I recently purchased a (used) set of wheels off eBay that have a Powertap hub. The ad stated “T**his hub can instantly give feedback to you GPS and CYCLEOPS USB device (not included) about your ride.” Since it mentioned GPS, I assumed that this was an ANT+ hub. However, even with a fresh set of batteries, I can’t get the hub to pair with my Garmin. I can hear a slight buzz from the hub roughly every second, so it is getting power from the batteries. At this point though, I’m not sure if I’m having issues pairing with my Garmin, or if the seller wasn’t 100% honest (shocking, that would never happen on eBay!)
Is there a way to identify what model of hub I have based on the serial number? I think it might be a Powertap SL, but I can’t tell for sure. It does appear to be carbon fiber, but based on the age of the wheels, it’s probably circa 2006-2010. The wheels are Bonrager Race X Lite RXL, and it’s my understanding that Powertap made a round of hubs specifically for these wheels (16 hole hub, and it’s branded with both Powertap and Bontrager on it).
One way or another the big deal is whether you have a PT with the 12mm vs 15mm axle. The 15mm are all rebuildable for the most current G3 electronics. Given the age of the hub it could be a wired hub or I think there was maybe one year they did a non ANT wireless hub.
The ad was bogus because the hub has never had GPS. All GPS features are contained in the head unit. The USB port is to upgrade firmware for the hubs.
Sounds like you have a good case for asking for your money back or at least ask for the seller to pay for an upgrade to a G3.
If all else fails call Powetap. You won’t find many companies that do a better job supporting their legacy products.
I think you have a black SL hub which is not ant+ but can be upgraded to ant+ with an updated that plugs into the electronics. But I haven’t seen those available for a long time. The other option is to just use the little yellow computer that comes with the SL.
some of the 16hole powertaps were wired SL hubs, and were on bontrager race lite rims. Your unit may be a wired unit, but it is also possible it works with the 2.4 wireless computer. Another possible issue is that the batteries are in the wrong direction, as that was a common mistake with the dual 357 battery models. If you can get the cap off take a picture of that as the connections are different on the wired and wireless.
Thanks for all the help, everyone. Here’s a picture of the batteries - I replaced them with fresh ones as soon as I received the wheel. https://goo.gl/photos/bf9ZswqRJwYJ91Aj9
I’ll call Powertap this morning and see if they can tell me based on the serial number. But, based on everyone’s responses, it’s likely I’ll be shipping this wheelset back to the eBay seller and getting my money back.
those are in the correct direction. That piece doesnt tell me much, but rather the connection underneath it does. My guess is still that you have the wired version and would not be able to get anything to transmit without a wired sensor and LYC. I have not seen any black 16hole wireless models that came spec’d on race lite rims, but that doesnt mean they dont exist.
I’m 95% sure that is a wireless power tap hub, as I had one that looked just like that. It is not ANT+, but instead sends a wireless signal to what Powertap calls their “little yellow computer,” (which didn’t have GPS). It is also possible that early Joule model computers with GPS could also talk to the hub. Now, you can send that wheel to Powertap, and they can upgrade it to ANT+ for you so that it works with any ANT+ device.
I called Powertap yesterday, and they returned my call while I was out running over lunch (and didn’t leave a voicemail). After that I sent them an email, so hopefully I’ll hear back in the near future.
Like Spot said, a Joule GPS is an option for you. Before I got both of my hubs upgrades to G3/11 speed (a $350 upgrade), they were the plain wireless versions, and working with my Joule GPS head unit just fine.
After talking with both Bontrager (Trek) customer service and Powertap customer service, the verdict is that it’s a wired Powertap SL hub. So, I’ll be shipping it back to the seller and start looking for another power meter.
I think I had read that somewhere, about the upgrade to G3. Based on the wheelset that the hub is attached to, I don’t think it’s worth it for me to invest another $350 into it. It’s a 16 hole hub, so it’s also not readily transferable to a new wheelbuild later on down the road.
