turbo recommendations

[perpetual dan]

Looking out of the window at another wet day Mrs Dan and I are both wondering about whether a turbo might be worth a go for keeping some fitness going in the evenings. Any recommendations, sub £200? They all sound a bit similar, although a handlebar mounted adjuster might be nice.

[Kim]

I think they are all a bit similar.

Handlebar-mounted adjusters are less useful than you think, unless your turbo bike doesn't have gears.

[PAC]

I've got a bog standard Cyclops turbo trainer & just use the gears.  Worth getting a turbo trainer specific tyre, mat & riser block.  I also watch Cyclefilms DVDs for training - they're great

[ferret]

I just acquired a minoura B 60 from ebay, came with a wheel and trainer tyre, I paid £150 including postage, seems to be doing the trick, the weather here in sub tropical Wales is leaving a little to the imagination at present, the handle bar adjuster isn't fantastic but it does save getting on and off to make minor adjustments, I think that with your price range they are all very similar,

[Gaston Lagaffe]

eBay's a great place to get them, most people buy them and never use 'em

A running fried of mine recently bought a bike. I found a Cyclops Magneto for him on ebay only a few miles away, looks like new, he got it for £82 I think.

[Kim]

eBay's a great place to get them, most people buy them and never use 'em

Seconded, especially if you can collect.

I got ours for under 20 quid from someone nearby who couldn't be bothered with the faff of postage.  It's a very basic model, and I had to molish a bracket for <700c wheels, but given that I mainly wanted it for indoor tweaking of bike fit, rather than serious training, that's fine.

[felthamn]

I bought a Tacx Vortex with the upgrade kit to use what was the Tacx Trainer Software V3 (have since upgraded to version 4). Brilliant piece of kit during the winter months especially If you have GPX or Real life videos to run with it.

[mzjo]

If you suffer from arthritis or other joint problems that hinder your pleasure outdoors in cold, wet weather then a turbo is brilliant.
 Variable resistance is useful but I tend to not vary it during a session (or to vary it to break up a long session into smaller periods, like 1 hour + broken into segments of 20-30mins) even if I am using the ss. A computer on the rear wheel is handy (I have the computer on the rear wheel on all my bikes where I can, wired with the captor on the seat stay and the monitor on the top tube, just behind the head tube; you might need a high-power magnet on the wheel, I do).
For longer sessions something to watch, tele or video, helps to combat boredom; audio is ok but video is better. Having a session plan with changes of cadence, gear, intervals, sprints etc also combats boredom, even if it is not a tailored training plan.
I bought my turbo from a neighbour for 40€, an old Tacx Cycletrack and I think it is wonderful for keeping my arthritic knee flexible in the winter. I would use it even more if I could keep it set up permanently, instead of having to put it away every time. However it is not a very effective way of losing weight!

[Martin 14]

I had an Elite Volare as a Christmas present from my son and daughter, has the handlebar control for controlling resistance, now thinking of buying a second as the wife bike seems to be permanently  stuck in it .........around £120 from Chain Reaction Cycles.

[AAO]

My Tacx Sartori has worked perfectly for over 3 years - around 5,000 miles.

[scottlington]

I've got the Tacx Flow. In the mid £300s it's a little over your budget admittedly but I wouldn't swap it - it's great. Luckily, I have a spare room so it;s permanently set up in front of my PC monitor and i tend to watch looooong series such as 24, Sons of Anarchy, Babylon 5 - anything that is long, has roughly 45 mins or an hour episodes, and I can sink into. Works really well.

Couple of suggestions - good waterproof (sweat proof) headphones, a decent fan, special tyre, and I also recommend this site - http://www.turbotraining.co.uk/. It's great, set up a profile, search for or enter your own plans and it tells you what to do and when. There is also facilty to record power, HR, distance, cadence etc etc so you can keep an eye on what you've been doing. Great stuff.

[amaferanga]

Cycleops Fluid 2 is a great trainer and should be around £200.  Cheap turbos tend to be less pleasant to ride so you'd be even less likely to use it.  The Fluid 2 doesn't exactly feel like riding on the road, but it's way better than cheap magnetic ones which are usually very jerky.  Fluid trainers don't have any adjustment - you pedal faster and the resistance increases.  Saris/Cycleops offer a lifetime warranty on their turbos so that's worth bearing in mind (I had the resistance unit on mine replaced and they didn't even ask for proof of purchase).  I'd steer clear of Elite fluid trainers - they're horrible to ride and the resiatnce is very temperature dependant.

[Von Broad]

I'd steer clear of Elite fluid trainers - they're horrible to ride and the resiatnce is very temperature dependant.

I've not used one, but this gets pretty good reviews. I was/am half tempted.

I did read somewhere that fluid trainers tend to be better for spinning, rather than harder resistance work [not that you'd want to be spending long grinding something heavy-gear though] because of the lack of manual adjustment. Is there any truth in that?

I've not done much turboing. I have a Minoura Hypermag bought for 50 notes from a bloke in the pub [who bought it but was never used.] I actually don't mind it. Pretty basic but it does the job. Actually very useful for setting up gears as well.

[Gandalf]

The TACX flow I bought from someone OTP is still going strong, though I did upgrade it to a VR one. 

Great fun when hooked up to the PC, for grinding up virtual cols, well slightly less boring anyway.

[perpetual dan]

After failing to win a few on ebay (not willing to pay close to the new price for something that might be well used) I went for a new Elite Supercrono with a decent discount from rrp. It arrived today. But I've got other stuff that has to happen before it is allowed out of the car boot.

[LEE]

The real test of a turbo trainer is whether it can deliver enough resistance to make it tough to crank the pedals over even when out of the saddle.

Make sure you aren't using your best rear tyre for those sort of workouts (I kept my Conti Hamster skins for use as turbo tyres).

[bikenrrd]

I've got an Elite Supercrono and it's a good turbo.  Good choice!

It has resistance to spare - I don't think I've had it above 4 (out of on a 48:17 gear (my track bike lives on the turbo over winter).

The frame flexes a bit, but I think it's supposed to, to provide a more "realistic" riding experience.  It has to be better than your bike frame flexing, as well.

The box also has a very camp picture on it of everyone's favourite little Manxman, which is a bonus!

[amaferanga]

The real test of a turbo trainer is whether it can deliver enough resistance to make it tough to crank the pedals over even when out of the saddle.

Make sure you aren't using your best rear tyre for those sort of workouts (I kept my Conti Hamster skins for use as turbo tyres).

Um not really.  Why on earth would you feel the need to honk on a turbo?

[LEE]

The real test of a turbo trainer is whether it can deliver enough resistance to make it tough to crank the pedals over even when out of the saddle.

Make sure you aren't using your best rear tyre for those sort of workouts (I kept my Conti Hamster skins for use as turbo tyres).

Um not really.  Why on earth would you feel the need to honk on a turbo?

To train for honking up hills in real life.

If I was training for a 25m TT then no, perhaps not, but I want a trainer to be able to simulate the road as much as possible and I have hills on my routes that require honking (and balance).  It's good to have a trainer that can max you out totally if required.

My old Cyclops couldn't and I found it very frustrating after a while.

[Kim]

I've yet to meet a hill that required honking...   

[perpetual dan]

After failing to win a few on ebay (not willing to pay close to the new price for something that might be well used) I went for a new Elite Supercrono with a decent discount from rrp. It arrived today. But I've got other stuff that has to happen before it is allowed out of the car boot.

It got set up during the week, then I couldn't find an appropriate sized inner tube so first ride waited until yesterday.
It was a bit wobbly at first, but once I a) took the front wheel off the phone book and b) swapped the skewer for the supplied one, that fitted better, I got a sweaty 2*20 in without feeling like I had to steer. In middling gears I didn't need to get more than half way up the resistance scale.
First ride in shorts and a t shirt of the year, aided by the warmth of the tumble drier. 

[steveh]

I did read somewhere that fluid trainers tend to be better for spinning, rather than harder resistance work [not that you'd want to be spending long grinding something heavy-gear though] because of the lack of manual adjustment. Is there any truth in that?

[/quote]

Another vote for Cyclops fluid, smooth, not particularly noisy. In terms of resistance, I have an 11-21 9sp cassette, and a 50 tooth big ring on the turbo bike. In 50-11 at 45rpm seated it's a good grind, and standing is quite good too in terms of resistance. Guess it depends how big you are (I'm not...), and if you've got a 52 or 53 chainring.

Steve

[Ningishzidda]

I did read somewhere that fluid trainers tend to be better for spinning, rather than harder resistance work [not that you'd want to be spending long grinding something heavy-gear though] because of the lack of manual adjustment. Is there any truth in that?


Another vote for Cyclops fluid, smooth, not particularly noisy. In terms of resistance, I have an 11-21 9sp cassette, and a 50 tooth big ring on the turbo bike. In 50-11 at 45rpm seated it's a good grind, and standing is quite good too in terms of resistance. Guess it depends how big you are (I'm not...), and if you've got a 52 or 53 chainring.

Steve

That's prob because most 'fluid' resistance units have a linear power curve, which causes the high speed end to be lower than the ideal curve. A 'Wind' resistance unit is actually curved more like the road curve should be, so the resistance is higher at higher speeds.

Magnetic resistance units have a 'reasonable' but not totally representative curve.

Something else to be mindful of is the inertia of the flywheel. If its light, to simulate a 15 lb UCI legal bike, it will accelerate easier and not be representative of your 20 lb Audax bike. Then again, dynamic accelerations for ignition mapping are seldom done on bicycle turbos, nor are emissions tests. 

If you want to add resistance to make the linear curve a real curve, on the rear wheel you fit when riding the turbo, put gaffer tape across the spokes to make an air disruption fan. Do it with radial balance, or you'll be bouncing around across the garage. 

[Arno]

On the topic of power curves, Kurt Kinetic doesn't claim a linear power curve for their fluid units http://www.kurtkinetic.com/powercurve.php . Not sure if this can be extrapolated to other manufacturers though.

[Ningishzidda]

On the topic of power curves, Kurt Kinetic doesn't claim a linear power curve for their fluid units http://www.kurtkinetic.com/powercurve.php . Not sure if this can be extrapolated to other manufacturers though.

I looked at this machine. From what I see. its just got the one resistance.

Also,

"Sealed fluid chamber with magnetically coupled drive shaft.
Thermodynamically neutral silicone resistance fluid."

Which said to me 'its got a dual stage simulation unit.'

Even also,

"we have been able to create an “average” rider assumed to be 165 lbs, riding a 23 lb bike with 170mm crank arms up a 1% grade, at sea level with no wind on rough asphalt... etc."
and looking at the curve vs my bikes. it was closes to my sports ( Audax ) tourer than my SWorks.

I also looked at the Cyclone, which is a single resistance curve air fan machine. This has a curve closer to my SWorks.

Thought they were a bit expensive for single resistance machines.