Smoother Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 2 hours ago, Anthony S said: I actually tried using a strap, but I felt like, if anything, it was holding me back. I'll just throw some of that funny tube-padding on those parts and call it good. However, it has started to snow today, so no riding today either. This was a horrible first weekend to have my EUC. It's been pouring all weekend and now it's snowing. I'm not sure the strap holds one back, on the contrary, I believe in can aid learning. How? Because, with a strap of the right length, held loosely, you don't have the fear of the wheel getting so scratched up, or running off and smashing into something, or flipping over and scratching the handle ( that at least two v8 Owners have described on this thread) less fear = more relaxed, more relaxed = less fatigue, less fatigue = more practice time, less injuries, etc etc. I have over 500 miles on my little 14c and I still use my strap. If I didn't I'd have lost in into the Mediterranean Sea or down a mountain side, probably several times by now, seeing the mountain trails, coastal paths and cliff top areas ( not too close to the edge, I hasten to add) that I ride daily. additionally, it exudes an air of personal responsibility to the public and de law. A strap to restrain ones wheel says, " I care about being responsible for my 35lb motorised projectile, around innocent members of the public. Plus you can loop it over your shoulder when "land portage-ing" it around obstacles and long flights of steps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mono Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 That remains to be a point worth repeating. We should take our responsibilities to prevent free running EUCs very seriously. We always have to consider that there could be an 18 month old toddler on the side walk or on the promenade or in the park or... A free running EUC can quite easily have arbitrarily bad consequences for such a member of our society and there is no way one could blame the parents or guardian of the toddler for such a tragedy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony S Posted February 5, 2017 Author Share Posted February 5, 2017 39 minutes ago, Smoother said: additionally, it exudes an air of personal responsibility to the public and de law. A strap to restrain ones wheel says, " I care about being responsible for my 35lb motorised projectile, around innocent members of the public. Plus you can loop it over your shoulder when "land portage-ing" it around obstacles and long flights of steps When I leave my driveway, I'll consider a strap. Currently, the only person at risk of injury is myself lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 3 hours ago, Anthony S said: I actually tried using a strap, but I felt like, if anything, it was holding me back. The key word in @Smoother's reply was "loosely". It is holding a strap tight and trying to use it like a reins that will hold you back. A loose strap ( but not so loose it gets trapped in the wheel - yup been there!) keeps the wheel under your control without impacting your balance. @Mono is spot on, in my first month or two of riding, the strap saved my wheel charging off or spinning out of control on several occasions. I had a couple of incidents in the first weeks where the wheel didn't go down on its side, and therefore shutoff, but instead spun about powerfully and could have hurt me or someone else. All I needed to do when that happened was lift it off the ground by the strap until it shut down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechShizzle Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 1 hour ago, Keith said: The key word in @Smoother's reply was "loosely". It is holding a strap tight and trying to use it like a reins that will hold you back. I can see the use of a loosely held strap. The videos I had seen show the rider holding it pretty taught. Thanks for pointing that out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abinder3 Posted February 6, 2017 Share Posted February 6, 2017 9 hours ago, Mono said: That remains to be a point worth repeating. We should take our responsibilities to prevent free running EUCs very seriously. We always have to consider that there could be an 18 month old toddler on the side walk or on the promenade or in the park or... A free running EUC can quite easily have arbitrarily bad consequences for such a member of our society and there is no way one could blame the parents or guardian of the toddler for such a tragedy. Totally agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gotmotion2016 Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 Good to read that you have the cover already, it's better then nothing! But during the learning proces the wheel will fall quiet a few times i suppose. Hope you can jump off on the moments, but it means the wheel will fall and scratch. On a black V5/V8 you can see that good, but it doesn't ride less with a scratch Till now never hurt any one else when i jumped off the wheel, when i felt i was starting to fall. Good luck anyway, and i hope you will enjoy the wheel as much a the other riders and i do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaxLinux Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 On 2/5/2017 at 3:51 PM, Keith said: The key word in @Smoother's reply was "loosely". It is holding a strap tight and trying to use it like a reins that will hold you back. During my initial learning period, I used the strap. Countless times, I used the strap to keep the wheel from falling over when I lost my balance. This prevented many scratches. I can only imagine how scratched up the shell would have been if I did not use the strap. I did struggle at first with the temptation to use the strap as a balancing aid. When I would start to tip over, I would hold onto the strap tightly, trying to help keep the wheel balanced. This seems to work somewhat, but you won't progress to real riding if you remain "strap dependent." Gradually I learned to let the strap hang loosely, and only grab it when needed to save the wheel from falling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony S Posted February 8, 2017 Author Share Posted February 8, 2017 4 hours ago, gotmotion2016 said: Good to read that you have the cover already, it's better then nothing! But during the learning proces the wheel will fall quiet a few times i suppose. Hope you can jump off on the moments, but it means the wheel will fall and scratch. On a black V5/V8 you can see that good, but it doesn't ride less with a scratch Till now never hurt any one else when i jumped off the wheel, when i felt i was starting to fall. Good luck anyway, and i hope you will enjoy the wheel as much a the other riders and i do Thank you. Yes, I will revisit the strap idea, as it sounds like a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smoother Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 Not to bang on about the strap thingy, but there is another good reason to strap it: every time your wheel smashes to the ground, any impact, vibration, sudden deceleration, etc is transmitted to you control board, BMS, batteries, battery connections, and EVERY connection and solder joint. How many of the failures we read about are the result of some component or joint, or connector, giving way after multiple impacts? We won't know. But we do know that if you throw your TV or computer down the stairs once or even repeatedly , it probably won't work when you next plug it in. Just a thought. Be as kind to your wheel as possible, your life is LITERALLY riding on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony S Posted February 8, 2017 Author Share Posted February 8, 2017 Man. Straps are a popular subject around here. Like I said, I'll be using one after reading all the comments here. Any suggestions on where to buy a proper strap? My V8 didn't come with one, so I've been using a makeshift strap. UPDATE - Figured it out. Search for "Luggage straps," and plenty of options show up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planetpapi Posted February 8, 2017 Share Posted February 8, 2017 I use a thick clothes line. It's strong enough and subtle in appearance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve454 Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 7 hours ago, Planetpapi said: I use a thick clothes line. It's strong enough and subtle in appearance. I always wondered what that was in your videos, what is it made of, in the videos it looks like wire, very thin and dark colored. That's a very good idea, clothesline is strong and almost invisible. But too thin and it could cut you, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve454 Posted February 9, 2017 Share Posted February 9, 2017 15 hours ago, Smoother said: How many of the failures we read about are the result of some component or joint, or connector, giving way after multiple impacts? Good point! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anthony S Posted February 12, 2017 Author Share Posted February 12, 2017 On 2/8/2017 at 5:12 AM, Anthony S said: Man. Straps are a popular subject around here. Like I said, I'll be using one after reading all the comments here. Any suggestions on where to buy a proper strap? My V8 didn't come with one, so I've been using a makeshift strap. UPDATE: So the snow and rain have disappeared from the Seattle area, for now, and I finally got a chance to spend a good hour or two outside. A real strap, one long enough to where I don't need to tug on it while riding, is a brilliant idea. I can go full out with trying to learn to ride and when I fall off (which I still do every 5 feet) the strap has stopped my V8 from hitting the ground each time. Love it. A few times the V8 really launched away from me and the strap brought it right back. Combine the strap with full pads and helmet, I have little to worry about and can focus on just learning. Next, after I finished last night, I realized my back was pretty sore. It occurred to me that with the V8 weighing something like 26 lbs, I need to be more careful in how I lift it. Should be using my knees to pick it up and not bending over. Lesson learned. Lastly, I'm still having a hard time getting the V8 to go forward. I mean, I do go forward, but I can't seem to gain enough speed to stop from wobbling. I think my longest ride has been about 60 feet - a very wobbly 60 feet. After watching a few videos last night, I think my feet are too far back on the pedals. All of that being said, though, the V8 is an amazing piece of hardware and I love how it's been handling so far. Thanks to everybody for the strap suggestion! UPDATE: One last thing. Learning to ride can be a good workout. I was pretty beat after 2 hours yesterday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smoother Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Well done. Moviing forward: Yes, I think you might be standing too far back too. Try standing on it on a level floor (holding a wall or something) and see where your feet have to be so that it doesn't want to roll. I notice that when I'm riding, if I get one foot too far back, my calf starts to get sore, because I am lifting my heel to press with my toes, because the weight is too far back on that side. Shifting the foot forward, solves it. Don't shift feet at speed or you'll be face surfing the pavement. Sore back: I had a sore back too. I felt it was from all the leaning over (ks14 is low) to roll it back to a place I could do an assistanted launch from. You have a retractable handle so that shouldn't be a reason. keep practicing, and slowly it will fall into place. One day you will be gliding along watching the birds, and the sky, and other scenery, and not even thinking about controlling your wheel, I promise. We all got there eventually, and it's brilliant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HEC Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 On 03/02/2017 at 9:05 PM, Shveecko said: Nice to hear that? What is your range and max speed with your weight? With weight approaching 100 Kg you can expect maximum range on full charge (till wheel will refuse to go any further fully tilting back at 45 degrees) of about 28 - 30 Km depending also on the weather (wind and temperature) so I'd say safe regular trip up to 25 Km per charge with some reserve. And I'd definitely recommend V8 rather than ACM as Inmotion is miles ahead of any other current EUC manufacturer in technology and quality. ---- Opravdu - osobně doporučuji V8 - najel jsem na ní do teď od loňského srpna 2000 Km (20 km denně cestou do a z práce) bez jediného problem, často s velkým těžkým nákladem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HEC Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 On 12/02/2017 at 6:23 PM, Anthony S said: UPDATE: One last thing. Learning to ride can be a good workout. I was pretty beat after 2 hours yesterday. Yes - my first week I was walking (or more like crawling) up the 3 flights of stairs after each training session shirt soaking wet ... that's mainly "stress" though and incorrect posture on the wheel / pedals while training. Once you'll figure that out you'll not be that tired anymore. Keep on rolling and as others here already said - in few weeks you'd not even remember the hard beginnings! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smoother Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 5 minutes ago, HEC said: Inmotion is miles ahead of any other current EUC manufacturer in technology and quality. Care to elaborate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mono Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 1 hour ago, Smoother said: Care to elaborate? The latest example resulting from a design failure which comes into my mind: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meepmeepmayer Posted February 14, 2017 Share Posted February 14, 2017 Happy to hear you are having fun learning to ride. Enjoy it, if it's like everything else the initial learning is the most fun part (I'm in the same position). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planetpapi Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 On 2/8/2017 at 6:07 PM, steve454 said: ...But too thin and it could cut you, right? I'm not too sure if it could cut me. Strong enough to stop from running away and weak enough to cut me instead of drag me along with it. I donno. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smoother Posted February 16, 2017 Share Posted February 16, 2017 1 hour ago, Planetpapi said: I'm not too sure if it could cut me. Strong enough to stop from running away and weak enough to cut me instead of drag me along with it. I donno. Ive actually thought about going with something thinner and less obvious than my bright red tie down strap. A piece of clothes line might be the ticket. I'd want to put some sort of handle on it so it didn't cut into my hand if I had to lift all 35lb off the ground. Should be easy enough to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LanghamP Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 On 2/3/2017 at 4:34 AM, Smoother said: but before you take that lovely shiny expensive thing outside, spend some time protecting it from the inevitable crashes it is going to have, otherwise, like me, when you finally have your skills down, your wheel will look like it did three tours of Afghanistan, and you ll have one of these☹️ Instead of one of these ? Although I just bought a VF5+ and not a v8, this is relevant to me. How and where do I cover the unicycle? I bought two sets of rolls (however much that is...the advertising says each set of three rolls covers three unicycles) but I am uncertain where to protect the unicycle. I especially don't want to accidentally tape over air vents or other important things. Be advised I have never ridden not seen an e-unicycle, but having it get scuffed up, especially when it came out so beautiful and shiny, would irritate me to no end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Planetpapi Posted February 21, 2017 Share Posted February 21, 2017 2 hours ago, LanghamP said: How and where do I cover the unicycle? I also just bought InMotion V5F+. It came with a protective cover somewhat cushiony. See the picture. Jason McNeil from ewheels.com can sell you one for under $40. Or be creative and cut your old sweater and cover it. Banggood.com sells some kind of bumper foam tape for cheap like 5 bucks. See that green foam on the right side wheel? That's what it is. It comes in a roll and can cover the entire wheel. I only applied 2 strips. I recommend it for a beginner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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