Menten 4……….

[Hellkitten]

So I just got an Menten 4 like the title says. It feels like the antithesis of a Sherman S which is my regular ride. It’s as sketchy as it is fun. Got it up to 32kms just now and can barely hear the damn beeper. 🤣👍 The immediate access to speed and torque is a ton of fun. Makes the SS feel like I’m riding in molasses. I wanted a wheel for running errands with and learning some tricks. Plus I have a halloween costume I want to incorporate it into. I spent the past day attaching polyethylene farings on each side, this wheel is going to do some low speed tumbling. I added some Kai pads and they fit well. Might swap the stock pedals.  They’re really tiny!
 

I think this wheel will show me many lessons……….

[Hellkitten]

Man I’m enjoying this wheel. The sweet spot speed wise feels around 25-30km. Really nice to carve. I did a lot of super tight circles and spirals, left and right side. This thing is so nimble. Good amount of pedal scraping was done. Felt a lot like ice skating, more then any other wheel. I still suck at pendulums. 

[skunkmonkey]

On 10/20/2023 at 11:11 PM, Hellkitten said:

Got it up to 32kms just now

LOL I totally read that as 32kps at first. I was like damn girl, is that an EUC or a rocket?

[Clem604]

On 10/22/2023 at 12:33 AM, Hellkitten said:

Man I’m enjoying this wheel. The sweet spot speed wise feels around 25-30km. Really nice to carve. I did a lot of super tight circles and spirals, left and right side. This thing is so nimble. Good amount of pedal scraping was done. Felt a lot like ice skating, more then any other wheel. I still suck at pendulums. 

Yeah the MTen4 is an absolute blast to ride around. I'll say that for me when I swapped the stock hybrid knobby tire out for a street tire it made it even better. It feels like you're riding a magic carpet on smooth asphalt.

I swapped the stock pedals out for the larger and much wider Begode spiked pedals and it definitely helps with higher speed stability because of the spikes and the ability to have a wider stance. The only downside for me is the added weight of the larger pedals which is very noticeable if you're carrying it around.

Edited October 24, 2023 by Clem604

[Hellkitten]

@Clem604 I’m very much enjoying it. Mine came with a hybrid tire and I prefer it to the knobby. I feel mixed about the pedals I kinda like the tiny stock ones just from a practicality standpoint. But I have big feet….. 

I rode my SS tonight and I almost fell off the front. Unbelievably sluggish. Took me a bit to get used to it. 

[Hellkitten]

Just got back from running some errands on my menten4. This thing is fantastic for sidewalk riding. I was averaging 10km an hour or so. I think my max speed was 20kms in bursts. It’s fairly easy to ride at walking speeds (none of my larger wheels are). I hopped up a few short curbs too. The Kai pads helped with that. I’ve dropped off a bunch of curbs and deweight to land carefully. I only wore gloves and wrist guards………

Edited October 26, 2023 by Hellkitten

[Hellkitten]

Had my first bail on this wheel. Dropped a small curb into some loose earth then immediately there was another small curb. Nailed it before I could react, went down got good use outta my wrist guards and gloves. Skinned my knee and ripped my pants. More pissed about my pants than anything. Lol. 

[UPONIT]

On 10/23/2023 at 9:52 PM, Clem604 said:

Yeah the MTen4 is an absolute blast to ride around. I'll say that for me when I swapped the stock hybrid knobby tire out for a street tire it made it even better. It feels like you're riding a magic carpet on smooth asphalt.

I swapped the stock pedals out for the larger and much wider Begode spiked pedals and it definitely helps with higher speed stability because of the spikes and the ability to have a wider stance. The only downside for me is the added weight of the larger pedals which is very noticeable if you're carrying it around.

For information: the InMotion honeycomb pedals also work nicely. I screw/spikes to mine also for grip.

On 10/23/2023 at 11:52 PM, Hellkitten said:

I rode my SS tonight and I almost fell off the front. Unbelievably sluggish. Took me a bit to get used to it. 

LOL. That Big/Little transition is about the same going back and forth between V13/V12. I ride the V12 so much better now that I also ride the V13. And going to the Mten4 from V13 is just bananas.

I'm really glad you are enjoying it the way it is "supposed" to be enjoyed!

Question: How do you feel about riding around on a tubeless tire? The more I think about it (YIKES), the more I wish I could find a tubed tire for the Mten4...

[Hellkitten]

@UPONIT 🤣 yeah the gulf between the two sizes of wheels is enormous. I find going from the m10 to the SS takes me longer to regain muscle memory and ride confidently. The tubeless part doesn’t bother me. I was having a conversation with a riding buddy and he mentioned getting a flat on his scooter that had a tubeless tire. He just used one of those string things you punch into the hole with an awl to patch it and it worked great! He said it was actually much easier to fix than a tubed tire. Which reminds me I need to grab one of those repair kits. Honestly if you get an insta-flat on any one wheeled device you’re screwed, tube or no tube. 

Edited November 2, 2023 by Hellkitten

[UPONIT]

On 11/2/2023 at 1:27 AM, Hellkitten said:

@UPONIT 🤣 yeah the gulf between the two sizes of wheels is enormous. I find going from the m10 to the SS takes me longer to regain muscle memory and ride confidently. The tubeless part doesn’t bother me. I was having a conversation with a riding buddy and he mentioned getting a flat on his scooter that had a tubeless tire. He just used one of those string things you punch into the hole with an awl to patch it and it worked great! He said it was actually much easier to fix than a tubed tire. Which reminds me I need to grab one of those repair kits. Honestly if you get an insta-flat on any one wheeled device you’re screwed, tube or no tube. 

Just seems tubeless is more likely to go flat, as in from a leak around the rim somewhere, or a fart from a bump or pothole. A tubed tire has to actually be punctured (or otherwise abused). 

 

[skunkmonkey]

3 hours ago, UPONIT said:

Just seems tubeless is more likely to go flat, as in from a leak around the rim somewhere, or a fart from a bump or pothole

It really depends on the quality of the tire and the rim. If you're talking bicycle level quality then absolutely. If you are talking motorcycle grade, then definitely not. Cars and motorcycles all use tubeless tires, and you see dirt bikes (motorcycles) doing some crazy next level jumps.

[Hellkitten]

After reading a bunch of comments here about tire pressure I decided to try a lower one on my m10. I had it at 40psi, I dropped it to 30psi. Much better, it’s never going to be a plush ride, but it takes some of the edge off.

I’m teaching a buddy to ride it soon and I wanted to check out a little park that I thought would be a good place. It’s got a ton of poles, trees and a mix of concrete and soft kid friendly playground turf. lots of things to hold on to while mounting or launch yourself at. While cruising around this park I found it had a few low curbs the tallest one about three or four inches high. I spent a good amount of time jumping it. I think I got up to approximately 5-6 inches. I could just roll over that kind of thing on my Sherman, but the m10 is unforgiving with anything semi substantial in your way. Had a ton of fun jumping this little thing. Practiced a bit of backwards riding and I suck at it. Lol. I mostly started holding onto something and rolling backwards until I started to wobble then tilted forward. Winter goals. 

[skunkmonkey]

The best place I've found to learn to ride EUC is a parking garage if you can find one. They tend to have almost glassy smooth concrete, and you have infinite walls to use to help you prop yourself up.

[Hellkitten]

3 hours ago, skunkmonkey said:

The best place I've found to learn to ride EUC is a parking garage if you can find one. They tend to have almost glassy smooth concrete, and you have infinite walls to use to help you prop yourself up.

We frequently ride the parking garages here in the city. The Toronto skate scene has semi merged with the pev community and they do a weekly “old school night shred”. Which basically is skating from one garage to the next. I might try and find one for practicing tricks during winter. 

[Hellkitten]

As I’ve started putting more kms on the m10, I still ride my Sherman S at night and for longer distances. It’s getting easier and faster to get used to each wheel. I’ve always been a bit jealous of riders I know that can jump from wheel to wheel without any issues. I feel like I’m finally getting to that stage at least between these two eucs.  I do wish there was a way to bend physics and have the same responsiveness from the SS as the m10………

[Punxatawneyjoe]

27 minutes ago, Hellkitten said:

 I do wish there was a way to bend physics

ask and you shal receive...https://physics.wustl.edu/people/carl-bender

[Hellkitten]

@Punxatawneyjoe any chance we could get Washington U to develop and build eucs……..🤔🤣🤣

[Hellkitten]

Went for a bit of a ride through Toronto’s downtown core doing a few errands. Probably about 90% on the sidewalk and a few little street rips. This thing is easily the best wheel around pedestrians, can go slower then walking speeds, curve around people very easily. I covered a good amount of turf and barely dropped a bar. Had a conversation with a guy in a restaurant supply store, he wanted to know all about it. Speed, range, the usual questions. It never ceases to amaze me at how some random people love these things! 

[UPONIT]

@Hellkitten And if you get the trolley handle, it is freakishly like walking a dog!

[Hellkitten]

48 minutes ago, UPONIT said:

@Hellkitten And if you get the trolley handle, it is freakishly like walking a dog!

I did and you’re correct! 🤣🤣🐶🐶

[Hellkitten]

Get a good amount of interactions while riding this wheel. All positive so far. I’m sure it’s because I’m mostly on the sidewalk and with minimal gear. Plus the m10 is cute and not as intimidating as a Sherman. 
Had a woman ask if it was fun, commented on me having a mirror for traffic, how long it took to learn. That kind of thing. Seemed genuinely interested. 
Yesterday a skater caught me at a crosswalk and wanted to know price, range, fun factor. Might have sold one to that guy. Wish I could get a commission on these things……..

I’ve got close to 300kms on it now, I use it for any short jaunts around the city core. Never had an issue bringing it in any store so far. 👍

Edited December 15, 2023 by Hellkitten

[Hellkitten]

Went out last night and met up with some other riders to practice pendulums and backwards riding. One of the guys won first place at a mini pev race last year and is competing in this years as well. He had a lot of good advice and insight.
I got some good practice in but still can’t do either fully or with any consistency. I did manage to do some backwards riding but I’m struggling with wobbling and committing to speed and can’t get too far before bailing. Pendulums need a lot of work still. I did get some down, but couldn’t stay in place properly and had tilting issues.  I seemed to do better when I was fresher and not as tired. I should probably lower my tire pressure to make it a bit easier. I keep my m10 tire fairly hard.
Feels a lot like learning all over again. 🤣 But I’m stubborn and want to learn. So I’ll keep at it. 
 

We also got a scooter rider to try out the smaller wheels we had (m10-4 & v8) and he did really well for his first time. We were near a place that has two hand rails and he was getting to the point of not overly using them. 
 

There’s going to be a mini pev racing event here in toronto on Feb 17th. It’s open to any euc of 15” wheel or smaller, 34” skateboards or any onewheel type device. 
there will be a regular race, slowest race, stay in a box, backwards, reverse footing, relay race and (i think) jousting. We held one last year and it was a ton of fun. I’m volunteering (again) so I’ll be on the track logging times and setting up the track. There’s a bunch of great prizes lined up and it’s going to be an all day event. I’ll post a video when it’s uploaded. 

Edited February 11 by Hellkitten

[Mono]

On 2/8/2024 at 4:13 AM, Hellkitten said:

Pendulums need a lot of work still. I did get some down, but couldn’t stay in place properly and had tilting issues.  I seemed to do better when I was fresher and not as tired. I should probably lower my tire pressure to make it a bit easier.

Find a surface which is not as sticky as tar. If you can twist the wheel effortlessly (while standing on it), pendulums become like a piece of cake.

[Hellkitten]

32 minutes ago, Mono said:

Find a surface which is not as sticky as tar. If you can twist the wheel effortlessly (while standing on it), pendulums become like a piece of cake.

Thanks! Parts of it were clicking, I just need to practice more regularly. I saved it a few times by twisting and recentering. I need it to become muscle memory and not think about what I’m doing.