buying a power meter?

Hi everyone hope you all had a good weekend.

I've recently decided to get back into cycling after taking a year-long break one thing I've always wanted is a power metre, I'm unsure of what to buy so I would appreciate any of your suggestions at the moment I am eyeing up a 4iii left side crank power meter for €370, are there any other models I should consider?

Jimbo789

An alternative to a crank based power meter is a pedal based one.

The Favero Assioma Uno is a good one sided option at around €450.

Jimbo789

Jimbo789 wrote: »

An alternative to a crank based power meter is a pedal based one.

The Favero Assioma Uno is a good one sided option at around €450.

Thanks but unfortunately I'm really a fan of my speedplay zero pedals and cleats I've used the look style in the past and was unfortunately never their biggest fan.

Jimbo789

Wahoo are releasing speed play pedals with a power meter but they will be far more expensive than a Stages or 4iiii crank.

Macy0161

Left only is always a compromise, but one I'm willing to take. I've two 4iiii and have been happy with them - had 105 on my winter bike and Ultegra on the good bike. The 105 one is now on my Gravel bike after changing that crank to GRX.

Pedal is a great option though, particularly with multiple bikes, notwithstanding your preference. If I was starting now, I'd be either going Garmin for the ability to (within warranty) change systems, or be waiting to see what Favero come up with next.

Thanks everyone I'll hold off for a while and see how much the Wahoo Speedplay power pedals cost.

DaveyDave

I got a 105 4iiii left side meter for €290 from Mantel in February.

Reality_Check1

I recently got the Ultegra 4iii left sided crank and I'm very happy with it. Does everything I need it to at a good price point. Theres about a 2% error when comparing it to my Wahoo Kikr which I can live with.

Unfortunately from my reading online the 4iii might not fit my particular bike although I'll have to measure. I'm seriously considering a power2max because it seems to be getting great reviews and is praised for its accuracy.

https://www.power2max.com/en/power-meter-ngeco-road/

Would I be right in thinking that the only difference between the Shimano compatible meters is how much each one weights?

DaveyDave

Regarding the 4iiii, if you can fit a AAA battery behind crank about midway down it should fit. A lot of people online said it didn't fit the Canyon Endurace CF which I have but it fits fine.

paddydriver

DaveyDave wrote: »

Regarding the 4iiii, if you can fit a AAA battery behind crank about midway down it should fit. A lot of people online said it didn't fit the Canyon Endurace CF which I have but it fits fine.

Ditto on the Endurace too.. only fraction of a mm clearance but does the job.

Just curious did either of you two try the battery fit test as 4iiii outlined in this document?

https://4iiii.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Ride-ready-clearance-check-A4.pdf

I just tried it and the battery slides most of the way apart from the last half of the shaded area.

Could either of you share a picture of what it looks like on your crank?

DaveyDave

DaveyDave wrote: »

Regarding the 4iiii, if you can fit a AAA battery behind crank about midway down it should fit. A lot of people online said it didn't fit the Canyon Endurace CF which I have but it fits fine.

Sorry should have read your post before making my own glad to hear it fits the Endurace.

2 Wheels Good

I got mine over the winter, it's a bit tight between the pedal and the rear chainstay (It's a Wilier)

DaveyDave

Here's mine. 2017 Canyon Endurace CF, XL frame, 175mm crank.

Thanks everyone, having thought about it I'm not sure a left side power meter would suit me as I'm left leg dominant and as a bonus have issues with my Achilles in that leg so I worry the data would be skewed especially since a left only meter takes the reading and doubles it for total power.

Instead I'm opting for a spider based meter from Power2max the NG Eco.

nilhg

Don't want to cross post but for anyone interested in a 4iiii meter see:

https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=117065903&postcount=222

CramCycle

Deleted User wrote: »

Thanks everyone, having thought about it I'm not sure a left side power meter would suit me as I'm left leg dominant and as a bonus have issues with my Achilles in that leg so I worry the data would be skewed especially since a left only meter takes the reading and doubles it for total power.

Instead I'm opting for a spider based meter from Power2max the NG Eco.

I would disagree. What you need, presuming this is a training tool, is consistency, and a left leg only will achieve that with ease. Now if its something that you really need to see the accurate power numbers, then go dual sided but if the actual number is less important than the metric to measure yourself against, single sided is fine, far cheaper and does the job fine for training. You can also upgrade most single sided at a later date if requires, Favero, 4iiii, Stages all have upgrade options which don't penalise you too much.

CramCycle

CramCycle wrote: »

I would disagree. What you need, presuming this is a training tool, is consistency, and a left leg only will achieve that with ease. Now if its something that you really need to see the accurate power numbers, then go dual sided but if the actual number is less important than the metric to measure yourself against, single sided is fine, far cheaper and does the job fine for training. You can also upgrade most single sided at a later date if requires, Favero, 4iiii, Stages all have upgrade options which don't penalise you too much.

It's true, I probably didn't need to go such an expensive metre in comparison to a left side crank based one. But what drew me to the Power2Max was the near universal praise. It's got from certain communities online and they claim it is self calibrating. Although that feature is probably on every power metre these days.

Looking forward to trying out Zwift properly once I have it set up.

Thanks again everyone for all of your help.