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Ninebot Z10 as my first wheel


Pete E

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A little bit about me. I am brand new to this forum and am considering the Z10 for my first wheel. I'm 41 years old, 6'0 190 lbs and live in Seattle. I purchased my first electric toy at the beginning of this summer in a Verreal electric skateboard. I paid $379 shipped and wasn't expecting too much but have been blown away by the fun I've had on this thing. My only complaint is range but that is of course to be expected with a unit that cost less than $400. Since first riding this board and realizing how into it I am I have been researching other similar options. At first I had my mind set on an evolve electric skateboard but have since decided to go the euc route. Having never ridden any kind of euc before I have had to base the decision of which manufacturer and model to go with based on you tube videos and reviews and reading posts here. I keep hearing how differently the Z10 handles than anything else based primarily on the width of the tire and weight. I'm sure a wheel with a thinner tire is easier to manipulate and initiate turns in the direction of your choosing but does that necessarily make it "easier to ride" or learn on in your opinion? I'm curious if you guys think the learning curve would be harder with this model. I'm pretty coordinated and spent 4 years doing the ski bum thing after college and looking at a lot of these videos of the Z10, it looks like turn initiations are very similar co carving some groomers, can anyone compare to ski turn technique? Anyways just wanted to introduce myself and get some of you guys and gals expert opinions. Thanks in adavance, I look forward to being a member in what seems to be an awesome community.

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I think the Z10 may be the perfect performance learning wheel. It's not agile in the sense of other wheels (I know that you can't relate to what I just said, but eventually you will) and therefore your learning should go a lot quicker. Yet once you have learned to ride, you will learn how to ride it in an agile manner and will see that it's a very maneuverable wheel. Given your weight, expect this to be a ~30-mile wheel.

Of course the big downside right now is its non-availability. If you were to buy it from EWheels there are over 200 people on the waitlist and only 50 are available in their current shipment. You could literally be waiting until the end of the year :(

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Thanks Marty, I've enjoyed your you tube videos. Thanks for spending the time and effort, it really is appreciated. I know the wait is looking pretty rough at the moment but I'd much rather get exactly what I'm looking for than rush to just get one. Given the price tag that seems logical to me. Even if that does mean having to wait until October or Novemberish maybe, the start of the worst of the rainy season here in Seattle

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Today was the third time I went riding this wheel and man do I suck at it. Everytime I start it is like starting from the beginning, but eventually I will be able to ride a couple of hundred meters without falling of the wheel. And I am not even going fast, more like walking or running pace. I would be interested to hear how long did it take for you to learn this when you started. I am almost starting to lose my faith of ever learning to ride already. And Z10 is supposed to be one of the stabler wheels.

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10 minutes ago, Ziiten said:

Today was the third time I went riding this wheel and man do I suck at it. Everytime I start it is like starting from the beginning, but eventually I will be able to ride a couple of hundred meters without falling of the wheel. And I am not even going fast, more like walking or running pace. I would be interested to hear how long did it take for you to learn this when you started. I am almost starting to lose my faith of ever learning to ride already. And Z10 is supposed to be one of the stabler wheels.

Dont exspect to master the Wheel after just a few days :-) Just Keep going adn dont give up...if you are over the Point, that you can at least ride 100m, the worst is behind you :-)

From now on it only gets better and from day to day more fun.

For the time i needed(49 year old): 2-3hours (4-6 times 30 min) before having the first 10meters in one piece.

And About 2-4 weeks to -really- feel comfortable.

And even now after 3,5 years i am still learning new pro Things....

My tip would be not to make to Long sessions ...after 30-45min the brain/muscle memory is stressed enough and it wont learn anymore.

And btw. Going a bit faster is easier than driving very slow. ...And dont look at the Wheel down...look to the horizon, this helps also!

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I just replied another post, about Z10 as the first wheel.

Exactly as I mentioned: Z10 is more stable, but as a beginner, this ‘more stable’ means nothing because you have not experienced the ‘less stable’. All you feel is the falling over frustration in absolute degree...and Z10 is so heavy that you can not control, which makes everything worse.

If you plan to stick with Z10, keep trying and it will work!

or switch to a lighter wheel, when you know how it works, switch back to Z10.

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Actually I would think that the Z10’s weight may be a detriment to learning with it.. For us who can already ride, weight probably doesn’t mean much to us, but for beginners who are learning to prop the wheel up with their feet and stepping onto it, its not gonna be easy. That said, its not impossible, as with any other wheel, its not going to be easy for the majority of us. Whichever wheel you’re using just keep trying!

My tip would be not to use walls or any supports.. Just find a wide open area, kick off and and step on.. Keep trying and increasing the time you stay on..

oh right another disincentive to use the Z10 as a training wheel is the scratches you’re gonna pick up learning with it.. ?

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9 minutes ago, US69 said:

Dont exspect to master the Wheel after just a few days :-) Just Keep going adn dont give up...if you are over the Point, that you can at least ride 100m, the worst is behind you :-)

From now on it only gets better and from day to day more fun.

For the time i needed(49 year old): 2-3hours (4-6 times 30 min) before having the first 10meters in one piece.

And About 2-4 weeks to -really- feel comfortable.

And even now after 3,5 years i am still learning new pro Things....

My tip would be not to make to Long sessions ...after 30-45min the brain/muscle memory is stressed enough and it wont learn anymore.

And btw. Going a bit faster is easier than driving very slow. ...And dont look at the Wheel down...look to the horizon, this helps also!

These are great hints. My experience:

1, yes look at one point far away in front of you, that greatly helps you establish the balance reference point.

2, use your leg not upper body to get balanced.

3, it takes time. Build the muscles and neural network reflection, take a rest, or try it next day.

4, go straight line first, then we can talk about turning...

don’t give up! Everyone can do it! Human is made to learn, just like learn to walk when you were a baby!

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I am sad to say that this morning I woke up and after some thought, I have decided that I will cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress).  I think it is too expensive of a machine to try to learn on it when I have never been on an EUC before.  I will wait until sometime in 2019 to get a Z10 or another high end EUC of a different brand that will come out in 2019.  There is always something better around the corner.

Anyway, that does not mean that I will not venture into the realm of EUC.  I have ordered both the Mten3 and the MCM5 with Jason at ewheels and they will be shipped out sometime next week.  

I am a new member here in this forum and just started several threads and posts for the past few days on wanting to ride the Z10.  My heart want to enjoy using it, but this morning my brain took over.

Anyway, from reading many posts on here (especially ones from Marty), I hope I made a good decision on getting the Mten3 and MCM5 as my first 2 wheels.  Now the wait begins...….

 

Oh.....by the way, which wheel should I use to start my learning process?  The Mten3 or the MCM5 ?

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Always get the wheel you want, not the one you think you should want! If that's the Z, it's the Z! You can learn on any wheel.

That being said, neither the mten3 nor MCM5 are easy wheels to learn on. Doesn't matter though, as you can learn on any wheel.

Is the Z more expensive than two quality wheels like the mten3 and MCM5? This makes no sense. Do they have inflated Ali prices at the moment?

If your heart wants the Z, reorder it (unless prices are absurd) and cancel the others. Always get the wheel that you secretly want.

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4 minutes ago, SanDiegoGuy said:

I am sad to say that this morning I woke up and after some thought, I have decided that I will cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress).  I think it is too expensive of a machine to try to learn on it when I have never been on an EUC before.  I will wait until sometime in 2019 to get a Z10 or another high end EUC of a different brand that will come out in 2019.  There is always something better around the corner.

Anyway, that does not mean that I will not venture into the realm of EUC.  I have ordered both the Mten3 and the MCM5 with Jason at ewheels and they will be shipped out sometime next week.  

I am a new member here in this forum and just started several threads and posts for the past few days on wanting to ride the Z10.  My heart want to enjoy using it, but this morning my brain took over.

Anyway, from reading many posts on here (especially ones from Marty), I hope I made a good decision on getting the Mten3 and MCM5 as my first 2 wheels.  Now the wait begins...….

I hesitate to write this...

You just ordered two fantastic wheels :thumbup:

However, you also just ordered two very advanced wheels :unsure: that may make your learning much harder. I will say, as many others have, that you can learn on any wheel. But I just wanted you to understand that your learning period may be extended by these choices. On a positive note, once you are riding, you will love these wheels :D

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3 hours ago, littlelio said:

These are great hints. My experience:

1, yes look at one point far away in front of you, that greatly helps you establish the balance reference point.

2, use your leg not upper body to get balanced.

3, it takes time. Build the muscles and neural network reflection, take a rest, or try it next day.

4, go straight line first, then we can talk about turning...

don’t give up! Everyone can do it! Human is made to learn, just like learn to walk when you were a baby!

Thanks to all for support, good tips. First day I had my shins all bruised up and my ankles bleeding with the hits from the massive wheel and the sharp pedal edges making incisions. With my belt in hand setup I have been able to keep the wheel and others from destruction. Today when doing riding excersises I was sweating like a pig from all that hopping on and off. I don't find it too difficult to hop on the wheel but I am somehow unable to accelerate fast enough so I lose balance; I am 140 lbs (70kg) so excess weight should not be the issue. Would it be beneficial to have one foot more forwards on the pedal for acceleration, one to the back for deceleration.

Btw, I found that sometimes even the daylight running light turns off. There seems to be four modes, all off, dlrl on, dlrl+main on, only main on. It is somehow connected to the long pressing of the power button, but I haven't figured out the logic yet - it does not seem to cycle between those modes. Also, when lifting the wheel, I have noticed that the spin lock does not activate always, even when grapping the handle up from the rear end.

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1 hour ago, Ziiten said:

Today was the third time I went riding this wheel and man do I suck at it. Everytime I start it is like starting from the beginning, but eventually I will be able to ride a couple of hundred meters without falling of the wheel. And I am not even going fast, more like walking or running pace. I would be interested to hear how long did it take for you to learn this when you started. I am almost starting to lose my faith of ever learning to ride already. And Z10 is supposed to be one of the stabler wheels.

I know how you feel ... I just started to learn 3 weeks ago and the first time trying to go along a wall in a car park felt impossible without holding on to that wall!

I spent about 20 minutes a day over 3 weeks before I can ride my wheel without needing a wall to hold on to and being able to make turns, go up/down ramps and speed bumps, or not fall off when the ground changes from one surface to another (e.g. riding on tarmac to riding over grass). It was much harder than learning to ride a bicycle. Your brain needs to learn how to correct your balance when doing all of the things mentioned and pretty soon you won't even have to think about it. Practice is all it takes and there are no shortcuts to this. Every time you fall off, your brain learns what to do better next time. I'm almost at the point of being confident enough to start venturing out onto public roads, but I'm not going to rush things.

I am riding an Inmotion v8 which I got to learn on and for shorter trips. I also have a Z10 on pre-order though I don't know if it will ever turn up, but that's another story. What I have noticed during learning to ride a EUC is that as I get better my legs don't get so tired and I don't sweat so much now when riding, but my feet still get tired fairly quickly. I will work on trying to keep them relaxed more. Oh, and the best tip I have learned is to focus on keeping your body and legs relaxed as that is the best way to improve your balance and avoid a spill while being able to ride for longer.

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33 minutes ago, Nic said:

I know how you feel ... I just started to learn 3 weeks ago and the first time trying to go along a wall in a car park felt impossible without holding on to that wall!

I spent about 20 minutes a day over 3 weeks before I can ride my wheel without needing a wall to hold on to and being able to make turns, go up/down ramps and speed bumps, or not fall off when the ground changes from one surface to another (e.g. riding on tarmac to riding over grass). It was much harder than learning to ride a bicycle. Your brain needs to learn how to correct your balance when doing all of the things mentioned and pretty soon you won't even have to think about it. Practice is all it takes and there are no shortcuts to this. Every time you fall off, your brain learns what to do better next time. I'm almost at the point of being confident enough to start venturing out onto public roads, but I'm not going to rush things.

I am riding an Inmotion v8 which I got to learn on and for shorter trips. I also have a Z10 on pre-order though I don't know if it will ever turn up, but that's another story. What I have noticed during learning to ride a EUC is that as I get better my legs don't get so tired and I don't sweat so much now when riding, but my feet still get tired fairly quickly. I will work on trying to keep them relaxed more. Oh, and the best tip I have learned is to focus on keeping your body and legs relaxed as that is the best way to improve your balance and avoid a spill while being able to ride for longer.

Thanks for the encouraging words. I have also noticed that standing up straight (legs too) and relaxed works best. But as a newbie I find that difficult sometimes to trust the wheel, so I am in this crouched position which screws up the balance.

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Bad news for me folks.  I thought that I was able to cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress) but unfortunately I changed my mind too late (I ordered 3 days ago) and I just got a message from the seller saying that he already paid for the freight and custom duties so I cannot cancel my order anymore and I should get the tracking number tomorrow.

So now back to square one.  I will have to cancel my MCM5 order and just stick with the Mten3 and the Z10.  I guess I am destined to ride the Z10.  Having 3 wheels would be too much for me.  I am not Marty.

It is going to be a tough road ahead in the learning process.  It will be a challenge for sure.

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1 minute ago, SanDiegoGuy said:

Bad news for me folks.  I thought that I was able to cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress) but unfortunately I changed my mind too late (I ordered 3 days ago) and I just got a message from the seller saying that he already paid for the freight and custom duties so I cannot cancel my order anymore and I should get the tracking number tomorrow.

So now back to square one.  I will have to cancel my MCM5 order and just stick with the Mten3 and the Z10.  I guess I am destined to ride the Z10.  Having 3 wheels would be too much for me.  I am not Marty.

It is going to be a tough road ahead in the learning process.  It will be a challenge for sure.

Why would you want to cancel the z10? its a great wheel as it seams?

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Yes, even me who had buyers remorse would not recommend cancelling this. I have had great difficulties riding this wheel as a newbie to eucs, but I am optimistic it will get better. And once you master the wheel, think of all the opportunities.

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Ziiten and I are two people on the opposite side of the spectrum on using the Z10.  Most people here that are using the Z10 or ordering the Z10 are experienced riders while Ziiten and I are total newbies.  This would give perspective on how the Z10 will accommodate riders from different background and skill level.  Very interesting indeed......

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Master the harder wheels first, and every other wheel is a breeze to re-adjust to.

I learned so much more from the KS18A (2nd ever wheel), that it informed new techniques I never would have discovered on the shorter, smaller wheels, wheels that let you get away with lesser technique and no hip movement.

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When learning to ride for the first time, count on banging-up the wheel a lot.  What you need to ask yourself is this, am I comfortable banging-up my brand new, $2000 wheel, or am I more comfortable with banging-up my $500 wheel?  The answer to this question will dictate your purchase decision ;)

As to the Z10 being well suited to learning to ride, it does lend itself to making some aspects easier, but others will be more challenging.  Because of its fat tire and low center of gravity, it will surely be easier to learn to self start and ride on the straight and flat; however, I'd anticipate it's going to be more difficult to learn turning on it.  There is also an ongoing debate on whether the way the wheel performs when going down steep slopes is too quirky.

Finally, because the Z10 is so different from the rest of the euc crop, if you ever have to ride something else, it could be challenging.  Sort of like how it's easier to go from learning to drive on a stick and then driving an automatic versus learning on an automatic and then having to drive a stick.

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42 minutes ago, SanDiegoGuy said:

Bad news for me folks.  I thought that I was able to cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress) but unfortunately I changed my mind too late (I ordered 3 days ago) and I just got a message from the seller saying that he already paid for the freight and custom duties so I cannot cancel my order anymore and I should get the tracking number tomorrow.

So now back to square one.  I will have to cancel my MCM5 order and just stick with the Mten3 and the Z10.  I guess I am destined to ride the Z10.  Having 3 wheels would be too much for me.  I am not Marty.

It is going to be a tough road ahead in the learning process.  It will be a challenge for sure.

That is not at all bad news! You would have bought a Z10 anyway sooner or later. So it’s destiny. ? Enjoy your new wheels. I am looking forward to hear which wheel was easier to master? Have fun and be safe!

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49 minutes ago, SanDiegoGuy said:

Bad news for me folks.  I thought that I was able to cancel my order of the Z10 (from Aliexpress) but unfortunately I changed my mind too late (I ordered 3 days ago) and I just got a message from the seller saying that he already paid for the freight and custom duties so I cannot cancel my order anymore and I should get the tracking number tomorrow.

So now back to square one.  I will have to cancel my MCM5 order and just stick with the Mten3 and the Z10.  I guess I am destined to ride the Z10.  Having 3 wheels would be too much for me.  I am not Marty.

It is going to be a tough road ahead in the learning process.  It will be a challenge for sure.

Hmm.. would you be willing to sell it to me when it arrives? I wouldn't mind receiving one early as I'm on eWheel's pre-order list and I probably won't see one until the end of the year. :D

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2 hours ago, Ziiten said:

Thanks to all for support, good tips. First day I had my shins all bruised up and my ankles bleeding with the hits from the massive wheels and the sharp pedal edges making incisions. With my belt in hand setup I have been able to keep the wheel and others from destruction. Today when doing riding excersises I was sweating like a pig from all that hopping on and off. I don't find it too difficult to hop on the wheel but I am somehow unable to accelerate fast enough so I lose balance; I am 140 lbs (70kg) so excess weight should not be the issue. Would it be beneficial to have one foot more forwards on the pedal for acceleration, one to the back for deceleration.

Btw, I found that sometimes even the daylight running light turns off. There seems to be four modes, all off, dlrl on, dlrl+main on, only main on. It is somehow connected to the long pressing of the power button, but I haven't figured out the logic yet - it does not seem to cycle between those modes. Also, when lifting the wheel, I have noticed that the spin lock does not activate always, even when grapping the handle up from the rear end.

There's a fifth mode: flashing dlrl   And is there a flashing main light mode?

Like you, I haven't figured out exactly how all these modes are controlled.

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1 hour ago, Ziiten said:

Thanks for the encouraging words. I have also noticed that standing up straight (legs too) and relaxed works best. But as a newbie I find that difficult sometimes to trust the wheel, so I am in this crouched position which screws up the balance.

Just to clarify ... I keep my legs 'slightly' bent, but loose ... straight legs don't help with balance, at least not when you are learning. Keep your legs gently pressed in against the wheel and focus on not moving them suddenly, and keeping them relaxed allowing them to move up/down to absorb bumps.

The first time I tried without using a wall for support I was terrified of falling off (which made me fall off). This despite me being only a few inches from the ground. Try not to think about falling off and you will be less likely to fall off. :whistling:

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