Mountain Biking - Computer suggestions

Looking for a durable but inexpensive computer for my mtb. Primarly concerned with distance more so than speed. Looking in the sub $40 range. Any help would be appricated. Thanx - Cuda

Cat Eye Enduro 8

Specifically geared towards MTB'ers.

Should be under $40.

Check out Cat Eye's website.
http://www.cateye.com/en/products/viewProductModels.php?catId=6
They have a nice selection of computers that are in your price range.

Thanks for the suggestions, I was leaning towards the CatEye products and found the Enduro on Ebay for $25 shipped.

Vetta also used to make very good PC's for your bike....

I just bought a Cateye Micro Wireless for my MTB and so far am pretty pleased. My LBS wanted $55 for it but off eBay I was able to get it new for $34 to the door. I've only had it on for about 30mi so I can't tell you about it's ruggedness but I like it's size and the fact I've got no wire routed up my fork. The display is a little small but smaller in this case is good I reckon. Anyway, like I said, I'm real pleased with it and for the price you can't beat it for a decent quality computer..

I got my enduro 8 maybe a month ago

just been able to use it yesterday, It is a very good computer

It does everything i need and is very strong too. i smashed it against a stump, no damage. Heavy duty wiring is awesome too. Great Buy

I got my enduro 8 maybe a month ago

just been able to use it yesterday, It is a very good computer

It does everything i need and is very strong too. i smashed it against a stump, no damage. Heavy duty wiring is awesome too. Great Buy

Now thats what I like to hear. Stump smashing and still ticking goodness. Now if I could just find time and get good enough to do anything technical enough to bring about a chance of a stump smash... one thing at a time I guess.

I had teh Cateye wireless7 for about 5 min. it was total crap. it came with some lame / ultra cheap zipties to hold the sensor to the fork that couldn't reach around my fork, even W/ longer zips the sensor kept sliding down the frok. While the magnet on the spoke kept sliding out and away from the sensor. and last but not least the crap-o-la zipties that mout the computer to the bar alow the thing to move & twist on the bar when you push the hard to push buttons.

10 years ago I bought a Vetta C-20 computer for my road bike. it actualy clamped to the fame like a reflector to the bar or seat post. that computer was only $25.00 I would have expected the $45.00 cateye peice to be at least as good as the old Vetta.

just my 2cents

BTW my vetta C-20 still works fine on my old road bike.

1fast4500, I can tell you that if you attach a zip tie correctly it isn't going to go anywhere, but it takes needle nose pliers or something similar to make sure you've got it pulled very tight. The Cateye Micro Wireless came with rubber bases for both the display and the sensor, when attached properly with the included zip ties neither unit is going anywhere. Also, it comes with 4 zip ties, 2 short and 2 long. The short ones are for the stem/bar and the long ones for the fork. If the long ones weren't long enough to fit around your fork then you've got the biggest forks I've ever heard of. You must have a different fork because the Judy is certainly not too big for the ties included.

All that said, the Vetta sounds like a very reliable unit and when I have that good of luck with something I tend to stay brand loyal, so I certainly can't blame you there.

I had teh Cateye wireless7 for about 5 min. it was total crap. it came with some lame / ultra cheap zipties to hold the sensor to the fork that couldn't reach around my fork, even W/ longer zips the sensor kept sliding down the frok. While the magnet on the spoke kept sliding out and away from the sensor. and last but not least the crap-o-la zipties that mout the computer to the bar alow the thing to move & twist on the bar when you push the hard to push buttons.

10 years ago I bought a Vetta C-20 computer for my road bike. it actualy clamped to the fame like a reflector to the bar or seat post. that computer was only $25.00 I would have expected the $45.00 cateye peice to be at least as good as the old Vetta.

just my 2cents

BTW my vetta C-20 still works fine on my old road bike.

Just wondering, have you ever used one of these?

http://gallery.rei.com/media/697496Prd.jpg

Just wondering, have you ever used one of these?

http://gallery.rei.com/media/697496Prd.jpg


Now that is sweet. Maybe I'm showing my redneck nature, but I've never seen one of those before. Good stuff. I would use one maybe once a year, yet I still find myself with the overwhelming urge to own one now..

Its an excellent tool and does exactly what is supposed to do. I love it!

http://gallery.rei.com/media/697496Prd.jpg

now that is infact a tool. BUT even after my LBS tried to atach the sensor to the fork it still would slide down. While the sensor did have a rubber boot, the dispaly had a tiny peice of 3M tape that quickly lost it's grip and alowed the display to slip. and the zips where plenty tight. the guy at the shop broke two of them, before he agreed with me, said sory and gave me my money back.

That tool might have helped. But there was no getting that sensor tight.

thay could have easily spent 1$ more at the cateye plant and made that thing with a built in strap and a screw.


The LBS blamed the port fit to the fork on the fact that my Rock Shock Judy TT has taperd legs. I still say it is just poorly engineered.

CatEye knows how to make good durable computers. This was borne out of their CC-8000 from long ago (1989) and the Enduro line is a decendant of the CC-8000. The CC-8000 was their first computer to be fully waterproofed, encased in a ruggedised housing, used a reinforced mount and have extra thick sensor wires.

http://www.bikepro.com/products/computers/comp_jpg/j_cateye_atc.jpg

A dozen years ago, I was on a night ride with this girl along an unlit trail (save for my meager Cateye 5W headlamp) that led around Fermi National Accelerator Labs in Batavia, IL where we both worked as college interns. She mentioned something about being able to see the stars (a rarity for the burbs of Chicago) and I started staring up and stargazing. By the time I heard her yell, "look out!", the big 4" diameter roadblock/gate was upon me. It was right at handlebar height. I didn't even have time to fully hit the brakes. I was doing maybe 16MPH when I contacted the bar. The bike came to a complete stop. I however, did not.

I went sailing over the bars (both my bike's and the gate's) and plunged headfirst onto the hard gravel. Luckily, my helmet which nobly sacrificed itself in favour of my noggin did its job and absorbed the impact while leaving me with a bit of a headache. My date was both amused and concerned. And I guess I sorta soaked it up... Hey, sympathy attention is better than none.

It was a total yard sale. We spent the next hour looking for all my gear. The CC-8000 took the brunt of the impact and nicely got ejected off into the bushes but came out with hardly a scratch on the housing. The bike came out relatively unscathed (some scratches on the brake levers and barends) but it took us both a good 45 minutes of beating around in the bush to locate my bike computer.

I just bought a Cateye Micro Wireless for my MTB and so far am pretty pleased. My LBS wanted $55 for it but off eBay I was able to get it new for $34 to the door. I've only had it on for about 30mi so I can't tell you about it's ruggedness but I like it's size and the fact I've got no wire routed up my fork. The display is a little small but smaller in this case is good I reckon. Anyway, like I said, I'm real pleased with it and for the price you can't beat it for a decent quality computer..


Mine was $50 at the LBS. I'm VERY pleased with it.

I've got about 200 miles on mine. I got caught in a thunderstorm today and it performed flawlessly.

The LBS guys tell me it's VERY popular. They're selling like hotcakes.

http://gallery.rei.com/media/697496Prd.jpg

now that is infact a tool. BUT even after my LBS tried to atach the sensor to the fork it still would slide down. While the sensor did have a rubber boot, the dispaly had a tiny peice of 3M tape that quickly lost it's grip and alowed the display to slip. and the zips where plenty tight. the guy at the shop broke two of them, before he agreed with me, said sory and gave me my money back.

That tool might have helped. But there was no getting that sensor tight.

thay could have easily spent 1$ more at the cateye plant and made that thing with a built in strap and a screw.


The LBS blamed the port fit to the fork on the fact that my Rock Shock Judy TT has taperd legs. I still say it is just poorly engineered.

Try using that tacky stuff you use to put posters up on the wall. That should keep it from slipping.

Mine doesn't slip at all on the fork. I guess I just installed it correctly. The one on the top tube kinda slides sideways a bit. Oh well.

What does surprise me is that CatEye makes VERY nice mounts for their lighting systems. Why can't they adapt those to accept their cyclo-computers.

Beyond that, my research into the subject indicates that the Zip-Ties are cheap and reliable. All the "real mounting" systems out there seem to break easily.

What does surprise me is that CatEye makes VERY nice mounts for their lighting systems. Why can't they adapt those to accept their cyclo-computers.

What should surprise you more is that those light system mounts were based off earlier CatEye cyclocomputer mounts. Then for some reason, they cheapened up the computer mounts.

What should surprise you more is that those light system mounts were based off earlier CatEye cyclocomputer mounts. Then for some reason, they cheapened up the computer mounts.

I wouldn´t buy a computer with zip tie mounts. The main problem is that you can´t take the computer mount off the bike and put it back on without going and buying new zip ties. And you can´t just use any old zip tie you have to get the right size ones. They don´t particularly look very nice either. Cheap and unneccessary.

I wouldn´t buy a computer with zip tie mounts. The main problem is that you can´t take the computer mount off the bike and put it back on without going and buying new zip ties. And you can´t just use any old zip tie you have to get the right size ones. They don´t particularly look very nice either. Cheap and unneccessary.

The real reason I think for the zip-tie mounts is to accomodate varying handlebar widths (MTB, road, oversized) and mounting positions (handlebar vs stem). The computer manufracturing companies decided that it would be cheaper to create one mounts with zip-tie slots as opposed to multiple mounts.

Cateye sells the mounting bracket for the handlebars with the good wrap around screw on deal you guys are wanting it seems. They offer it in OS and standard size bars. Personally I have mine on the stem with the rubber base it came with and have not had it move at all, but to each their own. Check the back of your manual for the mount part number..

Cat Eye Enduro 8

Specifically geared towards MTB'ers.

Should be under $40.
How can a product be geared towards a specific type of bike? Don't they all have similar functions (speed, avg speed, trip distance, odometer, cadence, etc.)? Or do Mtn computers have some functions that road computers don't have & vice versa? I'm just curious. I'm thinking about upgrading my computer (I don't have cadence) and I'm looking at Cateye products (since everyone seems to like them here).

Thanks for your help.

How can a product be geared towards a specific type of bike? Don't they all have similar functions (speed, avg speed, trip distance, odometer, cadence, etc.)? Or do Mtn computers have some functions that road computers don't have & vice versa? I'm just curious. I'm thinking about upgrading my computer (I don't have cadence) and I'm looking at Cateye products (since everyone seems to like them here).

The biggest difference is that the cables are thicker and the casing is made to take more abuse. See post #15.

Ahhhh, I see. Do you know if Cateye computers are waterproof? Or at least somewhat water resistance? I would hate to go for a ride in the rain and have it malfunction.

Right now, I have a basic Specialized computer and it seems to do fine in the rain. I rode in a thunderstorm recently and it's still working! :)

Ahhhh, I see. Do you know if Cateye computers are waterproof? Or at least somewhat water resistance? I would hate to go for a ride in the rain and have it malfunction.

The versions of the CatEye computers that I had which were intended for offroad/MTB use were waterproof to depth of 100 feet.

What are you using on your road bike right now? I've seen a picture of it before and it looks pretty high tech.

What are you using on your road bike right now? I've seen a picture of it before and it looks pretty high tech.

Shimano FlightDeck. I'm also using it on my MTB with a wired harness. it's actually turning out to be a tougher computer than I thought it would be. It's been through quite a few spills.

http://www.neebu.net/~khuon/albums/1999-k2-ozm/PICT0029.jpg

Nice! It shows you what gear you're in. That's something a gadget person would love. Does it also give you cadence? I'm mainly looking for a cadance reading. I'm trying to keep my cadence above 90.

Nice! It shows you what gear you're in. That's something a gadget person would love. Does it also give you cadence? I'm mainly looking for a cadance reading. I'm trying to keep my cadence above 90.

It shows "virtual cadence" which is cadence if you were actually loading the pedals. This is done without an actual cadence sensor. The cadence is "back-calculated" from the gear ratios and the wheel speed. The downside is that if you're coasting, your cadence will still read as if you're pedalling. However, one could argue that cadence is moot unless you're actually putting load on the pedals.

The LBS blamed the port fit to the fork on the fact that my Rock Shock Judy TT has taperd legs. I still say it is just poorly engineered.

My bike computer sensor fits perfectly on my 4500's TT, Mine is a Ciclo, also it is not wire less, which may explain that

The versions of the CatEye computers that I had which were intended for offroad/MTB use were waterproof to depth of 100 feet.

How long did you have to hold your breath ? :)

How long did you have to hold your breath ? :)

It's a new style of MTBing... you've heard of FR, DH, XC, DS, 4X... This is SM... SubMarine. :D Instead of a gatehouse, you launch out of the bow tubes of a 774-class attack sub. :)

It's a new style of MTBing... you've heard of FR, DH, XC, DS, 4X... This is SM... SubMarine. :D Instead of a gatehouse, you launch out of the bow tubes of a 774-class attack sub. :)

:roflmao: That must be quite the rush out of the gate !!!!


10 out of a possible 10 for a good reply ! :)