Beginner Unis - Built to Last?

[dudewithasock]

In my first 8 days of learning to unicycle, my Torker CX 24" has taken
quite a bit of nasty falls. The point of impact as ranged from the
crank arms to the pedals (both left and right) to the front and rear of
the saddle. The nuts holding my saddle to the saddlepost come loose
every 4 or 5 falls, and my saddle bumpers are already on the verge of
being totally destroyed.

Although these are minor things, I still have some concern for the
longevity of the unicycle. Is my CX really going to last me until I can
actually ride any considerable distance, seeing as how I can currently
only ride 20 feet on a good run?


--
dudewithasock

'My Unicycling Journal'
(http://www.unicyclist.com/forums/showthread.php?t=44950)

768
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[trials_uni]

ive had my little norco for 4 months now and its taken some heavy
beatings...it should last as long as you keep up on maintenance...never
let one problem get too big:)


--
trials_uni

You can't get up and try it again if you don't fall first.
-Phil
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[burjzyntski]

I started off with riding a 24" Torker CX, and went through everything
that you've gone through. The CX is really meant to be for beginners,
so it won't hold up to -too- much, but it'll let you ride it for a few
hundred/thousand feet over a fairly smooth surface.

Don't worry about scratches on the saddle, bumpers, or pedals - those
happen even on good unicycles. As for the loose nuts, go get a tube of
Loc-tite from your LBS (local bike shop). I think I paid about $4 for
my tube, and it really does the trick.

I don't use my 24" CX much anymore (after hopping on it so much, the
cranks are lined up at a ~150º angle), but my 20" LX is great (for
now). The 20" is very easy to ride and much more comfortable, but much
slower than the 24".

---But yes, the CX will last you until you can ride a mile without
difficulty (other than that caused by discomfort from the small, hard,
baaaaad seat).


--
burjzyntski

It's no good being Polish unless you prove it once a day.

\"every silver lining has a touch of gray.\"

\"drunk drivers run stop signs, stoned drivers wait for them to turn
green.\" -'SDASD' (http://cannabisculture.com/articles/4131.html)
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[ntappin]

just be happy you actualy have bumpers, my first uni didnt have them at
all. lets just say i became very good at catching it before it fell.
the only things that you will need to worry about are cranks and hubs,
but since you arent doing any trials i dont see what problems you
should have.


--
ntappin
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[Radical Reed]

my little begginer norco has lasted soooooo much abuse and i still ride
it when im doing freestyle. i've done 2 foot drops droped it about a
gazzilion times, and oh yes to top it off my dad ran part of the rim
over with his truck. how it's still ridable, i'll never know:confused:


--
Radical Reed

If at first you don't suceed, distroy all evidence that you tried

the main reason santa is so jolly is because he knows where all the bad
girls live.
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[mikepenton]

put some spring washers (split ones, shaped like one revolution of a
spiral)under the nuts, that will help


--
mikepenton
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[habbywall]

like you will hear, the only thing a cx is good for is learning


--
habbywall

to give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.
The above is not intended to harm anyone
nick.jantz
I shot the sherriff
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[Mikefule]

A unicycle is only a collection of components.

All components that come into sudden contact with tarmac or concrete
will scratch or mark. This would be the same for some hand-crafted
titanium cranks or a custom-made leather and carbon fibre saddle.

The trick is to stop the components coming into sudden contact with
tarmac or concrete. This, Grasshopper, is the great cosmic truth of
unicycling.

However, certain types of riding (trials, hops, drops etc.) will place
strains on the hub, cranks, and pedals that were not foreseen by the
manufacturers of a budget unicycle. When you start doing these things,
there will be a case for upgrading your components.

The modern western way is to upgrade equipment to improve performance.
There are profound philosophical and financial arguments for upgrading
technique as far as your equipment will allow before upgrading the
equipment.


--
Mikefule

Did you hear about the computer programmer conspiracy theorist who put
10 and 10 together and made 101?
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[UniTyler]

There is definitely technique to reducing a unicycle's contact with the
ground. I have thankfully grasped that pretty well and my unicycles
rarely if ever directly smash into the ground. In almost ever single
skill you can grab the seat before a fall, even a UPD. As John Childs
will probably remember, when we were on the Gasworks Seattle Ride I
UPDed on a small curb that caught the side of my tire (I went onto it
sideways - the wrong way), and even with that super un-expected UPD I
caught the seat. A handle makes it easier, which the CX does not have,
but my KH seat on my Nimbus doesn't have a handle and as you just heard
I caught it fine. Unicycles are definitely not bombproof (although UDC
apparently thinks the DX is...), so be careful with them and that CX
will last you a long time. The cranks on the CX are pretty weak, so be
careful of dropping it hard on the cranks. Even my nice Qu-Ax
freestyle cranks bent when my SemBus (Semcycle/Nimbus) when smashing
into the ground and sliding around after I bailed from a steep, fast
glide.


--
UniTyler
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[person]

I learned on a cx I didn't have any trouble with loose bolts but when
hopping up and down I bent the wheel in half


--
person
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[burjzyntski]

Yeah, I taco'ed the rim on my CX once, too.

It looked cool though!
- all squiggly and twisted :D


--
burjzyntski

It's no good being Polish unless you prove it once a day.

\"every silver lining has a touch of gray.\"

\"drunk drivers run stop signs, stoned drivers wait for them to turn
green.\" -'SDASD' (http://cannabisculture.com/articles/4131.html)
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[boo radley]

i've got a 20" and 24" cx. they've held up ok for about a year with a
little loctite and new saddles. i highly recommend a new saddle, the
stock cx saddle will leave you feeling horribly violated if you sit on
it for too long. the post clamp is crap, it will never hold very
tight. it's welded on so you can't really replace it. i broke one of
my quick release levers a couple weeks ago because i tried to get it
really tight. the bolt still holds though, sort of. overall it will
hold up fine if you don't do jumps or big drops with it. i've learned
most of the skills through level 4 on a cx and right now i'm working on
wheel walking. it's not built to last too long, but you should be able
to learn just fine.


--
boo radley

"This is your work! You'd better take care of me, Lord...because if you
don't you're gonna have me on your hands." -Raoul Duke
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