Not had one, not ever really been interested.

The monsoon weather is really testing my patience, and I just want to do some bloody exercise at the moment (and I work generally til about 7 in the evening anyway).

The Tacx Blue Motion Halfords are selling quite cheap looks OK, any reason not to? Or is there better for the money?

I’ve just bought that exact model and it has proved a pretty good buy. It has keep my legs spinning during the worst of the weather. Plus, following a crash a few weeks ago, I’m not too thrilled about riding on pitch black, wet roads at the moment so it’s quite good in the evenings.

I find that model pretty good: It’s probably not the stiffest in the world, but it’s good enough. Plus, it’s pretty quiet if you put the bike in a middle gear and use the levels on the trainer to control the resistance.

I did 55 mins on it this evening. Ooof, that was sweaty

Oh, I should say that it’s my first turbo so I don’t really have anything to compare it to.

Tip: Iron Maiden albums make a good soundtrack for a turbo session 😀

The Tacx stuff is generally pretty good and it should do everything you need.
Turbos are an acquired taste. Really boring if you just sit on and spin.
However if you have a structured work out they work great

How noisy is the tacx one? Anyone know the quietest for under £150

How noisy are they, suitable for a flat? Are there any other cheap quiet options?

munkyboy – Member
How noisy are they, suitable for a flat? Are there any other cheap quiet options?

NO!

Is there a gel one?

Kinetic road machine. Super quiet, excellent quality and life time warranty. If you are thinking of getting a turbo consider this one, its worth the few extra quid and the rolling resistance is very cool.

Minour B-60R here. Quiet enough to use in my flat without neighbours complaining above or below, and it doesn’t disturb anyone watching tv in the next room so I reckon it’s pretty quiet. Got it from Evans – priced matched to Merlin’s January sale price for £107

I’ve got an Elite Mag Speed and it’s pretty quiet with my road bike. Daughter’s MTB with semi-slicks is noisy!

Up to 25mph it’s quiet enough.

How small do these things fold up to be ?

Will they work with a 142×12 axle ?

Or do I need to use the wifes bike LOL.

Mine’s approx 80cm x 80cm x 20cm folded up.

I got one off the bay for £45 (comes with front wheel stand). You can’t vary the resistance, but I just do that by changing gear on the bike. So far it’s just as good as the Tacx one I used to have.

+1 for the minoura, I’ve an older model and it’s acceptably quiet, quieter than dishwasher/washing machine etc.

Buy a big 18″ fan from screwfix too, the type you see in Gyms and plasterers use to dry out rooms, they’re £30 or so, but will stop you turning into a soaking wet sweaty mess (just open the window and close the door to let the moisture out).

To deaden the noise I mount mine on a layer of old magazines on top of a couple of sleeping mats. Anything more solid than magazines like a sheet of wood vibrated and made more noise, I think the paper layers must move independantly and absorb it, and just the cary mat compressed so it just rested on the floor.

Trainerroad is good for motivation. Magnetic resistance is more consistent for that, but fluid trainers are quieter (at the expense of consistency as the oil warms up).

Buy a big 18″ fan from screwfix too,

Recommended. Though it does make considerably more noise than the turbo! (Another Minoura here, a 760.)

I got one off the bay for £45 (comes with front wheel stand). You can’t vary the resistance, but I just do that by changing gear on the bike. So far it’s just as good as the Tacx one I used to have.

Also on that note I got one off the bay for £55, with variable resistance. Works fantastically. No reason to spend any more as far as I can see – especially for myself as, like the OP, I had no interest in turbo trainers up until this recent weather.

I also got a £10 slick tyre from CRC and it’s pretty quiet. I do mine in the garden so couldn’t comment on indoor volume.

Any more feedback on the Tacx from Halfords right now?

Just ride in the rain, you won’t melt