Track pump

WithCheesePlease

Can anyone recommend a good track pump please. Just for a commuter bike. Remember a thread here about some before but can't find it now...

blorg

Any of the Topeak Joe Blow series. I have the Joe Blow Sprint.

Home:Ballyhoura

I have a €15 BBB one with a pressure guage from my local shop and it has worked 100% perfectly for over 2 years. It has even pumped up tubulars to around 160psi with no problems so there is really no need to spend ridiculous money unless you really want to, especially as it is only for a commuter! Best of luck

Bikerbhoy

blorg wrote: »

Any of the Topeak Joe Blow series. I have the Joe Blow Sprint.

Here here on the JOE BLOW........ I think I have the basic model I think its called Max II 25 euro bucks from ChainReaction...... Pumping as good as new for about 2 years now also..... not a bother........ Good chunky piece of kit , I seen one here once retailing for 48.00 so great saving from CC

WithCheesePlease

Cool, thanks for the suggestions.

Is there any adapter you can get to change the nozzle if you need to pump different size valves? My bike has the new skinnier nozzles, but the girlfriend's older bike has the older fatter car sized ones...

Bikerbhoy

WithCheesePlease wrote: »

Cool, thanks for the suggestions.

Is there any adapter you can get to change the nozzle if you need to pump different size valves? My bike has the new skinnier nozzles, but the girlfriend's older bike has the older fatter car sized ones...

Yes the one I suggested Max II comes with a twin-head for both valve sizes and also is supplied with 2 more separate adapters for say an air bed and a football.

WithCheesePlease

Bikerbhoy wrote: »

Yes the one I suggested Max II comes with a twin-head for both valve sizes and also is supplied with 2 more separate adapters for say an air bed and a football.

Ah, cool. Saw the twin head, but wasn't sure what the difference was. The Joe Blow it is then.

crashoveroid

Any of the BBB Alum ones are good have had one now for 11 years and still working great.

tomasrojo

I've a BBB one too. I've had it about five years, I think. No problems with it.

DirkVoodoo

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

I have a €15 BBB one with a pressure guage from my local shop and it has worked 100% perfectly for over 2 years. It has even pumped up tubulars to around 160psi with no problems so there is really no need to spend ridiculous money unless you really want to, especially as it is only for a commuter! Best of luck

tomasrojo wrote: »

I've a BBB one too. I've had it about five years, I think. No problems with it.

+1. Swapped mine for a Park Tool one which I got free and there is no difference between the two besides the quality of finish, they are both solid pumps. As long as it has a gauge and pressure up to ~120 PSI.

blorg

@WithCheesePlease- basically all track pumps will do both valve types. Some very very cheap ones may be Schrader (wide car type) and use an adaptor to pump up Presta (narrow bike type) - this doesn't work great. It's quite rare though, most have both types built in to the pump head, either beside each other (BBB) or on opposite sides (Joe Blow.)

WithCheesePlease

Went for the Joe Blow Max II on CRC for 25 euro. Should do the job. Thanks for all the tips and suggestions as always.

youcancallmeal

Sorry bout reviving an old thread but just thought I would add a question here instead of starting a new thread. I have an old track pump at the moment but it seems be forked. It will pump the tire up fine but the pressure gauge doesn't seem to be showing the correct pressure. My tires are supposed to go to 100-120psi. I connected up the valve and started pumping but the dial just hovers around the 60psi mark and then starts falling once I stop pumping. I can feel from the tires that they are a lot harder than 60 psi! I thought it might be a bad seal I'm getting but I've tried this pump with both presta and schraeder valves and its always the same?

Are pressure dials on track pumps usually like this, I don't know because this is the only one I've ever used? I'm thinking about getting the Joe Blow Max II mentioned in the previous post but maybe I'm just better off with something like this

petethedrummer

Did your pump ever work correctly?

I got a Joe blow Max II recently after the 2 cheaper ones we had in this house stopped working.

youcancallmeal

Well it can pump air fine, its the pressure gauge that doesnt seem to be right. Maybe thats the way they are supposed to be though? It has always been like this as far as I can remember

petethedrummer

No the gauge should work.

SurferDude41

WithCheesePlease wrote: »

Can anyone recommend a good track pump please. Just for a commuter bike. Remember a thread here about some before but can't find it now...

Ok Now,
just disregard everything you have just read.
The best track-pump is an SKS Rennkompressor. I have owned mine for, over 20 years. The only part that ever wore out, was the barrel washer €3
This is the pump, all the Pro-tour mechanics use.
It's made in Germany, and all spare parts are widely available.:)

Bluefoam

SurferDude41 wrote: »

The best track-pump is an SKS Rennkompressor. I have owned mine for, over 20 years. The only part that ever wore out, was the barrel washer €3

Its about €70/80. You can't beat the Joe Blow for €25. I've had it over two years and haven't even required a washer... Well recommended.

alfalad

Bluefoam wrote: »

Its about €70/80. You can't beat the Joe Blow for €25. I've had it over two years and haven't even required a washer... Well recommended.

Available here for €45. Not sure of postage though.

Bluefoam

alfalad wrote: »

Available here for €45. Not sure of postage though.

€9.95 delivery + €20 for bulky goods = €74.95

squire23

You might laugh but I have one of the ones out of Aldi. Works perfect - sure they all just pump the same air!

tomasrojo

-- forget it --

SurferDude41

alfalad wrote: »

Available here for €45. Not sure of postage though.

That is where I bought my new Track-pump. I just leave my old one in the car, these days The price including postage, was €58
Hopefully, I will get another 20 years out of the new one.:D

Im not sure about the joe blow pump.
Are spare parts available for it??? Does it have a 3 year warranty??

I guess we just live in disposable society, these days

Turbulent Bill

SurferDude41 wrote: »

That is where I bought my new Track-pump. I just leave my old one in the car, these days The price including postage, was €58
Hopefully, I will get another 20 years out of the new one.:D

Im not sure about the joe blow pump.
Are spare parts available for it??? Does it have a 3 year warranty??

I guess we just live in disposable society, these days

Topeak have spare parts available, not sure about the warranty. I've my Max II for a few years now, and it's good as new.

Once it isn't kicked around, the only parts of the pump that should fail are the seals (which can perish over time). Storing the pump away from strong sunlight, extreme cold etc. should keep it going for years without any hassle.

midonogh

SurferDude41 wrote: »

Ok Now,
just disregard everything you have just read.
The best track-pump is an SKS Rennkompressor. I have owned mine for, over 20 years. The only part that ever wore out, was the barrel washer €3
This is the pump, all the Pro-tour mechanics use.
It's made in Germany, and all spare parts are widely available.:)

I have a rennkimpressor for about 15years. One of my best bike purchases. I recently split the hose. Mailled SKS seeking to buy replacement. Email response within 5mins, complete new hose despatched that day. No cost, no questions - covered by a lifetime guarantee that I did not know I had

alfalad

Bluefoam wrote: »

€9.95 delivery + €20 for bulky goods = €74.95

Good job i mentioned I wasn't sure about the postage!

doozerie

I've had a Blackburn TP3 for several years now. It has been pretty good, but as the rubber washer which pushes over the valve wears down the valve pushes further into the head and the "twistgrip" head on mine then has a tendency to bend the threaded lock on presta valves. You usually don't realise that this is happening until after the fact. I can recommend the pump when the seal is in good condition but I'd be wary of the twistgrip head - having said that I haven't tried some of the alternative heads over time so they may or may not be better. I think that newer Blackburn track pumps use a different head.

One thing that has been very good about the Blackburn is that as you pump the needle on the gauge moves smoothly. I've used a Topeak Joe Blow a couple of times and the needle on that seems to jump up the gauge as you pump and then settles/drops back to the actual pressure at the end of the stroke. Not necessarily a problem if you are used to it, but it would bug me if I were using it regularly.

If I were buying again my preference would be for one which had the gauge near the top of the barrel (just for visibility, though I haven't tried one out to find out if it really adds much benefit), and two feet for stability (my Blackburn has just one). I'd also like one that allows you to release the air pressure before pulling the head off the tube valve, but that would probably push the cost up even further.

doozerie

Incidentally, I believe my Blackburn has a lifetime warranty too, but when I contacted them about the twistgrip head damaging valves they just directed me to a dealer where I could buy replacement parts. Maybe if I pressed them they'd have actually honoured the warranty but I wasn't impressed. In the end I bought a kit of parts to "re-condition" the head which allowed me to replace a few of the seals. I suspect the new washer which fits over the valve was the only change that was really needed but Blackburn should have been able to at least offer advice.

I have had my Blackburn mini-pump replaced for free and without question in the past but that was more to do with the fact that the local bike shop took responsibility for giving me a new one and chasing it with Blackburn themselves. So when it comes to Blackburn, going via a local bike shop might be a better route for dealing with issues, if you can, rather than contacting Blackburn directly.

Greenman

My Witberg track pump hose burst after 17 years of weekly service, couldn't get a new hose so I took the plunge and ordered this

from http://www.bike-components.de/products/info/p18203_Rennkompressor-E-V-A--Standpumpe.html it should arrive next week. I'll tell you how I get on.

corblimey

Just to hijack this thread, but I'm bringing my bike into the lbs for a service tomorrow and was going to ask about the BBB track pump they sold me at the same time. It's giving my gyp I think but don't want to look like a n00b in front of the bike guys.

When I attach the pump to the valve, it seems fine, everything is connected up. However, when I lock the head in place (flick down the switch), air starts hissing out. The tyre goes flat within 10 seconds. It doesn't seem to matter what way I do it, it always starts slowing deflating. Now I can pump faster than it's coming out, so eventually the wheel is hard enough, but between stopping pumping and getting the head off, I always lose an amount of air - the tyres never remain completely hard.

Also, when should I get a gauge reading of current bpi, when I lock the head or do I need to start pumping? It seems to me that my track pump is knackered, but as is so often the case, it's probably something I'm doing and the man in the lbs is going to make me look foolish.

(this post is a lot ruder than I intended, or maybe that's just me)

petethedrummer

I suspect its cos you're not flipping the lock thing on the head the right way. You want to flick it so its sticking out when ur pumping.

Or it could be that you're not pushing the head down far enough on the valve so it can get a decent grip when you flick the lock.

Or the valve on the tube may be bent.

Or the pump is fooked.

corblimey

In other words, ask an expert...

petethedrummer

Have it like this when your pushing it on to the valve.





Then put it like this when you're pumping.

corblimey

Yep, I do all that. I dropped my bike down to the lbs on Saturday for a service but completely forgot to bring down the pump, so not sure if it's me or the pump. Let's be honest, it's probably me :rolleyes:

Greenman

Greenman wrote: »

My Witberg track pump hose burst after 17 years of weekly service, couldn't get a new hose so I took the plunge and ordered this

from http://www.bike-components.de/products/info/p18203_Rennkompressor-E-V-A--Standpumpe.html it should arrive next week. I'll tell you how I get on.

Well it arrived on tuesday morning, it works great but only used it on one of my mounts. The advantage with SKS is you can always get spares. As I use it more I'll report back. It cost €48 plus €12 costs.

Hungrycol

****Ignore, just found a replacement TwinHead for the pump on CRC****

Thread 2nd revival.

I have the Joe Blow Sprint the one Blorg linked to earlier in this thread and the valve has just gone on it. I place the hose on the tube valve flick the switch and air come out the other side (the Schrader side) when I pump. I've taken it apart and it all seems fine and yes I am flicking the lever the correct way as I've had it for over a year now. Anyone experience this before and fixed it? Sounds like a seal is gone and I think the Schrader side works but havent tried it that side yet. It should be a simple fix but I'm stumped and really don't want to fork out for a new track pump over something simple.

@Blorg, I know you have the Sprint so have you come across this problem before?