I have been thinking about making the jump to power for a long time and am almost ready to buy the powertap 2.4 wireless (I am certainly not an impulse buyer and will probable agonize over the decision for another few months).
In winter I would also like to be able to use power indoors on the turbo. I have an old steel frame bike which I use indoors on my turbo trainer, and I was thinking that in winter I could just put a thick rubber tyre on the powertap wheel and simply place that wheel onto my old steel frame.
However - I do notice that there's an awful lot of flex in the frame of my old steel bike when it's clamped into the turbo and it probably isn't doing the frame or rear wheel axle any good. I'm not too bothered about the frame being damaged because I now only ever use that bike on the turbo. But there's NO WAY I'd want to damage a powertap wheel!
What are the experiences of other powertap users? Is using the powertap wheel on a turbo trainer a bad idea if I want to prolong the life of the wheel? Is most of the stress placed on the frame itself or does the axel and hub get damaged long-term too?
I can only give you an answer based on lack of information, which is to say that I've never heard of anyone having a problem. I would venture to say that just about everyone who has a PT uses it on an indoor trainer at certain times (as I do). Never seen a problem reported on these boards. On the other hand, I use my regular road bike which has almost zero flex, and I'm not very heavy.
I've been riding my PowerTap on a turbo three times a week for the past year with no problem. I'm just careful not to over-tighten the mechanism holding the bike in the turbo's frame.
I've been riding my PowerTap on a turbo three times a week for the past year with no problem. I'm just careful not to over-tighten the mechanism holding the bike in the turbo's frame.
I was able to tighten my trainer so much one time that it actually threw the torque readings off on my old Pro hub. It resulted in >8 n-m of offset so the autozero did not remove it automatically. I noticed it when I got on the bike and saw the power reading was a bit higher than expected. In any case, I figured it out, loosened it and there was no permanent damage to that hub as far as I could tell from that episode.
Given your previous bad experience do you ever use your powertap wheel with the turbo?
All the time, but it's a new trainer as well. I used to really cinch-down the old Cyclops cam-lever-style lock, which is when I had the hub problem. Now I use a Kinetic trainer with a screw-style lock, and that limits the amount of compressive force that I put against the hub. I also have an older-style PT Pro, and I think the bearings are a little questionable in those models anyway.
Just be mindful of the amount of leverage you're using to clamp the wheel, and I don't think there'd be an issue.
