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Looking for an EUC for daily commuting


panda

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Hi,

I'm looking for an EUC to commute to work (Central London) on a daily basis and was wondering what kind of battery / wheel size / brands I should get. The commute is within walking distance, so I'm not too worried about it running out of charge. In terms of budget, I'm looking for the cheapest/best value for money, but definitely not over £500.

I've looked around a bit myself and found BINGS at around £300; this is the cheapest one I've seen so far. There aren't that many reviews on amazon so I'm not sure on how reliable it is.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/BINGS-Balancing-Turbo-Electric-Wheel/dp/B00PLDR9EQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1437208008&sr=8-1&keywords=bings+electric+unicycle

Would appreciate it if someone could give me some advice. Thanks!

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Unless you want to do more walking than riding I would suggest you at least look for the best euc available close to the top of your budget. Whilst the cheap ones are fine for a week or two learning in your driveway or very locally I certainly wouldn't want to go anywhere on one. Plus if you are over 60Kg the cheap ones are not really suitable for you long term as the 350W motor just isn't up to the job of moving anything heavier.

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What kind of wattage motor would one need to climb curbs? I can't really think of any other particular obstacles on the street.

Also, I get the feeling my budget is a bit low? What sort of budget would be more appropriate?

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I am not really qualified giving you advice on technical specifications. But if you dont mind, I can share a bit of my personal experience.

About three months ago, I bought an Airwheel X3 clone. At 588 Singapore $ (~ 430 USD) that was the cheapest euc I could buy here in a decent store. I learned with it and used it for shorter rides of about 5-6 km, to get a bite or to drive to a shopping centre. I went twice with a group for an outing. Before we reached the final destination, I had to swap wheels with some teenagers. My 80 kg squeezed the juice pretty fast out of my ride and I could not have made it without swapping. At the same occassions I test drove an IPS 132 and a Ninbot One E+. Man what a difference! The larger wheel, the bigger pedals, the power-reserve of the motor, even the heavier weight made the ride more comfortable, more enjoyable and It felt much safer. To cut it short, I sold my clone yesterday and bought a Ninbot One E+ today. Just came back from a ride along the river and cannot wait to get back on it tomorrow.

In the three months I am now riding an euc I have not (yet) experienced a faceplant. Not at least because I am following the advice given in this forum not to overspeed, respect the warning signs of the device and being considerate with the battery. However, I was always a bit on alert and expected some nasty stuff from the cheap clone underneath. Today, on the other hand, I rode relaxed with an ease of mind and enjoyed it much more.

Bottomline, if you are not sure if an euc might be something for you, buy a cheaper one or even better buy a second hand one. But if you believe an euc could really be something for you, please consider to raise your budget and buy a quality euc.

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Where are you in the world as carriage charges make up a huge portion of the cost for those of us in the West.

Sorry just re read and see you're in London.

If you are happy to work on the wheel and fit replacement parts yourself you can order direct from one of the overseas dealers or manufacturers but if you don't have or don't know how to use a toolkit then you are probably better off buying locally.

Jason McNeil is trading in London and is normally happy for people to try before they buy so go to wheelgo.com or message him here. He's a member.

Cost for a decent wheel form him starts at about £630 I believe but check with him.

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Personally I don't know how he can keep them so low and still provide the year guarantee and customer service that he does. The Chinese advertised prices all look very attractive until you add shipping and don't forget that most banks charge about £30 foreign transaction fees when you pay in US $ as most require you to.

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So after reading the replies here, looking around and considering the price vs spec, I'm quite interested in the Ninebot One E. Are there any other recommendations you guys feel are quite good too? (Thanks in advance)

EDIT: Would also like to add that I'm about 60kg, and about 156cm tall. I'm a bit worried that the Ninebot One E might be a bit big.

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HI Panda, of course I'd might be a bit biased ;) , but our prices are inclusive of VAT + Duty + airfreight from China, & of course we have them in stock in central London.

Around your stated budget, you could pickup with the 350Wh IPS121, which is an excellent good all-rounder. 

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So after reading the replies here, looking around and considering the price vs spec, I'm quite interested in the Ninebot One E. Are there any other recommendations you guys feel are quite good too? (Thanks in advance)

EDIT: Would also like to add that I'm about 60kg, and about 156cm tall. I'm a bit worried that the Ninebot One E might be a bit big.

Maybe not big, but heavy (14.2kg), certainly. My Firewheel 260Wh is 13.7kg, I feel a big difference riding and carrying compared to my generic X3 (10.2 kg) or my Gotway 340Wh (11.4 kg).

Ninebot has a rather bad range/weight ratio, even comparing to other 16" wheels (Firewheel, IPS), let alone 14" wheels. But it's so beautifull !

As to the price, just as a personal note, if I had the chance to have a vendor like Jason McNeil in my country or better in my town, I would buy from him without hesitation. The added services, the availability of good advices and the tranquility of mind to have a reliable middleman is worth the price. After all, I don't buy my car from the factory or my meat from the slaughterhouse.

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The Ninebot has the disadvantage to be heavy and one cannot easily fit a standard telescope handle bar, which means one would have to carry it instead of pushing it when walking. That feels like a deal breaker to me.

Here you are:

http://www.passiongadgets.com/ninebot-trolley-handle.html

And you can attach or detach it in two shakes of a lambs tail without tools.

image.jpg

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