Tornado Air Bike (Fan Bike

Since the Tornado Air Bike was introduced 5 years ago a very large number of units have been sold into the commercial sector. One key reason I believe is the virtually maintenance free design. Not encumbered with a multitude of chains and sprockets as found on other fan bikes, the heavy duty v-belt drive of the Tornado Fan Bike doesn't stretch nor require lubrication so it's not susceptible to the wearing action of dirt and dust. Similar to a comparison between the WaterRower and Concept2 rowers. Chains require meticulous attention to tension and lubrication whereas belts dont, Chains stretch and sprockets wear whereas poly-v belts don't (not to any degree that would cause failure). 
LifeFitness have been using poly-vee belts on their commercial equipment for decades without issues.

To date as far as we are aware, not a single Tornado Air Bike has had cause for Warranty repair or replacement whereas the same can't be said for other fan bikes we sell.

Initially when we added the Tornado Fan Bike to our offerings it was new to the UK maket and we could only base our reviews on a knowledge of mechanical engineering and technologies used in the bike but were confident it would live up to expectations. Now we can base our judgement on large volume sales and heavy commercial gym use and the complete absence of problems encountered makes the Tornado Air Bike the clear winner when it comes to chosing a fan/air bike both for commercial or domestic use.

Having been sold in other countries under various names the Tornado Air Bike is in it's 2nd revision (from what I can deduce) which should mean that like the Assault AirBike (V2.0) initial issues have already been designed out so although under the "Tornado" label you'll find very little history, under the manufacturers name and model number there's more to be found (Sportop CB700 Fan Bike is a good place to start).

Similar to the existing and very well received Assault AirBike with regards to being a dual function (handles and pedals) and high flow air resistance the Tornado Air Bike is built with a similar inherant robustness which, weighing in at nearly 75Kg gives a good indication as to the how serious a bit of kit it is.

Dual pedals enable the athlete to remove the feet/legs from the power input drive thereby forcing 100% of the workload to be applied to the upper body (Arms, shoulders, back, chest)

Another subtle indication of it's designers intention to invite serious use is the addition of a "Champion" setting on the workout monitor which records the highest results for multiple sessions (still waiting full confimation of this and other workut montor features).

The new Tornado Fan Bike also claims to provide 20% greater resistance than it's market rivals but this statement would be difficult to qualify as so many variables affect the resistance although my guess would be that the Tornado AirBike is slightly higher geared so more fan rotations per pedal rotation compared to the likes of the Atack AirBike.

So what else can I tell you about this product?
The product is made in Taiwan and not China. Manufactured goods from Taiwan are (from our own experience of gym and fitness equipment) superior in build quality and attention to design and detail than the majority of stuff from China. The workout monitor has abundant features/feedback as you'd expect on a product of this quality and has a Hutchinson J6 Poly V® belt rather than a chain drive as found on the Assault AirBike which means it's virtually maintrenance free and designed for a long and trouble-free life. Perfect for any commercial gym where regular maintenance tends to be overlooked but is regularly required on chain drive units such as the Assault AirBike.

All in all, meeting a very similar price point to it's competion we think this Fan Bike is going to make up a high percentage of all Fan Bike sales from here on in.

Tornado Air Bike Features:

• Monitor displays the following: Time, Speed, Distance, RPM, Watts, Calories, Champion, Interval, Target time, Target Heart Rate, Target Calorie, Target Distance, Built in Heart Rate Receiver. (List subject to confirmation)
• Transport Wheels (to facillitate positioning of bike)
• Battery powered LCD workout monitor
• Padded adjustable seat
• Hutchinso J6 heavy duty V-Belt Drive belt as used on industrial machinery
• Pivots are heavy duty bearings rather than bushes found on other AirBikes
• Fan has a dimension of 546mm (Fan dimension not housing/cage)
• 20% more resistant then similar commercial fan bikes currently available.
• Full Commercial Warranty: 5 Year Frame, 1 Year Parts, 6 Months Wearable Items & 6 Months Labour.
• Drive System
• Assembled: 1240(L) x 780(W) x 1440(H)mm NW 73Kg - Boxed: 1320(L)x380(W)x885(H)mm GW 80.4Kg
  

Displayed monitor data in detail:

All in