Custom Unicycles - Why?

I prefer having someone else build a custom uni for me, but sometimes I
have done the work myself. Usually the purpose of a custom model is to
make something different from what's otherwise available, though I have
also done things to customize my "normal" looking unicycles to make them
stand out from the crowd.

Most of my hand-work was done in the days when there were few unicycles
to choose from; you either rode those or made your own.

1. My biggest flop was my "piece 'o Schwinn." People have
mis-interpreted that name when I use it. All Schwinns are not pieces o.
Only when you take a flexy old frame and try to cram a 26" mountain bike
wheel in there. To try to make more room, I jammed a spacer between the
two halves of the frame, used the lowest-profile, skinniest MTB tire I
could find (within reason), and added a hose clamp at the crown to try
to hold it together more solidly. But I still ended up with a flexy
thing with not enough clearance. Whenever you pedaled hard, the tire
would rub the frame. And you only have to pedal hard to go uphill or
downhill, so what's the problem?

2. A more successful project was the "Excessory Cycle." This was a 24"
Schwinn to which I added a huge amount of reflectors and bike
accessories. The challenge of the project was to fit everything on there
and still have room for feet and legs to go around, while still having
everything be functional. A flat tire derailed it for many years, as it
had to be completely dismantled to get the new tire in there (Schwinn
design). It is currently in several boxes in the garage, waiting for me
to clean up all the parts and re-assemble it.

3. My first custom project was motivated by the desire to go faster.
With limited tools and resources, the way to make a unicycle go faster
is to put a bigger sprocket on a chain-driven one. This meant putting a
48-tooth top sprocket/chainwheel on my Schwinn Giraffe and adding a few
links to the chain. This makes it go faster, but with less control.

Since performing is a much more useful (and lucrative, however
infrequently) use of a giraffe, it's been back to 1:1 for over 20 years
now. For speed I have a big wheel and now a Coker.

4. My wife started a "club" called the Unicycle Widows. It's not really
a club, maybe it's a movement?


--
johnfoss - Now riding to work

John Foss
the Uni-Cyclone
www.unicycling.com
________________

"Where's my kids?" -- Amy Drummond
"Where's my unicycle?" -- Andy Cotter
spoken one right after the other, mostly to themselves, at NAUCC 2003

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