Fluid Bike Trainer Stand, Indoor Fluid Bicycle Exercise Trainer w Quiet Real Road Feel Flywheel, Supports 370lbs Portable Cycling Stand w Sweat Guard /Quick Release/ Front Wheel Riser

After delaying a trainer purchase for several years, I finally pulled the trigger on this one with my wife's encouragement. This has turned out to be one of my better exercise decisions. In prior years, my January weight is typically 20lbs above where it started when the weather turns and the baked goods appear at every family gathering. First spring rides are usually an exercise in procrastination and embarrassment, but this year the 20lbs surplus is down to 8 and I've already worked much of the couch potato out, while there's still snow on the ground. Setup and breakdown is typically 5 min each way including a flight of stairs.Prior to purchase, I spent a couple of days researching the various options and settled on the Healthline fluid trainer for the following reasons.1). Fluid trainer for realistic road emulation and noise level that allows me to watch sports and movies.2). This model was one of the only offerings at this price level to identify loadbearing guarantees up to 300lbs. I'm nowhere near this threshold but at 6'2", I absolutely appreciate the material and wide-leg design stability when riding an elevated bike in the family room. The first ride felt a little awkward, but I now have a regular 75 min routine 4-5 days a week using the following recommendations.* If you plan to use the trainer in living space that could be scrutinized by a roommate or spouse, absolutely order a 3x6.5ft mat ($27). It will protect your floors/carpets from trainer knicks/indentations, lube drips, waterbottle condensation and sweat, and give you a reasonable case for not being exiled to the basement or garage.** Acquire a short stepstool ( 6-8"). This will make it much easier to mount and dismount.*** For training purposes, consider setting up to measure either distance or time vs heartrate. To measure distance will require a purchase installation modification from front to rear tire. For me this was more trouble than it is worth, so I opt to target HR thresholds every fifteen minutes.****Written instructions were not very useful. On first setup, have the video handy and head the following. Ensure that the replacement rear tire bolt is tightened and secure in locked position on your bike. Ensure that connections to the rear hub are secured to the bike and similarly locked in place for the trainer. Before first mounting, give it a shake test. If there's a problem you should be able to hear it an make adjustments. Last, tweak the amount of pressure between the rotor and tire to emulate tire to road conditions. Ideally, you'll have just enough pressure to avoid tire slippage.*****I've attached a bottle holder and tablet holder to the handlebars until I resume outdoor riding. The bottle holder is ideal for keeping my remote control handy for skipping through commercials, and the tablet holder allows a viewing option on those rare occasions when the family room is not available for a ride.******Last, I like to let the room temp drop into the lower 60s before a workout. It keeps the sweat at a manageable level.

Setup was OK, though the adjustment of the roller to the wheel was not as easy as it should be. The entire thing felt flimsy. Putting the bike on it and tightening it enough to feel reasonably sold in place torques the support posts so the bolts on the two sides meet at an angle, even with minimum torque.The ad copy claims a quiet 60dB, but the flywheel isn’t well balanced and I measured 68 to 70dB with A weighting at about 2 1/2 feet away. dB is a logarithmic scale, so 68dB is a whole lot louder than 60dB. The low rumbling would definitely drive the neighbors nuts in an apartment. This is with a road bike with skinny smooth tires. I have another brand of fluid trainer and never had such issues. This one’s going back to Amazon.

Setup was easy, even for my bike with 24" wheels, and it works like a champ. It works with my smaller than required wheels because there are enough threads in the adjustment threaded rod to fill all the threads in the receiver (a steel cylinder with treads like a nut) in the middle of the cylinder. Not 5 stars because, as someone else mentioned, it comes in a box with huge moulded styrofoam, and the box is taped up with plastic tape. Not to good if your community recycles. This is manufactured in China and China no longer takes our plastic for recycling - so it all stays here - not good.

I bought this because two years ago, I got back into bike riding after 30 years without it. I've really loved it. As the weather changed, this year I missed riding even more than last year. And I won't go to a gym in the current situation. (I'm a teacher in a school that's been fully hybrid since August, so that's about as much "exposure" as I am willing to tolerate.) This fluid bike trainer turned out to be exactly what I needed. I live alone, but I had no trouble putting it together and getting my bike set up (not to say that it wouldn't have been easier with another pair of hands). I put it right in my living room so I have to climb over it on my way to the sofa. This way, I use it several times a week. I can't ignore it, and I am loving it. As others have said, the packaging isn't great and the directions aren't great (clearly rough translations). I used the video to help me put it together.I also had an issue the first couple of weeks. There was a clunking sound from inside the trainer. I sent a question via Amazon on a Saturday, and on Monday, their customer service emailed me with a solution. They sent me a new part. I continued using it while the new part was on it's way, and had no problems except the weird clunking when I got going too fast. At some point though, I centered the bike better on the drum, and the clunking seems to have mostly gone away. So I've got the new part, but I haven't switched it out yet, and probably won't. As I said, the directions weren't great. So I'd add: Make sure the rear tire is centered on the drum. And before riding, check the mounting pins that hold the rear axle. They tend to loosen up over time. I was, however, impressed with how responsive their customer service was.I would also add that it's not as quiet as they imply (even without the clunking). The whirring is pretty loud, and gets louder when you go fast. I live alone and have no downstairs neighbors, so this isn't a problem for me. But I live in a townhome with a next door neighbor, so it's determined what I watch on television while I ride, because I don't want to turn the volume up too loud on my television. I watch things with subtitles so I don't have to turn the volume up all the way on the tube. If I were more technologically inclined, I could probably figure out a way to sync earbuds to the sound on my television, but I have a solution that works for me.I'm really glad I bought this thing. It's not cheap, but it's WAY cheaper than even a cheap annual gym membership, so it actually saved me money. And it will last me more than a year, because I'll only be using it for the few months that I can't ride outside. I get a muscle workout using the knock-off TRX/suspension bands I bought previously, and I'm a happy, healthy camper without ever leaving the house.

Easy to assemble and very solid construction. Mom and I are not light weight people and it holds us getting up on it working out with no issues, thank goodness. Works amazingly well! Well pleased. So easy to get it going. Well worth the money, don't waste almost the same amount of money on a different bike trainer, just spend a little more and get this one. You won't be sorry or disappointed if you buy this one, but you will if you don't!! Other brands are too flimsy!