OleTC Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 For starters, I am Ole, 59 years of age. Residing in the suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. I bought an electric unicycle (EU) on Aliexpress just after new year, at a Price of 305 USD, no postage or packing expenses. There was a customs fee as well as VAT, so I ended up paying close to 355 USD in total. The Wheel is probably a noname copy of an Airwheel X3, so in all respects an entry level EU. Since there are noticeable limitations to this Wheel, I am considering a better EU. My weight is aound 110 kg and the roads of this neighbourhood are not very good. There are all kinds of bumps and holes, plus paths with hard dirt/gravel surface. So I consider a Firewheel as my step up but am in doubt if this is the right Wheel for me. I want at least a 16" Wheel. I want power enough, to handle my weight and to avoid the EU cutting out power on minor obstacles. It must also have comfortable and large footplates, since I use size 46 shooes and tend to get cramped feet on the EU I have now. Part of this is definitely due to the EU raising the pedals in front and in total being very lively in its angle there. The battery lasts 6 km max. at cruising speed, so the remaining voltage must differ at lot over short time which is part of the reason for the lively pedals. So to summarize - 16" Wheel, comfortable footplates, strong engine, option of large internal battery-pack and an EU with good QC at factory. Apart from the last thing, I understand that the Firewheel has it all? In addition a max. cruising speed of 18 - 20 km/h will be fine for me. Top speed obviously a little higher. I know of a resaler inside European Union, that has the Firewheel available in the version with 2 riding modes, sport or comfort, that can be shifted with a button and a restart. Being a passive reader of this forum for a while, has made me suspicious about the quality of the Firewheel, though - latest the report by dmethvin has triggered this feeling. The official homepage of the Firewheel speaks of availability of the EU's from August 2015, so I Wonder if anyone knows if the EUs' will be worked over and improved before release at this date? If they do, I don't see any reason for buying one of the present models, so I hope there's info out there in the community. I am open to suggestions for other Wheels, that live up to my requirements. Thank You in advance. And bravo if You made it this long in my text. PS: I have made 6 nosedives 'till now. Bruised ribs and all kinds of scratches on me and the EU, but nothing serious. Just some bad pain LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EUC Extreme Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 Firewheel is a good choice. But if you just want to enjoy cruising in calm. 18 "Gotway is it brilliant. It is incredibly stable and peaceful driving characteristics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imperator Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 The IPS 132 from WheelGo meets most of those requirements, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunny Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I cannot recommend firewheel. Even though I have an old version of it, from what I read the new ones aren't much better. You want a wheel which you can ride fairly safely which won't shut down on you if you go through a puddle. You want something with comfort (so at least 16") and with much more range and stability. I would follow the advice from vee73 and get the large gotway if your budget is that high, or the 14" gotway (lively but reliable). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhlee3 Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I have had the Firewheel 260 for about a month now and have not had any of the problems that I have read about on this forum. I am still learning, but I haven't had any issue with power dropping off. It's actually been a very solid glidewheel - both my friend and I have been learning on it at the same time and have given it a bit of a beating and it has been very rugged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EUC Extreme Posted May 9, 2015 Share Posted May 9, 2015 I believe that the 16-inch Firewheel is quite a good choice. Although it has its own "problems" they come out hard driving or in an almost empty battery. Certainly can also choose the worse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OleTC Posted May 9, 2015 Author Share Posted May 9, 2015 Appreciate comments so far. Thank You. Since the Firewheel Homepage Official Order site says: quote Pay Attention: All models of the car, but at present, the pre-sale, August delivery, the order scheduled to ship the order delivery, photographed after the buyer can request a refund at any time if you can not wait unquote I have sent a mail, asking the Company to elaborate about the possible modifications to the series that are released by august. Hence my question in the first post. I might be the only one WHO saw this announcement, though. Will update later. Pls. let me know of other suitable 16" EU You have experience with. I believe there is an F-Wheel Dolphin series Wheel also and possibly a few more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OleTC Posted May 9, 2015 Author Share Posted May 9, 2015 My mail wasn't delivered.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmethvin Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 OleTC, I think the site may be out of date and they are talking about August 2014. Right now I am waiting for some repair parts for my Firewheel F260 which is supposed to include a newer control board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EUC Extreme Posted May 10, 2015 Share Posted May 10, 2015 If you want your Firewheel quick fix, contact Jessie Shang. wanchanglighting@gmail.com He will send you a printed circuit board quickly. If you have to pay for it yourself, it's not expensive. As I recall well below 100 €. Maybe 70 €. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OleTC Posted May 10, 2015 Author Share Posted May 10, 2015 dmethvin, appreciate Your topic, laying all info out with Photos and customercare reaction to Your controlboard-problem. It could be, that the Firewheel homepage hasn't been updated and I should just go on and order. Since I'm in the process of Building a battery-pack for the noname EU I own, I believe I will get more experience and info, before I order. Have som reluctance inside. It is not encouraging that the Company doesn't update the homepage or accept a mail. I also would like to get more info still about other candidates. I believe the Gotwheel 18" should be considered with the IPS. I would probably go for the IPS 121 model in case. But also F-Wheel Dolphin and it seems that King Song could come up with a 16" Wheel at some time. Their homepage has that option but no product yet. All comments appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheelster Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I have tested my F132 in a skate park and street, did some bunny hop and else. Nothing happend, it's a great machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason McNeil Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 @OleTC we offer three 16" Wheels that can fit your requirements, all with a cruising speed of 18-20kph, with comparatively loads of power: the Ninebot E, IPS132, IPS121. First two are priced at £645, while the IPS121 is being introduced at £595 inclusive of VAT. Because we're in the Euro-zone, shipping costs are a flat rate of £17 & we offer a full one-year serviceable warranty. www.wheelgo.comWe considered bringing in the Firewheel range last year, but the construction quality, lack of pedal-tilt-back safety & legal situation over the design were all marks against it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OleTC Posted June 3, 2015 Author Share Posted June 3, 2015 Hi Jason.Thank You. I have a bookmark of Your homepage. Have studied the Wheels thoroughly.People might find it weird but the footpedal comfort Means a lot to me. I get cramped in my feet, standing with about 1/3 outside the plates, so big comfortable plates are a must have for me.I will be sitting out for a while yet, untill I decide. The Ninebot1 E is a candidate. Am not a big fan of the design with flying LED's and whatnots but I could spraypaint it all Black. The IPS132 has a great design and the the IPS 121 a terrible one, both with great specs, and both have much too smallish footplates. I guess the average foot in China may be smaller than mine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason McNeil Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Good thinking. There's a body of opinion that has it that the total surface area is not such an important factor to comfort as might be supposed, since the heal supports >70% of the weight where there is a slight tilt-back. What we need to do, is perform some testing with insole pressure-sensor to see the impact of different pedal design has across a group of riders, http://www.moticon.de/products/product-home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rol@nd Posted November 10, 2015 Share Posted November 10, 2015 On 10/05/2015, 10:13:07, OleTC said: dmethvin, appreciate Your topic, laying all info out with Photos and customercare reaction to Your controlboard-problem. It could be, that the Firewheel homepage hasn't been updated and I should just go on and order. Since I'm in the process of Building a battery-pack for the noname EU I own, I believe I will get more experience and info, before I order. Have som reluctance inside. It is not encouraging that the Company doesn't update the homepage or accept a mail. I also would like to get more info still about other candidates. I believe the Gotwheel 18" should be considered with the IPS. I would probably go for the IPS 121 model in case. But also F-Wheel Dolphin and it seems that King Song could come up with a 16" Wheel at some time. Their homepage has that option but no product yet. All comments appreciated. Hello OLETC I'm using an F-Wheel Dolphin D5 and I'm happy with it. Runs good. The battery last long enough and max speed is 25km/h around 15.5-16 m/h. Has front and back lights and also has circle lights on side so it's safe to ride it at night too. I'm 85kg and the EU doesn't stragle at all. My feet is size 44 and the pedals are large and comfy enough for my size. The wheel had a tow bar/handle too so you don't need to carry the 15kg wheel while you changing buses or you walk long inside shopping centres etc. Bad points: not water proof (however if you cover cables and the inside panels with strong tape or does the job ?), pedals are but low so they scratch the floor while turning so need to use hips more, pedals need non-skid tape,motor could be stronger. I'm happy to share all my impressions with anyone who is after a Dolphin D5 ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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