How to build a Cyr wheel or roue cyr: materials needed

Circus/Cyr Wheel

A lot of people email me asking what materials to use for building cyr wheels (also known as a roue cyr, rouè cyr, or simple wheel).

I like “thick” wheels (also known as a “fat boy”), with 1 3/4″ to 1 7/8″ outer diameter. Your preference may vary. Length of materials may vary depending on your wheel circumference.

Materials

* Main tubing: 20′ of 6061 Aluminum Tubing, 1 1/2″ Outer Diameter (OD), 1/8″ sidewall thickness. I buy pieces from a local supplier, Gorilla Metals which used to be Metal Supermarkets. You can buy shorter pieces online; factor in the fact that you what a 5 piece wheel, and will probably have 6″ to 1′ of an under-bend on the end of each piece (again, varies by technique and how you roll or bend the wheel).

* Inserts (solid): 5′ of 6061 solid Aluminum Tubing, 1 1/4″ Outer Diameter (OD). Turned down on the lathe to a bout 1.230″, or, use sanding discs on an angle grinder after you bend it, and sand till they fit (not ideal, time consuming, but it works). Same suppliers as the Main Tubing. Inserts are anywhere from 10″ – 12″ long.

* Inserts (alternative, tubing): 5′ of hollow steel tubing, 1 1/4″ OD and 3/16″ sidewall thickness. This is heavy, but works for my LED cyr wheels. Inserts are shorter (but I haven’t stress tested them), usually 8″ long. Turned down on the lathe to 1.230″ (or so). Same supplier as above.

* PVC Covering: 25′ of PVC tubing, 1.5″ INNER diameter and 1/8″ or 3/16″ thickness. Bought online, pwmall.com, search for Tubing. This or this. I’ve tried both..and one is superior and lasts longer, but I forget which one.

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Ian

thanks for this!!

having never been in a cyr wheel before, i am not sure how fatter/thinner wheels would feel.. why do you personally prefer fatter wheels?

Martin

Hello,. I’m martin, I am writing from Argentina.
Here is not many who does CYR,. I am one of the few,
A while ago want build a CYR led, what I did was with an old ring that he had put a LED strip on the inside, within a profile aluminum. to not break when stepped on,. but it isn´t very good.
wanted to know how you do it? if you place the leds strips outside or inside the rubber … see if you can give me some idea to improve my model.
Thank you!

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