V Bike

[dc13]

I am looking into purchase new bikes for an authorized Spinning facility, so I am wondering what people's experience has been with the V bike (as compared to the JG Spinner). I have riden the Spinners but have never even been on the V bike, so I am curious as to how the ride compares as well as maintenance issues.

Thanks in advance,
dc

[Satori]

Hey dc,
My personal preference is the JG Spinner. We have had riders that couldn't get a safe, comfortable fit on the V-bike. Also when I have ridden the V, it felt flexy. One other factor, I heard from a reliable source Star Trac is discontinuing the production of the V-Bike, that may tell you something.
Finding the Balance,
Satori

[spinnerpom]

I have mixed feelings about the Vbike.

I don't like the rough textured handle bars and the bars themselves are a little short. The bike feels much less substantial than the Spinner, although the nice thing about plastic is NO RUST!

I like the feel when I ride it, although when I get off my bike and get back on, I often find I need to re-add resistance. Weird.

Best thing on the Vbike is the fore/aft adjustment on the handlebars, and the fact that short people seem to fit more easily on the V-bike.

That said, if you want that style of bike, the LeMonde Revmaster rocks and feels like more of a precision machine to me.

po:

Thanks so much for your insight. I also like the revmaster but I feel compelled to go with an authorized spinning prodcut for trademark reasons (unfortunately) . . .

dc

[Satori]

Hey dc...Don't know how long licensing is going to be a issue....Go for quality and reliability.....Pom is cool...
Satori
" Do you have the patience to wait till your mud settles and the water is clear?" Lao-Tzo

[kipkip1]

I service a bunch of v-Bikes, as well as instruct on them. from a ride point of view i couldn't be happier, I never felt "right" on the Spinner. Maintenence-wise they are a dream. start Trac has great service, gets parts to you quick and I find them much less troublesome than some other bikes both in terms of ride, and repair. The V-bike was going to be discontinued, but the JG Spinner is selling like crap, so it was put (V) back on inventory lists with star trac. I never understood why MDA took the hole over micro adjustments anyway.

[hammertime]

A few challenges I came across with the V-bike:
1) Didn't like the feel of the handlebar, although I love riding outdoors.
2) The adjustment handles always seem to come loose of their own accord
3) Like the microadjustment concept, but could never figure out why Star Trac chose not to have millimeter increments on the shafts so you could consistently set yourself up. Some days I had a good fit, other days I just couldn't get it on the mark.

Other than that the ride seems to be cool.

Some food for thought; since both bikes are accepted in a licensed Spinning facility you can choose a mix of both bikes. If I am not mistaken they cost the same amount and both bikes come with the replacement parts.

dc ... I teach at different clubs, have been on V-Bikes, Spinners, Tomahawk, Revmaster ....

I agree the V-Bike seems a bit more "flimsy" than the others. The things I like about the V-Bike are the textured handlbars and most importantly -- the ability to adjust the handlebars fore/aft. I see that my 'height challenged' riders have difficulty with the other bikes, but they can adjust the fore/aft on the V-Bike so that it is close enough to them to be comfortable.

Mac

[24spinngirl]

:P dc13
I teach on 3 different bikes, JG (Old kind), V-bike, Tomahawk. I like the Tomahawk, slightly different to set up than the others but, VERY commfy.
Very smooth peddles. I'm very much sold on the V-bike but they are not making them (so I heard) I like the slide ajustments on the V-bike.
People @ the gym that are tall more than 5'5" love the tomahawk I do to :D