A Nimbus shadow handle would be more sturdy for your purpose (if you plan on carrying anything at the front off the handle). The Nimbus handle attaches at both the front and back of the saddle and is very sturdy while the KH T bar only attaches at the front handle area. The shadow handle and your cargo attachment may or not be compatible on your uni though.
The KH is better if you want to have the handle at a certain angle/height, the nimbus angle/height options are very limited.
Note, I have managed to have a UPD and that one UPD made my whole KH T Bar handle go out of whack, the fixings to the uni bent on the impact. It is possible to bend it back to shape, but it’s still a bit out of whack.
Yeah I would say that out of the options you’re considering the most sturdy is the Handle Saddle, followed by the Shadow, followed by the KH bar. In terms of adjustability it’s the other way around. Pick your poison
I’ve used both KH T-Bar and Nimbus Shadow handle bars now and the Nimbus is longer and very rigid but as others have said less flexible then the KH. KH is great for positioning exactly where you want the bar. The KH T-Bar attaches to the middle and front handle saddle with a re enforcement plate. Where the nimbus attaches to the middle of the saddle and the rear bumper.
As far as strength goes I’ve had countless UPD’s on the KH T-Bar including one at 30km/hr and I’ve yet to damage the T-Bar itself. I haven’t had many UPD’s on the shadow yet only a few and at lower speeds usually around 15km/hr and I haven’t damaged that one yet just scuffed the bar ends on both.
I attached a rear rack on my 36" with the KH T-Bar and it worked but it makes it very difficult to mount if you’re running short 110 cranks and put a lot of weight in the back.
I’m always surprised when people say they’ve bent/damaged a T-bar.
In a decade of riding with them I’m like @Unigan; I’ve not managed to do anything aside from slowly destroy the rubber bar ends.
Personally I can’t imagine riding with the inflexibility of the shadow handle though. The position that I have my KH bar would not be possible with the shadow handle, and having the seat angle and choice (banana bases) so limited doesn’t appeal either.
I’ve seen a few people attach the rear of the T-bar to their seatpost, significantly stiffening the setup. I’d definitely consider this if I was doing loaded touring, although I’ve never noticed flex in normal riding.
I managed to bend mine on my first big UPD on it. I was going down a decent on loose ground. My unicycle (KH36) completely went over the top of me, luckily I had a backpack on to protect my back.
At the “T” between the seat post and the rest of it. This will, of course, change the tilt of the saddle. Though I never tried it, I suppose the saddle could be shimmed with washers for further adjustment. After I started getting both hands on bar ends, I started sitting balanced on the back edge of the saddle, and this allowed me more freedom to adjust the Shadow at the “T”.
Choose the straight bar or the upwardly curving bar extension.
Angle the bar ends up or down.
Between these three adjustments, I think there is a decent range of options for placement of the Shadow handle. Finding the best placement on the Shadow, however, can be tricky and time-consuming.
Hoe about having the same bag on the front as you have already? It will even out the weight and give better balance for mounting. Im sire it can fit underneath the kh handle bar.
It could fit in the front but then I would have chafing from the bag. As it is I only mount the water bottle there as it’s narrow and doesn’t impede riding. As the moment I’m not riding that setup anymore since I switched to my guni which has the nimbus shadow on it. I use a small backpack currently and haven’t decided what I will do with mounting cargo on the back.
I’m very interested because I myself is looking for a good way to load the unicycle.
That shadow handle; how much weight do you think I can hang from it? 20 kg? 40kg?
I’m not sure how much weight I could handle on it as any kind of weight on a unicycle really changes how you ride. I’d be happy with 1-2kg’s, the back handle is slightly too long and I’m considering shortening it as it does impede mounting slightly. I also want to mount a Cycliq camera on the rear so I’m still thinking about how I want to put gear on it.
You can definitely go with a M4O saddle handle. Choose medium or long. Note I find the foam on the muni/road variety not so comfy as other seats. Maybe the race finish is more comfy.
Don’t get me wrong I love my mad4one muni but I am reluctant to order from them again. When I ordered my uni it arrived many weeks late and the packaging was soaking wet and falling apart. I’m not blaming them for the way it arrived but sometimes I find myself awake at night , wondering what could have happened to the package and how it could have gotten so wet. Maybe it fell of a boat or something ?
Anyways my experience with mad4one hasn’t been the best
As an experienced unipacker I would recommend you to go for the Kris Holm T-bar for the use on your 26" combined with a cargo rack.
The KH T-bar just offers the most versatility. And finding the right position for your individual arm length is very important. Personally when unipacking I tend to move the t bar further out and when I am riding the other time of the year I have them a bit closer to me. With the t bar you can find your favourite Muni position and your favourite unipacking position.
and how it could have gotten so wet. Maybe it fell of a boat or something ?