Home Trainer Vs Turbo Trainer

GT_TDI_150

Guys,

I'm looking to ge tmyself sorted for the winter(because if this is summer, god only know what weather we'll get in winter :rolleyes:).

And I'm torn between the tought of a 'home trainer'(the stationary bike with no front wheel or a turbo trainer. The idea of swapping the back wheel out when I do want to go out for a spin and the fact the turbo trainers supposedly eat tires is putting me off the turbo trainer.

As it will just be to keep the legs loose, is there significant (dis)advantages for one option over the other?

Thanks

Sauve

I use a turbo trainer only when the weather is just too bad to go out.
I picked it over the home trainer purely because it feels mor realistic being on my own bike so I know I'll be training with correct posture etc. It feels closer to a real cycle.
As for it eating the back tyre- if the wheel is positioned correctly on the trainer you shouldn't have a problem, also as regards changing the wheel, you'll get used to doing it quickly.

One other major advantage is that the turbo is portable, if you ever race or go on tours, it's great for warm-ups beforehand. (A lot of runners are using them before races now too).

smacl

I picked up a Tacx flow VR turbo and love it, though would tend to go out rather than use it in the good weather. I find I push myself a bit harder on the turbo than the road, particularly on VR routes I've done before, where I'm always looking to improve my time and power output. On the tacx you don't have to take the back wheel out to use the trainer, just change the skewer, though for the VR steerer you do have to take the front wheel off.

I've also done a fair few spinning classes, and would far rather the turbo than a home trainer.

lalorm

I use a turbo during the winter mostly or if I want an easy ride to recover and not battle with the wind etc.

If you can manage it, you could get yourself a cheap racing bike and only use that for the turbo. I got one from Halfords last year for 230 euro. I only use it on the turbo. Does the job.

smacl

One other advantage of the turbo is that it is very useful for tweaking your bike fit, and fine tuning deraileur adjustments.

torydiver

As mentioned,
Plenty of pluses for the turbo,
Own bike and saddle, great for adjusting bike fit too,
Big advantage for me is that my Tacx folds down to small suitcase size in seconds, also comes with its own case so definitely not as intrusive or space consuming as a fixed bike trainer,
Regarding the rear wheel.....shopping around online I got a shimano wheelset(front and rear) shimano 105 cassette and a turbo specific tyre for about €115 in total.......
Definitely worth it especially in spring autumn time when I might be mixing a lot between the turbo and the road........