Many beginner unicycles, and on top of that, many affordable unicycles, are made with what’s called a square taper crank.
The interface between the crank arm and the hub axle is, in this case, square in cross section. These are affordable to manufacture and therefore are popular on many affordable models.
That being said, if you ever ride with them loose, you could run into trouble. Here’s the issue.
Make Sure Those Square Taper Cranks Are Properly Tightened
Square taper cranks, which are also known as cotterless cranks, are lightweight and strong. The square taper crank configuration is also relatively affordable to manufacture.
When properly installed and tightened, the square taper, or cotterless, interface, is strong and secure, especially for learners.
But, if you ever ride with the crank arms loose, what could happen is that the corners of the steel hub axle can deform or entirely shear off the interface of the crank arms. The hardened steel of the hub axle is much harder and stronger than the softer aluminum of the crank arms.
If this happens, your crank arms will feel wobbly if there is minor damage; in extreme cases, the crank arms might not even engage the hub axle at all, which means you won’t be able to use the crank arms.
It might also feel like the crank arms are slipping slightly, or not engaging properly, if you ever experience this sort of damage. You might also experience a distinct side-to-side wobble if there’s damage to the crank arms.
The damage is also irreversible. If this happens you will need to replace your square taper crank arms. Fortunately, since the aluminum of the crank arms themselves is softer than the hub axle, you should only need to replace the crank arms. It’s not necessarily likely you’ll damage the hub axle itself, but if you do, you’ll have a much bigger problem than if you’d just damaged the crank arms.
There is good news here, though. All you should have to do to prevent this is to make sure that you never ride your unicycle with loose crank arms. Just check them each time before you ride and tighten them a little if it’s needed.
Here for New Unicycle Parts?
While the damage to your crank arms (or bottom bracket) will be irreversible if this occurs, the slight silver lining is that the repair or replacement (just in terms of square taper crank arms) is usually not that steep.
You just need to know where to go to get the unicycle parts and tools to make the repair. The good news is that you can get everything you need at Unicycle.com.
Visit their website; they carry a wide range of crank arms, pedals and also the tools you need to make upgrades or repairs. Get in touch with them if you need help finding anything specific or if you have questions about parts or compatibility, too. They can help you out.
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