crude... but effective...

[bemused]

often, it's more trouble than it's worth to hook up my cigarette-lighter-powered compressor to top up tires on the bike. so, I've decided to get a plain ol' manual tire pump ... figgered somebody here would know of the IDEAL combo of price / ease of use / resistance to nuclear attack ('specially w/ all you bicycle types here)-- or whether one's as good as another.

speak to me!

[stoinkythepig]

I have a Bell "composite" pump. I think "composite" means "plastic" but it was cheap and works just fine. Were I to do it again, I'd look for one with an accurate gauge. Bicylce shops carry nice ones, Zefal comes to mind as a quality brand.

That said, I carry a small, portable, 12V compressor under my passenger seat along with my tire plug kit. I soldered a connector that fits the electric vest/jacket outlets on my bikes. No hassle at all to use. I've helped two people with car tire flats with it too. People are pretty amazed when someone can fix and inflate their car tire with stuff carried on a sport bike.

[benVFR]

Your LBS (local bike shop) should have something.

Just get the biggest main chamber you can. I think mine might be Zefal.

You can also get one here, from PerformanceBike.com, they are reputable and very popular:

Floor Pumps @ performance

All of these should make short work of a motorcycle tire. I know mine puts >1psi into the tire for each pump. So unless the tire is totally flat it takes like 5 seconds to top them off.

You might look for one that is only Shraeder valve if you don't also have bicycles. Most high end bicycles only use Presta valves now. The pumps usually handle both very easily though.

Ben

[benVFR]

Actually... this one might be really nice for carrying on a motorcycle if you are totally averse to physical labor:

Neat mini 9.6V/Car/bike pump

Although really... the manual pumps aren't necessarily crude. Kind of elegant compared to similar priced electric pumps. Simple, reliable, and don't need power. (And possibly faster than a little electric thing like this)

Ben

[bemused]

so, Ben... how accurate are the included gauges on those things?

[benVFR]

Originally posted by bemused
so, Ben... how accurate are the included gauges on those things?

Keep using your normal, separate gauge. I never trust anything on a pump or an air compressor.

It's not as critical on a bicycle. For mountain bikes you have to go by feel, there are no magic numbers like on motorcycles. You don't have to worry about heat shredding the tires, the main thing is having enough air to keep from pinch flatting, and a low enough pressure to maintain traction. On a road bicycle you're running at really high pressures (120-160psi) You can feel when the tire is off on those too after a while. You can overheat and blow out a tire on a road bicycle, but you'll notice the brakes fading if you're at risk of doing that.

Ben