These are really sad news that a 12 speed Shimano cassette will not work on the Saris for my new Canyon Endurace CF SL8 Di2 with Shimano Ultegra 12 speed…
That means I have to look for antoher trainer?
Just an update to my H3 woes, after receiving the belt replacement kit and swapping the belt, it has still been squeaking. Contacted Saris again to let them know, they suggested perhaps I installed the belt wrong but as its the same issue I had before the belt replacement I suggested the belt swap likely wasn’t involved.
They are sending me a new driven screw kit, not looking forward to tearing it down again but oh well.
Has anyone had issues with that were addressed with a driven screw replacement?
On the positive side, customer service seems to be substantially improved, in the past responses have been very slow, today they are responding next day and able to shoot emails back and forth in minutes this afternoon. I recall emailing them in ~2020 to ask a question and they answered like 3 weeks later lol.
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Was going to try a bike fit on my H3. According to the spirit level, the back hub axle is about 2” lower than the front hub axle.
Surprised that the neutral position isn’t level. Am I doing something wrong?
Or maybe surprised that the rear is lower than the front. Would have assumed the opposite, if anything.
What kind of bike, size of front wheel & tire?
I’ve used mine for some fits and had to raise the rear for MTB fits with 29ers.
Diamondback Haanjo. 700x40 wheel/tire in front. Should highlight that it’s all mounted on an MP1, but the plywood deck measures dead flat.
Edit: As you’re aware, I’m using the AI bike fit. So I could certainly shim it all to get it level temporarily while on the MP1, but for regular day to day riding on the trainer – doesn’t that 2" change in elevation make a difference for fit?
@mcneese.chad – Here’s what it looks like in my temporary setup. Yes, could remove the block under the front wheel. That would gain me about an inch. But front axle would still be about 1" higher than rear axle.
Yeah. The Hammer series trainer was not designed to have that larger riser block. There’s a reason Saris included the super thin one.
Also keep in mind that they most likely designed the axle height to be close to level for a typical road bike having a 700 x 25-28 tire. Your 40mm gravel tire will make the front taller. Overall point is that if your end goal is a level axle setup, change is needed.
Talking about your goals in light of using the AI fitting tool is interesting. Not sure it matters for their app, but level could be beneficial. Might be worth an email to them.
As you mention, I tend to like and recommend a higher front for indoor use. It is a hack to deal with the lack of wind force we tend to get outside. It’s about dealing with weight displacement and doesn’t work for everyone.
This is one of those “it depends” situations and you may be headed in a direction that differs a bit from what the app expects?
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Ugh. Thanks. Just when you think you’re making progress… 
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Want to thank @mcneese.chad again here, I used the plumb bob and got the bike more precisely centered on the M1 platform and it’s so much better now. Did full 2 hours in my TT position on it today, and finally feel like between the TT bike setup and the Hammer/M1 platform setup, I finally have my trainer back to where I feel good about riding it again.
Was pretty down on the whole thing and started regretting messing with it (selling my Kickr and getting the rocker and putting the TT bike on it), but after six weeks of periodic adjustments and about 10 rides, I’m back on the trainer wagon! (When I wanna be, that is!)
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Right on!!! So glad anytime we can get a solution that works 
Thanks for the follow up as it helps me for the next similar issue 
Just a quick update regarding the firmware update problem I have.
I tried more then 8 different phones and also some friends tried to update the firmware.
Saris Support is not answering, just one email with the suggestion to delete the app and try again.
In the meantime I contacted the seller and he confirmed it is a warranty case but he refuse to pay the shipping costs to returning the unit.
The Saris Support and the discussion with the seller is one of the worst after sales experience I had in years.
Maybe I’m spoiled as a wahoo user…
Anyway many thanks all of you for the tipps and ideas!
Have you confirmed that it’s not your jockey wheels that have ‘dried out’ or need re-greased? This has happened to me before, where I thought it was my trainer, but it was my jockey wheels needing re-greased. Just a thought as those sounds all come from the same area.
Well, that bites. You probably tried this already, but one person in the FB group mentioned similar difficulty. What worked for them was updating the firmware from the lowest version, one at a time and repeating until they got to the last and latest version.
So – I’ve gone all the way down the rabbit hole now.
So, Kickr has an adjustment feature on its base to account for various wheel sizes. Interesting that H3 doesn’t. A little bit crazy that Saris doesn’t allow for any adjustment in their design. (But maybe that’s one of the trade-offs for price.)
And am I the only person in recorded history to have the rear axle end up lower than the front? Curious if anyone’s figured out an effective shim to put under the trainer. I’m hacking together a solution now and happy to share my attempt with the forum here to benefit the next person who comes across this.
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From what I have seen mentioned, this might relate to Wahoo’s various patents. The height adjustment aspect was sited as part of their patent(s) and could well explain why no other company offers something similar.
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The old Elite Drivo had traingular front feet that offered a simple form of 3 height adjustments. But they ditched that with subsequent trainer designs for some reason (no idea if it’s patent related).
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Outside of that, I am not aware of any other modern smart trainer that offers height adjustment. Nothing from Tacx, Elite, JetBlack and such.
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Uhhh, no. Why would you think that?
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With the Hammer series in particular, any bike setup that has a front wheel & tire setup that exceeds a functional diameter of a typical 700x25-28 tire will be in the same boat. You are definitely not the only one considering all the MTB and gravel setups I’ve seen on Hammers.
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Then you take an already elevated setup like your gravel bike and place it on the higher riser that Saris offers and recommends for their MP1, more angle is to be expected.
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This issue may be worse with the Hammer series since they designed it to work with a minimal height wheel riser. Wahoo will have a similar issue with their Core since it is not adjustable and is designed for no riser with regular road bike use.
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The Neo in particular uses a rather thick riser for road setups. For people with MTB & Gravel setups, they might be able to ditch that riser entirely or use a thinner one to dial in the angle to their preference, even with these “big wheel” uses.
I specifically recommend that people try a higher front (lower rear) to deal with the lack of wind pushing our upper body back like we get when riding outside (pic of my comments added below for quick reference).
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Dead level axles may make sense in theory, but the notable lack of motion and wind resistance when inside, leads me to believe that is not the best option. The issue of weight distribution varies between inside and outside if you have dead level axles. Higher front angle can shift that a bit and IME at least, helps solve some hand numbness and saddle comfort issues with even axles.
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I’ve not seen a solution posted by anyone. I used some scrap lumber in my fitting needs but would do something different if I needed to do it more often and wanted a very clean setup.
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If I were to head down that road, I’d measure the axles in whatever setup I want it to be located. If you aim to use the MP1 with the riser, do that and know the full height from deck to axle. Find the height delta and then make a block/shim that supports the body of the trainer at a height that gets you level or whatever delta you want that’s less than the starter setup.
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I’d match that shim with a smaller one under each of the outer feet to have an even support under the body and feet. Likely screw, glue or tape those to the deck and then strap the trainer down firmly on top of all that.
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I did suggest this earlier in the thread. 
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Copy that. I don’t always remember the distinct source with all the places I hang out 
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I only say that because I’ve scoured the internet over the last couple days – just curious to see if anyone’s had similar encounters – and nobody talks about the rear axle being lower than the front, even MTB riders. A lot of talk about the opposite, which is pretty easy to correct for.
Yes. It’s the combination of the H3 on top of the MP1 that makes it tricky – those straps that mount the trainer to the MP1 deck. As you highlight, you have to account for those feet as well on the legs.
Admittedly, this is a ‘problem’ of my own making. So I shouldn’t make it sound like I’m complaining. The H3 has been a great trainer thus far. It just would be nice to have a little bit more ‘built-in’ adjustability straight out of the box, like the Kickr has.
Made the mistake of trying to update the firmware of Saris H3 this morning while having breakfast and the update didn’t work as my phone went into sleep (screen on lock) while doing it and now the training is giving me the solid red light.
Instructions from the FAQ say to connect to the training and restart the process but connection cannot be made. Has anyone faced this before and/or does anyone know how to proceed to factory reset the trainer?
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Maxime Touliou je rencontre le même problème que vous. De quel pays venez vous? Pourrions nous discuter de ce problème s’il vous plaît. Avez vous des solutions possibles ? J’ai envoyé un message à Saris et je n’ai eu aucune réponse pour le moment.
Cordialement.
Guillaume.