Track pump advice?

[Slothman]

I'm going to order a decent track pump, any recommendations?
I don't want to spend over £30 and want a gauge (with memory marker dial function to easily see required pressure) and at least 160psi rating.

Is there any benefit to paying say £30 over cheaper, £15 alternatives off eBay?
Will I, as a novice casual cyclist just starting out benefit from it (i.e. will it last longer) or should I just buy a cheap and cheerful one?

Currently I'm looking at either a Topeak Joe Blow Sport III (£36) or a Lifeline Professional (£30).

I don't think I need a bleed valve, not especially anyway or enough to pay extra for it.

I don't want to particularly inflate my tyres to 160 psi but I hit on that figure as it seems to be the upper mid-range of pump track pump capacity, so figured it would ensure plenty of scope or future proofing, should I change my bike to something requiring more tyre pressure or need it for other perhaps non bike related stuff.
I also (perhaps incorrectly) applied the logic that, if I wanted say 90 psi, but the pump was rated to 160psi, then it would be easier as I approach 90 psi than if the pump were rated lower at say 100 psi as it would be approaching it's limits?

[ossie]

You really can't go wrong with a Topeak Joe Blow Sport. I've had mine a decade and still going strong servicing 5 bikes although slight rust around the base that obviously doesn't impact performance. Its a solid piece of kit, feels good to use, effortless and proven to last. (someone will pop along and say theirs didn't )

[Jdsk]

10 pages on pumps:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=139298

If you don't get on with the head the rest of the pump is irrelevant:
viewtopic.php?f=5&t=141962

Jonathan

PS:

I also (perhaps incorrectly) applied the logic that, if I wanted say 90 psi, but the pump was rated to 160psi, then it would be easier as I approach 90 psi than if the pump were rated lower at say 100 psi as it would be approaching it's limits?

Probably not, but I don't think that will determine your choice.

[PH]

Joe Blow for me as well, which I've probably said in one of the other threads and I chose after starting one of my own several years ago.
For me, I'd choose the Sprint over the Sport, the gauge is at the top of the barrel so easier to read and the hose is longer which is useful for checking pressures while the bikes are hung up.
A decent pump is likely to last you decades, cheap ones don't and are not as nice to use when they do work. It's a false economy, I had three in about 12 years.
Having said that - Do you have your on-bike pump sorted? If not, get that first, a really decent one (HPX, Topeak Morph...) isn't much harder to use than a track pump.

[TrevA]

I’ve had a Joe Blow Sport in the past (my son stole it!), but I now have a Decathlon Clever 1000, which has now been renamed the Riverside. The Riverside 500 is £16.99 and the 900 is £24.99. They also have the SKS Airworx for £30. I could do with a new one as I can’t read the dial on mine because it’s at the bottom of the pump ( due to
not wearing my varifocals when inflating tyres). The Airworx has the dial at the top.

I still hanker after my old Silca Track Pump that I stupidly gave away.


https://www.decathlon.co.uk/browse/c0-s ... /N-19zk2st

[philvantwo]

Yep! Joe Blow sport, fantastic pump but someone will be on here in a bit saying you lose air when you pull the hose off the valve but the air is coming out of the hose not the valve!!

[Slothman]

Anyone have experience regarding the Lifeline Professional? https://www.wiggle.co.uk/lifeline-profe ... lsrc=aw.ds

[thirdcrank]

I bought a Joe Blow Sport for one of my grandsons several years ago to save him and the rest of them coming to me with tyres to pump up. It's lasted well.

[DaveReading]

I bought a Joe Blow Sport for one of my grandsons several years ago to save him and the rest of them coming to me with tyres to pump up. It's lasted well.

It will even do a decent job of pumping up car tyres.

[slowster]

Anyone have experience regarding the Lifeline Professional? https://www.wiggle.co.uk/lifeline-profe ... lsrc=aw.ds

No, but if you are prepared to spend that much, then I suggest you consider the SKS Rennkompressor - currently £39.98 incl. delivery from Bikester:

https://www.bikester.co.uk/bicycle-equi ... 17093.html

It is well made and a long standing benchmark for a good pump. It has a narrow barrel, which is what makes high pressures easy (conversely a poor choice for the very widest MTB tyres, because of the smaller volume of a narrow barrel). I would probably choose the Multi-Valve head version, but some prefer the other heads.

Ideally, all these pumps would have the option of fitting alternative gauges with different scales, and even more ideally bigger diameter gauges as well to make them easier to read. Most people do not need to pump their tyres beyond 100 psi, which was more common when 23mm was the usual choice of tyre width for a race bike. With a 0-160 psi scale and the relatively small diameter of the gauges fitted to track pumps, it's very difficult to be precise when pumping a tyre up. The wider the tyre and the larger its volume, the more likely it is that the standard gauge on a pump will result in significantly under- or over-shooting the desired pressure, and the wider the tyre the more difference a few psi will make. Plus or minus a few psi is probably unnoticeable with a 23mm tyre, but greater precision than that is wanted/needed with wide touring tyres and even more so wth MTB tyres. A 0-80 psi scale, or even lower, would probably be a much better choice for many people.

[pwa]

Joe Blow for me as well, which I've probably said in one of the other threads and I chose after starting one of my own several years ago.
For me, I'd choose the Sprint over the Sport, the gauge is at the top of the barrel so easier to read and the hose is longer which is useful for checking pressures while the bikes are hung up.
A decent pump is likely to last you decades, cheap ones don't and are not as nice to use when they do work. It's a false economy, I had three in about 12 years.
Having said that - Do you have your on-bike pump sorted? If not, get that first, a really decent one (HPX, Topeak Morph...) isn't much harder to use than a track pump.

I have a JB Sport that has been going for yonks (with replacement hose / head at one point) and it is a great bit of kit. But it is mostly metal, and more recent versions I have seen are largely plastic!

[Slothman]

Thanks, I appreciate the advice.
However, it's not so much a matter of my 'being prepared to spend that much' as not wanting to be replacing it after 6 months, that would be a false economy.
I'd love to only spend £15 if it was a good deal or would give me a long period of trouble free use.

The SKS Rennkompressor looks a good piece of kit but is pushing (with delivery) the budget up and up....
For what I need I don't think I need to spend over £30 including delivery. Also the gauge looks less user friendly than the others I'm looking at and has no movable marker for a quick 'at a glance' check.
At my level I don't think any of the options mentioned will be an issue.

[pwa]

https://spacycles.co.uk/m13b0s44p1115/T ... -Sport-III

Having said that some Joe Blows are a bit plasticy, this one looks to be mostly metal and, given the availability of spares, a good long term prospect.

[simonhill]

I note that gauges are often mentioned.

Anyone ever checked the accuracy of the gauges on these pumps? New and over time.

I've read that for high accuracy, industrial gauges they should be recalibrated regularly. I only treat the gauge on my cheapo track pump as a rough guide, but then again I'm not bothered if I'm a few psi out.

Maybe??? not worth worrying too much about a gauge that is only slightly more accurate than a finger in the wind.

[pwa]

I note that gauges are often mentioned.

Anyone ever checked the accuracy of the gauges on these pumps? New and over time.

I've read that for high accuracy, industrial gauges they should be recalibrated regularly. I only treat the gauge on my cheapo track pump as a rough guide, but then again I'm not bothered if I'm a few psi out.

Maybe??? not worth worrying too much about a gauge that is only slightly more accurate than a finger in the wind.

I have always assumed my gauges to be inaccurate, so I use them as a guide to getting the pressures I like the feel of. For example, on a rear tyre (35mm 700c) I like about 75 psi as it appears on my gauge, but what that pressure is in reality doesn't matter. My 75 psi could in reality be 68psi for all I know, but it is a pressure that works for me and that's all that matters. Using the gauge helps me get my desired pressure quickly and consistently. So it does have a use.