Brand-X TT-01 Magnetic Turbo Trainer incl Riser

The Brand-X TT-01 trainer (catchy name there) is a well built and functional budget trainer that's just the ticket for warming up at races or lighter use at home. At its £99.99 RRP it would be well worth considering; at the moment it's £69.99, which is a bargain.

The TT-01 is a very standard design: a resistance unit bolted onto a hinged A-frame that's well constructed from box and tube alloy. Fitting your bike is just a case of tightening the mounts against your rear quick release. The TT-01 comes with a steel QR if you don't want to clamp the posh one that came with your wheels (many of which won't fit anyway), and there's a quick release lever on one side that makes fitting and removing your bike a simple enough job once you've got the width of the cups dialled in.

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Once the bike's in place it's just a case of tightening the roller against the wheel (it'll cope with 26in to 700C wheels), clamping the seven-position magnetic resistance lever onto your handlebar somewhere, chucking the front wheel in the supplied riser, and off you go.

In use the trainer feels stable, and the rear wheel clamp gives you enough confidence that you can throw your weight around a bit. The flywheel isn't very heavy, which means that the TT-01 doesn't have the realistic feel of more expensive trainers; it can feel a bit choppy at times and it's not the kind of trainer you'd want to be doing sprint intervals on. For steady state training, though, such as warming up for a race, it's fine.

The magnetic resistance does make a meaningful difference to the effort at the pedals. At a steady cadence of 90rpm in a middling gear, it ranged from 150w at the easiest setting to 270w at the hardest, so nearly twice as much resistance. Obviously you can affect the amount of work you do with the gears too. The resistance curve as you spin the TT-01 faster is fairly good, though it doesn't ramp up as much as more expensive units.

It's not a quiet trainer, this. One friend likened it to the whine of a Tie Fighter defending the Death Star, and although I'd say that was harsh, it isn't the nicest sound you'll hear. You won't get away with using it in a room where other people are trying to do stuff, but in the spare room/garage/shed or by the back of the car at a race, it's no problem.

The TT-01 folds up for storage and its footprint is fairly small anyway. It'll easily fit under the bed, and it just about goes in one of those woven plastic bags for life from your favourite supermarket. That makes it easy to throw in the car for warm-up duties.

All in all, the TT-01 puts in a very solid performance. You shouldn't expect miracles for less than £100, but Brand-X has concentrated on making this trainer solid and usable, and it's done a good job. As your first trainer, or as a second trainer for carting about, the TT-01 is more or less ideal.

Verdict

Good value indoor trainer that's ideal as a first buy, or as a second trainer for races