How do you pump up your tyres?

guinea

For 11 years I have suffered with a SKS Rennkompressor track pump. Sometimes it's great, gripping the valve no problem and other times it just leaks meaning I have to hold it in place. Of course this means taking the wheel off and holding it while trying to pump.

I;ve tried 4 or 5 different heads and none seemed to make much difference.

I've put up with it for over a decade, but today I snapped and bought a Boardman pump while I was buying car cleaning stuff in Halford's. It has a fancier valve head and a much looser rubber pipe which I htought might stop the valve getting out of place.

First up, a Shamal Ultra wheel. The inner tube valve had no thread on it, so a quick push on and it sealed perfectly, a few stroke of the pump and I was at 120psi. Nice one.

I then tried my Boras. They have tubs on with valve extenders and have threads running up the valve tube. This was a joke. The thing only just fitted on and any pressure had it hissing all over the place. I had to hold it in my hand while I pumped them up. A huge pain in the backside. It'll be returned to Halford's soon.

So. What is the best pump that I can just place over the valve and pump away without worrying about having to hold the head on, whether the tube is going to bend the head at a weird angle and leak or whether it will pop off about 60psi.

I don't care how much it costs. I want the best one.

(PS, the Boardman pump otherwise was good. Sturdy construction, good filling power and nice pressure meter - recommended if it would only fit my tubs)

balthazar

I've long preferred Silca style push-fit heads, because I've never know them to fail to seal, or break (like many others):



You can buy them separately and fit them to your current pump.

HiMoz

MTFU (or something or other to that effect) and put your lips around the valve and blow!

mikebikemike

aww I misread the title; I thought it read how to pimp your tyres up.
I was hoping for some tips on making my wheels more Gangsta for street rides in da hood. Never mind.

P_Tucker

I found the Rennkompressor useless and ended up selling mine. Replaced with a Topeak Joe Blow which has worked just fine.

That rhymes.

Flamez

yep Joeblow for me too, grips the valve no problem....

Flamez

yep Joeblow for me too, grips the valve no problem....

rolf_f

Cue 47 posts all saying Joe Blow, no problem (me included)

MrChuck

I had a similar problem with a Wrenchforce pump- worked fine on my commuter and MTB valves and the ones my road bike originally came with, but when I replaced the road tubes and had valves with thread all the way along it just wouldn't fit on. It was a race to pump air in quicker than it came out!

I replaced it with a Joe Blow and (when that got lost) a Bontrager Charger and both have been fine.

HamishD

Joe Blow for me . . .

John Stevenson

You can get Topeak's Twinhead and Smarthead valve attachments separately. I have a Rennkompressor with a Smarthead. Works a treat.

http://www.topeak.com/products/Pumps/Sm ... UpgradeKit

http://www.topeak.com/products/Pumps/TwinHeadUpgradeKit

Headhuunter

I've got a Specialized Air Tool Pro which works fine but I had problems with my previous track pump (can't remember the name) which had issues with valves without thread all the way down the side, it would just pop off at anything over about 60psi....

will3

I use a £10 track pump from tescos. Works fine.

mattward1979

http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogId_10151_productId_700388_categoryId_165661_langId_-1?cm_sp=Intelligent_Offer-_-Product_Details_Zone_1-_-Blank&iozone=PDPz1

Works perfectly..

Secteur

Joe Blow (they yellow one) - about £30 off wiggle, and will not let you down.

gary.hounsome

Yellow Joe Blow here too..

Monkeypump

As above, and probably below, Joe Blow for me (Sprint, I think).

Had a Wrenchforce previously and it didn't last that long.

blackhands

don't bother with all that cheap rubbish - get hold of one of these (or a copy):

http://www.tracksupermarket.com/index.p ... cts_id=665

Alibran

Rolf F wrote:

Cue 47 posts all saying Joe Blow, no problem (me included)

Joe Blow. No problem.

chiark

Joe Blow Sport II - 28 quid from All terrain cycles right now... (A little bit dearer in shop, but not much)

rich164h

Topeak Morph Road with Gauge Mini Pump.

The gauge isn't smooth and has a tendency to jump up 20 psi at a time, but that's good enough as it's only for when I've had a puncture, not for daily use (I've got a track pump for that). The main thing is that despite the slight weakness in the gauge precision, it has no problems whatsoever getting up to 100-120PSI. The fact that the head is connected to the pump via a flexible host rather than being built into the pump body means that there's no twisting on the inner tube valve at all.

MattC59

guess what ?
Another one for the Joe Blow Sport.

I use a Lezyne pressure drive should I be unfortunate to have a P******e.