A good Powertap installation experience for a change

Dini77

Well...i'm now the proud father of a shiny new PT SL
After reading all the threads of horror installation experiences, setup troubles, ongoing issues, drop-outs, etc, I was expecting for the worst. After carefully following all the advice provided on this forum (the instruction manual should be supplemented with the comments on this forum), my unit works without problem. Even the HR works fine. No drop outs, no erroneous data (at least i don't think), downloads without issues into CP, my computer has a 9pin serial port.....Everything seems spot on. I cannot believe it and am waiting for something to go haywire!

How long will the honeymoon last??? I seriously hope i haven't jinxed myself by sharing the good fortune with you all. Fingers, toes, arms, legs crossed. Thanks to all those who've gone before me and left all the good advice on this forum - but i may be calling on you again!

cheers

RapDaddyo

What, if anything, did you do re. attaching the receiver to the stay? Did you use any shock absorbing material between the receiver and the stay? Also, don't be surprised if you need to replace the hub batteries sooner than you think you should. I've heard of more than one case of units being received with batteries that went dead too soon. Not that it's a big deal. May as well figure out how to unscrew the hub cover because you're going to need to sooner or later.

Dini77

Yeah, i used some foam in addition to those rubber strips that are included to help with shock absorbing. Mounted it 2.75inches (vertically) from hub and 1inch (horizontal). The only annoying part out of all this is the wiring - did my best to make it as clean as possible, but still unsightly -small price to pay i guess

I'm not lookign forward to changing those batteries. Saw another post where you mentioned you might make some fancy contraption specifically for the task. But i'll wait a while before i touch it - don't want to stuff anything up just yet.

1 question though - my receiver is the yellow (CPU 1) unit. Aside from memory, is there any other difference with the other yellow unit (CPU unit 2)?

RapDaddyo

At least until Q2 when Saris will begin shipping the SL 2.4 model.

Nah, that was just a rube goldberg solution for a guy who needed to get his stuck hub cover off on Christmas Eve before a big ride the next day. My suggestion -- get the right tool and figure it out now while your batteries are fresh and firing off all those watts on schedule. I still think Saris should sell a nice little tool for this task, one that won't scratch the plastic hub cover.

I'm not sure Saris is adhering to what they describe as the differentiating aesthetics (logo). My guess is that you have Yellow CPU2 even if you don't have the logo. Don't erase your data for a few days and see when it stops recording. Then you'll know.

Dini77

Does that mean i'd need to get a new receiver unit/cradle to discard the wiring or is it a new hub altogether.



Good tip(s)! will try it all out.
cheers

RapDaddyo

New hub. Different wireless strain gauges. But, there may be a market in outfitting old SLs with the new strain gauges.

You won't have any problem. Remember, that was a SoCal rider. You know how many SoCal cyclists it takes to change the batteries in a PT SL, don't you? Answer: 5, one to attach the hub to a bench vise and 4 to rotate the bench.

kennf

FYI, as far as the CPU1 vs 2 issue, the manual has a typo, and has the diagrams switched. The yellow unit without Cyclops written on the side of the face is CPU 2. I was puzzled by this also and confirmed with Saris.

I also had a completely trouble free set-up, and mounted my receiver on the chainstay, cause it seemed like a cleaner set-up.

But, I can't get heart rate to work.

zaskar

I just also got a Sl and was expecting problems.i have had a trouble free install!! I did have to mount my reciever on the chain stay. on the seat stay i got drop outs with wheel coasting when i was testing it on the stand. when i would spin crank signal would come back. i also used a thick piece of foam rubber on the reciever.
After all the horror stories i can't believe so far how good of unit it is. i only had it 6 day's. only thing that bums me are my numbers.

Hey Dini77 what do you think of your numbers? have you tested yet?

zaskar

FWIW I did get a couple of hrt drop out and---. but my polar also did the same thing. in my case it is static electricity. here in the desert it is very dry single digit humidity. when the wind flaps my jersey it causes the staic. i use static cling and the works for a few hours till it wears off. i also use my polar strap since the pt isn't coded. for what it's worth try another strap.

Dini77

Oh well, c'est la vie


LOL. Lucky i'm not from socal.
Us Aussies usually save those types of jokes for New Zealanders!

Dini77

Haven't done any testing on it yet. My plan is to ride all my favourite routes/hills/roads for the next 2-3 weeks and get some basic numbers to serve as a benchmark and to get a feel for the numbers, etc. Also have a few crits that i'll use it in - am very interested to see what the race data looks like

I'll then do some tests in a month or so. I just want to data log at the moment.

Dini77

Thanks for clearing that up. This is further evidence to support my comment that Saris should supplement their manual with advice on this forum.

RapDaddyo

Unfortunately, you'll probably need to get a new computer from Saris to fix this problem. My HR receiver has failed in no less than two SL computers. Fortunately, Saris will send you a new one on the basis of a phone call and you don't have to return your old one until you get the new one. I think it's just a crappy HR receiver. The only good news is that now that you're riding with power you don't need your HR monitor. I'll keep replacing mine when it fails until my warranty is up and then I won't bother. Actually, by then I won't even be using the PT computer anyway.

PSUcycling

Not to be contridictory, but being able to interpret HR date right along your power data is VERY useful. Iv'e been training with power for about a year and am lucky enough to have a coach that does as well. Obviously, if you had to pick one or the other, power would be the most accurate, but HR still has an important place.

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