Posts in Category: Garel/LeRun/Max/AXL
Max Skatebike Trademark – Australia
MAX SKATEBIKE – 516470
Owner: Sicommerce AG
Type: Word
Description: MAX SKATEBIKE
MAX SKATEBIKE with trademark number 516470 was lodged on 07/08/1989 and has a status of Lapsed/Not Protected. The applicant/owner of the trademark is registered as Sicommerce AG. They used the trademark attorney firm Shelston IP to file this trademark.
07-AUG-1989: New Trademark Application
14-NOV-1990: Adverse Report – Approved
03-DEC-1996: Transfer CPI details to DEAD CPI File
Max Skatebike Photos – Joimson – UK
Here are photos of a Max Skatebike that Joimson from Wimborne, UK took some years ago. He no longer owns the bike but used to work at Dorset UK recycling centres and used Flickr to document unusual finds.
twitter.com/joimson
flickr.com/photos/joimson
Garel/LeRun/Max Skateboard Truck Details
Jon’s Garel Monocycle, his LeRun Skatebike and Max Skatebikes use an unusual skateboard truck. The mount is much smaller than traditional old and new school skateboard trucks. Minson trucks are Old School – 2 1/2″ X 1 5/8″. LeRun truck holes are 1 5/8″ X 1 1/4″.
Jon took some photos of the original LeRun truck for reference for this site. The bike has not had any work yet. As you can see the bushings in photo one are cracking.
Thanks Jon.
Important: AXL Skatebikes use a similar but different skateboard truck setup.
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- Angle view of truck assembly
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- Side view with wheel on
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- Side view with wheel off
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- Wheel width
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- Axel Width
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- Truck top
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- Old vs New School Holes. Minson uses old school. LeRun is much smaller
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- 1 5/8″ (1.625) long holes
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- 1 1/4″ (1.25) short holes
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- Max and Garel Skatebikes
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- LeRun truck
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- LeRun Wheel
Garel Monocycle – Jon N – UK
Jon N. from Manchester, England recently bought two skatebikes on eBay. The first I had never heard of before, a Garel Monocycle. Garel Monocycles were made in Italy.
Yves Garel patented his skatebike on June 18, 1981. He licensed his patent to LeRun which is why there is such a similarity. This agreement was dissolved later and fell into litigation.
Garel Monocycle “Run” Seat
Garel Monocycle Label
Jon’s words.
I purchased the Garel Skatebike from eBay thinking it was a LeRun Skatebike and had the intention of restoring it as the previous owner had changed the front truck to that of a skateboard truck. When I received the Skatebike I tried it out in my local park and the skateboard truck was far too flexible and made it unusable so I tightened it as much as I could and managed to get some straight runs and a few wide corners before one of the front wheel coverings peeled off as it had become brittle and cracked over the years, so they will be on the list to be changed as part of the restoration. You can see that the hole spacing on the skateboard truck is larger than the Skatebike mounting holes and additional holes have been added to the skateboard truck in order to fit correctly.
The pedals are not really to my taste so I will probably change them too, I’m not sure if they are original or have been changed over the years like the skateboard truck. I took the rear wheel to a local bike shop for them to true the wheel which did improve the stability, however I may try and have some of the spokes changed as some are bent.
It has a 12 inch rear wheel, a 32 tooth crank, pedal backwards to brake and skid, 25.4mm diameter seat post that is 350mm long, the saddle has ‘run’ printed on the sides and back. At first I thought it was a faded and partially rubbed off ‘Lerun’ however Wiki shows that the Garel Skatebike was also called the ‘Run’ which would suggest the saddle is original.
I was considering sanding off the green and respraying it a different colour however as I’ve not been able to find any pictures of other Garel Skatebikes I am tempted to leave it green and try to remove as much of the rust and weathering as possible, change the trucks, tighten or replace some of the rear spokes and take it for a ride!
LeRun Operator’s Manual
Thanks to Jon Chan we have a copy of the original MTV LeRun skatebike.
Jon Chan’s LeRun collection
Garel Original Patent
The original patent for the Garel skatebike. The Garel patent was granted on Nov 29, 1983. This patent is the basis of the Garel, LeRun and Max Skatebikes.
Self orientable vehicle propelled by a system of pedals actuating a chain
Abstract
A velocipede having a single driving wheel which is powered by rotating pedals that rotate a sprocket that is connected to the driving wheels by a chain. A roller assembly comprises small diameter rollers having a roller axis that is disposed lower than and in front of the pedal axis. The rollers are connected to the velocipede frame by a bearing member so that the rollers can be articulated allowing the rider to lean on the velocipede thereby controlling the direction of movement.
View Patent US4417743