Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

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Steve O'C
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Joined: 3 Mar 2013, 1:32pm

Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Steve O'C »

[e.g. would I have to adjust the RD indexing?

Yes very likely. There was a discussion on here a year or so ago about adding shims to the cassette so you could swap between the road and the turbo trainer without having to re-index. Sounds like you are planning to use a dedicated bike so worst case is you would need to adjust once.

I agree with the advice about fans. I got one like this over the summer

https://www.amazon.co.uk/P-250T-Utility ... RydWU&th=1

I found it quieter and shifted more air than a traditional one.
Jupestar
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Jupestar »

I use and Elite one, looks similar and I'm sure does the same thing. That's Zwift Hub looks like a good deal...

I find it invaluable.

Jumping on for a 45min/1hr ride in the evening, if I can't get out the house (young children).

I use it much more now as I no longer try and recreate long rides. I just do a quick training guide with shorter sessions.

It's saves cost of babysitter, and another bonus is it reduces maintenance and cleaning the bike..

Stopped using the games and virtual reality (zwift like). Now it's just numbers on screen, with someone telling me to switch it up. And I Add in some music, podcasts or while watching the football.

TrainerRoad was great, but they chucked the price up, charge in USD. And the Government tanked the £. So I'm trying Wahoo SYSTM now.

The benefit for me is when a opportunity to actually get out on a longer ride or sportive comes along, I'm in some sort of cycling shape.

In terms of the RD, yeah the indexing is a bit different between the turbo and the wheel (both 10s) I have added a inline cable adjuster and have to turn it approx 1 turns when switching turbo/wheel. Another cassette spacer on the turbo might help but never got round to it. It has a larger range cassette on the turbo than the wheel, so I have to remember to avoid cross chaining on the bigs or everything ends bad..
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Paradiddle
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Location: London

Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Paradiddle »

Thanks for all the tips. The turbo arrived earlier this week and looks like it's out of stock for the rest of the month.

I'm planning to set it up tonight. Hopefully there won't be too much fiddling with the RD required as I only have 1 road bike. I'm fairly confident with gear indexing and adjustments but would be good to not have to adjust everytime I take the bike off or on the turbo.
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TrevA
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by TrevA »

I don’t have to index mine. Both my wife and I use the Kickr with the 11 speed cassette that it came with, and just put the bike on and ride.
Sherwood CC and Notts CTC.
A cart horse trapped in the body of a man.
http://www.jogler2009.blogspot.com
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Paradiddle
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Location: London

Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Paradiddle »

I set my Zwift hub last night and went for my first ride. The set up was pretty simple and intuitive. Interestingly though they included additional thru-axle attachments with a note saying that some batches have had defective attachments that didn't quite fit.

As predicted by some though, I didn't have to index my rear mech.

Going for my first zwift was a rather strange and interesting experience. The feel was somewhere in between going for an outdoor ride and on a traditional spin bike, mainly as I don't have to balance and there was no forward motion. I wasn't sure about how accurate the metrics are but considering the effort I put in as well as the stats I saw after, they looked about right. The part I liked best was the experience with gradient changes. It felt more natural than I expected.

One thing I realised though was how loud my drivetrain was indoors. I thought there was some rubbing on my front mech but it wasn't that. I also don't think it's my SRAM rival 22 mechs and clean chain not playing well with the sunrace cassette that came with the trainer. Maybe it's just riding indoors and the lack for freehub sounds that made me notice it more. I'll try to crack that mystery on my next ride.
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Paulatic
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Paulatic »

Paradiddle wrote: 30 Sep 2022, 9:52am I'm currently on the waitlist for the Zwift Hub smart trainer: https://uk.zwift.com/pages/zwift-hub
Apparently it will be ready for order next week. Is anyone also looking to get one?

Three months on what can you tell me about your experience. Do you love it or want to sell it?

I’m asking because I fell ill the start of November, spent 6 weeks in bed or sitting in a chair. I’m becoming more active now but only in short bursts. Can’t see me cycling out in the wild for a few months yet. In desperation I’ve put a bike on my 30 yo analogue turbo but it really is desperate and from experience never sustainable. Looked at buying the Zwift hub today opinions please.
Whatever I am, wherever I am, this is me. This is my life

https://stcleve.wordpress.com/category/lejog/
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drossall
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by drossall »

I think I mentioned above that I got into Zwift because of Covid. However, several years on, I'm still using a dumb wheel-on trainer with a single-speed bike, a power meter (wheel, second-hand), and cadence and heart sensors. That's been a really cheap set-up for trying it. I've not felt I wanted to upgrade - but that's not really the point, as we're talking about giving it a try without necessarily having to invest in all the kit.
drossall
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by drossall »

jois wrote: 30 Sep 2022, 8:08pmThat's when my cycling really took off, I could go for many hours/ miles and if challenged, which I wasn't, say I'm on the way to a bike shop for a new dust cap
I'm not sure that my wife wouldn't prefer me to go for a ride than near a bike shop. I once went down to the LBS for a pair of brake blocks, and took my son, then nearly three, to get him out of the house. We came back with a bike each. It's not been forgotten :lol:
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Paulatic
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Paulatic »

drossall wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 10:12pm I think I mentioned above that I got into Zwift because of Covid. However, several years on, I'm still using a dumb wheel-on trainer with a single-speed bike, a power meter (wheel, second-hand), and cadence and heart sensors. That's been a really cheap set-up for trying it. I've not felt I wanted to upgrade - but that's not really the point, as we're talking about giving it a try without necessarily having to invest in all the kit.
It’s not really the Zwift app I’m interested in. Looking around I am wondering if the smart trainer like Zwift Hub coupled with something like FulGaz. Does being immersed in 4K scenery and I imagine more of a real feel pedalling to a noisy magnet help to make being stationary more of a ‘let’s do it again' feeling.
Whatever I am, wherever I am, this is me. This is my life

https://stcleve.wordpress.com/category/lejog/
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fausto99
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by fausto99 »

Paulatic wrote: 21 Dec 2022, 11:30am
drossall wrote: 20 Dec 2022, 10:12pm I think I mentioned above that I got into Zwift because of Covid. However, several years on, I'm still using a dumb wheel-on trainer with a single-speed bike, a power meter (wheel, second-hand), and cadence and heart sensors. That's been a really cheap set-up for trying it. I've not felt I wanted to upgrade - but that's not really the point, as we're talking about giving it a try without necessarily having to invest in all the kit.
It’s not really the Zwift app I’m interested in. Looking around I am wondering if the smart trainer like Zwift Hub coupled with something like FulGaz. Does being immersed in 4K scenery and I imagine more of a real feel pedalling to a noisy magnet help to make being stationary more of a ‘let’s do it again' feeling.
I went the whole hog during the first COVID winter lockdown with no ambulances; gave up outdoor WInter riding, got a Wahoo Kickr Bike to use with the Fulgaz app and a 50" TV in my garage. The TV is not 4k but 1080 is realistic enough. The bike's tilt mechanism linked to the Fulgaz gradient is a must in my book, as is a rocker plate so the bike can lean into corners. I did get some motion sickness before I built and installed the rocker plate.

The next thing I want to add is some tubular tyres between the rocker plate and the floor so it is not rigidly connected to the floor. Anyone like to donate some worn out tubulars?
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TrevA
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by TrevA »

FullGaz, Rouvy, RGT and Zwift all offer free trials, so it’s worth having a go on each to see what you think. I use Zwift which replicates some famous riding areas such as the Tour of Britain London stage, Alpe D’Huez, Ventoux, Harrogate world championships circuit, New York Central Park, as well as some imaginary places - deserts, volcanos, etc.

What motivates me to ride is the presence of other riders. I mainly do group rides and trying to keep up with a group is quite motivating. Even just riding around, you can test yourself against others, trying to match the pace of another rider up Box Hill, for example.

The more kit you have, the more immersive the experience is, but I’ve managed quite well with just a trainer and running the app on my iPad. I’ve recently bought an Apple TV box and run Zwift on that to get the bigger screen. I don’t think you absolutely need the Climb(tilting) or Steering functions, but they would add to the experience.
Sherwood CC and Notts CTC.
A cart horse trapped in the body of a man.
http://www.jogler2009.blogspot.com
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PedallingSquares
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by PedallingSquares »

I've just ordered the Zwift Hub as my Proform TDF went kaput :roll:
My wife is happier now the TDF isn't 'taking up space' in the spare room.
I've been using Zwift since the Beta version and bought an Apple TV box last year as the laptop I was running it on kept overheating.
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PedallingSquares
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by PedallingSquares »

Ordered on 22nd delivered this morning!
Great service from both Zwift and DPD!
JTG
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by JTG »

Hi,

Looking for newbie-esq advice please..

I’m planning on getting a Zwift Hub, and from May I’ll be using it with my road bike with an 11 speed cassette—- but until May I have a bike with a 9 speed cassette I want to use on it


Obvs when I order the Hub I will need to order the 11 cassette that comes with the hub, but until May, if I use the 9 speed bike on it solely in ERG mode, would it be compatible with it? I heard that it would be okay in ERG mode..


Is this correct info?
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Paulatic
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Re: Zwift Hub trainer - anyone looking to get one?

Post by Paulatic »

Why not fit a 9 speed cassette and change to 11 when needed?
Whatever I am, wherever I am, this is me. This is my life

https://stcleve.wordpress.com/category/lejog/
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