Hey, dudes. I’m new to this forum, and unicycling in general. I’m planning on buying my first ride right after spring break, and I need some advice from experienced riders. I’m 6’1", 230 lbs. and from what I’ve read, it sounds like the rider’s dimensions are extremely important. Being 16, all my income is from a part-time job, so of course money is something to consider. I can go up to $200, or if I save, I could go higher. I really don’t want a beginner uni, because 1.) I doubt there are many in my size, 2.) I don’t want to spend even more when I’m proficient. I’m not really familiar with all the different types, but I think that I’ll probably just want to focus on speed, and maybe a few tricks here and there. Either that, or a MUni, I live in an area packed with nature trails. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys.
With 230 lbs, you’ll need a splined set up (48 spokes preferable) with non drilled rim. The higher level Qu-ax unicycles are well known for being indestructible.
Sizes depending on what you want to do with your unicycle.
Basically:
19" fat tire = street (tricks) and trials (jumping up and down obstacles).
20" skinny tire is for freestyle (tricks on flat)
24/26 muni (mountain riding)
29" Distance/ XC / mild muni.
36" Distance, speed, road, fun!
For the cheapest option, get a used unicycle. Many good condition unicycles are being sold weekly in the trading section of this site.
If you have your mind on buying new, get a nimbus with the moment cranks upgrade, or Torker DX (on ebay).
You will have to pay more than $200 for a unicycle that will last. I’d suggest waiting until you have the funds. Any unicycle with square taper cranks will break under your load.
Fantastic !
Instead of those “unicycle for christ” sig lines, let’s have “unicycle for a big-guy”
1) This pretty much sums it up for you. Even though there are larger unicycles called “novelty unicycles.” These are specifically for parades and shows.
2) Or even the LX to get the feel b4 moving onto the DX which is an awesome unicycle.
3) You’re 1 smart person Danni. 
ALSO
I welcome you to the forums with open arms and mighty big hugs.
If you require assistance/help. Don’t hesitate/feel free to ask me or any of the kind and friendly peoples of this forum as i’m sure they will always be here to help you with your unicycling problems to the best of their knowledge. By the way you can call me Harry if you want. But again, welcome to the forums.
So have fun, enjoy, relax and welcome to the wonderful world of unicycling.
Your new friend.
Harry a.k.a HAZMAT
Welcome to the forums Timfow
Welcome to the forums.
You’re sure to find all you unicycle questions answered here.
This is not necessarily true. It depends what kind of riding you want to do on it. I’m 6"2 and a bit over 220 pounds. My freestyle and distance unicycles all use square taper cranks with a Unicycle.com Chromo hub. If you are not doing much in the way of drops this hub is fine for a big guy. You only need to ramp up to a splined hub if you are planning on doing trials unicycling (where you are jumping off and onto stuff) or if your are planning on doing aggressive offroad riding. If you are riding nature trails without any drops and there are not steep ascents, you can probably get away with just a square taper hub as well.
If you want a unicycle primarily for zipping around from place to place that you can also learn tricks like one foot riding, backwards riding, stomach on seat etc then a 24" wheel size is a good compromise. Basically the bigger the wheel the faster you can go at the expenses of a little manoeveurability. Most people working on tricks use a 20" unicycle but if you are a big guy you will not find a 24" much more difficult for tricks.
If offroad riding is not going to be your focus I would stretch your budget a little and buy this beauty:
http://www.unicycle.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=1057
It will be more than strong enough for your needs and is one of the best buys around at the moment. The frame shape is fantastic for all sorts of more advanced tricks and the 24" wheel will get you places quicker than the smaller 20" version of this unicycle. There is the added bonus that if you want to experiment with offroad riding you can just throw on a knobbly tyre and you’ll have an adequate offroad uni.
Unless he lives in whistler BC or has a vehicle, M-uni is hard to practice when you are a 16 year old. This is probably the main reason why I mainly do trials and street.
Buy a square taper hub is a very very bad investment. It will break. I have seen cranks bend on big wheeled unicycles just from torque. THEY ARE SHIT.
Spend the dough to get something to last. If you don’t like riding a unicycle, you can sell pretty easy without losing too much cash.
This is untrue. Not all square taper cranks are cheap junk. Sure a cheap set of cranks on a square taper hub will bend and the hub may break, but not all equipment is equal. A good quality set of square tapers on a good quality hub (UDC chromoly or Suzue) that are being used on a freestyle or distance unicycle will last for years. (A trials or Muni is another story - see below).
I’ve put thousands of kilometres on my 36" unicycle which has a UDC chromo hub and bicycle euro cranks. No problems whatsoever despite putting huge amounts of torque on them. I’ve also had a freestyle unicycle with a suzue hub that is still going strong after 8 years of use (Again I’m using bicycle euros).
I have broken several square taper hubs doing trials and offroad riding (although I haven’t broken a UDC chromo hub yet). Splined is definitely the way to go if you are doing anything other than tiny drops. I have also bent dozens of pairs of cranks doing trials and muni. If you think there is a reasonable chance you will be doing this kind of riding on the unicycle you buy, make sure you get a splined uni.
I want to add my 2 cent that 24’ uni maybe too squirrel-like for a big tall guy.
I recommend the 26’ or the 29’ uni like the Torker AX 29’.
My first was a 24’ then I got a Coker (36’), recently I got a 26’.
I can’t imagine riding anything smaller then a 26’.
Anyways, welcome to uni
dang, you … nevermind…
why not make it “the big guy”?
please don’t rip on the God fearing people who have respect enough to place him in thier signatures.
thanks 
Maybe more like =-=unicycle to lose weight=-=. Your BMI is slightly over 31, which is considered medically obese. Not trying to sound like an asshole here, but you should try and take better care of your body.
Hey Tim, I’d recommend a Torker DX in a 24" wheel size. It’s strong and sturdy, and is about the cheapest heavy duty splined setup you can get. It’s usually around $250, you can look around for a good deal on it, like on Ebay or something, or your local bike shop should be able to order one.
The next one up in price is the QU-AX Muni: http://www.unicycle.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=796 at about $350.
Unicycle.com also used to carry a lighter duty splined Muni from QU-AX (with a hub type that’s called ISIS) that was in the $200 range, but it doesn’t look like they have those in stock right now. That one would be a good choice too, if you want you could email them about availability.
I highly recommend getting one of the above, unless you decide you want a different wheel size. A 24" has a good comfortable cruising speed, a little faster then someone walking. If you want faster then that a 26" muni or what’s called a 29er will offer some more zip, but they’ll end up being a little more expensive.
I disagree. Nobody said he had to do hardcore northshore/technical muni. A place packed with nature trails is a great way to start out, regardless.
I’m about 6’-1-1/2", maybe 260 lbs or so. I’ve been learning on a Torker LX with 20" wheel. Now, I’m not doing any jumps or anything, but it seems to be holding up just fine for general riding around. It’s available with two seatpost lengths. I’ve got the longer one, and when it’s as low as it will go, it’s about right for me. I bought this off Ebay new for around $100. Now, I’m not saying this is the one you should buy, but it’s an option that is workable for a big guy, assuming you don’t get too violent with it.
Sweet, wasn’t expecting this much of a response. All of your suggestions looked and sounded badass, and when it came down to being between the Nimbus II and the Torker DX, I decided for the Torker. “Virtually bomb-proof” sounds about right for an oaf like me. I found a pretty good deal on one, $255 with shipping.
Dude, I’m awesome. If unicycling doesn’t make me lose weight, I intend to stay a fat, muscly, fat bastard for all eternity.
One more vote for the Torker DX here, though it sounds like you’ve already made up your mind anyway. That’s what I started on a couple of years ago and it’s been a great uni. I was 210 and 6’1". I’ve since lost 35 pounds, mostly due to unicycling. The DX easily handled my weight.
19" for Trials
So, does a 19" versus 20" tire make that much difference in Street and Trials riding? This is slightly off topic but it was mentioned at the beginning and I’m just getting into doing Street style tricks. I weigh 170 so that’s not the issue, more about what makes the tricks easier to perform (or even possible). Most people I know use a 20" tire for tricks.
Absolutely none. Think of 19" and 20" as the same thing, it’s just a stupid technicality. The only difference is a 19" tire (also called a “mod” tire) is specifically made for trials and will only fit a special trials size rim.
The actual outside diameter of a so-called 19" trials tire is probably something like 21". A 19" trials tire is knobbier, wider and has more volume then standard 20" tires, so I believe someone decided to make them “technically” 19" rims, so the extra rubber would fit better with bike frames.
At least I think that last part is the case.
Although the BMI is good to get a basic idea, but far from ideal in determining wether or not someone is over weight.
Before I broke my back (9 yrs ago) I was 175 and hoping to go up to 195 +. The 175 lbs would have made me “mildly overweight”, according to the BMI, but at 7% body fat, I was probably in the best shape of my life.
Timfow - if your bodyfat % is over 15 it would be good to lower it to 10% or less. (8-9% is the average healthy body fat percentage for men and it’s ~ 15% for women, and dangerous to go below 4% M & 8% W)