Cycling UK Forum

bikerwaser wrote:I'd like to hear recomendations for Track Pumps with dual head that are a reasonable price please ?

you can't give a firm recommendation for a 'perfect pump' without knowing something about

- what tyre pressures/volumes you will want to use the pump for
- whether you want (or need) a gauge built in
- whether you will be able to read a gauge even if it is near your toes
- what your budget is; 'reasonable' is -as you will have noticed- £90 for some folk...
- what the usage pattern is likely to be (could be two bikes, once a month each, or many bikes, every time they are ridden)
- whether the pump will stand in a corner when not being used or will be thrown in and out of a car boot
- how long you expect the pump to last for
- which two valve types (of the three in common use) you want to pump, and of the two which one is the priority
- whether you are willing/able to do a little maintenance or to fit spare seals when the time comes (it is pointless to buy a pump with good spares backup if your plan is to throw the pump away as soon as there is a tiny problem of some kind).

cheers

https://www.evanscycles.com/topeak-joe- ... p-EV323289

Anyone have views on the head on this pump? It is not the Topeak type I am used to. Other than that, I would expect this to be a long lasting and very effective pump that will be a pleasure to use.

If it lasts a decade, as my earlier version has, it is costing you £3.50 per year to have a reliable, quick and easy to use pump. By my way of thinking that is very good value.

pwa wrote:https://www.evanscycles.com/topeak-joe-blow-sport-iii-track-pump-EV323289

Anyone have views on the head on this pump? It is not the Topeak type I am used to. Other than that, I would expect this to be a long lasting and very effective pump that will be a pleasure to use.

If it lasts a decade, as my earlier version has, it is costing you £3.50 per year to have a reliable, quick and easy to use pump. By my way of thinking that is very good value.

Mine is like the one in the Evans link,I've used it two or three times a week sometimes more in the 8 or 9 years I've had the pump.
I've replaced the rubber washers once in that time with a service kit like this one:- https://www.jejamescycles.com/topeak-jo ... RfEALw_wcB
Great and very durable track pump.

EDIT,my mistake after looking again mine is the JoeBlow ll the one in the link is the JoeBlow lll andnthe head is slightly different

Nigel wrote:

Polisman wrote:Specialized gets my vote, all metal construction, under £90 in the seasonal sales.

I have a Specialized one (its decent, and its what the local bike shop stocked). The only complaint is the "both valves" head with the lever to lock things. Tends to let a lot of air out of tyres when removing if not pulled off the valve very quickly. I fixed that by adding a home-made plastic bung on the Shrader side - all our bikes are Presta.

Like others have implied, I think its the head which makes the biggest difference. If a pump is annoying, try a new head on it first.

Isn't that Specialized head a bad design? Surely it should not be holding Presta valves open in normal use? Air pressure buildup in the hose should be enough to open them.

+1 for the Topeak Joe Blow Sport 3. You can generally get this for £26 (e.g. at a local Halfords using click and collect) rather than the £35 advertised in the link above. So that's already down to £2.60 a year over a decade!

I had a yellow Joe Blow that worked for 12 years and then the gauge stopped working properly, so I bought a Joe Blow Sport 3 last year. It works well. Since then the old one has mysteriously started working again, so I now have one in the car and one in the garage. They both work fine with Presta and Schrader valves up to 120psi (and probably beyond). Also has adapters for footballs etc. The new head design is working well for me so far - but I'll try to remember to come back here with a long-term report in about 11 years!

I had lots of other makes before and these seem to last well in comparison. You can pay a lot more, or a lot less, but these seem a good price-performance compromise.

Really does depend on what you want to do as to the best one. Low volume high pressure for race wheels or high volume low pressure for mtb personally I like my Merida, the head adjust to the valve type. Had it about 8 years. Joe blows are good but the heads can break. We keep one at work and replace the head about once a year, when somebody over tightens it

For those looking for heirloom quality pumps to pass down to the grand children.

https://silca.cc/collections/floor-pumps

“You never actually own a Silca Pump. You merely look after it for the next generation.”

backnotes wrote:+1 for the Topeak Joe Blow Sport 3. You can generally get this for £26 (e.g. at a local Halfords using click and collect) rather than the £35 advertised in the link above. [...] I had lots of other makes before and these seem to last well in comparison. You can pay a lot more, or a lot less, but these seem a good price-performance compromise.

I'd rather pay £25 at Decathlon for an SKS AIrworx with side-by-side head. I don't understand why Topeak is getting so much love for a more expensive pump. Topeak stuff I've bought has mostly been plasticky with quick-failing bits and reviews say the Joe Blow Sport 3 has a short hose and falls over onto its gauge easily. Unless you need the extra 15psi theoretical max (SKS say 145psi, Topeak 160psi), I'd seriously save £1 or £10 and go for the SKS. Is Topeak just getting suggested because it's not completely awful and Half-odds stock it so more people have it?

Quite possibly. Someone asked if this make of pump was any good, and all you can go on is your own experience. I haven't done a systematic review of all makes of track pump, such as the SKS Airworx you mentioned that is £1 cheaper, and I'm sure that's good as well / possibly better. There's probably a "what track pump" article in a magazine somewhere that compares and contrasts the different makes!

I have had a range of track pumps that cost both more and less than the Topeak over the years, and that didn't last 12 years. These include a mostly metal Blackburn that was built like a tank that cost a lot more, and an unbranded mostly plastic one from Decathlon that cost a lot less. The Decathlon one had a side-by-side head, and that seemed to have a mind of its own, especially when you were in a hurry to get somewhere, so I wouldn't rush to get another of that design. Your mileage may vary.

Of course, none of these has lasted as long as my venerable Zefal frame fit pump, which will see me, and probably my children, out.

I had a Silca pump for, oh I don't know, maybe 25 years. Rebuilt once in that time. I've now got a Birzmann. It's beautifully made with a very unusual head which works better than any other I've tried. I don't recall how much I paid for it - but I thought it was good value for the quality. You can of course buy much cheaper pumps which work perfectly well.

mjr wrote:

backnotes wrote:+1 for the Topeak Joe Blow Sport 3. You can generally get this for £26 (e.g. at a local Halfords using click and collect) rather than the £35 advertised in the link above. [...] I had lots of other makes before and these seem to last well in comparison. You can pay a lot more, or a lot less, but these seem a good price-performance compromise.

I'd rather pay £25 at Decathlon for an SKS AIrworx with side-by-side head. I don't understand why Topeak is getting so much love for a more expensive pump. Topeak stuff I've bought has mostly been plasticky with quick-failing bits and reviews say the Joe Blow Sport 3 has a short hose and falls over onto its gauge easily. Unless you need the extra 15psi theoretical max (SKS say 145psi, Topeak 160psi), I'd seriously save £1 or £10 and go for the SKS. Is Topeak just getting suggested because it's not completely awful and Half-odds stock it so more people have it?

No, it's because several of us have one in our garage that is working like new after ten years of use. Not the MkIII, of course, and if you know something specifically wrong with that version, fair enough. I don't rate every Topeak product, so it isn't blind brand loyalty. I think their Pocket Rocket was a poor design but nicely made, so mine are at the back of a shelf. I lend them to folk who want to borrow a portable pump but who I don't trust with a good one.

mjr wrote:.... Is Topeak just getting suggested because it's not completely awful and Half-odds stock it so more people have it?

Not AFAIC,it's because it was recommended to me by Gaz of this parish about 8 or 9 years ago and I'm glad he did,great pump IME

None of us will know every track pump, but my guess is that any rated highly by people on this Forum are likely to be good. I don't imagine my own excellent track pump is the only good one. Having bought rubbish stuff in the past that was rated highly by cycle magazines, I'd rather get my recommendations here.

I bought a Lezyne pump 30 years ago. Made of steel and pretty heavy. Changed the connector grommet a couple of times, but it's still going strong after all this time.
Just used it to blow up some new tubeless covers with no problem. Never had the innards out to maintain.
Cost me twice what any other pump would do but shopkeeper said it would be worth it. It has been!

DNC123 wrote:I bought a Lezyne pump 30 years ago.

Highly unlikely? Lezyne were founded in 2007.