questions about power meters?

DuncanWatson

DuncanWatson

Well-Known Member
I was considering looking into power meters sometime next year. What do people find works on their Vendettas? I was thinking about maybe the Garmin Vector pedals or something similar. Any thoughts and what works for you all?
 
snilard

snilard

Guru of hot glue gun
Hi Duncan. I am in pretty same situation as you. I am looking for affordable power meter for my V20.
My favorite is Watteam PowerBeat.
I don't like pedal based PMs, I love my Speedplay pedals, but in this field I would prefer PowerTap P1 over Vectors.
With crank arm and spider based PMs I have a problem, because I am using Apex crankset shortened to 150 mm. I know that many cruzbikers use Stages PM.
My other option is PowerTap hub PM, but I it would be difficult for me to abandon my lovely DT swiss hub.
What I also like on PowerBeat is that it supports both Ant+ and BLE.
 
ratz

ratz

Wielder of the Rubber Mallet
DuncanWatson said:
I was considering looking into power meters sometime next year. What do people find works on their Vendettas? I was thinking about maybe the Garmin Vector pedals or something similar. Any thoughts and what works for you all?
Click to expand...

This years update to the The Power Meters Buyer’s Guide–2014 Edition should be coming out any time now. There really is no better source.
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/2014/09/buyers-guide2014-edition.html

The latest news is here on his blog
http://www.dcrainmaker.com/product-reviews/power-meters

Prices are dropping all over the place and the landscape changed a lot this year.

If you like Look style pedals then PowerTap P1 is the better pedal choice. The only thing to remember if you lay the Vendetta down in a sliding crash the Pedal and the handle bars take the brunt of the that impact. Not that I speed from experience this season :(. If your meter is in the pedals that can be a very expensive crash.

Since you have a Yellow Vendetta if you want to go with a Power2Max you should have a side bar chat with me before ordering; they fit but it takes some finesse
 
DuncanWatson

DuncanWatson

Well-Known Member
Ratz, et all,

I can wait since this is something I will think about next year after I hit my goal weight. Thank you for the pointers, I bookmarked it all.
djw
 
jond

jond

Zen MBB Master
duncan i use g3 training wheelset 32 spoke and g3c enve 6.7 wheelset powertap hubs. i have found like dc rainmaker that they just work with consistency , reliability and no issue and have been around the market a long time with the early bugs ironed out a long time ago with the old pro and sl now defunct but i still see the old paint cans out there regularly. a few of my cycling mates with the g3 hub (4 hubs) have found the same. on my training wheelset i have over 45k on the wheel and i have myself changed out the two hub bearings once at 40k with no problems recently. i i am a fair weather rider. in fact the training wheelset has two new rims. i will be using this wheel as i cross the continent. it will be my guide for the duration as to effort. they are reliable power meters but their own advantages (portable between bikes and weigh about the same as a standard hub these days) and disadvantages (powermeter is stuck with the one wheelset which for me is no issue as i use my training wheelset 95% of the time. given the issues of garmin vector pedals and their fiddly set up each time you change bikes (need to torqued right) i would stay away from them. like ratz advises check out dc rainmakers review for an unbiased view of all meters and importantly types. then make your own mind up. however riding with power is something i could never ride without. there are a few other threads on this forum re: power meters. good luck.
 
SamP

SamP

Guru
I'm wondering how well the PowerPod "power meters" will work with CruzBikes (DC Rainmaker post). They are actually airspeed and barometric pressure sensors with a computer that listens in on speed and cadence sensors to estimate power. On a CruzBike, your wind resistance changes a lot less than on a biker on a DF so if it's computed estimate could be more reliable than for DF bikes.
 
jond

jond

Zen MBB Master
SamP said:
I'm wondering how well the PowerPod "power meters" will work with CruzBikes (DC Rainmaker post). They are actually airspeed and barometric pressure sensors with a computer that listens in on speed and cadence sensors to estimate power. On a CruzBike, your wind resistance changes a lot less than on a biker on a DF so if it's computed estimate could be more reliable than for DF bikes.
Click to expand...

but is there an allowance for weight differentials??. cannot beat actual protected strain guages for a watts/kg consistent figure over time that as you lose weight improves. pito tubes have infamously blocked up even on aeroplanes.
 
BentAero

BentAero

Well-Known Member
snilard said:
My favorite is Watteam PowerBeat.
I don't like pedal based PMs, I love my Speedplay pedals... because I am using Apex crankset shortened to 150 mm.
Click to expand...

PowerBeat does NOT work with A) non-hollow cranks such as Apex, or B) cranks shorter than 165mm.

I was so disappointed to find that out, as I also have Apex/155mm cranks.

When my hope for the Watteam system failed, my next fave became the Powertap C1 chainring system. http://www.powertap.com/product/powertap-c1-chainrings
But... I'd have to give up my Q-rings, and I've grown to *really* like OCP-4 as I'm a high cadence spinner, and the smallest inner ring possible on the C1 is 36t, which is too much for my weak legs on big hills.
 
snilard

snilard

Guru of hot glue gun
BentAero said:
PowerBeat does NOT work with A) non-hollow cranks such as Apex, or B) cranks shorter than 165mm.
Click to expand...
I hope that this is only temporary limitation. There is not any technical reason why not support storter cranks. Is there any technical reason why not support non-hollow cranks?

I have same issue with Powertap C1 as You. I don't use Q-rings, but with 150 mm cranks I need low gears. And I don't like look of C1.
 
snilard

snilard

Guru of hot glue gun
@BentAero, what about Rotor In-power? It is left only and ANT+ only but it is made with cranks from 150 mm. But is Rotor's 30 mm axle compatible with V's buttom bracket?
 
ratz

ratz

Wielder of the Rubber Mallet
snilard said:
But is Rotor's 30 mm axle compatible with V's buttom bracket?
Click to expand...

Tried that, failed by 1.5 mm can't spread the clamps that far to get around the bigger cups. And we tried everything when could find to make it work.
 
snilard

snilard

Guru of hot glue gun
ratz said:
Tried that, failed by 1.5 mm can't spread the clamps that far to get around the bigger cups. And we tried everything when could find to make it work.
Click to expand...
Ok, I will stick with PowerTap hub PM and I will wait for electronics that will support both ANT+ and BLE. I don't have money for PM now so I can wait.
 
hamishbarker

hamishbarker

Well-Known Member
I bought an old yellow powertap hub (wired type) with yellow head unit. They come up pretty cheap on ebay (wait for an auction, avoid buy it nows), then build yourself a nice wheel. The yellow head unit talks nicely with golden cheetah software for downloads and all the data analysis you can poke a stick at.
 
snilard

snilard

Guru of hot glue gun
snilard said:
I have same issue with Powertap C1 as You. I don't use Q-rings, but with 150 mm cranks I need low gears. And I don't like look of C1.
Click to expand...
I have changed my mind and added PowerTap to my list of possible powermeters. I realized that it is not a big difference 34 or 36 tooth when I add 40 tooth cog to my cassete. Q-rings would be nice but I don't want to invest even more money to my bike, I have to spend more time riding and training and save money for more important things.
I like that You can transfer cranks with C1 powermeter to another bike a test it aerodynamic/rolling properties without effecting results by PM only by changing BB. With hub based PM this would be at least problematic if not impossible because all bikes I would like to test use 26" or 20" driven wheel.

EDIT: I asked PowerTap dealer about C1 axis hole size. It is 50 mm in diameter.
 
Last edited:
Eric Winn

Eric Winn

Zen MBB Master
super slim said:
Has anyone seen an actual rider report on the new shoe inner sole based power meters from RPM^2

https://www.rpm2.com/

They LOOK incredible!!
But do they actually work???
Click to expand...

Their website says "Under no circumstance should the inserts be submerged in liquid of any kind."

I wonder if that means trouble if you are out doing ultra-cycling in the rain and get soaked? Are they going to short out and/or do rude things to your feet?

What if you have really sweaty feet?

Definitely a very interesting product and the $629 price is less than the $699 I paid for my Stages PM which only gives the left leg and only works for cycling.

 
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