currently have a Nimbus Stadium fitted…what are my options?
By the way, Hi guys, it’s been a year or three since I last posted! Still unicycling but now also enjoying a penny farthing. Need to get back into developing my uni skills
The Mad4One seat handle is the most up-to-date handlebar setup. I installed the “long” version of it on one of my unicycles. On my ride today, I stuffed a foam seat cushion through the back of the saddle/handle and went for a 5 mile ride. Worked pretty well. While I like the “long” saddle/handle, I think most people would do fine with the medium length “muni” version. It is light and firm. You have to purchase it with a Mad4One seat post (making sure the diameter of the post matches the inner diameter of the receiver on the frame.
My second choice is the Nimbus Shadow base/handle. It is compatible with the Stadium saddle.
I don’t recommend the KH T-bar. My first handle setup was a KH, and there was too much flex in the entire setup, compared to the stiffer Shadow and Mad4One setups.
Don’t expect to be thrilled immediately if you are not accustomed to handle bars. If you are already comfortable keeping one hand on the grab-handle of your conventional saddle, then you’re ready for handle bars.
As far as I understand the m4o handle has a standard 4 bolt pattern. So any seat post (not pivotal and not old Myata) will do. Same as the other way round: the m4o seat post will fit to any std saddle. Or is that wrong?
I see from your details you’re 52 and riding in the UK. I’m 56 and ride roads and trails in the UK: Lincolnshire and Notts.
I have used Nimbus and KH handlebar set ups. The Nimbus is noticeably stiffer, but both work well.
I find handlebars are most useful on long road rides where you tend to sit in one position for extended periods. When I go off road, my hand tends to migrate to the handle on the seat front.
Each to his own, but if you are riding trails, you may find that any handle set up only adds weight, and the occasional bruise when you UPD. Currently, I only have a handle on my 36.
I wouldn’t go without a handlebar for muni because it keeps me upright and I feel that I’m more powerful when my back and body are straight. My bars are about 8-10" higher than my seat.
Not at the beginning. Later on I got the reinforcement plate and it helped. But even with that, the KH setup was not as firm as the Shadow. I struggled to make the pivoting part of the mechanism tight enough so it wouldn’t move. I push and pull quite hard on the bar ends.
The problem with the Shadow is that it’s a pain in the ass to get “dialed in”. For example, the angle of the extension is dictated by the angle of the seat-post interface. It took me a while to find a good setup for the Shadow. I went back and forth between the straight and curved bar. I didn’t want to cut the extensions down right away. Instead, I cut little bits off at a time. You have to remove the seat to access the main bolt, another hassle. But once I got it dialed in, the Shadow was tight like a tennis racket. I can run fairly high tire pressure and still lay into obstacles…because I’m able to transfer my upper body weight through the frame into the tire, with no extra flex anywhere. Even a little bit of play in the handle bar setup would screw that up.
My riding style, level and terrain are so different from others…that I can’t say what’s right or wrong for another rider. But, any extra motion in the setup makes it less responsive. A lighter and firmer setup allows us to respond more quickly, and I think this is helpful for any rider. In other words, the twitchy-er, the better, IMHO.
My setup is totally different. Where I am holding on is about 1" below the level of the seat. I do not sit up straight on the unicycle. My posture is not unlike a bicyclist. I have the more power in my hands when they are near my core. When I’m riding, I put a lot of weight on the bar ends, and when I’m climbing, I pull hard on them. The source of my leverage and control are the “four points”: two sit bones (situated far back so I am both sitting on the seat and having it almost in front of me) and two hands.
My technique with handlebars has changed since I first used them. At first, it was just a challenge to reach down and touch them. Then I learned how to hold on and pull with one hand. Once I got two hands on the bar ends, that was a game changer in many ways.
I’m not trying to argue about what is right or wrong. What I find interesting is how different we are, and how there are different techniques to accomplish the same ends. For example, while experimenting with different crank lengths, I adopted different techniques for hill climbing for longer and for shorter cranks. For shorter cranks, I adopted a weight-shifting, two cycle approach where I intermittently threw my weight forward then pedaled forward. I am pretty lousy at that technique. It is what allows, I think, some riders to make it up very steep hills on relatively short cranks. On longer cranks, which I am more accustomed to, my approach to hills is more to maximize the connection/leverage between the bar ends and the back of the seat. I have learned a lot from the many, many tweaks I’ve done to my setups.
Thanks for the responses guys.
Up until this point I have never used a handle but am intrigued to try. When riding flat trails I do occasionally hold the seat but always feel like I wish I had a bit more leverage to minimise twisting.
Thanks for the photo elpuebloUNIdo, I now understand how the Shadow setup works and can see that you are a little limited by the seat and and handlebar angle being fixed to each other.
I may opt for the QU-AX Q-handle as a first introduction as this at least looks to be independent of saddle and saddle angle and, I’m imagining, so long as it doesn’t twist, you get good leverage without putting too much pressure on components that might struggle. Mikefule…and I think we both have a common dance interest (I’m with www.borderlinemorris.com)
I’ve gone with a fitting to the top of the frame rather than on the seat post to enable me to leave the brake where it is for the moment.
Now I need to get out there and try it out and play with the adjustments.
I have that one and I still have scars on the insides of my legs, coz they rub too much. they are prolly ok when you where long pants, but with shorts the handle bars are horrible.
This is my current setup for muni, which I use for both my Oracle 26 and Hatchet. The KH T-bar is narrowed down to 9.5 cm wide, so I don’t rub my thighs against it. There’s a bar end on the left side only, and I adjust it so that the brake lever is in a good position relative to the bar end. The bar end protects the brake lever from impact. This setup is close to perfect as I have a great grip and can reach the brake lever without moving my hand. So far I’ve only tried it on snow, which require less hard braking. Compared to a standard plastic bumber I get much more control, especially when it comes to the fat Hatchet. The saddle is a QX Eleven which i find a little bit hard for long distance, but perfect for muni. I might get a new handlebar made by Jakob Flansberry later - can’t wait to see that.
I prefer to remove the t-bar and so protect it when doing off road or the rather rough local footpaths. That means having to re-mount the brake back under the seat, no small task. If brake is attached to the seat, just slide the t-bar off and good to go.
There’s a little adjustment left in the bars themselves so I could extend them a couple more centimetres or you could mount the whole assembly on the seat post closer to the seat to get a little more length but that’s about it.
I’ve sat on the Muni in the house and set it up in a rough position that felt OK but assume I have lots of playing ahead of me to experiment with position.
The cross bar on this set up is 90mm so it will be interesting to see if this is going to rub on my inner thighs, whether there is an optimum position to avoid this and, lastly, if I care. Hopefully I’ll get out in the next day or two to try it out.
Gotta show my upright stance bars with a starfighter brake within both middle finger’s reach.
When I put a light on for night riding I can rotate the brake lever to one side so the starfighter doesn’t cause a shadow.
