Which Budget Smart Turbo Trainer

doomanic

I'm in the market for a cheap Smart Turbo Trainer, what should I be looking at?

SamSally

Turbo trainers start with $54 to around $1500 in Amazon. You can take anyone from them depending on your budgets. Happy shopping 8)

StillGoing

Depends what you're after. Do you want wheel on or direct mount? What type of resistance; fluid, magnetic, fan? Smart, FEC or simple user controlled? Mains powered or self generating power? If FEC, what percentage of incline do you want to be able to replicate? etc etc

doomanic

I don't want/can't afford to spend more than a couple of hundred quid so direct mount is out.

I don't know which resistance type is best, nor do I know what FEC is.

I want something that will simulate the ups and downs of real riding if possible, so I assume that's a smart trainer.

The following trainers have caught my eye, but I don't know enough to make any decision other than one based on price.
TACX 2240
Elite Quobo Wireless
Elite Digital Smart B Plus

trivial_poursuivant

Elite Muin can be found for £290 at Halfords. If your a BC member that's another 10% discount on top.

kingstongraham

doomanic wrote:

I don't know which resistance type is best, nor do I know what FEC is.

I want something that will simulate the ups and downs of real riding if possible, so I assume that's a smart trainer.

That's what FEC is. Without that, your app won't change the resistance.

doomanic

Trivial poursuivant wrote:

Elite Muin can be found for £290 at Halfords. If your a BC member that's another 10% discount on top.

That's a very good price (still more than I was budgeting for and 30 quid more than my bike cost...), but I didn't think the BC discount was available on discounted items?

jgsi

FEC is not in the 'budget' zone...

slowmart

A higher price point is no barrier to questionable products being released too early by manufacturers chasing market share which covers smart trainers and power meters.

However the connectivity to online platforms makes sessions more enjoyable but there's nothing you can't replicate with a dumb trainer.

StillGoing

doomanic wrote:

Trivial poursuivant wrote:

Elite Muin can be found for £290 at Halfords. If your a BC member that's another 10% discount on top.

That's a very good price (still more than I was budgeting for and 30 quid more than my bike cost...), but I didn't think the BC discount was available on discounted items?

Elite Muin is a direct mount trainer too. Add the B+ add on and its then a smart trainer. Still won't do FEC though. I don't use FEC (Elite Kura) and haven't found it any great loss.

stevie63

doomanic wrote:

I don't want/can't afford to spend more than a couple of hundred quid so direct mount is out.

I don't know which resistance type is best, nor do I know what FEC is.

I want something that will simulate the ups and downs of real riding if possible, so I assume that's a smart trainer.

The following trainers have caught my eye, but I don't know enough to make any decision other than one based on price.
TACX 2240
Elite Quobo Wireless
Elite Digital Smart B Plus

In which case out of those 3 the ones you need are the Tacx 2240 or the Elite Qubo Digital Smart B+. From what I can gather the Tacx is easier to use and Calibrate out of the box whereas the Elite is a little fussier to set up but offers a better ride feel.

stevie63

JGSI wrote:

FEC is not in the 'budget' zone...

The Tacx Flow is FEC for around £200.

gethinceri

I have a Tacx Flow and a Tacx Flux.
A Tacx Flow will be all that you need and, nicely, within your budget.

bobones

+1 for Tacx Flow Smart T2240

diamonddog

+2 for Tacx T2240

bigmitch41

+3 for the Tacx Flow T2240, Got my'n from Hallfords with 10% discount = £180, its been great for the money!

doomanic

2240 it is then. Thanks everyone.

bigmitch41

Get yourself a 3m USB extension cable to get the Ant+ dongle as close to the trainer as possible, any cheap Amazon one should do.

AlexReaderFitness

Looks like il be getting a 2240 also hah! great thread.

Cheers guys,
Alex
https://alexreaderfitness.com/

EBEB

I used to have a ‘dumb’ Tacx Flow; the devices are often advertised as simulating a uphill gradient of X, but if you look at the graph they can simulate X if you cycle up that gradient at 20mph. Even if you keep in the highest gear there are limits to the gradient it can simulate.

When I went ‘smart’ I saved up for a Tacx Bushido (no power cord was main reason) and even it can’t simulate low cadence grinds up really steep hills. If you spin up even the steepest hills then the only thing that matters is max sustained power. I don’t. I just can’t put out the same power now at low cadences & am having to specifically train it.

OfficerDigby

EBEB wrote:

I used to have a ‘dumb’ Tacx Flow; the devices are often advertised as simulating a uphill gradient of X, but if you look at the graph they can simulate X if you cycle up that gradient at 20mph. Even if you keep in the highest gear there are limits to the gradient it can simulate.

When I went ‘smart’ I saved up for a Tacx Bushido (no power cord was main reason) and even it can’t simulate low cadence grinds up really steep hills. If you spin up even the steepest hills then the only thing that matters is max sustained power. I don’t. I just can’t put out the same power now at low cadences & am having to specifically train it.

show me anyone winning or better yet performing efficiently on a bike doing low cadence grinds.? It just means youve' got the wrong gear ratios!

Alternatively, in the max torque setting you can just change the gear up to make is 30-40rpm and you'll be happy?

Unless this is a wheel slippage isssue.

StillGoing

EBEB wrote:

I used to have a ‘dumb’ Tacx Flow; the devices are often advertised as simulating a uphill gradient of X, but if you look at the graph they can simulate X if you cycle up that gradient at 20mph. Even if you keep in the highest gear there are limits to the gradient it can simulate.

When I went ‘smart’ I saved up for a Tacx Bushido (no power cord was main reason) and even it can’t simulate low cadence grinds up really steep hills. If you spin up even the steepest hills then the only thing that matters is max sustained power. I don’t. I just can’t put out the same power now at low cadences & am having to specifically train it.

My first smart trainer was a TACX i-Flow followed by a TACX Bushido Smart. IMO, the i-Flow walked all over the Bushido. The Bushido was crap and couldn't wait to get shot of it. Shane Miller refuses to even write about it it is that bad in his opinion.