fliplap

Lazily wanting a pump to keep in the basement shop, I recently picked up this high volume version of the Silca Super Pista from the co-op. I can’t find any references to a high volume (or low pressure) version of the Super Pista, aside from a passing mention on the CR list from many years ago. Posting here for the historical record.

No date code on the base, but the sticker style and high volume nature make me think early 90s to appeal to the then trendy mountain bike market. It’s otherwise the same as a normal Super Pista, but built with larger barrel brazed to a smaller piece of tubing which then fits the usual base. It also uses a large rubber cup instead of the usual leather washer.

Those changes pump out ~3psi per stroke, making short work of big tires. The larger diameter barrel also means that, for me, the practical limit is around 70psi, although it absurdly retains the 240psi gauge. The highest pressure tires in the house only need 65ish, so it makes for a fine shop pump.

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And here’s a shot of where the larger barrel meets the smaller tubing and the base. It does only a slightly better job of conveying the fetching desaturated dark blue paint. The light blue tubing was some gas welding hose that a previous owner had installed and has since been replaced with more appropriate, if arguably inferior, Silca branded hose from the co-op parts bin.

WGB 

I've got one of these and need a schrader adapter but only reputable ones I could find were in Japan. I'd like to have just one pump but don't want to have to keep switching the chucks back and forth.

Has anyone tried using these cheaper ones?

​​​​​​https://www.cantitoeroad.com/Schrade...valve-adapters

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smd4

Not absurd at all. Gauges are most accurate around their mid-point, making this gauge the most accurate around 120 PSI.

fliplap

The large diameter body means physics limits the pump to about 70psi. Maybe if I weighed a lot more I could get it to 120psi, but the factory intended use would’ve been closer to 40psi, so just over the 15% mark on the gauge.

I’d assume Silca just didn’t do a low pressure gauge at the time, so they used the gauge they had. Just like the didn’t have a base for the large diameter body, so they brazed it to a “normal” diameter section.

luns

Thanks for sharing!


This pump was called either the Silca Magnum, or the Magnum Force. I've seen it in your blue, and in white. All the white version pumps I've seen were labelled as Magnum Force, while none of the Blue ones were. There was a little blurb about the Magnum on the Bikepro page: Silca Bicycle Floor Pump, 2015




Silca Magnum Force


Some of these pumps had a more MTB appropriate gauge on them, but not with the Silca label. I've also seen a Silca-labelled gauge on another white magnum force, but as with yours, it also had the normal Pista's pressure range.




lower pressure gauge



unlabelled gauge


I suspect the blue hose on your pump may actually have been original from Silca. Not all pumps shipped with the black hose, with some Pistas having had coloured transparent hoses with the Silca labelling. There were certainly pumps sold with blue hose too - just look at the Pista in the BikePro page I linked earlier. I think light blue is the standard colour for Oxygen hose in UK if not all of Europe (as opposed to green here in the US). As with the pressure gauge, Silca probably ordered it off the shelf without customization for pumps they put out in lower quantity.
I think the blue goes well with your pump colour, though the ribbed black hose is perfectly appropriate too.

There was one other MTB oriented pump, Terra, art 77.30. This was the same handle and triangular plastic base as the last Italian-made Super Pistas, but again with a larger diameter barrel. I haven't seen one close enough to confirm for sure, but I'm pretty sure it has the same step down to a 30mm OD at the very bottom as your pump. In fact, the last Italian-made Pistas even did the same thing, having a 30mm ID aluminum tube, with a step at the bottom instead of the old 28mm ID steel.

https://www.bikepartsplace.com/discou...or-pump-terra/

Silca Terra

luns

Silca used to sell a Schrader to presta adapter that looks identical to this. It looks close enough that it may well be the identical part from Silca's supplier. I keep one in my saddle bag in case I need to help out someone, my Impero being very much Presta only. I've used it only very rarely, but it worked well enough. I do remember being a little bothered with the moment of air leaking out while screwing it onto and more importantly, off of the valve, but this is true of all screw-attach chucks, but that aside, it works exactly as you would expect it to.

himespau 

On all of my Silca pumps, I have 3 of various models/ages, I've replaced the Slica hose they came with with hose I've bought in bulk (Thermoid Valueflex GS, I think) in a 50 foot roll for about the price as one of the super short new segments that Silca sells. My pumps now have 4-5' hoses which make it much easier to reach.

luns

I'd be interested in seeing a picture of the piston cup an how it's fastened. I assume the rubber cup is held on by a nut and washer, but have wondered whether it's backed up by a thin nut and washer, or if they used a plastic spacer like the older Pistas used. Also, I've deduced the barrel has a 38mm ID and guessed it has a 40mm OD: if you could measure/verify these numbers, I would greatly appreciate it!

The rubber piston cup is still listed at biketoolsetc and I'd probably buy one or two for spares if I had a Magnum. These must be old stock, and by the time you need a replacement, who knows if they'll still be available. Of course you could try to figure out a source for a leather cup when the time comes instead, but it's probably more effort than $2 now.

https://www.biketoolsetc.com/index.c...tem_id=SI-73.2

magnum rubber piston cup


You wouldn't still have the blue hose, or some photos of it, would you? I'm curious what markings are on it. I've seen photos of blue hose on a Super Pista from the same era and if yours has the same markings, it's likely both are original.


Super Pista blue hose

I've always wondered about the markings on the Silca labelled hose. My best guess is the 10/40 is the rated/burst pressure in ATM, but I've never been able to identify the logo (R in the circle, reminds me of the pinterest logo).

fliplap

Ah fascinating! Thanks for the info. Glad to have a model name to associate with it. To answer your questions...

- Barrel diameter: I get 40.1mm OD, 37.7mm inner with a digital caliper. A set of dental calipers gives me 1.2mm for wall thickness, so that checks out.
- Rubber cup attachment. Indeed it is backed up by a washer. Photos below.
- I do in fact still have the blue hose, and indeed it is the exact same hose, I went ahead and stuck it back on. Interestingly the gauge is a different style than any of the above. Photos of both gauge and hose below

Spaghetti Legs 

MadHonk is selling some (meaning Silca brass) at a fair price. Just bought one from him.