Unicycle@aol.com
1995-03-07, 08:30 AM
darwin@dorite.use.com (Darwin Teague) wrote:
>I called around to the bike shops in the area without much luck. About 4 or 5
>shops can order them, the problem is, none of them know what brands they are!
>How do they expect someone to make up one's mind without knowing that?
If they don't know what brand, I would simply tell them what you
wrote above. How are you supposed to decide, and would you
expect anyone to buy a bicycle under those same conditions?
Realistically, though, most of them would probably be nearly the
same. Most of the unicycles you can currently buy in bike shops
in the USA all originate in the same factory in Taiwan. Some are
better than others, depending on saddle, pedals, and bearing
arrangement.
>The prices are pretty close - $90 to $111 for 24 inch ones. I'm not looking for
>any competition stuff, just something to play on. The one name I heard was
>"Timberland" or something similar to that.
I've not heard of Timberland, and would be curious to know more. I'm
willing to bet it's another Taiwan uni. with a Timberland sticker.
>Could anyone fill me in on the brands that are currently available?( I have the
>FAQ, so what I'm really looking for is what shops would probably be able to get
>easily). Would a uni in that price range be worth buying?
With access to the FAQ, and all of us, why buy from a bike shop? Order
direct, remove the middleman, and *maybe* save a few bucks. In the price
range you mentioned, you can get a decent Taiwan type.
>One shop has a used one for $65, I think I'll go look at that and see what it
>looks like. The guy claims it's well built.
The used cycle might be a Schwinn, which is still the most common "used"
unicycle on the market. Grab it. You can still get parts from the
Unicycle Factory, and it is stronger than almost everything.
>FWIW, there is virtually NO unicycle presence in this area. I knew 2 guys that
>had unis when I had mine, and one kid that had one when I first got mine. Those
>are the only ones I've ever seen in this area. I haven't had one for at least
>15 years, probably closer to 20.....
I know you've told us before, but what is "this area?" The fewer
unicyclists in your local area, the more likely you will be able to find
a Schwinn, or even a Miyata, languishing in a nearby bike shop.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Dishheads, dishheads, roly poly dishheads!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
As long as I'm giving you free advice, please tell us what your
sig. means.
sling@io.org (Sling) wrote:
>A simple word of advice to anyone wanting to buy a unicycle:
>Do NOT buy a unicycle from a bicycle shop. Do NOT, do NOT, do NOT!!!
>You will simply be throwing your money away. All unicycles sold in bike stores
>are made by bicycle manufacturers who don't know the first thing about building
>a solid unicycle.
I beg to differ. Miyata makes excellent bicycles *and* unicycles (for
the lucky people who can get them). Schwinn made a good, strong,
serviceable unicycle, and the best ever-giraffe, in my opinion.
>Even if you only want it for a little recreation, buy a decent unicycle.
>I recommend Semcycle, but miyata and some others are good too. Don't buy
>a norco!!!
Strong words, to which many of us have already responded. For you
non-Canadians, a Norco is another version of the generic Taiwan cycle.
They aren't that bad, but anyone with access to this mailing list can do
better. BTW, as far as I can tell, the frames on the Semcycle XL
unicycles are from Taiwan as well.
Sling did not mention the worst unicycles in the world, which are
the ones appearing in department store and physical education
catalogs. These pieces of junk are made by companies in the juvenile
cycle business (tricycles and the like), and most will not support
even the weight of the riders they are built for without
complaining. Buyer beware!
What sad times these are for unicycle buyers in the USA. Schwinn is no
longer around. Miyata, if you're in-the-know, can be obtained, but at a
high price. Semcycles are very good, but are not found in bike shops, so
the general public can't get them. What can we do to change this?
The only thing we can do is get more people riding, so more people are
buying them, so the manufacturers see that it's worth their time. Also,
to get as much press and good publicity for unicycling and unicyclists
that we possibly can. Like having your picture in the paper? It's not
hard. I intend to get the local papers here (Sacramento, CA) to do some
kind of story about me when I'm ready with new promotional materials for
my show. I'll let you know how it turns out.
John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone unicycle@aol.com
>I called around to the bike shops in the area without much luck. About 4 or 5
>shops can order them, the problem is, none of them know what brands they are!
>How do they expect someone to make up one's mind without knowing that?
If they don't know what brand, I would simply tell them what you
wrote above. How are you supposed to decide, and would you
expect anyone to buy a bicycle under those same conditions?
Realistically, though, most of them would probably be nearly the
same. Most of the unicycles you can currently buy in bike shops
in the USA all originate in the same factory in Taiwan. Some are
better than others, depending on saddle, pedals, and bearing
arrangement.
>The prices are pretty close - $90 to $111 for 24 inch ones. I'm not looking for
>any competition stuff, just something to play on. The one name I heard was
>"Timberland" or something similar to that.
I've not heard of Timberland, and would be curious to know more. I'm
willing to bet it's another Taiwan uni. with a Timberland sticker.
>Could anyone fill me in on the brands that are currently available?( I have the
>FAQ, so what I'm really looking for is what shops would probably be able to get
>easily). Would a uni in that price range be worth buying?
With access to the FAQ, and all of us, why buy from a bike shop? Order
direct, remove the middleman, and *maybe* save a few bucks. In the price
range you mentioned, you can get a decent Taiwan type.
>One shop has a used one for $65, I think I'll go look at that and see what it
>looks like. The guy claims it's well built.
The used cycle might be a Schwinn, which is still the most common "used"
unicycle on the market. Grab it. You can still get parts from the
Unicycle Factory, and it is stronger than almost everything.
>FWIW, there is virtually NO unicycle presence in this area. I knew 2 guys that
>had unis when I had mine, and one kid that had one when I first got mine. Those
>are the only ones I've ever seen in this area. I haven't had one for at least
>15 years, probably closer to 20.....
I know you've told us before, but what is "this area?" The fewer
unicyclists in your local area, the more likely you will be able to find
a Schwinn, or even a Miyata, languishing in a nearby bike shop.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Dishheads, dishheads, roly poly dishheads!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
As long as I'm giving you free advice, please tell us what your
sig. means.
sling@io.org (Sling) wrote:
>A simple word of advice to anyone wanting to buy a unicycle:
>Do NOT buy a unicycle from a bicycle shop. Do NOT, do NOT, do NOT!!!
>You will simply be throwing your money away. All unicycles sold in bike stores
>are made by bicycle manufacturers who don't know the first thing about building
>a solid unicycle.
I beg to differ. Miyata makes excellent bicycles *and* unicycles (for
the lucky people who can get them). Schwinn made a good, strong,
serviceable unicycle, and the best ever-giraffe, in my opinion.
>Even if you only want it for a little recreation, buy a decent unicycle.
>I recommend Semcycle, but miyata and some others are good too. Don't buy
>a norco!!!
Strong words, to which many of us have already responded. For you
non-Canadians, a Norco is another version of the generic Taiwan cycle.
They aren't that bad, but anyone with access to this mailing list can do
better. BTW, as far as I can tell, the frames on the Semcycle XL
unicycles are from Taiwan as well.
Sling did not mention the worst unicycles in the world, which are
the ones appearing in department store and physical education
catalogs. These pieces of junk are made by companies in the juvenile
cycle business (tricycles and the like), and most will not support
even the weight of the riders they are built for without
complaining. Buyer beware!
What sad times these are for unicycle buyers in the USA. Schwinn is no
longer around. Miyata, if you're in-the-know, can be obtained, but at a
high price. Semcycles are very good, but are not found in bike shops, so
the general public can't get them. What can we do to change this?
The only thing we can do is get more people riding, so more people are
buying them, so the manufacturers see that it's worth their time. Also,
to get as much press and good publicity for unicycling and unicyclists
that we possibly can. Like having your picture in the paper? It's not
hard. I intend to get the local papers here (Sacramento, CA) to do some
kind of story about me when I'm ready with new promotional materials for
my show. I'll let you know how it turns out.
John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone unicycle@aol.com