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Roflcopter - #
The Shin Splitter.
This is what I have named my first unicycle. I bought her yesterday at a yard sale for ten us dollars. Which was great considering that my first would have been a 18$ machine that would turn into a 180$ mistake if I ordered it wrong or banged it up too bad. Anyway, its made by Schwin and is in pretty good condition. The seat is a little banged up and I can foresee the seat cap doodads coming off in the future. The seat post is I think just tall enough to sit comfortably. Cons being that the pedals are too small so if I don't leave half of my foot off, the crank will come around and either take my foot off by the heel or cut into my ankle. And I've measured the wheel to be around 19.5 inches which is kind of a downer because I need a 24 inch. I'm 5'10" and have an inseam of 33.5" and I think because the post is just a tad short it causes some chaffing in my legs?
I've learned to free mount and get down the road a little ways.
Any advice from the edge? I'm curious as to what you all wear when riding a unicycle. Like the shoes and pants?
thanks,
Roflcopter
Little Paul - - Vorredner #
I do indeed wear shoes and pants.
Also socks, trousers and some form of torso covering, because I'm not a monster.
Little Paul - - Vorredner #
I wouldn't want the belt to get caught in the spokes
It's quite possible to unicycle wearing a skirt so long as it's a very full skirt with something decent underneath. Don't think the shoes matter a great deal but make sure you tuck the laces away. That's important :-)
I can not see how wearing a skirt would work. Or maybe my liking and owning of large wheels is throwing of my mental imagery.
Which part of the wheel have you measured to be 19.5" as that sounds an unusual wheel size? If you look at the side of the tyre the size is often written on it
I am having difficulty visualising your crank/pedal situation.
Chaffing is one of the delights of unicycling, wearing clothes is recommended probably more than just underpants and shoes unless you are suffering unseasonably hot weather (and have tolerant neighbours).
Roflcopter - - Vorredner #
I fear I may have to resort to the underwear and shoes at some point. But is there anyway my clothing choice can prevent chaffing to a degree? And no, I looked on the wheel and couldn't find a size.
Maybe I'll film the pedal problem and you can see what I mean.
Get some properly sized cycling shorts and wear them as an undergarment. Chafing is caused by rubbing and moisture, both of which are prevented to some degree by cycling shorts as it is their raison d'etre.
Depending on vintage, a Schwinn may have a proprietarily sized wheel (older ones). It may say something like "S7" on it. Otherwise, it would be something more like "20 x 1.75". Wheel sizing is a bit, ahem, approximate. A 20" wheel might or just as easily might not actually measure 20" in diameter. Pedals are easily swapped out, but you must choose the proper thread size between 9/16" and 1/2" to match your cranks. The usual is 9/16".
Why do you need a 24? 20 is great for learning as long as the seatpost is long enough. Your height is the same as mine and is at the cusp between recommending a 20 or 24 to learn on. Either would work. Having the seat too low doesn't cause chafing so much as it causes sore knees and muscles, which you will get to some extent anyway. Some chafing and bruising is normal as you toughen up down there and develop your technique (not squeezing the saddle between your thighs so hard).
You will want to get another uni once you've learned to ride and have figured out what direction you want to go in with unicycling. They are a bit specialized like that. As a juggler, you might be planning to do stage work, for instance, in which case, a small wheel (like 20") is usually what you'd want.
Roflcopter - - Vorredner #
"sore knees and muscles"
that's what I was just getting on here to ask about. My knees will et pretty sore and if I ride more than 100 yards I suffer from some serious lactic acid in the quads. (and not because my legs are unfit) Is it any easier to switch out a seat post? or a seat? the current one is giving me unbearable pain in the ahem "saddle".
and yes that's what it says on the wheel! And yes stage work would be a factor but I also like to use it to travel short distances when it will be too slow to walk or its too inconvenient to run.
That sounds like you need to put more weight on the seat and less on your feet. It is common when learning. There is fit and there is fit. Unicycling uses your body in different ways than most other activities. There is a particular knee ailment common to cyclists that seems to be helped by exercising one certain muscle (VMO), but you may not be running into that yet unless you're practicing a *lot*.
Switching saddles is just 4 nuts/bolts. No biggie. Swapping seatposts is that plus undoing/redoing the seatpost clamp. Again, not a big deal unless it is rusted or fused in place. It is not unusual to need to cut the new post to get the right height without the post rubbing the tire. You do need to make sure your saddle and seatpost match as there are a couple of incompatible bolt patterns. Also, there are several seatpost diameters and you need the right one to fit your frame.
You can go that route with wheel sizes. It works. It is pretty normal to get different unicycles for different activities, though. Even a 24 will feel really slow if you try to actually travel more than a few miles on it.
Oh right; it's a Schwinn. Those seatposts go into the frames differently. Most of what I said still applies, but with those, there is no seatpost clamp and the seatpost has holes drilled along it at 1" intervals for that bolt, which holds the two halves of the frame together, to go through. I have seen Schwinn seatposts available online in in lengths up to, I think, 400mm.
It also tells me which bolt pattern you need, and any Schwinn seatpost will have the right one. Most modern saddles (UDC, KH, Velo, Onza, etc.) fit that pattern. Those saddles usually cite Schwinn for the bolt pattern.
Some Older Schwinns have a different bolt pattern, but you can get replacement Schwinn seatposts if you don't have the new bolt pattern.
Oh,ok, good to know. What was the old bolt pattern like and when/why did the transition occur? I don't plan to start buying Schwinns, but now I'm curious.
RegularJugular - - Vorredner #
I am 5'9" and The first uni I bought was a 24" because I thought I would use a unicycle for travelling in place of a bike. That never happened.
I prefer riding a 20" because on a unicycle the last thing I want to do is ride in a straight line, If I wanted to do that I'd ride a bike (shyness?) For me 20" is great, 24" not so much.
Straight line machines:
I tried a 29" once, easy to ride, slight challenge to idle over a 20"/24". I doubt it would sway me from bicycles, or other transport, should I want to do shopping though.
I briefly tried a 36". I considered myself a fairly compentant unicyclist, (I could wheelwalk a 20") I couldn't even get on the 36".
YMMV ;)
Roflcopter - - Vorredner #
Yesterday I used my 20 to travel to a friends hours (about .7 miles or so) and it worked really well. I had top walk it up some steep hills (and I mean steep) and learned that I can go up but not down speed bumps. other than that I didn't even chafe or have any falls.
Yeah. I am the other direction. I have a learner 24, and a nice 29 and a nice 36. I do mountain bike races, on the 29er up to now, but will see how the 36 goes.
20s feel really squirrelly now.... I should try learn more tricks though. At the moment I can ride and that is about it. :P
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