Mten3 First Impressions / Review - BUY ONE NOW!!!

[novazeus]

@Marty Backe thanks. if u haven't slimed that tire yet, i'd be curious how long/far u go before having a flat. no ill will, but my experiences with bike tires is they do get flats, maybe it's me, i get a lot of flats on everything. 

[Marty Backe]

51 minutes ago, Gimlet said:

Don't see why they would put a tube into a timeless tyre.

Oh, I see. No idea, but I would be curious about their design decisions.

[Marty Backe]

45 minutes ago, novazeus said:

@Marty Backe thanks. if u haven't slimed that tire yet, i'd be curious how long/far u go before having a flat. no ill will, but my experiences with bike tires is they do get flats, maybe it's me, i get a lot of flats on everything. 

I Slimed the wheel as soon as I took it out of the box. ~2 ounces. All my wheels are Slimed.

[Pard]

12 hours ago, Marty Backe said:

Here's more of the Mten3 in use - I haven't ridden another wheel since I got this thing 

 

Nice video!  I am impressed by your willingness to practice skills in front of a judgmental audience.

That little girl ran so fast when you dropped the wheel, even in slow mo it was a world record  

[ir_fuel]

Should have listened to @Marty Backe when he wrote it .... they all got more expensive today

[Marty Backe]

1 hour ago, Pard said:

Nice video!  I am impressed by your willingness to practice skills in front of a judgmental audience.

That little girl ran so fast when you dropped the wheel, even in slow mo it was a world record  

Yeah, the little girl was cute. They weren't close enough to me to be in harms way, if anyone happens to wonder about that.

It does take a little bit of courage to stop, setup a camera, and start riding in front of people. But once you start riding everything else leaves your mind 

Edited September 10, 2017 by Marty Backe

[Mono]

2 hours ago, Gimlet said:

I can assure you that the speed of rotation does make a significant difference to the gyroscopic balancing effect that the wheel exerts.

I can also see that a smaller wheel can be tilted more aggressively enhancing the effect as well. Yet it can only be relevant if tilting is used for balancing, which isn't a highly recommendable technique anyway. 

2 hours ago, Gimlet said:

The ease of "twisting the wheel" with the smaller contact patch also helps a lot.

I agree, a small contact patch and/or a non-sticky surface help a lot. 

2 hours ago, Gimlet said:

I have 10", 14", 16" and 18" wheels and the 10" ones are what I chose to learn to ride backwards on.

I preferred a 16" over a 14", but well, there are a bunch of factors as to why. I am not surprised that it may be in general easier to learn with a smaller wheel, even when ignoring the gyro effect.

[electricpen]

I don't really record video or have cool pictures so I'm just going to tag onto this review thread. I rode the battery down on the wheel from 100%-20% today and my estimate is that it will go maybe 16 miles on San Francisco's hills before it becomes unfun to ride. That's a respectable distance for such a small wheel and it is quite viable for riding around town. In fact, if I was going to any of the busier areas and planned to be on the sidewalk this wheel would be my first choice. I can easily balance it crawling at sub walking speed and it is nimble enough to navigate pretty much any tight spaces that a pedestrian can fit in while going slow enough to make the pedestrians feel comfortable. The ability to make extremely sharp turns at extremely slow speeds while being in complete control is amazing in crowded scenarios. I've been pushing the speed here and there and it seems to be ok at 20 mph so far... I have not yet hit a serious bump at that speed though so I'm a bit worried about that. I'll probably start pushing the boundaries a bit more as I get more comfortable on it.

[Marty Backe]

17 minutes ago, electricpen said:

I don't really record video or have cool pictures so I'm just going to tag onto this review thread. I rode the battery down on the wheel from 100%-20% today and my estimate is that it will go maybe 16 miles on San Francisco's hills before it becomes unfun to ride. That's a respectable distance for such a small wheel and it is quite viable for riding around town. In fact, if I was going to any of the busier areas and planned to be on the sidewalk this wheel would be my first choice. I can easily balance it crawling at sub walking speed and it is nimble enough to navigate pretty much any tight spaces that a pedestrian can fit in while going slow enough to make the pedestrians feel comfortable. The ability to make extremely sharp turns at extremely slow speeds while being in complete control is amazing in crowded scenarios. I've been pushing the speed here and there and it seems to be ok at 20 mph so far... I have not yet hit a serious bump at that speed though so I'm a bit worried about that. I'll probably start pushing the boundaries a bit more as I get more comfortable on it.

Thanks for your input. It really is fantastic at slow speeds isn't it. Being San Francisco I'm impressed that you got 16 miles  

When evaluating this wheel for potential purchase, people need to keep in mind that you aren't buying the wheel for distance riding. It's really designed for around town or the city. I think you could navigate any city with this wheel.

Plus, since I don't think you'll be traveling at high speeds most of the time with this wheel, your mileage will be even better.

[who_the]

1 hour ago, electricpen said:

I rode the battery down on the wheel from 100%-20% today and my estimate is that it will go maybe 16 miles on San Francisco's hills before it becomes unfun to ride.

Well-observed, good to know. I got 14.5 miles before I reached 20% and the "Gotway symphony" of beeps kicked in. Where do you ride, maybe we'll see you around town someday!

[Meng Yang]

Don''t understand why they make the footrest so low - so easy to scrap the ground.  Of course, its much more stable being lower. Guess its either one or the other.

[electricpen]

2 hours ago, who_the said:

Well-observed, good to know. I got 14.5 miles before I reached 20% and the "Gotway symphony" of beeps kicked in. Where do you ride, maybe we'll see you around town someday!

I keep detailed records of the mileage of my wheels every day after a ride. I am north of the panhandle, pretty much on the northeast corner of golden gate park. I often ride in the park and down to market st where I am going to class. Other places too but I haven't had much time to explore the city due to school so most of my rides are just running errands and commuting to class. I plan to explore much more once my classes are done later.

[Marty Backe]

15 hours ago, Meng Yang said:

Don''t understand why they make the footrest so low - so easy to scrap the ground.  Of course, its much more stable being lower. Guess its either one or the other.

I've put maybe 50 miles on the wheel now, doing tons of tight turns, etc. I think I can use one hand to count the number of times they have touched the ground. A few of those were while I was riding backwards, and my technique still needs improving.

I think the pedals are perfect on this wheel. Turning on the Mten3 seems to involve more spinning then the pedal dipping on your traditional wheel.

I really wouldn't worry about it, if you're considering buying one. If you're not buying one then it's just academic for you anyway.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Marty Backe

[who_the]

2 hours ago, electricpen said:

I keep detailed records of the mileage of my wheels every day after a ride. I am north of the panhandle, pretty much on the northeast corner of golden gate park. I often ride in the park and down to market st where I am going to class. Other places too but I haven't had much time to explore the city due to school so most of my rides are just running errands and commuting to class. I plan to explore much more once my classes are done later.

Awesome, rode through the Panhandle today on the way in from the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park! See you around.

 

[ir_fuel]

11 hours ago, ir_fuel said:

Should have listened to @Marty Backe when he wrote it .... they all got more expensive today

I sent a message to the seller on aliexpress asking him why the price went up between when I first looked and the day after.

Just got a message back telling me he restored the previous price and I can place my order.

Order placed 

[electricpen]

8 hours ago, who_the said:

Awesome, rode through the Panhandle today on the way in from the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park! See you around.

 

Cool, I have seen 2 or 3 other wheel riders around but probably not you. One was a ninebot rider on market and I saw another guy on a black wheel couldn't tell what it was close to market, maybe on golden gate or close to there a week or two ago. I'm not really on facebook so I don't really know when you guys do your group rides. I am at school 6 days a week though.

Incidentally, I wasn't going to be at home so I had fedex drop the Mten off at a nearby Walgreens. For those who might be interested, I had picked up a backpack meant for full time bike couriers and fit the entire delivery box inside of it and carried it home on my KS-16s. I have tested and my KS-16s also fits inside this bag as well. Was going to do a review on it but not sure how much interest there is as the bag is absurdly large. Very handy though if you don't have a car and want to carry a bunch of stuff. Or want a bag to carry your wheels in.

Edited September 11, 2017 by electricpen

[Marty Backe]

57 minutes ago, electricpen said:

Cool, I have seen 2 or 3 other wheel riders around but probably not you. One was a ninebot rider on market and I saw another guy on a black wheel couldn't tell what it was close to market, maybe on golden gate or close to there a week or two ago. I'm not really on facebook so I don't really know when you guys do your group rides. I am at school 6 days a week though.

Incidentally, I wasn't going to be at home so I had fedex drop the Mten off at a nearby Walgreens. For those who might be interested, I had picked up a backpack meant for full time bike couriers and fit the entire delivery box inside of it and carried it home on my KS-16s. I have tested and my KS-16s also fits inside this bag as well. Was going to do a review on it but not sure how much interest there is as the bag is absurdly large. Very handy though if you don't have a car and want to carry a bunch of stuff. Or want a bag to carry your wheels in.

There would be a few of us for sure that would be interested. When some of us do back country rides, we've talked among ourselves how we might carry an emergency backup wheel on our back.

If nothing else, please provide make & model. But I'd be interested in knowing comfort, ease of use, etc. for carrying a wheel in it.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Marty Backe

[dmethvin]

23 hours ago, ir_fuel said:

Should have listened to @Marty Backe when he wrote it .... they all got more expensive today

At least they aren't on Backe order due to demand after a crazy positive review from SOME GUY. 

20 hours ago, Marty Backe said:

It's really designed for around town or the city. I think you could navigate any city with this wheel.

That's what interests me about The Mten3. I have been riding my 14 inch wheel a lot more than the 16 lately and the portability to take it into a building or onto a subway train is a big plus.

 

[LanghamP]

3 hours ago, electricpen said:

Cool, I have seen 2 or 3 other wheel riders around but probably not you. One was a ninebot rider on market and I saw another guy on a black wheel couldn't tell what it was close to market, maybe on golden gate or close to there a week or two ago. I'm not really on facebook so I don't really know when you guys do your group rides. I am at school 6 days a week though.

Incidentally, I wasn't going to be at home so I had fedex drop the Mten off at a nearby Walgreens. For those who might be interested, I had picked up a backpack meant for full time bike couriers and fit the entire delivery box inside of it and carried it home on my KS-16s. I have tested and my KS-16s also fits inside this bag as well. Was going to do a review on it but not sure how much interest there is as the bag is absurdly large. Very handy though if you don't have a car and want to carry a bunch of stuff. Or want a bag to carry your wheels in.

What's the backpack?

[ir_fuel]

Just now, dmethvin said:

That's what interests me about The Mten3. I have been riding my 14 inch wheel a lot more than the 16 lately and the portability to take it into a building or onto a subway train is a big plus.

My 14" wheel sucks (generic, too slow) so let's see what a 10" will do

Using a 16" for the real work at the moment. 

[electricpen]

3 hours ago, Marty Backe said:

There would be a few of us for sure that would be interested. When some of us do back country rides, we've talked among ourselves how we might carry an emergency backup wheel on our back.

If nothing else, please provide make & model. But I'd be interested in knowing comfort, ease of use, etc. for carrying a wheel in it.

 

4 minutes ago, LanghamP said:

What's the backpack?

It is a Vessel Workshop rolltop courier pack . I am fairly sure it could hold an ACM, maybe a Msuper V3, probably not a Monster although I haven't really checked the dimensions of a Monster exactly to check.

[radial]

12 hours ago, ir_fuel said:

I sent a message to the seller on aliexpress asking him why the price went up between when I first looked and the day after.

Just got a message back telling me he restored the previous price and I can place my order.

Order placed 

It's still showing at the higher price on the site.  Did he give you a personal discount, or were you saying he lowered the price for all customers?

[US69]

7 minutes ago, radial said:

It's still showing at the higher price on the site.  Did he give you a personal discount, or were you saying he lowered the price for all customers?

when thinking about an buy of an EUC on aliexpress you should always contact the seller before and ask for an discount!

from my experience on a EUC you can get 50-250 dollar, depending on the price, always...after buying the seller then adjusts the price...before you pay with cc or paypal!

[Marty Backe]

14 minutes ago, radial said:

It's still showing at the higher price on the site.  Did he give you a personal discount, or were you saying he lowered the price for all customers?

I was under the impression that the original $800 was a promotional price. Knowing what I know now, I would certain pay $1000 for this wheel.

My other wheels are giving me angry looks every time I walk by them with the Mten3 in my hand 

EDIT: @Jason McNeil may be carrying these, but I don't know when and at what price.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Marty Backe

[ir_fuel]

52 minutes ago, radial said:

It's still showing at the higher price on the site.  Did he give you a personal discount, or were you saying he lowered the price for all customers?

Lowered it for all customers.

But: interesting to know, if you buy through the Aliexpress mobile app you get even more discount.

It's still in promo right now. This is the one I got (the biggest battery version):

 

In the mobile app it's cheaper. I paid about 750 euro for it.

 

This is the one with the smallest battery:

 

(also a bit cheaper in the app if you check there).