... I've had mine for a couple of weeks now, here is the specifications some of you are looking for.
1. THE SEAT; Some mentioned it was unconfortable--I didn't notice but here is why and my advice on how to deal with it. If you take both your hands and put your thumb tips together, then your two middle fingers together to form something like a diamond shape--then seperate them about two inches.....and you have the size of the seat. My opinion is--don't lean forward much. Futher, I've got a pillow and half a roll of duck tape to deal with that problem if it ever arrives. (I don'tknow why the industry keeps putting bicycle seats on these exercise machines when everybody knows a motorcycle seat is better.
2. THE RESISTANCE KNOB; Yeal, that knob isn't the best design. If you look up at the top of the page and see the picture, you'll notice the front wheel. Well, a canvas strap wraps around that wheel. When you want more resistance, you turn the knob and it tightenes up the strap. This way you get more resistance. One of the problems here, the difference between no resistance and total resistance is that strap being tightened up about one half inch. I tried mine, it does work, but not as well as I would have liked it to. Fortunately, you can reach through the handlebars and take hold of the straps' end (just above the front wheel) and either loosen or tighten it. Don't ask me how long that canvas strap will work before friction wears through it. For those of you who've been around, the strap is a lot like the military straps on your 'web' gear where you tighten and loosen things up. It is also similair to the straps on a 'field pack'. The bottom of this strap has some sort of felt-like material under it. This strap wraps around a 'slick' piece of plastic. This plastic allows the strap to slide around the wheel without heat build up. It feels less slick than 'soapstone'. I figure it will last a year. I have other straps on my field pack. If this strap ever breaks...I'll sew it to one of them.
3. PEDALS. Plastic, wider and longer than on my mountain bike...here's the measurements.
Mountain bike: Four inchs wide (wider than my foot) three inches long.
Exercise bike: Four/one half inches wide...three/one half inches long.
Remember the last time you rode a bike and the middle of your foot was a little sore?......I don't think this will be a problem.
4. FOAM HAND GRIPS; They remind me of pipe wrap. A hollow tube of foam that you pull over the white handle bars. I tried to just pull mine on and tore a 'thumbnail' size piece out of one. Then, I took my can of WD-40--sprayed both handlebars-- and 'wringed' the hand grips on. Wringed?...like wringing a wash cloth--twist forward with the right hand, twist backwards with the left while all the time scooting it across the handle bar. The only real trouble I had getting them on was stretching the hollow foam tube open enough to get it started on the handle bar.
5. CHAIN: I've hand no trouble with the chain yet.
six. FRONT WHEEL; Front wheel is made of plastic.
7. CHAIn GUARD; If you look up at the picture you'll see a black material covering the 'chain' area--I guess to keep your fingers and toes away from it. It is on both sides of the bike and is made of fairly strong plastic--I didn't take it apart.
8. TIME TO CONSTRUCT: It took me about an hour to put this machine together.
9. WOBBLE: Mine sits on a short nape wall to wall carpet with padding under the carpet. Sitting on it, and tilting to either side I get little more than one inch of wobble in either direction--nice and sturdy.
10. CONSTRUCTION; Nice and solid. A man once mentioned to me '...the front bumper on your car is twenty gage steel...' The metal supports in this machine appear to be the same thickness. Very solid construction for all supports. In the construction instructions it said '...supports up to 250 pounds...' I have to agree--I doubt any of us will break one of these supports in our life time.
11. HEIGHT OF SEAT; With my seat at the lowest position, it measures out to 31 inches high. I read all the other reviews. Some mentioned it was hard for short people to get on. I'm just over five and half feet tall--I have no problem at all. Those of you who are shorter might consider pulling the seat out (steel rod attached) and cut the bottom three inches off of the hollow steel rod. You'll have to leave screw/pin adjustment knob off unless you want to re-drill your hole. (I'm going to put a captain's 'seat' on mine so I can swivel it around and work on my computer--so I don't have a problem with tossing that 'screw/pin' away.
12. ELECTRONICS; I didn't mount mine to the bike--I have no use for such things as distance, calories burned...yak, yak, yak.
All in all, very sturdy construction in all the 'key' places. That resistance strap may or may not be a problem in the future with it breaking--but I know a work-around. I don't think you'll find its' equal on the internet for the same price anywhere. I got mine at one hundred and nineteen dollars--I noticed other web sites were charging two hundred dollars for the same product....this is probably some 'introductory' price.
If you are poor or cheap (like me) you might consider Weslo Pursuit E25.
bye! ...
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