flangehead

I have several of these in different kits, and have used them frequently. They haven’t let me down yet.

rekmeyata

I have still have my old Silca Impero that came with the Campy head, and I got it in yellow to match the decals on my Trek at the time, I don't use it anymore either, kind of preserving it, so it sits on my bookshelf.

When I was in my 20's I was riding on 700x19 tubular tire on the front and a 20 on the rear, this was when narrow tires were thought to be the best due to aerodynamics. Due to those higher pressures needed, the Silca was used to inflate on the road after a flat. We carried two spare tubulars under our seats, plus had a tubular patch kit which contained a needle and thread, but to repair a tubular on the road could take up to 45 minutes, which is why I packed 2.

MinnMan

My Topeak Minimorph gets the job done, has a convenient handle and footpad, and fits in my jersey pocket.

PeteHski

This is also what I have on my road bike. Sharp looking bike too! On my mountain bike I have a Topeak Race Rocket MT.

noglider 

I found a flaw with my pump. It has a hose which I screw onto the valve stem. Nowadays, some brand new tubes have valve cores which are not screwed in tightly. I was commuting to work and got a flat, changed the tube, and every time I removed the hose, the valve core came out. I guess I'll check all my tubes before I put them in my tool bag, but I'm not happy about this. I ended up getting back on my route by flagging down a cyclist and using his pump, the kind you just push on and pull off.

Rick

I had a similar problem a while back. I use continental freeride tubes on my touring bicycle. They have the removable Presta valve cores. I tightened all of them up with a valve core tool. I have noticed that lazine and some other mini pumps Including the Stompump which I am going to purchase have the screw on chuck for the presta valves. There are a couple of companies that make different chucks that may be compatible with these pumps. I am going to see if I can get the Jaco lightning presta chuck to work. It slips on than you depress a button at the top to

RH Clark

I saw a review that mentioned the lose valve core issue. Ironically, the same day I was testing out some new tires, and was going to lower the pressure. I unscrewed only the plastic valve stem cover and accidentally removed the core, and lost all my air. I will be tightening all my cores now and carrying a tool with me. I don't think the screw on hose of a pump will be an issue and I like the idea of a screw down attachment rather than a press and clamp type.

Rick

The Stompump like allot of the Lezyne and several others does have the screw on presta chuck. I like the Jaco better and once I have the Stompump and know the thread pitch on there chuck, I will see if the Jaco will work.

John Valuk

Lezyne Road Drive user here...

The flex hose that came with mine has chucks on both ends. One is thread-on Presta, the other is push-on Presta. One end of the hose has a built-in wrench for Presta valve cores.

Before I put a new tube in my saddle bag, I make sure that the Presta valve core is tight.
When I use the pump, I usually use the thread-on chuck. I don't tighten it more than necessary when installing it.
After inflating, I use the push button valve on the side of the chuck to relieve the pressure in the line before removing the chuck.
So far, so good when it comes to not inadvertently removing valve cores. I do carry a couple of spare valve cores in the saddle bag as a backup.

noglider 

Yeah, well, I can do these things. And I will. I just ordered a couple of valve core tools to put in my two tool bags. I'm annoyed at the screw on hose and the fact that it has apparently become common for tubes to come with loose valve cores. This wasn't a concern back in the day.

Rick

The removable valve cores are not the worst idea. They are good for people who need valve extenders. I agree that the screw on chucks could be annoying. I am going to the foot type mini pump because of some physical restrictions. the Stompump is also a larger volume pump. This should offer some time savings.

rekmeyata

Are you talking about the Lezyne Road Drive? If so, I'm not sure what people are doing wrong to unscrew the core. I've been using one since 2013 and never removed a core with it. The only thing I can say is to make sure you take a pair of small pliers and make sure the core is snug, but I've never had to do that with any of my tubes I've used.

noglider 

No, my pump is the Topeak RaceRocket Mini Pump. As I said, the core was loose when I took the tube out of the box. The bike shop owner said he's seen this a lot lately. I wonder why. As I said, I'll check my tubes before I put them in my tool bag and I will also bring the valve tightening tool.

rekmeyata

Usually I hear complaints about the Lezyne, but I also have that RaceRocket and it too has never removed a core.

I have heard that for some reason those cores are coming out in newer tubes, but I didn't think much of it because my floor pump is a screw on chuck, and it didn't do anything to the cores either.

Needless to say, I'm baffled, maybe some tubes just come with the cores loose? Probably would be wise to tighten them.

Troul 

The issue I often encounter with road pumps is the length.
Stowing a pump that's over seven inches long is a problem I don't want to resolve.
however, a short road pump tends to require a bunch more strokes to net 90 psi.

79pmooney

1973 I went from the hosed Zephal of my Peugeot UO-8 to the HP for my next bike. That press on with clamping lever was so good I have never wanted to go back. Of course, I had to learn to not put my pumping force into the valve stem but that's like learning to walk or tie your shoelaces only easier. And like them, you only have to learn once. Now there are so-called good pumps that feature hoses and screw on fittings. I just shake my head.

79pmooney

Minor observation - this thread was posted under Electronics, Lighting, & Gadgets. The pumps of this thread are manual. No lighting or electronics. That leaves gadgets. My thought: minipumps, yes posted in the proper place.

noglider 

@79pmooney, I've been thinking about it, and now that you said that, I'm definitely going to try to get my Zefal HPX pump working and mounted on at least one of my bikes. Why mess around, right? I've seen some people in The City carrying floor pumps. I've only done that once, but maybe they have their reasons.

Rick

The Silca Impero Frame Pump. The Silca Portable Floor Pump, Topeak Mega Morph These are a few suggestions for a larger volume air pump. I will be getting the Stompump. They claim that it puts out three times as much volume as allot of those small pumps.

rekmeyata

Therein lies the problem, the longer pump will reach 90 psi, but a short one won't even get to 90! While the Lezyne Road Drive small is just at 7 inches, I'm not sure if it can reach 90, it's tough enough with the 11 inch one I have, but it's the easiest mini I have ever owned to get to 90,

Why do you have to stow the pump? why not use the bottle cage bracket and mount it there?

Where are you stowing the pump? in you jersey pocket? I knew a guy who did that, had a crash, and that pump destroyed a disk in his back when he landed on it.

There is a new mini pump that I hadn't seen before, Topeak makes it, it's called the ROADIE TT Mini, TT stands for twin turbo, obviously there are no turbos inside of it. But if used correctly you can pretty effortlessly get to 90 psi, but it will take a god awful amount of strokes. Made only for presta, it is a two stage pump and it has an end cap that you turn to get it from high volume to high pressure, so you start pumping in high volume mode, then when it gets tough switch to high pressure, when pumping this thing you have to remember not to put your palm covering the back end cap because that's where the air sucks into the pump from. It's 6 1/2 inches long weighs 90 grams. It is a direct connect pump so you have to be careful when using it that you don't "saw" the valve back and forth as you put air into the tire, but from a video I saw of a guy using just two fingers to get the pump to work you shouldn't even be close to straining that might cause a person to start sawing as their pumping. This pump has pique my interest, and I think I will get it. It cost $44. There are not a lot of videos on that pump yet, one lady hated it, but I think she didn't know how to use it, because another video the guy liked it and was using just 2 fingers to stroke to pump with so we could see how little effort it took, she said it was killing her to get to 60, so I think she didn't change over to high pressure mode.

Rick

rekmeyata: The Silca Tattico is rated for 100 psi. I believe you can get to 90 psi with it. If you want one specific for high pressure that wont suffer from the heat the Silca Impero and the Silca Pocket Impero will definitely work for this. The Tattico is all metal other than the hose and has a heat sink in it. The Impiro models are all metal other than the silicone grip and the frame bumpers.

79pmooney

But - the Zephals outlast the Silcas and handle abuse far better. In my racing days my HPs got lent to quite a few Silca users who wanted to ride home.

Rick

79pmooney: By 2013, SILCA was the oldest company in the bicycle industry to have been continually owned by the same family. In August of 2013, Claudio Sacchi, grandson of Felice, sold the company to Joshua Poertner an American. I had one of those old Silca pumps and put the Campi pump head on it. I believe the pump body was plastic. I later replaced it with a Zephal. The company sold in name only. The current pumps are of American design and are higher quality than the old Zephal pumps. Silca does sell replacement parts for the older floor pumps and makes a few models of their own along with some cutting edge racing bicycle tools and accessories.

noglider 

Back when the best regarded pumps were Zefal and Silca, I tried them both many times. The Zefal won handily. @79pmooney is right about handling abuse. Plastic is not as durable as aluminum.

And folks, it's Zefal with an 'f' not a 'ph'. Z-E-F-A-L

Silca may be an admirable company, but it doesn't raise the Impero pump in my eyes. I'm comparing pumps, not companies.

Troul 

Stowage is in a seat bag. Exposed pump stowage is not an option for my use.