Newbie tyre pumping question...

Marko1962

Sorry if this has been covered before, I did a forum search but couldn't find what advice I'm after.

Question, on my road bike with 700 x 23 tyres my recommended PSI is 115. Using a track pump I can get to around 80psi quite easily then everything feels like it becomes 'solid' the tyre feels really pumped up and quite hard and if I should pump it up any more its going to go bang, but will it? should I put more effort into it to get to 115 psi?

ellieb

The problem is that some track pumps will not go up to high pressures. It might be worth investing in a pressure gauge to make sure the one on the pump is not misreading, but the alternative is to get a more meaty pump.

McBain_v1

Agree with EllieB's comment - my Blackburn AirTower5 will happily pump up to 160psi without you having to have Schwarzennegger-sized muscles. As for tubes going "bang!" - they ought not to do that if you don't exceed 120psi so get pumping

alfablue

I would agree with ellieb, above. Also make sure your presta valve (assuming it is a presta valve) is properly unscrewed and give it a dab before fitting the pump head (they sometimes stick). What you describe sounds a bit like you are compressing the air in the pump tube rather than the tyre, which would happen if the valve is stuck, or it is a weak pump as ellieb suggests, though most that aren't actually rubbish work okay - the guage may be defective as suggested.

Also. the actual pressure to use depends on a few factors, the load on the wheels (including you), tyre size, and the maximum recommended pressure for both the tyre and the rim (most road rims will cope with the max tyre pressure anyway). Add to that your preference for comfort and puncture resistance.

The CTC has this chart:



see tyre sizes and pressures

dennisn

When you say "track" pump just what do you mean?? Are you talking about the
pump that you carry on your bike or one that stands on the floor and probably has a pressure gauge??? I'm confused - then again I'm from the states. In any case 80 psi
is not enough pressure for a tire rated at 115. I would go 105 -110. Does your "track"
pump have a gauge?? If not, how do you know it's at 80 psi??? Don't worry too
much about pressure around 110 - it's pretty normal and yes the tires do really start to get hard(literally) at those pressures and above. If it's a fairly new pump and has a pressure gauge I sort of doubt that it's broken already.

Dennis Noward

Marko1962

Yes I've got a track pump with a gauge this pump in fact its a Specialized pump,



Thanks for all the quick replies and chart, after the recommendation to get out there and use my muscles I did so and got up to the recommended psi, just me being a newbie chicken I guess

redddraggon

Marko1962 wrote:

Yes I've got a track pump with a gauge this pump in fact its a Specialized pump,



Thanks for all the quick replies and chart, after the recommendation to get out there and use my muscles I did so and got up to the recommended psi, just me being a newbie chicken I guess

I've got that pump - it works very well, gets to well over 140Psi if I wanted.

doyler78

Same here - have had that pump for a few years now and no probs getting my tyres up to 125psi.

Denny69

alfablue wrote:

I would agree with ellieb, above. Also make sure your presta valve (assuming it is a presta valve) is properly unscrewed and give it a dab before fitting the pump head (they sometimes stick). What you describe sounds a bit like you are compressing the air in the pump tube rather than the tyre, which would happen if the valve is stuck, or it is a weak pump as ellieb suggests, though most that aren't actually rubbish work okay - the guage may be defective as suggested.

Also. the actual pressure to use depends on a few factors, the load on the wheels (including you), tyre size, and the maximum recommended pressure for both the tyre and the rim (most road rims will cope with the max tyre pressure anyway). Add to that your preference for comfort and puncture resistance.

The CTC has this chart:



see tyre sizes and pressures

Very useful Alfablue...very useful indeed