The two used unicycles from the secondhand marketplace arrived today. One is white and one is blue, both Knight-brand, and the condition is roughly 7 to 8.5 out of 10. Shipping through JD Express cost a little over 70 yuan.
The white one was mostly fine. The blue one had a slightly bent crank arm, but that did not seem serious. Its seatpost was rusted, and I spent a while scrubbing it; it could still be brought back to a silver finish. The tire was the real problem. Compared with the white one, it had aged badly: after I inflated it to the same pressure as the white tire, fine cracks opened up all over it. The sidewalls had deep cracks too—the kind that look like grandma wrinkles. I am not heavy, but when I test-rode it, the sound was not right, a repeated creaking squeak.
I contacted the seller about returning it for another one, or compensating me for an outer tire. I did not know what the inner tube was like, though a 20x1.75 tube was not expensive anyway. I sent photos and explained the situation. The seller said a return was possible.
I checked the return shipping and figured I would lose about 30 yuan by sending it back, so I suggested a partial refund instead. The seller agreed and asked me to name a figure. I looked up the price of a Kenda 20x1.75 outer tire online; it was about 28 yuan. I asked for 25 yuan. The seller agreed and asked me to receive the unicycle first. I confirmed receipt and gave my Alipay account. A few minutes later the transfer came through. The seller thanked me for understanding and said it was a pleasure doing business; I sent a handshake emoji.
After that I remembered the child's 20-inch folding bike. Its rear inner and outer tires had been replaced earlier for more than 40 yuan, also with parts bought online. The bike sits downstairs in the bicycle zombie group—our two bikes plus a few neighbors' bikes. I had planned to strip those tires and sell the bike to the scrap collector. So I did.
The tires looked quite new, Cheng Shin inner and outer. A ratcheting wrench set turned out to be really useful; the clicking sound made the work faster. It is not as effortless or quick as air tools, but the value is hard to beat. The bolts were mainly 10mm and 16mm. I had two tire levers for tubeless tires, and they worked on this tire too. I started by bringing out a pile of tools, but what I actually used was the 10mm and 16mm ratchet, a 10mm wrench, and a Phillips screwdriver. I did not have a valve-core remover, but a screwdriver could handle that.
The whole job took about two hours. I took a photo: the blue unicycle with a replacement outer tire; the inner tube had not been patched, so I will keep using it for now.
