I have thought about getting a giraffe uni or making one. I was just wondering how practical they are and how would mount on it.
there are 3 standard mounts. climb up mount, catapult mount, and mount from an object(aka a table).
the Torker TX says it is five feet and that it has a 20" wheel so how tall is it really and what giraffe uni do you recamend?
well there is more than that, i am not sure of the name, the mounts i can do is… 1st “climb mount” where i step on the wheel then the pedal then seat in and ride away, 2nd when i just run with seat in my hand the put my foot on the pedal then use momentum to get the rest of the way up, 3rd suicide mount, when you just hold up the uni and just jump straight to pedals… pwersonally i dont think giraff unicycles are worth the money, they are fun to ride for the first 10 times, then it get boring. the only time i ride it is when i am showing someone my unicycles.
what unicycle should I get at amazon? I alreday have credit for there and I have a Torker LX 24"
i would get this one http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000GKONUC/sr=1-36/qid=1154311902/ref=sr_1_36/104-6868127-0756731?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods but i donno if you want to spend that much on a unicycle right now, but if ur trying to spend under 200 i am not sure… but giraffe unicycles might be more fun to you if ur more into the freestyle unicycling, but for me i prefer my trials uni WAY more!!! i can just bring it any where, whip it out any time and have soo mcuh fun…
Do you think if I get a Torker TX uni from amazon and I don’t use it much or like it how easy would it be to sell and for how much? I would like a trails uni but I don’t want to spend that much money because I can’t ride great yet and my K2 mtn bike was around $330.00 for alot more material than a $500 uni
Torker Tx
I have the 2007 model of the Torker TX 20". It’s very nice. I disagree that giraffe unis get boring after a while. You just need to do more with it if you find yourself losing interest…I love riding mine!
I have a question, though. Has anyone noticed on a giraffe that the chain tension isn’t quite exactly the same at different intervals of a cycle? SOme parts, it seems a tiny bit loose, other parts it seems tight. It’s not too much of a problem for me riding it but I just wanted to know if this is something I should be concerned about and correct…or leave alone. Is it common?
My friends one, before he moved sometimes, the chain would like slip or something, or the pedal, and you would suddenly push the pedal, and it wouldn’t move for like a second or so.
This is due to the threaded sproket coming loose, it can be fixed with a sproket wrench and some good locktite. It’s pretty dangerous if not fixed.
I have the TX, it’s good but don’t expect it to stand up to abuse, the frames can bend if you drop it alot. The exact height depends on how high you set the saddle. I’m 6’ tall and the saddle is 5’8’’ foe me. Hopefully the picture will give you an impresion.
That is because the TX uses cheap parts. Same with most other affordable giraffe unicycles. The problem comes from the sprockets not being perfectly round and the chainring by the pedals not being perfectly centered.
You can improve things by buying high quality components and replace the cheap stuff that comes stock on the TX. Buy a quality small chainring that is designed for singlespeed use. Chainrings for singlespeeds and track use are more round because singlespeeds are picky about that. Same for the cog down at the wheel. Replace it with a quality track fixed gear cog. You’ll also need to replace the cranks with something better so you can mount a proper chainring to it. It’s better to get a crankset that is intended for singlespeed use since the chainring holes will be more centered.
So it can all be made better with better components. The chain will maintain a consistent tension. The wheel will roll more smoothly. The unicycle will feel better.
It is also a good idea to either replace the hub with a high quality track hub so that the cog is less likely to come loose from hard backpedaling. Baring that, you should consider getting the cog spot welded to the hub. The Nimbus giraffe unicycles from Unicycle.com have a bolt on system to attach the cog. That system cannot come lose the way the screw on track cogs can. The Nimbus hub design is much more safe. But if you don’t want to go that route you should just weld the cog to the hub. A giraffe with a cog that comes loose is very dangerous.
Torker TX
Thanks for the info guys. I really enjoy my TX, even though it may not be top quality. I tightened down that cog real good!! I haven’t had any problems since. The various chain tension is very subtle and isn’t a problem.
Anyone know where I can find videos of people riding geared unis?
The next step down from welding the cog to the hub is to use Loctite to give it some extra hold. Use the RED High Strength threadlocker. Make sure all the parts are clean (no dirt and especially no grease or oil) on the threads. Even better to use the Loctite primer to clean and prep the threads. The Loctite primer is formulated to improve and increase the strength of the bond from the threadlocker.
Using a higher quality lockring also helps. Talk to a bike shop that knows fixed gear bikes and especially track bikes for a velodrome. They’ll know what the good lockrings are.
Put it all together using the red Loctite. Get it all tight. Let it cure for 8 hours. Then go ride. The Loctited cog and lockring will hold better and be less likely to slip. If/when you do feel the cog start to slip you’ll have to remove the lockring and cog. Clean off the parts. Then reapply the Loctite again.
The way to go for the future though is to use a hub that uses bolt on cogs like what UDC is doing with their Nimbus giraffes. That is the safe way to do it. That’s the kind of hub that Torker should be using. It’s just much safer.