Zwift setup help!! (bike + trainer)

kinioo

Good Afternoon All,

I am mostly MTB rider (sorry), but due to the lack of time (newborn baby) I need something which would keep me fit during autumn/winter months...also I got bored after 5min on the indoor trainer, therefore looking into Zwift so I can ride with other people!

I am in the process of sorting out (looking for options) equipment necessary for the indoor training with Zwift.

What I am after:

1. Budget - not more than £800 - but this is my absolute max (including trainer & bike - obviously I'd go second hand route; budget does not include Zwift subscription);
2. Indoor trainer compatible with Zwift: something like Wahoo, Tacxs etc, something which can simulate ascents and descents;
3. Road bike (absolutely no idea here) - obviously I will not be carbon with top spec components, but would be nice if I could use it outdoors on road occasionally...
4. What else do I need??

Many thanks for all your help!

Chris

wongataa

There is no reason why you couldn't use the bike you already have with Zwift. It would save you money too. Turbo trainers are compatible with road and mountain bikes. The best type of turbo to get is a wheel off one - direct drive. Just make sure the one you get has the right hub attachment and cassette compatibility for your bike.

If you don't buy a new bike you can easily get a brand new smart turbo trainer for your budget.

Make sure your Zwift space can be adequately cooled. You will get hot and sweaty on a turbo trainer. Having a sweat proof floor/mat is a good idea.

cougie

What are you going to use to connect to Zwift ? Laptop ? PC ? iPad ?

step83

wongataa wrote:

There is no reason why you couldn't use the bike you already have with Zwift. It would save you money too. Turbo trainers are compatible with road and mountain bikes. The best type of turbo to get is a wheel off one - direct drive. Just make sure the one you get has the right hub attachment and cassette compatibility for your bike.

If you don't buy a new bike you can easily get a brand new smart turbo trainer for your budget.

Make sure your Zwift space can be adequately cooled. You will get hot and sweaty on a turbo trainer. Having a sweat proof floor/mat is a good idea.

Literally your best bet, I think most take larger axles like 10mm etc. So simple list;
turbo
fan
mat to sit turbo on (which also reduces noise)
Something to use Zwift
A table unless your using your TV to sit your choice of zwift viewing device

kinioo

cougie wrote:

What are you going to use to connect to Zwift ? Laptop ? PC ? iPad ?

Laptop.

kinioo

wongataa wrote:

There is no reason why you couldn't use the bike you already have with Zwift. It would save you money too. Turbo trainers are compatible with road and mountain bikes. The best type of turbo to get is a wheel off one - direct drive. Just make sure the one you get has the right hub attachment and cassette compatibility for your bike.

If you don't buy a new bike you can easily get a brand new smart turbo trainer for your budget.

Make sure your Zwift space can be adequately cooled. You will get hot and sweaty on a turbo trainer. Having a sweat proof floor/mat is a good idea.

Thanks Wongataa.

TBH, I did try it in the past (I used my bike with an indor trianer the one you can place the bike in and the wheel/tyre sits on the roller etc.), it did work kind of...but:
a) I want to avoid faffing about getting the bike on/off when I need to use it outdoors;
b) If I use my bike outdoors (specially in the winter) I will need to give it a good wash before I put it back indoors in the trainer;

So, would like to set up separate Zwift station.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

To get a new turbo and road bike an an £800 budget, the best budget turbo is still probably https://www.halfords.com/cycling/turbo- ... bo-trainer , £180 if you use 10% British Cycling membership discount. It can emulate up to 6% slopes IIRC, the estimated power is relatively rough and ready.

Zwift have recently changed their rules for races https://zwiftinsider.com/eracing-rules-released/ and consequently lower-end turbo model users will be excluded from the official results, if I read correctly.

https://www.halfords.com/cycling/turbo- ... bo-trainer for ~£500 with BC discount is the updated model of my turbo, which I paid ~£640 just before Xmas 2017. It can emulate up to 14% slopes and has an integrated power meter with 2% variance, no issues with the new Zwift race rules and will give you power data figures that will closely match a respected functioning power meter on your bike outdoors (if you ever went down that route).

Not a great time of year to find bike deals, EOL 2019 deals will start in dribs and drabs during the next few weeks, but things should well and truly kick off in September.

Best sub £620 rim brake bike right now? I suspect https://www.hargrovescycles.co.uk/speci ... -bike.html for £567 is up there, along with https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/ ... -road-bike for £510 in the current "£40 off £200 cycling basket" promo and you might be able to get 10% BC discount on top if you're lucky.

I use...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/CooSpo-Bluetoo ... r_1_2_sspa
https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-M ... r_1_1_sspa
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anself-Compati ... ref=sr_1_6

to then connect to Zwift and other turbo apps like https://www.rgtcycling.com/ and https://virtugo.com/ , albeit I've recently just used my mobile for the rare bit of Zwift on the Android app using Bluetooth, while my better half uses her Surface Pro 4 for some game or other of late!

mrb123

My set up is an Elite Direto which cost £475 and a lightly used Giant Defy I got off Gumtree for £250. Something similar would do you nicely.

You'll also need a decent fan. Bit of old carpet, rug or camping mat to go under you.

kinioo

Thanks All for your replies!

@NitrousOxide

I will probably go second hand...but may buy a new trainer if I find it at good price

@MrB123

Good call with Giant Defy as it's possible to get one for circa £200

Re: elite direto - there is few second hand for circa £300/400.... Does it support slopes??

Thanks

mrb123

The Direto replicates slopes up to 14%.

Worth keeping an eye out for sales and discount codes. They're often available new for under £500.

I wasn't specifically after a Defy, just a bike with suitable geometry and gearing, and that was what came up first.

fenix

Stac Zero Powermeter is under £400 and is silent. Runs off magnetic resistance on your rims so won't work with Carbon wheels but does mean no tyre wear or tyre noise. It's not a smart trainer but I just change gears. Plenty of resistance for anyone.

https://www.staczero.com/order

kinioo

Fenix wrote:

Stac Zero Powermeter is under £400 and is silent. Runs off magnetic resistance on your rims so won't work with Carbon wheels but does mean no tyre wear or tyre noise. It's not a smart trainer but I just change gears. Plenty of resistance for anyone.

https://www.staczero.com/order

This is interesting....

wongataa

kinioo wrote:

Fenix wrote:

Stac Zero Powermeter is under £400 and is silent. Runs off magnetic resistance on your rims so won't work with Carbon wheels but does mean no tyre wear or tyre noise. It's not a smart trainer but I just change gears. Plenty of resistance for anyone.

https://www.staczero.com/order

This is interesting....

With Zwift you really want a smart trainer though. Changing gears to get the resistance correct will get annoying fast. It makes following training plans on a trainer easier as well. It also means you can't cheat by using a lower resistance than you are supposed to..

ibr17xvii

MrB123 wrote:

My set up is an Elite Direto which cost £475 and a lightly used Giant Defy I got off Gumtree for £250. Something similar would do you nicely.

You'll also need a decent fan. Bit of old carpet, rug or camping mat to go under you.

Nearly as important as the bike / trainer if you're gonna be using it a lot.

cougie

I've had two years of Zwift. All on my Stac Zero. You don't have to change gears to go uphill. If you're training to power you don't want to mess around with them anyway. Works for me anyway.

You can upgrade to the smart trainer but I've never felt the need.