I bought a 50ish € Cube pump with a digital gauge. The pump feels cheap, but it works. The gauge is at the top and thus, easier to read. It has a button to deflate, too.
But the chuck is complete garbage. The mechanism is so stiff that I need to use a hex key to prevent the chuck from mashing the valve completely into the rim. In the process, the tire deflates to 20–30 psi. I’m fed up, I have had enough.
Do you have any recommendations? Silca pumps cost an arm and a leg. And they don’t seem to allow me to deflate the tire in case I added a tad too much air. Lezyne makes a nice-looking pump with a digital gauge for about 100 €.are there any others that you recommend?
My pump experience: 1) Topeak Joe Blow- decent while it lasted, but it didn’t last that long and the gauge wasn’t that accurate. 2) SKS Renkompressor- going strong for 20 years, but the guage is poor for road and useless for lower pressures. 3) Silca Terra- thus far seems to be hitting the sweetspot. If it lasts 5 years it will have been worth it for the fact it just works perfectly for everything I want. If it lasts 10, I’d say it was a bargain.
If it’s the chuck you hate, there are some very nice ones you can add or swap in. James Huang was very happy with this new one from Prestacycle; it has me tempted: Prestacycle Pro Presta Head
If you already have some lithium powered hand tools from Dewalt, Makita etc, their cordless inflators are super handy. I picked up one of these from Makita, it’s pretty much all I use at this point. I find the gauge to be quite accurate, it’s compact enough to throw in a bag, and the battery lasts forever: Makita USA - Product Details -DMP180ZX
For traditional pumps, Topeak and Silca are my faves. They and Lezyne are the companies that actually have spare parts available, in general. But I dislike Lezyne chucks. I have a Topeak JoeBlow Pro Digital which is excellent, but as I said I now use my Makita inflator for almost everything.
Yes, they do seem to be worth it. I got a great deal on a SuperPista (courtesy of some stacked discount codes that somebody posted on here) and so far it has been night and day better than my previous track pump.
On a slight tangent, I’ve recently converted all bikes to Reserve Fillmore valves and I don’t think I’ll ever go back to normal presta valves. Seated every tyre first time, every time so far
Is a possible solution continuing using your current pump, intentionally overinflating the tire and then dialing in the pressure using a separate gauge?
The Terra seems to be the only one that covers the entire pressure range I need, going by the published specs. The Lezyne has been “optimized” for pressures in the 20–80 psi range. The Pista like many others doesn’t seem overly accurate below 20 psi. I currently put 57–60 psi in my road bike and 1.5–2.2 bar in my mountain bike.
It’d be nice if they offered the Terra in a more adventurous color.
Edit: Hat tip to @angryasian and his colleagues at the Escape Collective. Their most recent episode of Geek Warning covers floor pumps towards the end. They covered all the bases: Silcas are awesome, but absurdly expensive. But so good. Lezyne and Topeak are the other two options. Although they did not like Lezyne’s chuck and proposed to replace it with something else. The last option is a portable compressor. Seems like y’all covered all the notable options
I got a Specialized Air Tool Sport track pump about 5 years ago on the recommendation of bike shop mechanics it what they used. I have to say they were right its been good to use and never lost any pressure.
They’re relatively expensive (probably twice the price of a regular tubeless valve). However, that price difference is more than paid back in ease of fitting tyres and zero clogging of the valve). I used to dread changing tyres on my gravel bike and would often not bother, ending up riding something that I’d rather have not done due to dreading trying to seat a new tyre. That fear has completely gone with the Reserve valves as they, so far, have seated first time every time.
I’d add the higher end Blackburn pumps to the list. Their warranty is lifetime. My pump isn’t sold anymore, but looks to sit between their 3 and Pro ones, which are $80 and $110.
It arrived and it is glorious. I have never had such an easy time to dial in my pressure, it was just spot on. Pumping action was easy, the chuck performed great. I got a bit of back pressure build up on my mountain bike, but I reckon the valve is just clogged with some sealant. The two-tiered scale on the manometer worked just as advertised, too.
In the 80’s, I bought a Silca track pump and eventually the leather cup wore out, and it was having some issues keeping it up (the pressure). I saw a Silca advert about 6 years ago, went to their website, and found a ‘repair’ kit for it. And it worked!
Also I have their Hiro chucks on all of my pumps now. (I have a Blackburn pump from the 70’s, and they said ‘lifetime warranty’, and they replaced it with their Core Pro. They make some great stuff too!) I also have the smaller Milwaukee battery pump, and it works really well too, especially with the Hiro chuck on it.
