I have the Hammer and think it is a great machine. The only "negative" (could be a positive) is that my indoor splits are typically 2mph slower than outside...predominantly because it does not spin down like in the real world. E.g., if I crest a mountain and start coming down the other side, I can feel the resistance drop substantially but it doesn't go to zero and if I'm not pedaling downhill (easily) it will come to a stop. The plus side is that I have to work harder indoors, but if you want perfect replication then no - the Hammer isn't doing it.

The Hammer works better in ERG mode than the Kickr2 based on my personal experience. YMMV

Do you perceive the sound level of the Cycleops to be moderate or loud? Living in a flat and looking at a kickr or cycleops as well. Want to preserve domestic tranquility with neighbors. Thanks!

Get a Neo if noisenis a factor. It’s super quiet.

Hammer is also quieter than Kickr, or at least it makes a different sound. When I am riding the Hammer with a cyclone fan on max, my wife can't hear it when I shut the door.

IMHO, trying to decide between the major $1,200 USD trainers (Hammer, Drivo, and KICKR) is a lot like debating the best quality free weights. They are so similar, that you probably won't get to a unified answer. And, I am not sure that the differences would produce differences in quality of training. Personally, I have a KICKR and love it. If it disappeared tomorrow, I would buy it again, mainly because it has provided no-nonsense, excellent service. I would have no qualms with a Hammer and would happily buy one if the KICKRs were globally out of stock.

We have both at our house. I use the Hammer and my wife uses the Kickr. Both are rock solid. I think the Hammer feels more solid, but the Kickr might be easier to work on if something went wrong. Both companies seem to do a good job with customer service.

Can't go wrong. Both are great.

Andy

The correct answer is to buy a power meter for your bike and then a basic trainer like the Road Machine. Power meter on a trainer isn't going to help you at all when riding the bike outside.

Why not one of the following?

• Elite Direto
• Tacx Flux Smart Cycling Trainer
• ELITE VOLANO SMART B+ TURBO TRAINER
• Elite Turbo Muin Smart B+ Direct Drive Trainer

I currently have pedal power meters and a dumb trainer. Not sure I like it. Direct drive worth it?

I have the Elite Direto. Great trainer with an actual power meter built in. Direct drive is much better than my experience with wheel-on and the trainer is very quite in ERG mode as I leave it in small ring-middle cog. Worth noting, but in my experience, I've yet to try a trainer in ERG mode that actually feels like it's responding to grades the way it feel outside...

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The Direto is the original smart trainer that I considered. But, I see a lot of support type issues in reviews and on their FB group.

I have a smart trainer, 2 racing wheelsets with G3 powertap and power pedals. No way, not even remotely close, does a power meter on the bike plus a dumb trainer replicate what you can do with a smart trainer. If you can only have one, even that is a toss-up choice. I don't even use my powermeters for sprints and olys.

Cool. I was offering my suggestion since the OP mentioned power specifically. If someone isn't in your situation, I believe a power meter that can be used indoors and out is a better choice.

The OP is asking specifically about a choice between two smart trainers. As I was taught in college: RTFQ.

I was just offering a different option in case they didn’t think of that/think that was an option. Smart trainers are the newer thing and a lot of people think those are the necessity rather then getting by with a traditional trainer. If the OP wants to train with power it’s something to consider to have it when off the trainer.

But thanks for your snark to my reply. You don’t race sprints/Olympics with power despite all your power meters. Well I’ve never had a problem only training off a dumb trainer and my quarq. Different strokes.

Question:

I have Ultegra 11 speed cassette on my tri bike

Wife has an old 105 10 speed cassette on her tri bike

If we were to buy the Wahoo Kickr, would we have to change the cassette when one of us wanted to ride? Or, would we be able to keep the 11 cog on there for both of us to use?

Not sure if matters since OP said price wasn't an issue, but figured it's worth a mention.
Just go an email from Cycleops that they will be having a 20% off sale starting this Friday, so $240 off, worth noting.

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Yeah, I was snarky. I agree that a dumb trainer can be very effective, but a smart trainer can take you to a new level. Over time I found the powermeter useless in sprints...you should be all out. I remove the head unit for those races because it is a distraction. For an oly, I will glance at a few times but mostly race by feel. The utility is in long course racing but even there a lot of pros will not use power. .And in case of a power dysfunction you should still be able to race by feel. In my mind the overall utility for training vastly exceeds the utility for racing. YMMV

It matters. Mind sharing the email with the class?

I am living this with the Hammer right now. I'm on 10, sig other on 11. You can run Erg mode without switching gears, so that's not an issue if all you want is erg workouts, but if you want to ride courses and switch gears, get out your cassette tools...

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We use TrainerRoad exclusively...right now. So let me get this straight. Erg mode means the machine "shifts" for you? So you an set TrainerRoad for Erg mode and complete all of the rides with precision? If that is the case I think she would actually like that so she doesn't have to worry about shifting.

As for me...I would slap an 11 speed on there so I could have versatility.

Side question, how long does it take to swap out cassettes...just in case we go with Zwift, or something.

I could get a Kinetic and set of Powertap P1s for about the same price as a Kickr/hammer.

Too many choices and I'm really torn.

Wife and I both have Hammer's in the basement. Great training tool and Made in America.

Would be happy to, but
I'm not sure how to share a email here, but basically it just said that they will all be on sale (20% off), from the 18th to the 28th at all authorized dealers (assuming you are in the US).
No code or anything was supplied or needed, so contact your LBS, I am pretty sure you can enter your zip code on Cycleops's website to see dealers in your area.

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