All SportCrafters rollers are designed to make the best technology in bike rollers available at the most affordable price. If you’re considering rollers, you already rank among the small percentage of cyclists who know what rollers can do to improve technique, power, efficiency and handling skills, so you won’t find clever sales slogans or cliché’s here, just facts.  The rollers you eventually choose, whether ours or from another manufacturer, should best suit your basic training needs and should not be chosen based on low price or tricky features. If your roller fits your training program and you are comfortable using it, you will wear it out. If not, it will gather dust. The most important basic decision is roller drum diameter and material. Please spend some time researching the discussion below on these subjects. If our roller drums meet your needs, we then encourage you to compare all other features against all other rollers on the market before making your buying decision. We also encourage any questions you have.

No roller in the industry beats SportCrafters for smooth ride, quiet, reliable performance and rugged construction.

You don’t have to be a pro to start your roller training regimen with our user-friendly, low profile frame and off-the-shelf road level resistance.

But if you're a pro, well, that's OK too.

What BICYCLING had to say

"Smooooth.  The drums .... spin with such fluidity that, to paraphrase a bike-review cliché, they disappear beneath you. At 90 rpm in medium gearing, the drums let you whirl at talking pace but are small enough to make you suffer at high rotations.... we found the ride exceptionally smooth at all speeds but especially so at heavy loads with high cadence..."

"OUR VERDICT:  Exquisite ride and great looks"
(Bicycling, January/February 2004)

Product Improvements

2012 improvements

This year we redesigned the end cap mold to index all the important features together so that every shot delivers a perfect part. This significantly reduces runout variations before lathing to improve dynamic balance.

2011 improvements

We’ve added a zinc dichromate plating on the frames before they are powder coated to provide a longer life, especially if the frames are scratched by cleats

2009 improvements

We made the leap to laser-cut inner axle tubes for optimum bearing alignment, which significantly improves drum life. We also modified the end cap mold to improve tolerances on the cap and drum assembly.

ZRO Aluminum

• Drum Diameter: 3.25”
• Drum Wall Thickness: 0.125”
• Typical runout:  less than 0.001" - imperceptible
• Balance: Computer spin balanced
• Fits Bike Wheelbase: 38" - 44.25" (965 - 1124mm)
• Width: 16”
• Frame: Bi-fold tubular steel 1” square 16 guage, zinc plated and powder coated
• Bearings: Precision, low friction hi-temp grease packed and sealed
• End Caps: Molded Polycarbonate
• MSRP: $299

ZRO PVC

• Drum Diameter: 3.50”
• Drum Wall Thickness: 0.250”
• Typical runout:
• Balance: Close tolerance components provide smooth ride at average road speeds
• Fits Bike Wheelbase: 38" - 44.25" (965 - 1124mm)
• Width: 16”
• Frame: Bi-fold tubular steel 1” square 16 guage, zinc plated and powder coated
• Bearings: Precision, low friction hi-temp grease packed and sealed
• End Caps: Molded ABS
• MSRP: $199
• NOW ON SALE AT SPINZONECYCLING.COM FOR $159.00 ! HURRY!!

Details Of Roller Construction And Features

Spin balanced aluminum drums

All aluminum drums are spin balanced using modern computerized two-plane balancing equipment.  Spin balancing combined with the lowest industry tolerance for runout provides the smoothest ride on rollers that you’ll ever experience

Lifetime lubricated and sealed radial ball bearings.

Truly SEALED precision bearings give you no noise and lifetime performance.  A lot of roller bearings are only caged, even though they are claimed to be “sealed”.   Non-sealed bearings can become contaminated with moisture, dust and carpet fibers which will cause noise and premature failure. Our bearings are filled with high-temp grease and sealed with soft rubber seals on both sides of the bearing. We believe in over-design, so the load and speed ratings of these bearings are well beyond the most severe duty cycles.

Oversize axles (3/4” OD between bearings) will not flex.

At some time during the life of your rollers, you will probably come down hard on one of your drums during a fall, or in transporting your roller you may hit one of the drums.  A weaker axle will flex on impact and cause some runout by allowing a slight misalignment of the bearings.  So although it may seem that you damaged a drum,  in fact all you’ve done is bowed the axle slightly.  A oversize “beefy” axle will not flex so your drum should maintain its balance at all times.   Although the axles are hidden on assembled rollers, we encourage you to ask for specific dimensions from other manufacturers to assure you’re getting the value you’re paying for!

Rugged power-coated steel folding frame always keeps 6 oversized rubber padded feet on the floor.

The frame uses very rugged 1” square, 16 gage tube from a local U.S. mill.   Note that most other frames use smaller tube size or flimsier extrusions.  The hinge in the middle of the frame allows enough compliance to allow all 6 feet to hit the floor so you don’t have to find the flattest floor to train on.  Once unfolded and ready to use,  you can put all your weight on the frame to step on/off without any flex or damage to the frame.   This rugged yet compliant frame design is critical to maintaining good balance and control.   We zinc plate and then powder coat for ultimate durability.  The US Navy uses powder-coat on seagoing ship components to protect them from highly corrosive and abusive environments.

The soft rubber feet are specially designed to absorb shock and vibration to help give you the smoothest ride.  Unfortunately the precision on the roller drums is no match for imperfections that are typical of bike tires and wheels, so we try to accommodate these imperfections as much as possible to give you the best ride with whatever equipment you’ve got.

Low profile keeps you close to the ground.

For getting on and off, as well as recovering from an occasional run off the side, you will appreciate being as low to the ground as possible.  The frame is entirely flat on the top to allow easier step on/off.  Note that other frames often put a stand-off hinge right where you’d like to step!  The drum axles extend through the frame rather than on top so that if you do ride off the side, your tire will safely contact a flat surface rather than an axle flange which can inflict more serious damage to your bike!

Knobs, not nuts. ... No tools needed for drum adjustment.

We know that a good roller may be used by several riders, often at the same workout session or event. Using knobs, we made it a lot easier to adjust drums and disassemble.

Discussion On Drum Materials

Selection of material is important to a satisfying workout and lifelong use of your roller.

Discussion On Roller Drum Diameter

Selection of the proper drum diameter for your level of training is very important. Larger drum diameters of 4” or more are made popular by a lot of manufacturers, however you’ve probably noticed these are typically sold with resistance units. Large drums give you a relatively easy spin on high pressure road tires, and a little more aggressive spin on mountain bike tires.  If you train on hybrid or mountain bike tires and your body weight is above 170 pounds, you may want to stick with the larger drums.

Smaller diameter drums give you increased natural resistance from tire compression. Some rollers are as small as 2-1/4” which promise a very strenuous workout no matter who you are or what gear you’re in.  We don’t recommend this; rollers should always allow you a moderate workout to simulate a level road.  Whether you add resistance to provide some occasional uphill simulation is up to you, but you shouldn’t be fighting your roller constantly.

We’ve found that drums in the 3” to 3.5” range give you a good workout and relatively easy spin on high pressure road tires at your normal road speed range, assuming your body weight is less than 220 lbs and you’re in good physical conditioning.  Resistance can be added to these units if needed for stronger workouts, but most people find drum diameters in this range to give them the best overall training.    Resistance will change with speed, so your gearing will give you a very wide band of resistance range.

If your body weight is higher and you ride a road bike, the smaller diameter drums will give you appropriate resistance but you may need to gear down to a speed less than typical road speed.  Your other option is to step up in diameter if you want to use your normal gearing.

The Importance Of Precision

All SportCrafters ZRO roller drums are lathe-turned on CNC equipment using a unique process of finishing the drum after it is assembled to the axle, using the axle as the center.   This takes into account all the tolerance contributions from the bearings, axles, bearing press into the caps, etc.   That’s how we can create such extraordinary tolerances on the finished drums, and why the competition can’t match it!

For the average cyclist, our “Rule-of-thumb” is that if you can see the run out on the drum (usually on the order of 0.005”), you will feel it.  If the run out of the drum is less than 0.005”, then generally the condition of your bike tire determines how smooth the ride will be.   For the more accomplished cyclist who will ride longer intervals at higher speeds, much tighter runout and balance are important to a satisfactory ride.   As always, the tighter the runout, the better the ride.  Also important is tight concentric tolerance control of the tubing and caps, which contributes to dynamic balance. Weight imbalance as well as tire and wheel condition can cause vibration under high speed.  We control all tolerances to assure proper balance.

Inertia .. Good or Bad?

Some products go to a lot of trouble to simulate "realistic" conditions, which can include weights and devices that add rotating inertia.  While this is a marketable selling point, the fact is that training (in the most general sense) is NOT intended to bring a true riding experience indoors if your purpose for indoor training is to improve your cycling skills and efficiency.  Good roller training works on all of these areas;  technique, handling, cadence, coordination, balance and stamina.   Higher inertia takes away the cadence and technique elements.

Why?  To maximize your efficiency and power output you will need to take advantage of the entire pedal stroke (360 degrees), not just the downstroke.  High inertia  allows you to coast thru the dead spot (12:00 and 6:00) with little effort (like outdoor riding), so you are less likely develop the skills to power through the entire stroke and maintain precise control while doing it.   Low inertia is therefore the better alternative to develop your cadence to power through the entire stroke.

I mentioned "control" above.  How does that factor in with cadence?  As your power transfers from the downstroke to the backstroke (and from the upstroke to the forward stroke) the forces you generate with your legs change from up/down (which is reacted through the bike to the ground..which is why some mountain bikes have lockouts on suspension devices) to a torque that is reacted through your seat and handlebars.  Your body must learn to respond to this torque with smooth, efficient steering and balance corrections in tune with the rhythm of your cadence and the dynamics of the bike.  On rollers, since your dynamics are highly amplified, you will more quickly develop smooth, efficient technique.   

All other devices that make rollers easier to ride, keep you from going off the side, lets you climb out of the saddle, etc. are NOT helping your training.  Yes, these make rollers less intimidating for a little while, but you will be surprised how quickly your skills will progress, which will make these expensive devices obsolete very quickly.

If you have any questions or comments about rollers, please contact us.  We’re happy to try to help determine the best fit for your training needs.