the black bibs always has great prices, the ones I have are fleece lined but not thermal per se
The zwift link for trainers is now 35% off. I am super tempted and I donāt even need one.
So do we think an H4 is in the works or they might be bailing on the trainer market or just supply/demand correcting for good weather and lack of covid captured market ?
Your guess is as good as mine. I did watch a ThinkRider trainer review from GP Lama this morning, where he mentioned it was the first of 4 trainer reviews heās working on. None of the others mentioned, but doing the math on the age and count of trainer makers, mixed with these sales weāve seen (Wahoo last few weeks, Saris now) sure leaves that door open a crack to expect new stuff.
The H3 and Kickr V5 are old enough to be replaced based on prior history. But there are some interesting circumstances at play these days that muddy the water. My gut says Saris and others have new stuff headed our way this year, but thatās a guess at best.
It might be. But the new stuff will only be a minor improvement on these trainers. I canāt think what they would add that I would pay double what these trainers are worth.
If thatās the calculus, pull the trigger now if youāre shopping. These recent sales are nearly as good as I can get on pro deal pricing, so they are very good deals in that sense. Comparing unknown future trainers (release dates / pricing / features) against discounted models with known status is something of a challenge.
Shane Miller offered some interesting thoughts on what heād like to see in next gen trainers (Iād have to search to find it), but those and a few things I can imagine are likely incremental changes. Thatās been par for the course though if you track the history of these trainers. A few big changes (belt design and related noise) for some makers as one of the more notable improvements.
Iād also add that the last gen of new trainers took forever to sort out their various bugs. Long after the pros told us they were fixed, we were still seeing tons of new buyers with issues. Buying a new āold modelā will hopefully mean you get a stress free experience, compared to the frustration of the next genās issues (if they exist)
- Can you name them?
- I am unaware of them most still offer a Shimano HG freehub body along with 130/135mm O.L.D. axle standards. If you can get at least a 9-speed on them (many still swing 8s AFAIK), you are set for a good long while.
Short story, I donāt think this is a legit concern.
??? You should be able to run down to 8 speed on the current gen of Direct Drive trainers. I am currently running 9 speed on my Direto X with no issues.
This is a great point. Depending on what is ānewā with any of these yet to be trainers, there could well be some teething pains as weāve seen with them in the past. The sure thing is the devil you know.
Wonder how deep theyāre actually going to go. I figured 25% was it butā¦
They will drop potentially as low as 40-50% would be my guess. Considering typical margin, they are still getting their money back on the pure cost (ignoring overhead for storage and such) at the 35% right now.
Z wants them all GONE and will potentially sell at a loss if they stick around long enough, just like any closeout situation.
Yupā¦classic scenario. How much are you willing to gamble on a lower price vs. the risk of them selling out?
Already a number of trainers are no longer thereā¦how many more KICKRās remain in their inventory? Who knowsā¦so are you willing to wait and hope it drops another 5-15 % points and are you willing to risk that extra savings vs. missing out completely?
Yep. That would be my worry. Missing out on the 35%, having to pay full price for the newer model, in hopes of saving another 10%. Just depends on how bad you want it.
One thing to keep in mind is the Kickr Bike using a newer resistance unit that is electromagnetic, similar to what Tacx has been using in the Neo. The stand-alone Kickr trainers have an older style resistance unit that requires calibration (although the newest gen āautoā calibrate). So that is at least one piece of tech that likely gets upgraded on the next gen of Kickrs.
@dcrainmaker mentions the electromagnetic resistance of the Kickr Bike in his very thorough review.
TacX Neo 2T: " * Shimano/SRAM 9 to 11 speed compatible"
Wahoo Kickr: " * Cassette: Included 11 Speed with 11-28 ratio" (admittedly, it may work if I swap the cassette; didnāt think about that; yes, Kickr Core will support but I wanted current gen)
Elite Direto XR: " Direto XR is compatible with 9/10/11 speed ShimanoĀ®"
I just went with the website info. The Saris H3 explicitly stated support for 8 speed and DC Rainmaker likes it for TR: āThereās no trainer that works better on TrainerRoad than the H3.ā
50% off Neo bike even though I have one is tempting to have one for my daughter or a backupā¦ lol ā¦ I got the wahoo snap for her this in sale before those sold out and works great for the $$. I still have my Neo2T that is sitting around if anyone in Atlanta is looking for oneā¦ ha
Edit: I donāt see it on there anymore and been a few since I checked. love mine
Agree. I only gave up my elite direto that was 3.5 years old when the Zwift discount of the Kickr bike was too tempting. Sure the Kickr bike is much better but the direto, a mid-tier trainer still did the job.
Maybe adding some more built in trainer movement would be nice. But garmin wants you to pay for that attachment for the neo.
OK, as I suspected your prior comment is well over-stated. ALL of those trainers you listed absolutely support many options less than 11-speed (9 & 10 actually listed in nearly all cases for one thing). So the crux of that prior claim is void.
The fact that one or more come stock with an 11-speed is just them working to the what they see as the majority option for consumers. In no way does that limit or restrict what any consumer could put on there if they chose to make a change.
All of those trainers use the very common Shimano HG 11-speed Road freehub that is compatible with any similar Shimano/SRAM cassette for the HG standard. That happens to include 8-speed cassettes, when used with the appropriate spacers. So despite a lack in claiming 8/9/10/11 directly in the specs does not prevent them from having an 8-speed cassette properly installed.
The freehub on the Saris H3 is essentially identical to those from the other trainer companies, so the same cassette and gear count compatibility exists with all of them. And to that end, we will see that continue as the default for years to come. The SRAM XD/XDR and Shimano Microspline will continue to be offered over time, but will not be the stock option in the near term.
Adding in a link with related info:
11 speed road freehub
Since MTB 11 speed cassettes can be mounted on the 8, 9 and 10 speed compatible freehub, this one is meant for road 11 speed cassettes only.8 and 9 speed cassettes can be used with a 1.8 mm wide spacer. Same goes for 11 speed MTB cassettes (thanks to Cristophe for the feedback).
10 speed cassette requires an additional 1 mm wide spacer (along with the 1.8 mm wide one) ā just like when putting a 10 speed cassette on a 8-9-10 speed freehub.
7 speed cassette will require 4.5 mm spacer, in addition to a 1.8 mm wide one (used when mounting 8 and 9 speed cassettes).
Thanks for that clarification. Again, I was just going with their stated support. Being risk averse to spending almost $1K USD and getting stuck in support limbo.
Good news for me, Iām happy with my H3, so no buyers remorse, even though I had incomplete info.