[MrXC]

Lets say you have some cash burning a hole in your pocket and you want to dump it into your riding so you can be a faster racer come spring time. Which of the following do you buy?

Option 1: Stans Olympic Wheelset for your MTB (or similar scary light wheelset)
Option 2: Powertap Rear Wheel for the road bike you do most of your training on?

Lets also say you already have a good wheelset, say Hugi 240's with Mavic 519s, DT double butted spokes and alloy nipples. Good, but a bit heavy in the rim department.

So what is it, the racing tool or the training tool?

Thanks for playing

Mike

 

[cellis]

Power Tap

Power Tap. I use to by all light equipment putting off buying a power tap. Last summer I went off the deep end and bought a power tap pro for my road bike. I was immediately suprised how effectively I trained almost immediately. I got rid of junk base miles, did intervals correctly and completely, and got faster (more power = more speed).

I now have taken the approach of Morris and Ross training ideas. Base miles are a waste of time. I don't think you could approach this type of training without the use of a power meter.

Take it on step further. Go for a 29er with rim brakes and you could use the power tap wheel both ways, road and mountain bike.

 

[Lothar Othp]

Powertap

Definitely Powertap.

 

[SeanL]

The powertap, for sure.

 

[cmaz44]

Powertap

and get the wheels too!!!

 

[LyndaW]

and get the wheels too!!!

ditto! Get the PT first though.

 

[brg]

great idea!

Go for a 29er with rim brakes and you could use the power tap wheel both ways, road and mountain bike.

I've recently decided my next bike will be a Waltworks SS 29er as i figure he'd be able to fit a 4'10" rider on one. I snagged a PT off of ebay for $300 - what a deal!

 

[brg]

oh crap!

I've recently decided my next bike will be a Waltworks SS 29er as i figure he'd be able to fit a 4'10" rider on one. I snagged a PT off of ebay for $300 - what a deal!

that won't work - my road bike has 650 wheels.

 

[ibanezrg520kid]

sorry dumb question, but what is a power tap? how much are they? and how effective are they?

 

[turdburgle]

sorry dumb question, but what is a power tap? how much are they? and how effective are they?

A power tap is a power meter. They cost as much as 1200$ or so (SL is something like that ) and as cheap as 300$ on ebay (some someone else posted)

A power meter objectively measures your exertion on a bike. It is a training tool you use in order to optimize your time spent training.

Is it effective???? Well, The power tap is money, the question should be if you use it effictively. In order to use it effectively you would need to do a little bit of research or hire a coach that will teach you how to use it effectively.

I'm buying a power tap with my tax return next year. I've wanted one for years.

 

[xray_ed]

I've been thinking about a PT but....

I was checking out the reviews and they seem to have a lot of problems. Things such as software issues, bad bearings,interfearance with the HR function, auto start not working and a clumsy mounting system. Do any of you guys running one have any input on these issues? I think sometimes that reviews are only written by people who have had problems (not always the product's fault) and who are angry or they are written by people who work for the company. Maybe that's a whole new thread though.

 

[cmaz44]

I was checking out the reviews and they seem to have a lot of problems. Things such as software issues, bad bearings,interfearance with the HR function, auto start not working and a clumsy mounting system. Do any of you guys running one have any input on these issues? I think sometimes that reviews are only written by people who have had problems (not always the product's fault) and who are angry or they are written by people who work for the company. Maybe that's a whole new thread though.

No issues with my Power Tap SL at all. Yeah sometimes when a car is driving by or I enter a downtown area the power output data goes blank but only for a very short time. I accept it since any of my other HR monitors did the same thing especially when I go at high speeds so I found my Polar watch and Garmin 301 to have more problems then when I use my Power tap. The only thing I hate about the Power Tap is the wires since my Giant TCR is a sweet looking bike but the wires are hard to hide. Oh well the price you have to pay for getting fast.

Carl

 

[The SS Boz]

Buy a singlespeed bike and relace those wheels with lighter rims and spokes!

 

[Lothar Othp]

Powertap vs SRM cranks vs Polar Power Meter

I was checking out the reviews and they seem to have a lot of problems. Things such as software issues, bad bearings,interfearance with the HR function, auto start not working and a clumsy mounting system. Do any of you guys running one have any input on these issues? I think sometimes that reviews are only written by people who have had problems (not always the product's fault) and who are angry or they are written by people who work for the company. Maybe that's a whole new thread though.

I'd like to see a comparison of Powertap vs SRM cranks vs Polar Power Meter. I already have a Polar S725, and am mostly happy with the HRM and the software. For a mere $350 I could add the Polar Power option vs $1000+ for Powertap or $3000+ for SRM. Anybody have any experience with the Polar Power option?

 

[fabe]

Polar powermeter is a toy...

No offense for those who own one (like I did). It's $ 300 wasted really....I bought an SRM pro with dura ace chainrings on ebay for $1900 almost new (a few miles) and could not be happier. I thing the powertap sl is a good product. I know they had had issues before the model 05. I have also cycling peaks software which is really nice

 

[PMC]

I'd like to see a comparison of Powertap vs SRM cranks vs Polar Power Meter. I already have a Polar S725, and am mostly happy with the HRM and the software. For a mere $350 I could add the Polar Power option vs $1000+ for Powertap or $3000+ for SRM. Anybody have any experience with the Polar Power option?

Such a thing does can be found right here...

http://biketechreview.com/archive/pm_review.htm

 

[PMC]

I was checking out the reviews and they seem to have a lot of problems. Things such as software issues, bad bearings,interfearance with the HR function, auto start not working and a clumsy mounting system. Do any of you guys running one have any input on these issues? I think sometimes that reviews are only written by people who have had problems (not always the product's fault) and who are angry or they are written by people who work for the company. Maybe that's a whole new thread though.

The PT software isn't the greatest although nothing (other than an Ergomo) comes with the best software going which is cyclingpeaks.

Older PTs have cup/cone bearings and the quality of the bearings used isn't the greatest. Not the worst but not the best although they're easy to adjust and replace if needed. The new PTsl hubs have sealed bearings which are much better.

The mounting system isn't any worse than any other powermeter on the market and the new ones can be mounted on either bar or stem which is really nice.

The SLs had some issues out of the gate but everything has been sorted out. The customer service on the 1st batch that had the bad seals (made by joytech if I remember correctly) was top notch with Graber sending out loaner PT Pro wheels to those with issues. Not too shabby IMO.

No power meter is perfect that is being made currently but the best bang for the buck is the Powertap far and away. SRMs are just fine also but have their own issues and cost substantially more. I've put 15k+ on Powertaps and probably another 5k on an SRM Pro and prefer the Powertap SL I'm currently running to everything else I've used.