Freestyle venue and tire

[stewSquared]

I assume that doing freestyle outdoors really eats up a standard unicycle tire.
What kind of wheel should I use if I want to be able to practice my spins and pirouettes on cement?

I used to practice in a gym, but I've recently moved in to college and am having a little trouble getting permission to do so.

[johnfoss]

There's and upside and a downside to outdoor Freestyle. The upside is grip. Whereas UV rays (say, from the sun shining on a car with a unicycle in it day after day) eventually make tires very slippery indoors, this is not an issue on most pavement. Of course the downside is the friction that keeps your grip. It's going to wear the tire faster. If you're practicing Japanese-style riding, with tons of spins, by tires in bulk. I used to go through one a month when I was really practicing a lot.

You can also use harder rubber outdoors; the kind that may make marks on a gym floor. But in my experience the tire's profile is more important than how long it lasts. Find a tire you like, and hope it's affordable, then buy a few at a time.

[stewSquared]

thanks for the advice -- I think I'll just stock up on kenda kickzumbut tires

Is there any hard rubber tire you recommend?

[johnfoss]

C'mon riders, I can't answer this one. My Freestyle hasn't had a new tire on it in years (I ride it way less now)....

[leo]

Originally Posted by stewSquared

Is there any hard rubber tire you recommend?

There is barely any rubber tyre anymore, they all use cheap nylon, which wears a lot (and fast). Though spins and pirouettes always will eat any tyre, I recommend to spend double the money, and your tyre lives like 10x longer.
My personal recommendation is Primo - The Wall, probably the most popular 20" tyre of the past 10 year.
It's seldom that I replace them for being wearn down, but usually just because the color doesn't look nice anymore after many riding.

Another option is the Primo - Comet, which can hold enourmous pressure (such that your wheel feels like being made of cement). Not comfortable, but funny for practising spins and pirouettes (but extremely bad for doing any hopping variants).

[stewSquared]

Originally Posted by leo

My personal recommendation is Primo - The Wall, probably the most popular 20" tyre of the past 10 year.

Thanks. If I buy a black Primo - The Wall tire, will it make make skid marks when I spin? I don't want to make anyone mad, but I also don't want to buy a white tire just to get it dirty.

[UniB]

my personal preference is the gusset tires http://www.einradladen.net/shop/show...roducts_id/727
2.1.....
the grifter is pretty sweet too.....My friends love the primo for bmx so you could try those too....

i'd say either
1. buy like 3 really good tires (will obviously cost more)
2. buy a crap load (like 10-15) cheap tires that you can burn through at your will.

[leo]

Originally Posted by stewSquared

Thanks. If I buy a black Primo - The Wall tire, will it make make skid marks when I spin? I don't want to make anyone mad, but I also don't want to buy a white tire just to get it dirty.

No, the rubber is not 'colored' with black ash, so the rubber does not mark the floor (unless the floor was dirty or dusty, or covered with a detergent, or both).
Bytheway... theres also the compromis: not white, not black... they also come in grey, though only few stores sell it.

Originally Posted by UniB

my personal preference is the gusset tires
...
2. buy a crap load (like 10-15) cheap tires that you can burn through at your will.

Very nice tire to! (I have it here to), but it's no comparison to the quality of Pr1mo. The Gusset wears much faster! (which explains why you need such a high number of tires). I think that's caused by both the containing of the rubber-blend and especially the grip-pattern. It's actually the only complaint I ever ever heard about this tire once, except for someone who did freestyle barefeeted, who found this tire too grippy.
Another important difference is that the canvas of the Gusset is much thicker. Strange enough the Gusset is costing more.

Wrapping it up: I'm not bashing UniB's preference, just making sidenotes; in the end both tires are very good choises for freestyle!

And for both tires counts: especially when working on spins and pirouettes, you may like to try the 1.95 version, at least for once to know the difference.