Looking for some suggestions (brand/model type) for a trainer (looking in the $200-$300 region). Read mixed reviews on a number of models - so looking to forum users to give me first hand user info.

Thanks

Fluid trainers give you a more realistic experience, since the resistance increases with wheel speed. This is what happens on the road, of course. I can't give you any advice on specific models. I have only one, and it's under your price range.

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Rodney Dunning

thanks! yes, I looked at a blackburn yesterday (fluid). great help. best, R

Kurt Kinetic. I purchased mine a couple of months ago and have been completely happy with it. The resistance increases as speed increases, no need for adjustments. It's supposedly not likely to leak because it uses magnets to connect the fluid unit to the drive axle.

I'm also in the market for a trainer and came to this section of the forums to ask this same exact question. Since you have already asked though I will watch this thread closely.

+1 on the Kurt Kinetic.

Reasonably quiet, feels totally solid, decent resitance curve. I only got mine this past winter so I can't speak to long-term durability, but when I was researching trainers the KK got almost universally high marks.

Another good trainer is the 1UP (https://www.1upusa.com/bike_trainer.html). Very solidly built and puts little stress on the frame. The power curve is a bit different from real road riding. I've found it realistic for speeds up to ~16mph, but after that it's much harder than being outdoors. Personally I like that feature -- I have to work harder to do the same mileage.

I've heard good things about Kurt Kinetic, but never tried one myself. I used to have a CycleOps wind trainer. It was fine for indoor training but so noisy that I wore ear plugs.

Having gone the cheap route several times in the past I suggest avoiding that. Blackburn fan trainer - ridiculously loud. Kreitler rollers w/fan attachment - rollers awesome, fan noisy and much harder than road. Performance Century - decent, cumbersome to attach. I currently have and love the Kurt Kinetic Pro.

I have a cycle ops fluid and love it.

I use the Minoura MagTurbo 850R Magnetic Indoor Trainer. I use this mainly to do my HIIT workouts with my Trek mountain bike. I don't want to put my road bike on there because I've heard it stresses the frame.

I paid around $150 for this and I'm very satisfied. I'm using this 3 or 4 times a week for around 20 min each time though. (HIIT workouts are fast)