CycleOps Mag Indoor Bicycle Trainer

Cycle Ops spent a lot of money developing the product then apparently scrimped on the instructions. Thanks a lot. After four hours of swearing and sweating, I am giving up on attaching my bike to the trainer. The instructions say: Lift up bike by the seatpost and position the left side of your bike skewer into the left cone. Pull down the quick release handle to capture the right side of your bike skewer. Adjust fixed cone by loosening the lock ring and turning cone as needed.

Sounds simple enough. But the skewer does not lock into the trainer and there is a gap on the other side. The result is that the bike falls out of the trainer. The instructions do not consider this as a possibility and there is no advice about what to do if you experience a problem. There is no phone number listed either to call for help. I would make another hole in the quick release handle if I had the tools.

Unless you are particularly mechanically inclined and have your own set of metal-working tools, find another trainer.

I sold my nearly 12 years old Cycleops mag trainer over the winter, and picked up this new model recently. The new one has noticably more resistance at the higher resistance setting than my old model did. Also, the price was significantly less, if I remember correctly (I think the 1998 model was in the neighborhood of $275). The extra skewer is a nice touch so I don't have to scratch up the black one that come with my road bike. The external cable shown in the above picture was not included in the box, so perhaps it is an option or generic picture. I hadn't really noticed it until now, several weeks later, anyway. The price was right, and the product works well. I also recommend the block for the front wheel to level the bike. Otherwise, you'll be riding constantly downhill. With the free Amazon shipping, this is a very good deal in my book.

I should say first that this is my first trainer so I have no real basis of comparison to other models/makes. This is just my experience with the Cycleops Mag Trainer. I have had this trainer for about 6 months now and use it regularly (about 5 days a week). It was easy to assemble and it is easy to attach my bike to it. The trainer is solid and stable even for me at over 200 lbs. I use it in the basement of our house with my ipod so I am not as sensitive to noise as if I was in an apartment, with the ipod I can't hear the trainer. I'm sure there are quieter models out there, but I can't say I've tried them. As may be typical for mag trainers the resistance is not the smoothest getting up to speed, but once you are riding at your work-out pace its fine.

The trainer has been great for me since it rained alot in the fall and spring and I was not able to ride outside many days. It's also very convenient to be able to train at night, when I probably would'nt go to the gym or ride outside. It was an essential tool in training for my first double century in March. For the money I would definitely recommend it. I have had no issues so far.

Although I could not use the product on my particular bicycle, the vendor was excellent in resolving my problem and agreed to issue me a refund. Excellent customer service!

I wasn't sure what to expect because I had never ridden a trainer. This is a perfect match for what I was looking for. It is loud but not too loud. It offers variable resistance and can be changed with bike gears. Overall I am happy with it and would purchase it again.