From: chandler@wc.novell.com (Mark Chandler)
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.marketplace
Subject: Re: Mini-Pump Review 4/5
Date: 8 Jan 93 23:22:25 GMT
Organization: Novell, Inc. - Walnut Creek

In article <1581@blue.cis.pitt.edu> jwgst2+@pitt.edu (James W Gourgoutis) writes:
>In article <1993Jan8.185920.26834@novell.com> chandler@wc.novell.com (Mark Chandler) writes:
>>
>>MT ZEFAL HP MINI DOUBLE-SHOT AND MINI DOUBLE-SHOT
>> [Zefal comments  deleted ]
>
>	I own a Mt. Zefal HP, and I'm a little disappointed with it.  First of
>all, it is rated at 100 psi, but there is no way that it will pump this high.
>My road bike tires are rated at 105 psi, and it just doesn't cut it.  This is
>not a really big problem, since I got the pump for my MTB.  I wanted the metal
>version because I was afraid that the plastic would crack.  I should have 
>gotten the plastic version.  It has a higher pumping volume, costs less, and 
>is owner-serviceable, since the endcaps unscrew, unlike the press fit metal
>model.  The plastic model is only rated to 60 psi, but like I said, the metal
>model just doesn't cut it, so this is pretty much a moot point.
>	The other thing that really bugs me about this pump is that it is 
>supposed to be a double-shot pump, but it only really pumps in the one 
>direction.  I tried another Zefal mini, and it did the same thing, so I'm 
>convinced that it is a design flaw, and not just a faulty pump.  I was hoping 
>that this pump would work as well as my beloved full-size Zefal Double-Shot,
>which works VERY well.
>	All in all, if I could do it again, I would probably buy the plastic
>version.  Or the Blackburn mini pump.  A few months ago, Bicycling did a story
>on the various types of minipumps out there, and the blackburn won.

Blackburn's "double-shottedness" adds precious little to its ability to
inflate a tire.  When I evaluated the pumps I thought the Blackburn was
all sizzle and no steak (apologies to vegans).  If you want high-pressure,
check out the Vetta or Barbieri.

I use the Zefals on my personal bike; the plastic one when I'm running
big (700x40-45C) knobbies and the metal one when I have my go-fast-on-
the-road wheels (700x32C Michelin Selects).  I prefer minis because my
seat tube is only 49.5cm* and I already have a bottle cage there.  To
better accomodate a mini-pump, I had the frame builder put bottle cage
bosses *under* the down tube (near the BB) so I could mount the clips
down there.
* With a 56cm (actual size) sloping top tube.

Did you notice that _Bicycling_ didn't test the pumps on actual tires;
but instead used some wizzy machine that "simulated" a tire.  God forbid
one of their writers should touch a real tire.  I can't wait for their
big "Valve Caps: Should You Use Them?" article.  No smiley.

>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>James Gourgoutis       				   
>Mechanical Engineering                                O   
>University of Pittsburgh                           _ /__,     
>e-mail me at:  JWGST2@unixd.cis.pitt.edu          (_) /(_) 
>	       or JWGST2@vms.cis.pitt.edu
>Thanks!           			   "Why am I so late?  It took me 
>					    25 minutes to decide which bike
>					    to ride!"--me. 
>-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-       

--
Mark Chandler              Novell, Inc.         510/975-4522
chandler@wc.novell.com     Walnut Creek, CA     AOL: Crosswords
===============================================================
   The opinions expressed above are mine, not my employer's.
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.marketplace