Tire Pressure

Unicycles and Equipment
1

Hi,

 My tire's max pressure is written as 35 psi.  But when I mount it and ride at that pressure it looks relatively flat.  I added about 20 psi and it looks better.  Can tires take the extra pressure?  Will it damage the tire?  I weigh about 180 pounds.  Any suggestions on achieving quality care and max performance simultaneously on my 24 inch uni?

Thanks,

Matt :slight_smile:

2

what are you using it for? Freestyle? or muni? trials?

3

I ride on the street. No tricks just riding. Should I just judge it by sight, making sure it looks full even when riding or should I put the suggested pressure on the tire? Thanks.

4

If you’re just riding and nothing else, higher pressure will make it much easier to pedal. However, I like to keep my pressure low even when I’m just riding on the road because then the tire absorbs the bumps a little better. My dad keeps his pressure at like 70 psi and you can feel every single little bump the thing uni rolls over, and it adds to saddle soreness much faster.

5

you should be totaly fine, I find tire pressures written on the tires are pretty vague, I run my coker tire at above the recomended pressure and so far so good. I think the biggest issue would be whether or not the tube can stand it, and I’m sure that your tube should have no problem handling it. My guess is they put that pressure on there because if you were riding at high pressures and took drops at those pressures it may push the tire out of the rim or damage the rim or tire.

6

it will eventually cause bubbles in the tire and can cause the bead to become messed up

7

Tyres on unicycles are (usually) designed for bicycles. A bicycle tyre shares its load with the other tyre. Put all the weight on one tyre (on a unicycle) and the tyre will look flatter at a given pressure.

On the whole, the fatter the tyre, the lower the pressure you need. If the pressure is too low, the uni is hard to ride, hard to steer, and you may “ding” the rim on kerbs and stones. If it is too high, you lose some of the “suspension” effect of a fat tyre.

I ride my KH24 at around 20 psi, and my “Bacon Slicer” 700c x 28mm at 130 psi.