DocRay

I'm getting sick of my Minoura magnetic and thinking fluid. I understand that some of you have opinions. I know from the last TT I attended no one used magnetic. All fluid. They all looked very happy.

hokay...for the sake of all those poor souls who use the search and will follow...

how important is the flywheel weight? This must allow some coasting, as opposed to my current setup which is basically up Mount Everest, then full brakes.

How cool is the 1up? I think I like this thing, but what's it like everyday?

Basically its up to this:

1UP sweat maker.

or this:

Fluid 2 sweat-o-matic

'cause the weather, she suckdiddlyucks.

More trainer threads..Yayyyy....

TassR700

I like my fluid 2, but there is no coasting. The flywheel is such small diameter that it can't overcome the fluid resistance for more that a second or so. I think it is more of a fan to keep the fluid chamber cool. It's uphill all the way, but you can vary the grade by choice of gears.

roadwarrior

Fluid2
Huge power
Smooth quiet operation

and Saris is an outstanding company. I do a LOT of business with them and they have NEVER let us down.
Saris builds the Fluid 2

Lifetime warranty, no questions asked.

I have five winters on mine, 60-90 minutes a day...no problem.

Best one I have ever ridden. Without question.

roadwarrior

The new ones have a larger flywheel.

I like my smaller one better. More work. But the bigger one makes the rolling resistance ease negligable.

Work is good.

Uphill is good.

DocRay

No doubt the fluids are reliable, but the 1UP gets very nice comparative reviews. Anyone gone from fluid to 1UP?

Hoop

I have the 1up and it's outstanding.

Fluid2 receives lots of attention for a fluid trainer but if I was going that route, I would go with the Kurt Kinetic. It is designed to eliminate eventual fluid leak around the rotating shaft.

Hipcycler

Doc...
Why all the fuss and expense?
It's just a trainer.

I just read some expert advice about using a trainer, and confirmed it with my LBS owner who is a cycling instructor--30 minutes a day. That's really all that does any good on the thing.

Just rest a little...
Do that little 30 minutes a day....
Use other parts of your body if your need for workouts is greater than 30 minutes on a trainer.
Count the days to spring!

Mariner Fan

I have to force myself to use a trainer. 30 minutes a day on that thing is about all I can take. Actually I usually hit the stairclimber one day, treadmill, the next, and the trainer the third day. Kinda breaks up the monotony.

Albany-12303

Its not really a flywheel, its more of a heat sink. Thats why its not smooth and is full of ridges and valleys, to increase the surface area.

I wish that they could make it in the shape of a pan, so that I could gauge my effort by trying to fry an egg - but I am sure that I could never get it hot enough for bacon or hash browns.

DocRay

Well...30 minutes of any bad experience is like 30 years, especially on a trainer. I disagree, 30 minutes is a starting point, but to get the leg burn of my daily ride I'm better at 45-60min. I'm learning to appreciate the Minoura magnetic now that I'm learning how to get the most out of it. If I don't wake up the next day with sore legs, it's not enough. It's kinda fun to do a ballistic sprint without worrying if Sally SUV is behind you with you in her target site.

I've got this setup in a finished basement with a fan in front of a TV. A one-hour TV show just about does it, or a few stages of the 2004 Giro, the Paris-niece, the Milano-sanremo...

Also, this is important from this latitude because in a few weeks, the weather turns to total crap until May. One bonus, no knaves in my basement.

DocRay

No. that's the resistence unit.

The flywheel is just added rotating mass and shaped like a fan to increase air flow around the heat fins on the other side. The minoura has a 1kg flywheel, Fluid2's are now almost 3kg -getting close to a spinner bike.


I think that's why some of you think 30 minutes is tops. Older trainers have no or small flywheels, the inertia gives your legs some rest, similar to coasting and closer to real riding. There is one stupid ad for some trainer that claims "51%" more real than any other. I like to know how they came up with that number that means nothing.

DocRay

how does it work? It's not fluid or magnetic. Counter-rotating hamsters?

It looks like I'll need this..the thong...dead sexy.

Albany-12303

My bad

1955

Rush Limbaugh recommends all fluid trainers.

DocRay

Oh..sooo many drugs ...so many drugs...

"these drug users are undermining traditional family values, they should just all be locked away."

--R. Limbaugh on his radio show in 1993, while addicted to several illegally purchased pain killers.

DocRay

Update, the answer is none of the above.

I went with the Kurt Kinetic. For a few reasons:
1up guys are very close to getting their asses sued for some of the ridiculous statements on the 1up website, and on the phone, the only reason they could give me to get this thing is that it is "made in America" ( maybe assembled in America). Whatever.

The Cyce-ops trainer was actually designed by the same guy who designed the Kurt Kinetic, but he sold the patent on the Cycle-ops design. Despite all warranties, the fail rate on these is still pretty high. The kinetic has a fundamentally different design and a heavier flywheel. My guess is that flywheel weights are going to go up and up.

smoke

good choice. i was going to recommend the kurt until i saw this message. i've had one for a few years and never had a bit of trouble with it. i live in ohio, so i understand your weather problems. same here. i'm about to move into the basement and will be there on the bike until may as well. the kurt kinetic works like a champ with very little upkeep. if you haven't already ordered it, i recommend the heavier resistance unit that they offer. and 30 minutes doesn't work for me, either. hour to an hour and a half will really trrash me

Albany-12303

You get Rush up in Canada?

Dead Extra #2

I have the Nashbar watt master fluid trainer. I really like it. My only complaint is that the resistance is lacking a little.

doco

i had a Cyclops Fluid and used it for season and it devoloped leaks. I then went with the Kurt and now have had no problems for 2 winters. The larger flywheel is the kicker for me, very smooth and coast down feeling is great. Plus no leaks to worry about. The onl;y drawback it's not cheap...

squeegy200

Same here, My friend uses the 1-Up and loves it. But my Nashbar fluid trainer has been reliable, quiet, smooth, and affordable. Its made by Elite but I've noticed its prices have risen dramatically in the last few months. I purchased two of them for under $100 each!

Can't beat that!

DocRay

Airwaves know no borders. The most disturbing thing about Rush is that he is on armed forces radio, living off of tax dollars.

lotek 

I have a cyclops fluid2, have been using it for the past 4 years.
First resistance unit started to leak ever so slightly. Called Graber
products, 2 or 3 days later I have a new resistance unit and
a prepaid return invoice.
No questions asked, just told them it was leaking.
Great customer service.
No problems since and that was 3 years ago.

DocRay

Kurt has an explanation about leaking here. But keep in mind he's slagging his own previous design.

https://www.kurtkinetic.com/wont_leak.php

cycle ops has decided to do good warranties knowing that most people use their trainers less than they think they will.

The Kurt also has more fins to get rid of heat.

1955

Just like NPR?