Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this bike in an effort to DIY a Peloton to use with their app. For the price, and with a few (optional) upgrades, it has been great! I ride every day, mostly 20-30 minute rides, sometimes multiples a day so it gets consistent use. The pros: -The price, obviously - I saved well over a thousand dollars, even after the extras I’ve added -With proper maintenance the flywheel is silent. We use a couple of drops of 3-in-1 All Temp Silicone on the pad. My husband applies it while I pedal so it applies evenly. We don’t have to do this often but if I hear any sound at higher resistance, we apply a drop or two. -I’m tall and plus size so I was worried about feeling like I’d fall off the bike but the frame is super sturdy. I stand up during pushes and to do stretches and have never once felt like the bike would fall over. -The handlebar coating is really nice, slip free and easy to clean. I never worry about my phone falling off. The cons: -The pedals that come with it are pretty small (I wear a ladies size 9 shoe) and they started clicking after a couple weeks. It wasn’t a huge deal for me because I was already planning on switching them out for SPDs but I was surprised at how quickly it happened, especially since I’m well under the weight limit. No harm, no foul - I upgraded to Venzo SPD pedals and use them with Tommasso Pista Aria Knit shoes with Shimano SPD clips and that supports my foot perfectly. -The handlebar stem is not tight enough. I’ve had my husband tighten it several times and it’s just slightly wobbly from side to side because of extra space on the sides where it inserts into the frame. It would be nice if the plastic collar around it hugged it better. Even better would be if it had a little silicone seal inside it as a buffer. This is the only place on the bike that makes noise for me and I think that is a lot of the squeaking that other people hear too. -The water bottle holder is not good. My bottle kept falling out when it was full and it’s in the way when I’m doing stretches. So, I took it off and put an adjustable holder on the inner handlebars. Again, not a huge deal but just a little something to keep in mind. FYIs: -If you are using this for Peloton and you care about matching the cadence call outs during a ride, you will need a separate cadence sensor. I have the Wahoo Cadence sensor that integrates with the Peloton app and it works wonderfully. -There is no heart rate sensor/display so if you want to see that in app, look into either using your Apple Watch if you have one or buying a heart rate monitor like a Schoshe. -Definitely grab a bottle of the silicone lubricant and do that small bit of maintenance before you start riding. The pad that comes with it wasn’t lubricated at all and it needs a little prep or it will squeak pretty quickly once you up your resistance. -When you install the pedals (or any pedals really), make sure you’re installing them the correct way or you’ll strip the threads in the pedal arm. One of them goes clockwise, the other counter clockwise (I believe it is counter on the left pedal but that info is in the instructions - there are also a ton of good YouTube videos about installing spin bike pedals that are very helpful). Some of the reviews complaining about the pedals sound like they could have put one of them on in the wrong direction (which isn’t as hard to do as you would think). Also, throw a little white grease on those threads before you put them on. We didn’t because we thought they had enough on there. They didn’t and getting the right pedal off when we went to switch them out was a little tricky (but aided by letting a drop of the 3-in-1 silicone soak in overnight before trying again). -In that vein, get a real bike wrench while you’re waiting for this to be delivered. This comes with a small one that works but is very uncomfortable to use. Save your hands and get the full size wrench. It doesn’t have to be an expensive one, mine was under 5 bucks at a local store. -The seat is a little larger than a Peloton seat but not as large as most of the “comfort” seats they sell on here. If you’re looking for a gel seat cover for this while your sits bones adjust to cycling, the only one that I found would fit is made by Bell. I found it in the regular bicycle section at T*rget. -Just like anything else with moving parts, make sure you check periodically to see if anything needs to be tightened. I check once every week or two and occasionally I need to tighten down the screw that hold the handlebar to the stem. No big deal and only takes a second. I check all of the adjuster knobs too. The only one that is ever even slightly loose is the one in the handlebar stem, as mentioned earlier. Even then it is only less than half a turn of the screw. Overall this is a really good bike, especially for the price and if you’re looking to get fit on a budget, it’s a great choice.