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Following on from my thread re getting the most out if Zwift I’m also thinking about upgrading my set up.
lve got a Tacx smart turbo but thinking of treating myself to maybe something like a watt bike atom or an equivalent.
Interested in peoples experience, do they offer anything more than the smart turbo and which make and model would you recommend?
Depends which smart turbo you have.
How much space you have, what your needs are...
I've got a Stages smart bike. I got fed up with having to clean the bike every time I wanted to use it on the turbo. Though what it cost me if I was going to do it again I'd probably go for the new Zwift turbo with the electric shifting and cheap second bike and save a fortune.
The Stages is solidly built and I like the smaller footprint but I got my Stages in a sale, the price of some of the smart bikes now is stupid.
If it's only one person using it and the bike can remain fixed to a turbo then I can't see any benefit to an actual smart bike. Their main advantage is the ease of adjustment to fit different people.
Bookmarked. Thinking of a Wattbikevas Jnr has now qualified for National Triathlon. Much easier than swapping bikes although the new Zwift Hub One is appealing.
Smart bike. Then you won’t need to remove your clothes hanging from it when you want to go for a ride outside.
Seriously, dcrainmaker rates the new cheaper Wahoo and I’d probably get that. No tilting or downhill motor, but otherwise a fine device.
Me? I rise my Elite smart rollers. The Kickr is a little dusty.
Smart bike is better if you have more than one user (even if the adjusters aren’t that great), have dedicated room for it (they are really heavy) and erm maybe there are some other reasons as well. And, yes they are very expensive.
I used to have Kurt Kinetic and rollers but they were no use for other family members and it was annoying to lug bikes in and out plus trying keep dirty bikes away from kids and household stuff wasn’t easy. We didn’t have garage back then which made a difference.
We now have a first gen Wattbike Atom in guest room and three occasional users, I got extra seatpost as well so the short one can get correct position easily. The Atom isn’t perfect, these days I would get something else but the cost of swapping is so high that it will do for the time being. Slow reaction wattage adjustments and slipping shifter cover are the main issues with the Atom.
If it’s only one person using it and the bike can remain fixed to a turbo then I can’t see any benefit to an actual smart bike
That's roughly where I'm at. The incremental cost of a smart bike isn't justified for me at the moment. In fact I'd rather consider the new Zwift Hub One .
Does anyone know if they Zwift One can be used as a dumb trainer for non-ERG things like YouTube videos (eg still able to use the electronic gears)? My old dear is looking at getting a smart turbo for winter and it’d be perfeft if she isn’t completely tied to Zwift/ERG (but DC Rainmaker doesn’t seem to mention it)
If this is a one-user setup and you are prepared to spend the kind of money this presumably already involves: consider relegating your current bike to the turbo on a permanent basis (leave it there, now you have a smart bike!) and get a new bike for outside instead. No need to move stuff back and forth, it's still actually lighter, more mobile, easier to store albeit separated than a big exercise machine - and you've invested in outside fun where the payback can be more satisfying.
If it's already a lovely bike you are bored of moving... it's a lot cheaper to put a (partially built up!) road frame on the turbo and use the nice bike outside.
One thing I wonder about the various smart bikes is whether they gradually get noisier over time, can anyone who owns one confirm?
Reason I ask is that I bought an original Tacx Neo years ago and it was billed as one of the quietest trainers on the market. It was indeed super silent, but over time it has become quite noisy and creaks a fair bit.
It doesn't really matter as I've got headphones on anyway and train in the evening but I think if I forked out for an atom or similar and the same thing happened I'd maybe feel a bit aggrieved.
A smart bike would be nice though as I have a dedicated room for one and my wide would probably use it too then.
If this is a one-user setup and you are prepared to spend the kind of money this presumably already involves: consider relegating your current bike to the turbo on a permanent basis (leave it there, now you have a smart bike!) and get a new bike for outside instead. No need to move stuff back and forth, it’s still actually lighter, more mobile, easier to store albeit separated than a big exercise machine – and you’ve invested in outside fun where the payback can be more satisfying.
This is what I did. Older 10-speed, rim-braked bike onto a trainer, new 11-speed disc-braked bike for outdoors.
@mashr - I believe you need a Zwift shifter (Play or Click) to get the Hub One to work. It's possible that other software options might become available in due course.
I have a Wattbike that I bought new almost 2 years ago, I find that the fact it is sitting ready to go all the time probably makes me use it more. It also has a small footprint and takes up minimal space. It’s pretty quiet.
scotroutes
Full Member
@mashr – I believe you need a Zwift shifter (Play or Click) to get the Hub One to work. It’s possible that other software options might become available in due course
Sorry, I wasn’t clear above. Assuming you have the One + shifter, do we know if you could use it like a dumb trainer?
Got a Stages SB20 too in the same sale earlier this year. My wahoo kickr I lent to a mate. Smaller footprint, ready to go and I don't have to disassemble my road bike.
There's a fair few bargains on eBay as people get rid of their lockdown purchases.
@Duggan I've got an original Neo too, no creaks on mine at all.
CRC are doing the Neo 2 Special Edition for £649 at the moment, bargain at that price. (Ordered one on Sunday, delivered Monday).
Ive got a Wattbike atom, I love it, but I bought it because other family members wanted to use it, a couple of years in there’s only me uses it now and mostly only in the winter months. If there’s only you using it, a smart turbo trainer I suspect is the most cost effective option, if you’re going to be swapping bikes for others to use, go for Wattbike or similar.
That’s all, only me using it so think I’ll stick to my turbo.
Makes a change for the forum to save me money!
It was indeed super silent, but over time it has become quite noisy and creaks a fair bit.
Have you cleaned it or checked the freehub/bearings etc?
I’ve been thinking about getting a Wattbike Atom v2 for a while as I have some money coming out of a share save scheme shortly. Was looking at 2nd hand vs Wattbike refurbished vs new. All the v2 which I understand is better in terms of a few bits on the v1 that can break and also in terms of how the resistance works. Concluded putting £1k down and 0% financing the rest would work well if I went down that route.
Then I had a look at buying a cheapie road bike to put on my current wahoo Kickr Core which I quite like and is quiet. The main reason I was considering another option was now I’m commuting on my (relatively) nice road bike it’s getting on my nerves bolting and unbolting it to the trainer and I’m finding I’m scratching the paint a bit round the dropouts + constantly dropping commute mud / leaves etc in my gym (converted garage).
So I’ve gone for a cheap road bike from CRC which I’m hoping turns up (paid on C/card just in case) and their lifeline rocker board to see if that genuinely makes longer rides more comfy. Comes in about £700 so saves a lot of money vs the Atom.
I’m also on the Wattbike fb page and see a lot of issues with wattbikes being raised. Hard to tell if as a % of bikes out there whether it’s a high fault rate or not. On the flip side it sounds like Wattbike are good about repairing issues / there is support that can be sent to your house to fix issues. Which some of the other smart bike manufacturers don’t seem to have. So I’d still go Wattbike over over smart bikes just for that I think.
Makes a change for the forum to save me money!
Did you miss the bit about buying a new bike? 😂
TBH I think whichever route you go down, teh key to 'turbo happiness' is having it permanently set up.<br />I guess if you've the space for a smart bike, you've also the space for a turbo and turbo-bike to be permanently set up..
I've got a Neo 2t and a cheap road fram/spare gears/spare front wheel, and the fact it's always set up is brill.
I'm sure a smart bike youd be brill too..
But a lot more expensive
<br />DrP
After reading this and reading before that the Wattbike continues to have issues with ERG, I think I’m going for a Zwift Hub One to replace a Direto. Both Jnr (Tri) and Mrs K (general fitness) fit Jnrs road bike so it only means swapping from mine to his on occasion. <br /><br />
Maybe a 4yo Direto for sale in the London area shortly!
Psst, open the door, look outside, there is a whole world out there that needs riding (for real). And yes I have a Smart turbo and full set up, but it's not used.
Have you cleaned it or checked the freehub/bearings etc?
Yeah freehub is OK and I have greased that sleeve thing on the axel a couple of times a year as per the instructions. I think it's actually the plastic case of the body of the trainer- its in two halves bolted together and I suspect its related to the two halves rubbing against each other. I tried loosening the bolts a little as I read somewhere that they gradually tighten with use, but didn't make any difference.
There's quite a large Facebook group dedicated to Tacx trainers which can be useful and does seem to indicate that there are some common noise issues so I think it might be pot-luck depending on the model you get. For me its not really an issue but if I was using it early in the mornings (bedroom next to the main bedroom) I guess it'd be frustrating given it was sold as pretty much silent.
Psst, open the door, look outside, there is a whole world out there that needs riding (for real). And yes I have a Smart turbo and full set up, but it’s not used.
Yeah if I get back from work at 8pm in December and still have to cook tea, I think I'll stick to an hour on the turbo thanks.
@mashr – I believe you need a Zwift shifter (Play or Click) to get the Hub One to work. It’s possible that other software options might become available in due course.
It'd be nice if they could implement it for all trainers, I can't see why it couldn't work, they already have the relative gradient slider in the menu.
I'd like a gearing multiplier option, like the gradient adjuster, but you'd be setting it >100% and it would work on the flats too. So your 50t chainring, would feel more like a 55. The rolling resistance/aero feels of to me in Zwift, feels like I'm always in the top few gears. Riding solo I could just set my avatar to be 8ft tall to get some more drag, but that makes keeping up with a group really hard work!
Psst, open the door, look outside, there is a whole world out there that needs riding (for real). And yes I have a Smart turbo and full set up, but it’s not used.
Psst, you can do both!
And just think, you could have gone for a ride rather than posting that.
Personally (just my own preference, not judging anyone else), I'd rather do no ride than a turbo. In fact if I have time for exercise and it's not the bike, then it'll be a weights session at the gym.
You'll not catch me going for a run either 😉
Psst, open the door, look outside, there is a whole world out there that needs riding (for real). And yes I have a Smart turbo and full set up, but it’s not used.
Psst...i've 2 kids who i can't really leave at home alone whilst I sweat it out over the South Downs for 2 hours... so I'll remain a good, fit Dad and be 'cycling' 8m away from my daughter whilst she plays (who am I kidding! Watches iPad) ... 😉
<br />DrP
You can get a lot fitter on the turbo in an hr than outside no question
Psst, open the door, look outside, there is a whole world out there that needs riding (for real). And yes I have a Smart turbo and full set up, but it’s not used.
You can, you know, do both - which someone already pointed out, but there you go, I am a dog of limited brain and the last time I looked outside it was hammering down with rain.
In the dark season weekend riding mainly smart bike week days.