DuckDuckDucky

@techyiam hmm okay that seems counterintuitive but it doesn't hurt to try. Thanks for the tip.

Trolley backwards, yes I get the tilt back at 37 (which is noticeable but gentle compared to 16x). I'm on experiment mode. I do quick bursts at 35-37 mph for less than a few seconds, mostly cruising 30-33

Background: Casual street rider looking for a commuting wheel that can take me 24 miles (12 miles each way) with average speed 30-35mph, including light enough to carry into train. Previously used 16x for shorter commute for about 2.4k miles total. I wanted to give my first impressions on the wheel specifically about commuting and the things that are important to me, which may help others considering this wheel. Things I like so far: Ride comfort: After some tweaks (tire pressure, suspension, pads) this is very comfortable wheel for street riding and commuting. The big difference with my 16x is that I couldn't maintain that 30mph top speed easily since I had to slow down/brace for potholes and bumps. I'm a conservative rider and i've never had cutouts because of aggressive riding; any modern suspension wheel is a game changer for maintaining those higher cruising speeds without being scared of over powering the wheel. It is very nimble and corners very predictably. Cruising speed/stability: This wheel can very comfortably cruise at 33-35mph and feels incredibly planted even when I occasionally push it to 37mph. To be fair the 16x also felt great at its top end cruising speed but as mentioned above it was a lot more squirely when encountering obstacles. This is also applicable to hills, where I can stay around 30-33mph with potholes/bumps on 40-50% battery. This is critical for me since the bike lanes are often shared with cars on my commute and an EUC that keep up with traffic speed is important. Form factor: It's barely bigger than my 16x, and is still small enough so I can bring it on a train or metro without causing disruption to other passengers. Kick stand: It's shocking how much difference a nice kickstand makes honestly. I'm finding myself using it all the time and being grateful it's there. Thing I don't like so far: Trolley handle ergonomics: As other reviewers have noted the offset trolley handle makes navigating the wheel kind of annoying. It's ok for me since I have a relatively short push distance for the wheel but if you have to push it for more than 15 minutes on your commute I don't recommend this wheel. When I go the store I find myself just parking it with the kickstand in the corner of the store rather than pushing it around, which was a breeze on the 16x. Also I find myself often two hand gripping the trolley handle whereas the 16x was easy peasy with one hand. Build Quality: The wheel feels just a tad too plasticky for a modern wheel. One of the pedals that it came with was loose and I still haven't figure out a way to tighten it down. Also I know people praise the stock pads in other reviews but I didn't really like the design. Furthermore I like my pads pushed forward significantly and I find I have to put my pads all the way to the edge of the available real estate. Undecided: Weight: I'm giving myself 400-500 miles to truly get used to the weight. Good news is that it's completely unnoticeable when moving and so far I've had no issues lifting the wheel on the train or down. Bad news is that it doesn't have the immediate acceleration I can get on my 16x and i'm also getting wobbling at low speed when I try and accelerate quickly. I'm hoping that will be resolved over time. Long term mechanical/software issues. Waterproofing: My friend has an S16 and there are definite improvements to the cable management and other small build quality improvements that we can suss out just from the outside. However, haven't opened the wheel at all to check. Things I don't care about: Range: I only use this wheel to commute. For fun I like to do things that involve some kind of exercise so as long as it can handle my normal commute (24 miles total) and my emergency commute if I have to take Metro instead of train (35 miles total) that's all I care about. Also I can charge at work most times so that halves my range requirement. Tire replacement: I've seen this discussed a lot but honestly I just take it to a local shop to do this. I called them ahead of time and they said they have no problem working on the S16. The owner did mention the V11(y) being an absolute pain and charges extra since it takes longer. LEDs: Idk they are there, but I mostly have them disabled unless it's night time. Speakers: Never really use them unless i'm on a shared trail. It's nice that I'm able to disable the various sounds (startup, shutdown) since those draw attention in public places which I don't want. Hopefully this helped someone considering this wheel! If you have any questions let me know. Other wheels I considered were the V11y (I hated the suspension feel on my friends V11), begode falcon (I need the top speed to be higher for shared roads with cars), blitz (a bit too heavy, wary of first batch issues).

Oh and worst case just buy a storage tote with handles for $25 and put your wheel in there and lug it up. I used to carry one as a backup in case I got crap with the new policy but never had to use it.

My buddy and I have ridden on Amtrak on the west coast of a commuter-ish line for years. I have my 16x and he's got a Patton but I've also brought along an extreme and et max. I've never had issues but I think there's some guidelines to follow. - Always carry on and don't check in. They will weigh your EUC and reject it if checking in. Be as conspicuous and matter of fact as possible: - Be able to lift your wheel quickly and move it around efficiently. Do NOT delay the train by struggling with the wheel, timetables are crucial and you might just not be allowed on wheel or not. Always give way to other passengers and be kind and courteous. - Use luggage racks if available and try to minimize the wheel footprint (so lay it up, vs flat). If over 50lbs, try and place it in the bottom area. If luggage racks are semi full just bring it with you or stay near the luggage rack. The whole point is not to bring attention to it so if the luggage rack is getting full and someone can't place their under 50lbs suitcase when the conductor comes around they will try to move stuff around and will scrutinize your wheel. - If bringing to your seat, try and squeeze to one side of the seat especially if the train is getting full. People get called out for spreading to two seats anyways when it starts to get full. This is especially important when conductor comes around for ticket check. If you make yourself as small as possible they won't care. When they leave you can spread out a bit more. -If the train is getting full, just stay standing. Yes it sucks but it's only happened a handful of times and again the conductors won't care about the standing person with a wheel vs the seated person who's kinda taking more space than needed on a full train. Even with the slim profile 16x it's really hard not to have to spread to 2 sears to be more comfortable. - if someone asks you about it, the conversation should probably go like this: "hey these aren't allowed here" "oh I can put it in the luggage rack or the bike area" "no I mean those type of one wheels" "I had no idea, I've been doing this for years. I don't have a car it's the only way I can get from home to work. Can I just stand by the doors with it next to me instead? I only have a few stops" "yes but you can't bring it anymore" "ok I'll call Amtrak to see if I can get an ebike instead". If the conductor asks you things it means they're on a power trip (they usually just don't care) so make yourself look dumb, naive and poor. Then just keep taking Amtrak since you won't run into him again for a while. Also you'll help build an idea of EUC riders being harmless people going to work helping minimize these kind of interactions. Your experience may vary since I'm on the West Coast and our Amtrak trains are filled with scooters, e bikes and the conductors are mostly concerned with people not folding them up and crowding areas. In 4 years between my friend and I we've only had one interaction with a conductor.

@Chaky The msx is a great wheel and it sounds like it's perfect for your use case. A few thoughts (based on my situation): You'll find it hard to sell your msx for a decent price for a reason. Suspension is a game changer for safety and pushing limits. Even when I tried the V11's anemic suspension I was able to maintain speed over crappy roads and felt a lot safer recovering after potholes. If you eventually want to sell your msx you'll have to go down in price and be patient. Otherwise sounds like it's perfect for you and you don't need to upgrade. "Fun" is subjective but I totally see how a non suspension wheel can be similar to a hardtail for mountain bikes. You feel the road more and are more connected. For some people that is more fun. Personally, "fun" for me means going at a decent speed from home to work with a large safety margin so I can happily carve in peace when the traffic is light and the road opens up. Although fun is only part of my calculation since it's not only a toy but mode of transport for me. (Which is why I waterproofed my 16x) The v14 is 86lbs so a no go for my use case of mixed public transportation and the 18xl v2 has no suspension. Thank you for responding and sharing your experience.

Thank you all, I really appreciate your input. I'm leaning towards Blitz and S16 pro. Probably the latter since I've never heard of first batch EUCs ever being great. Maybe next year if I get a promotion I will upgrade again

@Hellkittenoh I just realized fixed the title

@Hellkitteni need to draw the line somewhere! I've tried lifting my friends commander mini and I feel like I'm going to develop wrist problems getting anything near 90 lbs up and down train stairs everyday. Also I don't have the time or conviction to jump into working on the wheel. I just need something that works and only needs tire/tube changes (and maybe some grease/suspension maintenance) not a project wheel.

Thanks the S22 is a serious contender. It just makes me wonder if I should wait a few months and pay the extra $400 to get the blitz if i'm going down that route.

Thanks for the response @Janus unfortunately the S18 is both an older suspension design and also hits the same top speed as my currently owned 16x so this isn't a solid enough proposition. I did not consider the falcon as part of my list due to the top speed as well. Even though the blitz has similar performance characteristics as the other wheels you mentioned it's by far the lightest. Lynx (88lbs), Sherman S (96lbs), Blitz (78lbs). But I agree it's probably overkill for my purposes.

I've ridden my KS16x for years but recently my commute changed from a (one way) 5 mile bike lane journey to a 14 mile mixed environment adventure (wheel to train, lift wheel down stairs to platform and on train, wheel to work). I love the KS16x for its fast acceleration, nimbleness and incredible portability and I've never felt out of control with it. That being said here's the situations that I encounter every time on my commute that make the ride frustrating (and sometimes dangerous). Sneaky potholes: Shaded areas with non obvious potholes are everywhere (especially with our shit bike lanes on the far right of the road). I've never fallen but I find myself constantly on edge. If I do hit a pothole the 16x is controlled enough that I won't fall but it's jarring, especially when there's also rough road right after. There's a lot of construction on these roads so I'm scared at some point I'll hit a bigger one and I WILL fall. Bike lanes into merging traffic: We have some really badly designed bike lanes that occasionally are open to crossing traffic that enter the freeway. This one is actually dangerous because I've been cut off many times, way too close to me (and a lot of times the car that overtakes brakes and stops on the bike lane since the freeway entrance is busy). The 16x just doesn't have the power to stay at 30-35mph uphill for a few seconds in order for me to get out of the way. Keeping up with traffic: There is a 3 mile stretch where I'm on the road and it's a 35mph speed limit. The 16x comfortably cruises around 28mph which might as well be a standstill when all other traffic is moving 35-37mph. This leads to the classic overtake then cut me off when making a right turn. Or with a bus partially blocking the right lane, cars pass me first, then marginally pass the bus (forcing me to brake and stop behind the bus) since I wasn't able to maintain "passing speed". Obviously yes the cars should give me the lane (it's the law) but we all know it's best to assume they won't. With that in mind and the fact that I really don't want to drive, I was thinking of upgrading to a slightly faster wheel with suspension. Here are my top contenders Inmotion V11Y Pros: Water resistant, proven design (reliable), ergonomics Cons: Outdated suspension design (I rode my friends v11 and even coming from no suspension, I wasn't impressed), lighting not great for night city riding King Song S22 pro Pros: Excellent top speed (43mph) Cons: Plagued by issues initially, expensive with new sliders and upgrades (2.8k), heavy (78lbs) King Song S16 pro Pros: Decent top speed, modern suspension, good lighting, portability Cons: Meh everything, 16 inch wheel Begode Blitz Pros: Speed, build quality, lighting Cons: Portability (weight + trolley handle), Price (3.2k yikes), 1st batch (someone in the reviews pointed shoddy cable management and flimsy side panels), too much headroom for my needs I eliminated wheels that had a cruising speed below 33mph (falcon), no suspension, had questionable water resistance or were above 80lbs (max I can comfortably carry up stairs). Wheels that fit this description that I seriously considered but ultimately eliminated: Falcon, Hero, V12HS, Master, T4 pro. Would love to hear what you guys think!

King song 16x. 2100 miles, tube replaced 2 years ago and waterproofing added (also general inspection by professional repair shop). Scratches and scuffs since it was my first wheel but mechanically working perfectly. Getting about 30-40 miles range at 25-30mph. Love this wheel, my commute workhorse for years.

It was purchased on ewheels.com. I am the first owner.

It was purchased on ewheels.com