Customer Reviews

Kinetic by Kurt Road Machine Indoor Bicycle Trainer

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased the Kurt Kenetic two months ago, and am thrilled with its performance and quality. If you are considering purchasing a trainer, fluid trainers are the way to go. Basically, there are four major types of trainers: Magnetic,Wind, Rim Driven, and Fluid. The later is the best, hands down! Fluid resistance trainers are more quiet, smoother and more realistic than any of the others mentioned. The only drawback to the fluid trainer is that over time they can leak resistance fluid. There are three companies that have solutions to this drawback. I highly recommend that you research all three and test them out where possible. A good review page is Roadbikereview.com . The CycleOps Fluid 2 is ultra smooth and quiet. They have a limmited warranty on thier products, but are known for standing behind their trainers for life, and will fix any issues probably for life! The One Up Trainer has all the advantages of a fluid trainer, but uses no fluid in its designe, it is made in America and carries a life time warranty. The Kurt Kinetic, which I decided to purchase, is IMHO, the best because it utilizes a sealed fluid unit and therefore is guranteed not to leak. These three units are roughly the same price, around $260.00. Steep? Think of it this way, This product is going to be your companion for many winters, so don't buy a loud, crappy one with crappy customer service! You'll regret later that you didn't spend the extra $75 or $80 on a quality product. I also tested the Blackburn Fluid, $100 bucks cheaper, not bad for price, but since it is new to the market I was unsure about durabillity or how well they stand behind thier trainers after warranty expiration. I have heard amazing testimonials of how Cyclops, Kurt, and One Up, have replaced parts and even whole trainers, no questions asked! Google these three companies and see for yourself.

I have had several other trainers of this type that were used by my son and myself for training on Road, Mountain, and Recumbent. This one is the best. From the moment you heft it out of the shipping carton until you set it up you know this is quality and not like all the others. It is BUILT strong.

I am 6'3" and 215 lbs. This trainer acts like I'm not there. The greatest feature is the quietness with which it operates. You can watch the Spinerval DVD or TV and not have to be blasted off the seat. Bike mounting on the trainer is straight and very simple while being very secure. I love it and use it regularly with great results.

I've had my Kurt Kinetic Road Machine since 2001 and it has never leaked. I put an average of 1200 miles per winter on it and it's always been reliable, relatively quiet, and has a better feel than any non-fluid trainer. The Road Machine Pro has an even heavier flywheel so offers an even better feel, I'd say. The best thing you could do is read the reviews on other sites. Try a couple out at a local bike shop and then buy the best. After all my initial reviews and ongoing knowledge of bike trainers, Kurt was and still is the best.

I got this trainer thinking that it would be a good workout for days when I was too lazy to carry my bike downstairs or go to the gym. I've taken spinning classes for a few years, and never thought that using a trainer would produce a workout as intense as my classes. This trainer definitely does.

I've never used another one, so I have nothing to compare it to, but I LOVE this trainer. Keeping the resistance up will give you a great workout and you can use your gears modify the resistance while riding. It remains stable even when I stand up on it.

Overall, I just love it. It's quiet, easy to use, and takes up minimal space.

I am very happy with the trainer. Most impressively, it is much quieter than my previous mag trainer. I can easily listen to music while riding without the music being so loud it bothers the rest of the family. I ride about 30 minutes a day on it .... it is a great part of a cardiac risk factor prevention program.

I picked up the KK fluid atrainer after doing the requisite web research and after several weeks of use I am very pleased with my purchase. The trainer is compact, stable, easy to setup, well made, reasonably quiet, doesn't get too hot when riding at 19+mph for 60+ minutes and allows the bike to attach/detach quickly. The riser for the front wheel is useful for added stability, comfort, and reduced floor wear.

The experience is very similar to riding on the road (the trainer is way less fun of course) and gives a very good workout. I also have the Garmin Forerunner 305 with quick release mount which is works well with the optional wireless cadence/speed meter and wireless heart rate monitor. The Forerunner 305 is great on the road as well and is also useful for other activities such as running and cross country skiing.

Make sure to release the pressure on the rear wheel after each training interval to minimize taking the rear wheel out of true. Also apply only as much pressure as needed to the rear wheel to provide traction without slipping (no more than the manufacturer's recommended two complete turns on the tightening wheel).Garmin Forerunner 305 Wrist-Mounted GPS Fitness Computer with Heart Rate MonitorGarmin GSC 10 Speed Cadence Sensor for Edge and Forerunner Series (010-10644-00)

Product shipped on time. It was extremely easy to set up. Installing bike was a bit clumsy. The mechanism for sliding the adjuster in and out could be spring loaded so it holds it's position. Balancing bike, adjusting spacing and fighting with shifter cable that runs along my skewer posed a challenge. Don't have to take the bike out very often so not a big deal. The CycleOps has an easier entry system.

One item that did disappoint is that there is no adjustment on the legs to level the unit. I use the unit in the basement and the floor slopes to a center drain. I had to use spacers to level the unit. My daughter bought the less expensive magnetic CycleOps and it had adjusters in the legs. For the price I paid for the Kurt I expected as much.

The resistance system works just fine. I do find I have to ride in higher gears for the same output as when I ride outside but those are easy adjustments to make. I don't however feel a big difference in resistance with increase speed.

It accomplishes what I need, an indoor trainer to get through winter. If I had to do it all over again I would definitely look at the CycleOps.

I've owned this for about 4 months now and am happy to report that it has been awesome. I was debating between this one and the Cycleops Fluid 2. I chose this one over the fluid 2 based on the few reports of the fluid 2 springing a leak. While it seems like a rare complication, it would likely be an enormous pain in the neck. Also, I've never heard of the Kurt leaking so that's what made the difference for me. While the Kurt is more expensive than the Cycleops, if you check around, there are really great deals to be found on the Kurt (look up "Angry Badger"). I got mine for WAY less than amazon and even cheaper than the fluid 2.
Now on to the Kurt Kinetic itself. It's green. Very green. But I actually like it. Other positives: 1)It's very stable, even when standing on the pedals 2) it's quiet (but I have those skinny, smooth road tires). I can easily watch TV over the noise. 3) It's easy to put together out of the box (a few minutes) 4)it provides a great workout. You change the resistance by changing gears on the bike 5)it's good practice if you're new to clipless pedals (but any trainer would work for that).

I ended up having to use the skewer that came with the trainer because my fancy skewer would not fit on the bolt of the trainer. No big deal at all. I just keep their skewer on my bike now.

From what I've read, this may be the best trainer in its class. I haven't tested any other ones but I would say that this is an excellent piece of equipment. If you're serious about training, then you can't go wrong with this one. I have included some pictures. Hope they help.
John

I have been using this trainer for about 2 weeks after purchasing through Amazon. It arrived very quickly, about 3 days after ordering using regular shipping. It was easy to set up. I chose this one after doing a bit of web research and based my decision on the warranty and design (wide stance and large roller). It is very stable, thanks to the front legs which swing outward to give the unit a wide stance. In use, it is indeed extremely stable. It is noisier than I expected, even with my smooth road slick tire. For example, I tried riding while listening to the radio, but could not hear it unless I was in a lower gear pedaling slowly. Now I listen to my ipod at about 3/4 volume. This is important, since riding indoors is DEAD boring! I have been managing about 20-25 minute workouts because of the boredom issue, compared to 1-2 hour rides in season. I believe that this noise issue is entirely to be expected.

By and large, the design is good. As is typical, the entire unit is constructed in China. Along with that, come some negative issues in terms of the construction quality. The fluid unit is mounted on a plastic mount that is a bit cheesy, and the unit tilts back and forth a bit, sometimes squeaks too. Need to put a bit of grease on this and perhaps tighten it a little. The tension spring does not have a correct stop on the L-bolt so it kind of wraps around it. These are relatively minor things, and typical for the kind of quality we have become used to in the USA. Probably, none of the other units are better, and most likely worse. The instructions could be better. But it is easy to put together and it is probably faster without reading them. The video has a clear assembly description and it is useful.

I also got the riser with the trainer. It is very strong and stable when riding.

Overall, this is a very good trainer with excellent stability. You can get an excellent workout with this unit and the feel is very realistic. However, I'm looking forward to warmer weather with no snow on the ground!

As an update to this review, in my second season using the trainer the threads on the L-bolt and its nut, which are used to tighten the roller against the bicycle wheel became damaged. After use, I always loosen the roller so it is not putting constant pressure on the tire and rim. The nut became very hard to tighten, and I had to use a tap and die to fix up the threads. The quality of the original threads was VERY poor. After this repair, the nut is extremely easy to tighten. Much easier than when the trainer was new. Probably, it is a good idea to lubricate the threads to help prevent them from getting damaged.

I've been using my Kurt Kinetic Road Machine for about a week now and have found it very helpful in maintaining and increasing my fitness during the rainy season in the Pacific Northwest. Setup was very easy and straightforward (once I was able to free up the axle nut on the left side, which seemed to be jammed at first. I just had to be persistent in twisting hard until it loosened up). I was up and pedaling within 10 minutes of opening the box. I don't have any experience with other trainers so I was expecting a greater degree of "progressive resistance" in the fluid trainer than I am experiencing, but I have no basis for comparison since I have never used any other kind of trainer. The unit is realtively quiet and very smooth. I also appreciated the "Spinervals" DVD that came with it. Very helpful. I would definitely recommend this product.