dmanthree

I'd like to actually see a Tacx Bike Smart in real life before I buy any smart bike, but try and find one! Why are they so hard to find? Why no dealers?

Bald Paul

Amazon.com: Tacx Neo Bike Smart Trainer : Everything Else

Hey, it's Amazon. You don't like it? Send it back for a refund.

dmanthree

It's a huge and heavy package, and disassembling and repacking would be a nightmare. Which is exactly why I'd like to see one in real life before spending a ton of money.

Bald Paul

Which is why you will have a hard time seeing one up and running at a local shop. Not to mention the price.

Looks like you missed the demo at Landry's Bicycles in Boston in March. But hey, give them a ring and see if they have one.

dmanthree

But for some reason, I can see a Wahoo bike at multiple locations. So the Wahoo, at a higher price is readily available but the Tacx isn't? Something ain't right.

And yes, being down in Naples for the winter means a trip to Boston for a bike demo wasn't going to happen. ;-)

tempocyclist

Basically, yes.

Wahoo actively push their demo stations to bike shops and offer great support for the shops. You'll see a LOT of Wahoo demo stations (KICKR Bike, or KICKR + CLIMB). Tacx don't seem to do this much, for reasons I don't know.

dmanthree

Makes you wonder if Garmin can support the device if then can't even market it. I've had a Neo 2T, and really like it, but I'm moving to indoor riding permanently and want a dedicated smart bike. I've narrowed it down to the Tacx and the Wahoo, and support may be the deciding factor. They're both really nice units.

Ed Wiser

You just don’t see many trax trainers in stores. Wahoo always has a display. I love my Kickr bike and they have great support.

tempocyclist

If you're riding indoors 100% then the KICKR Bike will give a slightly more "realistic" experience as it tilts with the virtual gradient. They're solid and very reliable units.

I've got an original NEO and it's been great, but if I were to go the smart bike route, it'd be a KICKR Bike for sure.

dmanthree

How does the flywheel feel differ from the Neo? Isn't the Wahoo bike an electromagnetic setup as well?

unterhausen

I was tempted to get one of the Stages bikes when Zwift had them on sale.

tempocyclist

Yep, both use the electromagnetic flywheel setup. Both bikes give a very good ride feel. The main "ride experience" difference being:

- NEO Bike has "real road feel" to replicate different surface feels (cobbles, gravel, smooth tarmac, etc)

- KICKR Bike has the "climb" feature, tilting up and down synced to the on-screen gradients

Whether either of those features are important or deal breakers is personal. I'm not a huge fan of road feel and have only used it on my NEO a couple of times. I've never "wanted" for a CLIMB either, but it is a very cool feature!

We use a KICKR Bike (or a KICKR + CLIMB) for almost all our displays and promotional events.

PeteHski

I'm curious what it is you want to "see" exactly? Before I pulled the trigger on the Wahoo bike I just read all the in-depth reviews from the likes of DC Rainmaker, GP Lama etc which cover pretty much every minute detail.

I have to say the Wahoo bike is pretty awesome. I did have one issue with the shift buttons failing (well reported issue so I wasn't surprised) but Wahoo support were very quick to send me a complete new bar assembly (making it a quick swap) and it's been faultless ever since. Tacx appear to have had supply issues with their bike for a long time so I would be a bit wary of that. But otherwise it seems like a decent product from the reviews I read. I do a lot of climbing, so the Wahoo bike with it's climb function made it an easy decision for me, otherwise it would have been very close.

dmanthree

I'd like to sit on the bike and pedal once it's adjusted to see if anything seems out of place. Like leg rubbing. The top tube on the Wahoo is pretty thick, as is the seat "tube" on the Tacx. Reviews are one thing, but nothing beats actually seeing and trying something in real life. This is a big purchase and I don't want to do it twice.

PeteHski

I get where you are coming from and those are valid points. Odds on it won't be an issue, but I suppose it could be. Hope you find one to test then.

dmanthree

Me, too. I think there's a dealer in Boston who stocks them, so once I'm back in the great white north I'll give them a call. Honestly, between the two of them I don't think there's a wrong answer.

PeteHski

Yeah, that's why I asked. The only wrong answer really is NOT to buy either of them and miss out completely, LOL! Seriously though I'm glad I pulled the trigger on the Wahoo Bike as I had a great winter training on it. I considered it a risky purchase, but the very worst case scenario was a bit of minor hassle returning it if it didn't work out. I kept my old trainer (Elite Direto X) as a back-up just in case, but never used it again.