Opinion Request - Best Odometre & Speedometre for Bikes



C

Churchill

Guest
Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
the buck ?

A URL link would be appreciated to your recommendations.

Cordially,

Churchill
 
There is no "best" but the one I'm using now that has the
fewest problems and seems the best designed is the Sigma. I
like the 800 best but it doesn't have an average speed
function that many people must have.

"Churchill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
> the buck ?
>
> A URL link would be appreciated to your recommendations.
>
> Cordially,
>
> Churchill
 
"Churchill" wrote: (clip)Is there one or two that stand out
as the best bang for the buck ? ^^^^^^^^^^^ Unless you need
a lot of sophisticated data as a part of a training regimen,
I would go for one that has the fewest functions (therefore,
costs the least.) The cyclometers that have very
sophisticated displays don't do me any good, and are hard to
read while riding, anyway.

Look for one that is easy to rezero without getting out the
instructions every time. I ride with a friend who forgets to
bring the instructions with him, and always has to subtract
to know how far we have ridden (or ask me.)
 
I have a Sigma BC800 on my hybrid and it works well...it
does show avg speed, but you have to push the button on it
to cycle through to it. While riding it only has a 2-line
display, current speed and your choice of elapsed time or
elapsed distance.

For my new road bike I got a Planet Bike Protege 9.0, it's
supposedly weatherproof (haven't had to test that feature
yet) and it has a large 4 line display, so you can pretty
much see whatever you like without having to toggle it. So
far I think it's superior to the Sigma for that fact.
They're both pretty easy to zero out. If you want to save a
dollar or so (depending on site you order from) you can get
the Protege 8.0 for a little less than the 9.0. The
difference is the 9.0 includes a temperature reading...and I
figured for the extra dollar - why not.

I got the Protege at JensonUSA
http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product.aspx?i=CP707A08
for $20...most of the other online sites want at least
$30 for it...not sure how Jensen can sell it so cheap,
but I took a chance and they delivered it quickly, I
highly recommend them.

"Churchill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
> the buck ?
>
> A URL link would be appreciated to your recommendations.
>
> Cordially,
>
> Churchill
 
One important feature is that when the computer goes into "sleep mode" that when you start to move the wheels again it automatically comes back to life without you having to touch any buttons to make it work again. I put on a wireless computer early this year and hated it because when I would stop for a while (say to go into a convience store or stop to rest or something) when I got back on the bike 5 or 10 minutes later, I didn't realize that the computer would stay in "off" or sleep mode. I would have to push a button to "wake it up". By the time I would remember to do this I'd be down the road a mile or more and those miles wouldn't get recorded. So get a computer that doesn't do this -- that it is always "on" when you are moving. I went back to a non-wireless type of computer and love the one I have. The Protege 9.0 by Planet Bike. It runs about $28.00. See it at http://www.outdoorsportz.com/BGCPOOOO1006.html Or do a search for Protege 9.0
Big clear screen with lots of functions showing all at the same time: Screen 1: MPH, distance, clock, avg speed, max speed, Ride time. With a push of the button screen 2 shows: MPH, current tempurature, total distance, avg speed, trip time
Sara
 
"SaraBikes" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]
> One important feature is that when the computer goes into
> "sleep mode" that when you start to move the wheels again
> it automatically comes back to life without you having to
> touch any buttons to make it work again. I put on a
> wireless computer early this year and hated it because
> when I would stop for a while (say to go into a convience
> store or stop to rest or something) when I got back on the
> bike 5 or 10 minutes later, I didn't realize that the
> computer would stay in "off" or sleep mode. I would have
> to push a button to "wake it up". By the time I would
> remember to do this I'd be down the road a mile or more
> and those miles wouldn't get recorded.

I don't have that problem with my Echo W2.

--

A: Top-posters.
B: What is the most annoying thing on Usenet?
 
On Sat, 3 Jul 2004 21:30:41 -0400, "Churchill" <[email protected]> wrote:

>Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
>the buck ?

If you're just looking for a basic wired-sensor type that
doesn't do anything beyond time, speed and distance, then
let price be your guide at the local bike shops. I haven't
found much difference between the midrange and cheap stuff,
and none of them have failed to work well.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug. Some gardening required to
reply via email. Surrealism is a pectinated ranzel.
 
On Mon, 5 Jul 2004 05:18:30 +1000, "DRS" <[email protected]>
wrote:

>"SaraBikes" <[email protected]> wrote in
>message news:[email protected]
>> One important feature is that when the computer goes into
>> "sleep mode" that when you start to move the wheels again
>> it automatically comes back to life without you having to
>> touch any buttons to make it work
>
>I don't have that problem with my Echo W2.

No surprise; I don't think it's common. I know that I
haven't seen that behavior in the four or five different
really cheap units I've installed. Even the crummy $9 one
from the local sporting goods chain has auto-wakeup...and
the unit works OK, though it is *really* basic. I'd call the
lack of auto-wakeup a significant bug, myself.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug. Some gardening required to
reply via email. Surrealism is a pectinated ranzel.
 
> If you're just looking for a basic wired-sensor type that
> doesn't do anything beyond time, speed and distance, then
> let price be your guide at the local bike shops. I haven't
> found much difference between the midrange and cheap
> stuff, and none of them have failed to work well.

i got mine at target. not as fancy as the cateye i had years
ago, but i really dont need "cadence" anyway.
 
"Fred Hall" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I have a Sigma BC800 on my hybrid and it works well...it
> does show avg speed, but you have to push the button on it
> to cycle through to it.
While
> riding it only has a 2-line display, current speed and
> your choice of elapsed time or elapsed distance.

You have the older BC 800 which DID have average speed. The
newer one does not contain this function. It does have
riding time and distance so you can calculate the speed
average easily enough at home. But some people feel the need
to watch their average speed all the time.

The BC1200 has the average speed function but it has a
difference case shape and the buttons are top and bottom and
it is really easy to accidently re-zero it.

But the most important thing is that the Sigma just works.
All of the other cyclometers I've used had some sort of
irritating bugs in them. Avocets ALWAYS fail. Out of perhaps
12 Avocets every single one of them failed after the first
battery change or so. Avenirs were OK but would do that
really irritating jumping between the correct speed and
either half or one third of the real speed. And the distance
would have errors in it because of that as well. Cateye was
OK but they were missing average speed and/or riding time or
they too would half the speed whenever you looked at it.
 
On Sat, 03 Jul 2004 21:30:41 -0400, Churchill wrote:

> Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
> the buck ?

I finally settled on a Cateye Enduro. Best thing about it
is that the wire harness is tougher than any other, so
lasts longer.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | You will say Christ saith this and the apostles say
this; but _`\(,_ | what canst thou say? -- George Fox.
(_)/ (_) |
 
My Protege 9.0 shows a 20 x 1.75 as the smallest on the
preconfigured list (which is 1502mm)...you can also do your
own measurement...it says the smallest it will accept is
1000mm. It does allow 4 digit calibration accuracy in WSS.

"Mike" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:p[email protected]...
>
> On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 09:44:20 -0700, smokey wrote:
>
> >
> > My favorite has been my Planet Bike 8.0. Just the
> > necessary functions, and easy to set up and re-set. You
> > can get them at Performancebike.com. http://www.perform-
> > ancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=12090
>
> How small a wheel diameter will it calibrate to? Will it
> calibrate for a 20" (409) wheel - and to what accuracy?
> I've seen posts on this and other NGs recently mentioning
> calibrations in the range of 100-200, to me that's not
> accurate enough - does is have 4 digits of calibraton?
>
> mike
 
On Mon, 05 Jul 2004 12:56:36 GMT, "Mike"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>
>On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 09:44:20 -0700, smokey wrote:
>
>>
>> My favorite has been my Planet Bike 8.0. Just the
>> necessary functions, and easy to set up and re-set. You
>> can get them at Performancebike.com. http://www.performa-
>> ncebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=12090
>
>How small a wheel diameter will it calibrate to? Will it
>calibrate for a 20" (409) wheel - and to what accuracy?
>I've seen posts on this and other NGs recently mentioning
>calibrations in the range of 100-200, to me that's not
>accurate enough - does is have 4 digits of calibraton?
>
>mike

Dear Mike,

Here are some reviews of the Planet Bike 8.0:

http://www.roadbikereview.com/Computers/Planet%20Bike,Plane-
t,Bike,Protege,8.0,Cyclocomputer/PRD_132758_1624crx.aspx

Most cyclocomputers allow entering a wheel circumference in
millimeters, either from a printed table of average sizes or
else from your own measurements.

For a ridiculously small 1% inaccuracy, you'd have to be
10mm off on a 1000mm tire, or 20mm off on a 2000mm tire, so
this is overkill anyway.

Most tables list a 700c tire at 2124mm, while a 20" is
listed at 1596mm. Technically, the smaller tire will be less
accurate because it has roughly the same measuring error
(plus or minus about an eighth of an inch) as the larger
tire, repeated more times in the same distance.

However, the 20" tire does have the inestimable advantage
that it may be just small enough for someone to build an
odometer that reads in thousandths of a mile (5.23 feet per
spin) instead of the lamentably coarse hundredths of a mile
of larger tires.

Carl Fogel
 
"Mike" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> On Sun, 04 Jul 2004 09:44:20 -0700, smokey wrote:
>
> >
> > My favorite has been my Planet Bike 8.0. Just the
> > necessary functions, and easy to set up and re-set. You
> > can get them at Performancebike.com. http://www.perform-
> > ancebike.com/shop/Profile.cfm?SKU=12090
>
> How small a wheel diameter will it calibrate to? Will it
> calibrate for a 20" (409) wheel - and to what accuracy?
> I've seen posts on this and other NGs recently mentioning
> calibrations in the range of 100-200, to me that's not
> accurate enough - does is have 4 digits of calibraton?
>
> mike

It has four digits of calibration, but I don't remember if
it works with 20" wheels. You could call Performance's tech
line at 800-553-TECH and they should be able to help you.
 
In article <[email protected]>, "Churchill"
<[email protected]> writes:

>Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
>the buck ?

I have a Cateye Mitee 3 that has 18,000 miles in four years
on the same battery. You cannot say the same for an Avocet.
The Cateye is a little big for some people's tastes, but
it's easy to read and use and mine has never had a problem
with the weather.

Tom Gibb <[email protected]
 
<sinp> But the most important thing is that the Sigma just
works. <snip>

I've also got a BC800, and it doesnt always work. Scolling
throught the menus can knock the computer off the contacts,
causing the speed sensor to disconnect. It's usually ok now
that I know what causes it, but i miss it when night
cycling. Poor design, fine otherwise.
 
"David L. Johnson" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> On Sat, 03 Jul 2004 21:30:41 -0400, Churchill wrote:
>
> > Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
> > the buck ?
>
> I finally settled on a Cateye Enduro. Best thing about it
> is that the wire harness is tougher than any other, so
> lasts longer.

Yep. Cateye anything is good. Enduro 2 or the new Enduro 8
or something is best. On sale at Nashbar or Performance
for $20 most of the time. And you can usually find a 10%
off or 20% off coupon code for Nashbar or Performance if
you are patient. $16 for a Cateye Enduro is a mighty fine
bang for the buck.
 
"Tom Kunich" <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:

> There is no "best" but the one I'm using now that has the
> fewest problems and seems the best designed is the Sigma.
> I like the 800 best but it doesn't have an average speed
> function that many people must have.
>
>
> "Churchill" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
>> the buck ?
>>
>> A URL link would be appreciated to your recommendations.
>>
>> Cordially,
>>
>> Churchill
>>
>>
>
>
>

I'll second that. I'm using a Sigma BC-600(discontinued)
that's still going after two years plus.

Mike
 
On Sat, 03 Jul 2004 21:30:41 -0400, Churchill wrote:

> Is there one or two that stand out as the best bang for
> the buck ?
>
> A URL link would be appreciated to your recommendations.
>
> Cordially,
>
> Churchill

My favorite has been the Cateye Vectra. Don't know if it's
still made, I bought mine in about 91. The only problem I've
had was worn contacts when I was removing it daily. I quit
doing that on the replacement, shimmed the old one to make
it work, and put it on another bike. Bought a new one on
Ebay last year for my tandem. Other than a battery every 3
years or so, no other problems.

I like the display combinations--You can have both cadence
and speed at the same time, and leave whichever one you want
showing when you scroll to other functions.
 
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