Trainer Questions Please

[Sandy]

After not riding my bike for about 4 years (I think) I have decided to get into shape, lose some weight, and ultimately cycle outdoors again. I prefer starting indoors, using my Ottrott on a trainer. I have the CycleOps trainer set at the easiest of the 5 resistance setting and am using the small chain ring (34) and the smallest 4 gears on the bike (12/27 cassette). I have osteoarthritis in my hips and back, so I will proceed slowly. I am pedaling at a conservative cadence- guess 80-90 rpm.

I have noticed 3 things as I have started (15 minutes two days ago and 25 minutes today):

1. There is a pronounced vibration in the bike- felt through the handlebar, top tube, and down tube.

2. I hear a clicking sound as I pedal...not sure yet if it is on every pedal revolution.

3. I see the bottom bracket move laterally- which I do not think can be from torque as I am using very low gears (unlike what I used when I used to ride).

Any possible explanations, please? I am going to reposition the bike for my next easy ride tonight.


Thanks for any responses.

Nice to be back on the forum. Missed it and a lot of the great people who frequent Serottaville.


Sandy

[AngryScientist]

hi sandy,

few questions:

-do you have the front wheel on a riser block of some kind?

-are you certain that your rear tire is up to a decent pressure, low pressure, even on the trainer can cause quick tire wear and a bit of resonance.

- is the rear skewer tight, and is the c'ops trainer mounting tightly to the rear of your bike - does it feel secure?

[Richard]

The vibration can be from a lot of things...slightly out of round tire, flat spot, poor support on the trainer, hard to say.

Same with the clicking...rocking of the wheel in the trainer clamp, cleat, bars, etc. I would not worry about it.

The BB is not moving. It is an optical illusion that seems to appear on all trainers. Mostly, I think it is from the fact that the rear is fixed and the front is not.

[SEABREEZE]

First and formost welcome back to cycling.. and to Serottaville.

Perhaps you can do the same around your block once, weather permitting, just to see if its also happening on the road. That will narrow it down.

Looking forward to the best humor on the Serottaville channel !!!

[false_Aest]

Sandy

Others said it.

Tire pressure.
Pressure of resistance unit on tire.
flat spot in tire.

i doubt your bb is actually moving. like someone else said, its probably an optical illusion.

[benb]

Maybe get a "trainer tire" to cut down on the noise/vibration/tire wear. Continental makes one.

I have one for my bike.. my wife does not and just burned through an old tire this winter. It's was crazy how much noise and vibration the normal tire caused on her bike.

[1centaur]

Big fan of dedicated trainer tires - quieter for one. Less rubber shredding for two. Can be hard to mount on some wheels.

Loose skewer often causes clicks. Make sure wheel is well centered. Index shifter if necessary.

Experiment with press-on pressure of the roller. Goldilocks should be your guide.

[thwart]

My daughter experienced similar stuff on our trainer a couple of weeks ago (rollers for me, thanks). It was from the skewer being a bit loose in relation to the frame (in spite of the fact that it was very firmly gripped by the trainer). In other words, you could move the rear wheel a bit in the dropouts (with some force), again even though the rear skewer was held tightly by the cups of the trainer.

Welcome back!

[Sandy]

Thanks for the great responses.

Angry Scientist-

1. Front wheel is on a CycleOps block.
2. I am using 700X25 tires, each set at 120 psi, much higher than the 95/105 I used when cycling
3. The skewers and the trainer is mounted tightly and seems very secure.

Richard- I will check the tire. It has sat for a long time on the rim on the trainer.

SEABREEZE- Excellent idea about taking it around the block ( the bike or the trainer or the bike and the trainer?? :) )

False- Aest/Richard- Thanks for the optical illusion comment.


benb/1 centaur- I will look into trainer tires after I check out more how I set up the trainer/bike. It is a very significant vibration.

thrart- I will check that but the position of the wheel and the tightness of the skewer is something I am normally very obsessive about. Of course this is in the trainer. I will look. Thank you for the welcome back.

[rounder]

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