any recommendations for preferred cycle trainer?

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 28th, 2006, 7:22 pm

The KK and other fluid trainers all leak, which is strange as having a good design is not all that complicated. Also a lot of the trainers are quite feeble and break easily. I had ordered a minoura mag unit, which arrived broken, so I send it right back. There was no hole in the box so it had been packed and shipped to me that way!

At this point the only one I might get is another wind trainer design. The only drawback on these is the vroommmmmm, but I didn't mind this on the other one, and it gives you a more motivation to wind it up on the reps, which I like.

Here's a link with some ratings:
http://www.mtbr.com/reviews/Trainer/ind ... ting.shtml

ebolton · Post by **ebolton** » September 29th, 2006, 6:03 am

The KK and other fluid trainers all leak,

That's a generalization, not completely true. My Nashbar unit has gone so long the tire has worn a slight groove in the roller with no leaks yet.

I think most leaks are caused by incorrect setup. You should adjust the contact so the tire just kisses the roller, and there will be a little more pressure on it when your weight is applied.

The contact can be affected by tire pressure, too. I do a quick feel check on the tire pressure and contact before every session.

If you have your fan belt too tight in your car, you can wear out the seal in the water pump or the bearings in the alternator. Same thing with a trainer- excessive pressure causes wear. You only want enough pressure to minimize the slip.

Ed

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 29th, 2006, 10:31 am

ebolton wrote:I think most leaks are caused by incorrect setup.

Right. Don't set up a fluid trainer, and it might not leak.

Could be.

I always take some care setting up my wind trainer too.

ebolton · Post by **ebolton** » September 29th, 2006, 12:12 pm

Right. Don't set up a fluid trainer, and it might not leak.

My wind trainer never leaked.

QED

Right. But the noise probably turned you into the complete idiot you have become.

Yukon John · Post by **Yukon John** » September 29th, 2006, 1:20 pm

Several people that I know have the fluid trainers and they haven't leaked. Some companies now are making sealed units which should help get rid of the problem. It sounds like it was a commen problem in the past but it's being addressed. Ed, good points about the amount of pressure on the roller. I've used a wind trainer up to now (I'm getting a fluid trainer) and if there is too much pressure the friction and heat cause problems. Another thing I learned the hard way is too make sure the tire pressure is at the high end of the recommended pressure. I (using "un-logic") figured that less pressure would be easier on the tires. I went through a tire in about 20 minutes!

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 29th, 2006, 1:32 pm

I feel the back wheel pick up is more accurate on the roads, because the front wheel tends to bounce, and the cyclometer can be used either way with this set up.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » September 29th, 2006, 1:51 pm

We have a fluid trainer and it hasn't leaked. It worked fine, but was loud and does cause some wear on the rear wheel (plus you really want flats). But Grams doesn't want a trainer, she wants a dedicated indoor bike.

We also have a spin bike with the very heavy front wheel. Grams, if you and your husband haven't tried one of those, it is worth checking out a spin bike too. Spin bikes are really industrial strength, and designed for standing and cranking and a lot of high intensity use. They are also very adjustable for different users. I agree though that the heavy wheel takes some getting used to, since it carries a lot of momentum and will continue to spin strongly. But the momentum that the wheel carries makes the bike feel like it is moving much more than other stationary bikes, sort of like you can feel momentum on the C2, but much more so. Our spin bike does not have any display or electronics, so I don't know if they come with anything like that, and I know that was something you wanted.

Yukon John · Post by **Yukon John** » September 29th, 2006, 4:24 pm

michaelb wrote:We have a fluid trainer and it hasn't leaked. It worked fine, but was loud and does cause some wear on the rear wheel (plus you really want flats). But Grams doesn't want a trainer, she wants a dedicated indoor bike.

We also have a spin bike with the very heavy front wheel. Grams, if you and your husband haven't tried one of those, it is worth checking out a spin bike too. Spin bikes are really industrial strength, and designed for standing and cranking and a lot of high intensity use. They are also very adjustable for different users. I agree though that the heavy wheel takes some getting used to, since it carries a lot of momentum and will continue to spin strongly. But the momentum that the wheel carries makes the bike feel like it is moving much more than other stationary bikes, sort of like you can feel momentum on the C2, but much more so. Our spin bike does not have any display or electronics, so I don't know if they come with anything like that, and I know that was something you wanted.

The spin bike is a great suggestion Michael, I'm sure they must be less expensive than the Cycleops stationary trainer that I mentioned on the last page and they are built to last. I think this thread is a good one because it will give Grams or others who are looking for a stationary bike options, but also looks at other trainers that other people (myself included) might be looking at and trying to decide what to get.

John R., I agree they are all supposed to be sealed, but it appears there are different methods on how the sealing is done. Here is a page that describes one method http://www.kurtkinetic.com/wont_leak.php (check out their guarentee, by the way.) Of course, they are saying their product is best, but other companies may have come up with solutions worth investigating. I'm leaning toward this trainer because of the guarentee and because Bicycle Magazine in a recent issue said that the Pro Trainer has the most realistic feel of any trainer they have used and recommended it for people with long winters. You might not need it down in California

, but In the Yukon, we almost always have snow on the ground by Halloween and can't get on the roads until late April!

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » September 29th, 2006, 5:14 pm

I believe we have the original "Johnny G" which I think is now sold as the star trak spinner pro. The new version has been updated, and they may have a computer display available for it these days (at a glance, it looks like there was some sort of computer on the star trac web page).

http://www.globalfitness.com/detail_ell ... .asp?id=80

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 29th, 2006, 5:39 pm

A 4th type is this centrifugal trainer.

http://www.roadbikereview.com/cat/train ... 63crx.aspx

Krysta Coleman · Post by **Krysta Coleman** » September 30th, 2006, 3:20 am

I was explaining RowPro and online races for the indoor rower to my friend the other day. She prefers the indoor cycle workout and was wondering if anything similar existed for that. Does anyone know anything about connecting an indoor bicycle to the internet for online races? Does that happen?

Thanks,
- Krysta

grams · Post by **grams** » September 30th, 2006, 11:34 am

My husband has a nice cycle trainer, and I have used it-in fact I was working out on it was when I noticed I had a knee problem. He rides it in the winter. Its the same one Lance uses.

I want my 'own' clunky upright exercise bike for the next 9 months. There are several reasons:

Changing bikes (his & mine) is a hassle.
Its not as stable, especially getting on and off my high bar bike. I really really don't don't want it to come out of the clamp and dump me. It did once before.
He rides his bike outside, so he should be riding in the unfinished room (dirty tires). I want to ride in front of my stereo in a carpeted room.

My goal is to do regular comfortable workouts in a safe environment until my tendon regenerates. The problem is money of course. I just can't bring myself to spend more for an exercise bike than I did for my rower.

I decided on a Schwinn. Not as solidly built, but its probably adequate for our needs. Neither one of us weighs more than 150 pounds. Also The seat and handlebars etc have way more position adjustments. I'm 5'3" and my hubbie is 6'.

My goal is to keep my 'marathoners muscles' (as my physio calls them) in shape till I can go all out on doing another erg marathon in about a year. Maybe even speed stuff then too!!

Thanks, grams

Francois · Post by **Francois** » September 30th, 2006, 12:27 pm

Yukon John wrote: John R., I agree they are all supposed to be sealed, but it appears there are different methods on how the sealing is done. Here is a page that describes one method http://www.kurtkinetic.com/wont_leak.php (check out their guarentee, by the way.) Of course, they are saying their product is best, but other companies may have come up with solutions worth investigating. I'm leaning toward this trainer because of the guarentee and because Bicycle Magazine in a recent issue said that the Pro Trainer has the most realistic feel of any trainer they have used and recommended it for people with long winters. You might not need it down in California , but In the Yukon, we almost always have snow on the ground by Halloween and can't get on the roads until late April!

John,
I got the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine model two years ago and I am very satisfied. It is very smooth and easy on the knees, as well as not too noisy. The bigger roler (2 1/8") reduces tire wear compare to other models; just make sure your tire is properly inflated.

Now, if I were a dedicated rider I would get a velodyne. On such a trainier it is much easier to maintain constant power ouput and program interval training.

Francois

johnlvs2run · Post by **johnlvs2run** » September 30th, 2006, 1:10 pm

Francois,

That's great if the fluid trainers don't leak at all.

My concern is if I got one and then it leaked two years from now, or if I got one and had to send it back for replacement.

The ratings are showing that many of them do leak over time, and that would be my concern about getting one of those vs a wind trainer.

Yukon John · Post by **Yukon John** » September 30th, 2006, 5:24 pm

Francois wrote:
Yukon John wrote: John R., I agree they are all supposed to be sealed, but it appears there are different methods on how the sealing is done. Here is a page that describes one method http://www.kurtkinetic.com/wont_leak.php (check out their guarentee, by the way.) Of course, they are saying their product is best, but other companies may have come up with solutions worth investigating. I'm leaning toward this trainer because of the guarentee and because Bicycle Magazine in a recent issue said that the Pro Trainer has the most realistic feel of any trainer they have used and recommended it for people with long winters. You might not need it down in California , but In the Yukon, we almost always have snow on the ground by Halloween and can't get on the roads until late April!
John,
I got the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine model two years ago and I am very satisfied. It is very smooth and easy on the knees, as well as not too noisy. The bigger roler (2 1/8") reduces tire wear compare to other models; just make sure your tire is properly inflated.

Now, if I were a dedicated rider I would get a velodyne. On such a trainier it is much easier to maintain constant power ouput and program interval training.

Francois

Looks like you made a good choice Grams

! Please let us know how you like it.

Francois, Thanks for letting me know about your experiance with the Road Machine! I checked out the velodyne site and it looks great, but high on the price end. I sent them an e-mail and asked what the price was for the model (Avanti) that doesn't come with a monitor but can be hooked up to a computer.

Krista, The product that Francois mentioned said something about connecting on-line. Two other products that cost around $1500.00 each are made by the companies, Computrainer and Tacx. I believe that both of them may be hooked up for on line racing, although I'm not sure if there are any additional cost. One of the top racers here in the Yukon uses Computrainer and really likes it (he's very fast too!) Both have web sites with more info. If I remember correctly I believe that Mark Pakita (hopefully I spelled his name right

) here in the forum bought the Tacx product last year.