Please recommend me a turbo trainer

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Stander Aug 2018 9:04am, 22 Aug 2018 15,689 posts	0 Stander I need to get my flabby arse fit again. I could take out the old and aging mountain bike for a spin, or I could stick it in my mancave and get a turbo. Any suggestions on which (budget) turbo would be best.
larkim Aug 2018 9:33am, 22 Aug 2018 5,400 posts	0 larkim I got this wiggle.co.uk at Christmas, though not used it hugely. Quiet, easy to set up, and resistance increases simply as you change gears on the bike, so the feel is nice and realistic. Not "smart" by design, so whilst you could have fun adding sensors to the bike and playing with things like Zwift it's not as good as those ones which automatically make the pedalling harder when Zwift wants you to be heading uphill etc etc. Riding outdoors is much more fun though! I bought the trainer so I could ride if running-injured in cold, wet winters.
Stander Aug 2018 9:52am, 22 Aug 2018 15,690 posts	0 Stander Cheers - but a little on the pricey side though compared to some.
UsedToRunaBit Aug 2018 9:53am, 22 Aug 2018 553 posts	0 UsedToRunaBit What's your budget (desirable and max willing to spend) and do you want it to be "smart" i.e. be controlled from a resistance point of view from an app like Zwift? Do you care about power/watts, racing, doing structured sessions, or just something to whack the bike on (MTB or road?) on and happy to stare at a wall and will look at your HR to determine how hard you working?
Stander Aug 2018 10:03am, 22 Aug 2018 15,691 posts	0 Stander I (for now) just want to wack the MTB on a stand and pedal a bit. Get the heart working a little and try and get some form of fitness back. And maybe shed some of the two stone I have put on since I stopped running!!!!! I've done a little more readin up on these now and I gather I can increase the reistance but just changing gears? And I'm not fussed about tracking my heartrate, etc although I do have an apple watch that might have something that covers this anyway.
larkim Aug 2018 10:12am, 22 Aug 2018 5,401 posts	0 larkim Having ridden once on a cheap as chips one I think making sure a) it isn't too noisy and b) it pedals smoothly are the two most important things if you're not interested in anything "smart". This halfords one at £50 seems to get OK reviews, this is one where you mount the resistance change dial on the handlebars for your bike so instead of changing resistance with gears you use the controller that comes with the turbo. Short of 2nd hand, don't think you'd get much cheaper than that. Wonder if Halfords would have one on display to test out?
Dai Bank Aug 2018 5:19pm, 22 Aug 2018 4,960 posts	0 Dai Bank wiggle.co.uk Work your way through these and decide. Like everything you get what you pay for. I think I would be tempted by the Elite bundle at half price if I was looking for new.Change your mtb tyre and put a slick tyre on the back wheel, it will be easier pedalling.
Stander Aug 2018 11:20am, 23 Aug 2018 15,693 posts	0 Stander I wonder whether this one will do? Any comments? amazon.co.uk
Nellers Aug 2018 7:23am, 26 Aug 2018 33,016 posts	0 Nellers "You get what you pay for" is probably a good guide here, mate. It looks like it will do what it says on the tin: It's a basic tt and it will clamp your bike on it and add resistance when you turn the pedals and that's pretty much it. It's probably going to be quite noisy and it's probably not going to feel very smooth, although I could be wrong there. I've not tried it myself. If it's just a case of getting something to get going with, though, give it a punt. It's not very expensive so if you buy it and hate turboing you've not wasted a fortune, and if you decide it's not up to snuff then you can upgrade and you've not wasted a fortune. (Slight tangent but if you're not going "smart" and getting drawn into Zwift and the like give this a go https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPvjahSsyFcu8HG1tvqMZSA . That should get you to the YouTube page for CTXC, and aussie cycling club who post up turbo interval sessions of varying lengths and intensity. It makes the time pass by and it makes sure you don't just spin gently and achieve nowt.) Let us know what you decide, mate. Good luck with it.
Dai Bank Aug 2018 9:06am, 26 Aug 2018 4,962 posts	0 Dai Bank Missed your post S In my opinion you will be wasting your money. Never heard of them and I,ve been around cycling for a long time. Elite, Tacx, Cyclops have been building trainers for yonks, this Amazon link looks to be a very cheap Chinese knock-off