Silca's SuperPista Ultimate - deep

[Charles M]

Pretty incredible inside... More so when you start to take apart the other $200 pumps in the house after they failed to be repetitively accurate.

THE REVIEW IS HERE (http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/tech-n-spec/silca-superpista-ultimate-pump-review/#.VfRPaRFVhBc)

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-1.jpg

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-15.jpg

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-7.jpg

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-22.jpg

[Tickdoc]

Exquisite pump, but it can never compete with my $40 Serfas that is 10 yrs old and still going strong.....never compete on price, I mean :-)

I would have to be silly full of surplus money to invest in this beautiful pump, and even then it would still go to other things.

[Aaron O]

A good floor pump lasts a pretty long time...and ours is in the living room. Looks count. It's tempting, but a little out of my budget on a floor pump.

I've been VERY happy with my Specialized Air Force something or other.

[AngryScientist]

i've said it before and i'll repeat my sentiment: the reason silca gained such a reputation among bike enthusiasts is because EVERYONE had one, and at the time, they were the best floor pump you could put your hands on.

the new crop of pumps is still the best pump you can put your hands on, but it is way overdesigned and at the price point they are in the market, certainly NOT everyone will own one. joe average bike enthusiast is just not going to pay huge bucks for a bespoke pump when the competition is very, very good these days. i use a lezyne pump a few times a week, and have for years, and it's doing the job brilliantly.

1% gauge accuracy - on a bicycle tire pump - nice claim to put out there, but really - totally not necessary. and i still loathe those push on chucks!

i actually own one of their new frame pumps, and it rocks, but it was a luxury buy, for sure, even used.

[RedRider]

You can buy a Hyundai for 15K and it will start every time, the AC and heat will fire right up and they will guaranty it for eternity but some people will still spend over $330K for a Ferrari. One might even argue that the Ferrari is not as versatile.
If there is any doubt that there is a market for these pumps the Pegoretti special editions at about $1k have sold out two runs and there is a new Richard Sachs limited run at about $800.
I doubt if Specialized, Park, Joe Blow, etc are losing sleep over Silca since this is a low volume niche. I wouldn't be surprised if the mass market pump makers started making higher end products.
Disclaimer; We are a Silca dealer and sales have exceeded our expectations.

[Peter P.]

I'm sorry but even Silca doesn't "get it" with their $200 floor pump.

When is someone going to increase the size of the dial gauge so you can easily see the difference between say, 28 and 30 psi. when pumping up ATB tires? They put the gauge all the way down at your feet, when it would be smarter to place it at the top of the pump, NEAR YOUR EYES! Some of us are getting old, you know! While even my Park PFP-4 has the gauge near the handle end of the barrel, even that gauge is too small for fine tuning air pressure.

[Charles M]

Well, for starters, use a different pump and you're very likely not getting the same PSI you wanted between the 28 and 30 mark.

But with Silca's Low PSI gauge, you can not only easily see the diff between 28 and 30, because that gauge is accurate to .5%, you're actually getting repeatable accuracy at either 28 or 30...

If you're too old to see this, you shoudnt be riding :)



http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-10.jpg

[ultraman6970]

Hhehehe... i was wondering the same thing about mine, cant see the f... dial :D Ended up putting a big red mark at 100 and a blue in 120 :D

I'm sorry but even Silca doesn't "get it" with their $200 floor pump.

When is someone going to increase the size of the dial gauge so you can easily see the difference between say, 28 and 30 psi. when pumping up ATB tires? They put the gauge all the way down at your feet, when it would be smarter to place it at the top of the pump, NEAR YOUR EYES! Some of us are getting old, you know! While even my Park PFP-4 has the gauge near the handle end of the barrel, even that gauge is too small for fine tuning air pressure.

[rnhood]

Well, if someone thinks they need .5% accuracy for road riding I'd they might be a bit too old also. Good review though.

[OtayBW]

If you're too old to see this, you shoudnt be riding :)How can I put this nicely?... That's one of the most ridiculous things I've heard around here in quite some time - and that's saying something....:D

[oldpotatoe]

I'm a big fan of spending more, getting the tool that will last for a long time BUT...I have a Silca that is 20 years old, new hose and Hirame head..it works everyday. If it broke and I couldn't find the parts, I'd by one of these but.......

[mcteague]

Why do people keep referring to this as a $200 pump? A quick check shows the price is $445!

Tim

[Joachim]

Why do people keep referring to this as a $200 pump? A quick check shows the price is $445!

Tim

They mean that $200 pumps fail in terms of accuracy and consistency. If your $200 pump pumps 97psi instead of 95psi but the gauge reads 96psi.... You know your ride is just horrible. That's why you need the $500 pump, unless you are too old, then you need a hand pump for your wheelchair Corima wheels.

[alancw3]

reminds me of the renn compressor 40 anniversary pump i had. great quality but also a pain to use so i ended up selling it. anyway, as much as i am not a fan of specialized i do have to say that the air tool pro at $120 msrp imho is the absolute best pump out there for the money. have had one for five years now and not only use for presta bike valves but also to pump up my schrader valve car tires.

[velotel]

If you're too old to see this, you shoudnt be riding :)
I read your review on Pez and was quite impressed. I'm not a tech head by any stretch of the imagination but I do appreciate when things are both beautifully and well built which apparently this pump is. Looks like a terrific item. For me absolutely out of my league price wise but then lots of things in life are so no problem there for me at all. I also appreciated your write-up, very nicely done, very clear, and on the assumption that all you wrote is true, an enlightening review indeed.

But let's see, by your thinking, I had no right at all to have ridden all that I've ridden in the past 9, 10 months. Like Ventoux twice, Galib north side, Finestre, Iseran, Chaussy followed by the traverse to Madeleine, the Cormet d'Areches-Cormet de Roselend-Col du Pre loop, Col de l'Arpettaz-the magnificent traverse to Col des Aravis, and on and on. No right because for me to see the bloody gauges on the pumps I need reading glasses because, yes, I'm old. Happily until this no one had bothered to tell me I was too old to do what I'm doing. So I thank you for letting me know what everyone else has neglected to tell me. I'll try like hell to keep your advice in mind next time I feel some urge to ride my bike.

I suspect that even if I had the budget for a pump like that, I wouldn't buy it anyway because I'd just forget between one pumping up and the next what pressure I pumped up to last time so that super accurate gauge that I couldn't see anyway wouldn't do me all that much good and I'd just use the old thumb pressing to tell me if the pressure was good or not, thus eliminating any need to see anything.

Nevertheless, like I said, I do appreciate finally made tools and I'm sure if I could afford to buy one of these beauties, I'd love it, whether I could read the gauge or not. So thanks for the review, I enjoyed it.

I suggest you do yourself a service and you park your above comment somewhere you can find in the future when you're trying to find your reading glasses to see something you're sure is there but not exactly sure where or what it is. That way you'll be able to give yourself a good laugh at you when you were young.

[sworcester]

Why do people keep referring to this as a $200 pump? A quick check shows the price is $445!

Tim

That's what I see too. At $200, it is a glam addition, at $445 it is opulent like miniature giraffes on gold leashes

[mcteague]

That's what I see too. At $200, it is a glam addition, at $445 it is opulent like miniature giraffes on gold leashes

I still remember an old ad, for some audio amp, that said "even if you can't afford the best of everything, you can afford the best of something". I always liked that quote and do have the best, or nearly so, of some things; HD800 headphones, Linkwitz Orion speakers, Seven 622 SLX frame, but generally move a level or two down from top of the line stuff. Still, some people have lots of money and can easily afford the best of many, many things. They often fund the trickle down technology the rest of us can afford. Still, fun to make sport of this stuff!

Tim

[Aaron O]

I read your review on Pez and was quite impressed. I'm not a tech head by any stretch of the imagination but I do appreciate when things are both beautifully and well built which apparently this pump is. Looks like a terrific item. For me absolutely out of my league price wise but then lots of things in life are so no problem there for me at all. I also appreciated your write-up, very nicely done, very clear, and on the assumption that all you wrote is true, an enlightening review indeed.

But let's see, by your thinking, I had no right at all to have ridden all that I've ridden in the past 9, 10 months. Like Ventoux twice, Galib north side, Finestre, Iseran, Chaussy followed by the traverse to Madeleine, the Cormet d'Areches-Cormet de Roselend-Col du Pre loop, Col de l'Arpettaz-the magnificent traverse to Col des Aravis, and on and on. No right because for me to see the bloody gauges on the pumps I need reading glasses because, yes, I'm old. Happily until this no one had bothered to tell me I was too old to do what I'm doing. So I thank you for letting me know what everyone else has neglected to tell me. I'll try like hell to keep your advice in mind next time I feel some urge to ride my bike.

I suspect that even if I had the budget for a pump like that, I wouldn't buy it anyway because I'd just forget between one pumping up and the next what pressure I pumped up to last time so that super accurate gauge that I couldn't see anyway wouldn't do me all that much good and I'd just use the old thumb pressing to tell me if the pressure was good or not, thus eliminating any need to see anything.

Nevertheless, like I said, I do appreciate finally made tools and I'm sure if I could afford to buy one of these beauties, I'd love it, whether I could read the gauge or not. So thanks for the review, I enjoyed it.

I suggest you do yourself a service and you park your above comment somewhere you can find in the future when you're trying to find your reading glasses to see something you're sure is there but not exactly sure where or what it is. That way you'll be able to give yourself a good laugh at you when you were young.

Eventually we play every role. If we live long enough. Your post made me guffaw heartily.

[Charles M]

I suggest you do yourself a service and you park your above comment somewhere you can find in the future when you're trying to find your reading glasses to see something you're sure is there but not exactly sure where or what it is. That way you'll be able to give yourself a good laugh at you when you were young.


I'm 50. I'm guessing young enough to wear "progressive" lenses so I can have on the right pair for pumping and riding... :banana:

[Wakatel_Luum]

It looks like a nice pump, well made but that price is offensive...my 23 year old Silca pump will keep doing me fine for a few more years...

[bostondrunk]

It looks like a nice pump, well made but that price is offensive...my 23 year old Silca pump will keep doing me fine for a few more years...

To each their own.
I find spending 6k on a Sachs/Crumpton/Vagen/Peg to be offensive, when everyone knows a 1k frame will do the job just as well, right?! But Sachs has, what, a 6 year waiting list? Well, maybe shorter now that he doesn't take new orders, but you get my point.

[Wakatel_Luum]

It's an overpriced bicycle pump...and yes bikes these days are overpriced too IMO...

[happycampyer]

I would argue that it is fairly priced for what it is but, for its intended purpose--inflating bicycle tires--it is over-engineered, over-built and built with expensive (i.e., domestic) labor. For some people, the over-the-topness of it is precisely what makes it desirable. I don't intend to buy one, but I can understand the appeal. It's not as if there aren't other instances where I've bought an over-engineered, over-built product in place of a simpler one.

[chiasticon]

To each their own.
I find spending 6k on a Sachs/Crumpton/Vagen/Peg to be offensive, when everyone knows a 1k frame will do the job just as well, right?!
I don't entirely agree, but I have a similar point for those across the hall currently arguing over the value of this pump (in regards to Sachs posting a thread about the limited edition RS version being available). that is, if you're pumping up $300 tires glued to $3k wheels, bolted to a $5k frame, with a $3k groupset on it, dressed in $1k worth of kit... then can you really sit there with a straight face and say "that's just too much!"?

surely everyone has their breaking point of where they think something is just too indulgent for them. it's just funny sometimes to see where that breaking point is.

[sparky33]

If I had a RS bike in my garage, I would totally get a matching pump.

My gosh people, lighten up.

[Charles M]

It looks like a nice pump, well made but that price is offensive...my 23 year old Silca pump will keep doing me fine for a few more years...


And that thing has a couple of the same replaceable parts available (made in the same factory as they were in 1946)... Rock on.


I don't entirely agree, but I have a similar point for those across the hall currently arguing over the value of this pump (in regards to Sachs posting a thread about the limited edition RS version being available). that is, if you're pumping up $300 tires glued to $3k wheels, bolted to a $5k frame, with a $3k groupset on it, dressed in $1k worth of kit... then can you really sit there with a straight face and say "that's just too much!"?

surely everyone has their breaking point of where they think something is just too indulgent for them. it's just funny sometimes to see where that breaking point is.


Or more to the point, the implication that one person's limit should be everyone's :)

[reggiebaseball]

So, Joshua Poertner was involved with Zipp, bringing totally unnecessary $3000 aero carbon wheels to the average dentist, providing benefits they will never realize outside of professional TT'ing.

And now, he is instrumental in elevating the Silca pump to a $500 item, again with performance completely unnecessary and invisible to the average cyclist.


"Josh Poertner paid $90 for his first Silca... That first pump is still in the Poertner garage."

http://www.npr.org/2014/09/24/351246933/what-makes-a-bike-pump-worth-450

Wow Josh, you loved it so much for $90 that you made $500-1200 versions to sell us, bless you!

Why stop there Silca, why don't you try to make it sound like your $500 pump was responsible for Fabian Cancellara winning Roubaix - oh wait you already do on your blog...

[chiasticon]

Why stop there Silca, why don't you try to make it sound like your $500 pump was responsible for Fabian Cancellara winning Roubaix - oh wait you already do on your blog...
actually that's the zipp wheels he worked on that he makes sound like are responsible for FC winning roubaix, with quotes from FC to back it up. that's actually a fascinating read into the history of making carbon wheels durable enough to survive such a race, and fast enough to give one a significant advantage over regular box-section rims. a groundbreaking achievement to be sure.

back to the point though... Charles M: great write up! really enjoyed it.

[velomonkey]

Wow Josh, you loved it so much for $90 that you made $500-1200 versions to sell us, bless you!

Why stop there Silca, why don't you try to make it sound like your $500 pump was responsible for Fabian Cancellara winning Roubaix - oh wait you already do on your blog...

I'm with Reggie Bundesliga. Yes, people can buy whatever they want, but this is an internet BB - we got micro not macro!!!!

The new Silca has gone too far and isn't inline with the product that made the original so great. The price is in no way in line with monetary inflation over time and while hand made it's not an italian product. Heck, I got a t shirt of theirs from a buddy who lives in Indy and they misspelled Indianapolis for cripes sake.

I like Richard, I like Dario - it cost them nothing to do this, their contribution to the sport is secure (as it should be), however, this is gonna be their version of the Apple Pippin.

[bfd]

It looks like a nice pump, well made but that price is offensive...my 23 year old Silca pump will keep doing me fine for a few more years...

Agree. My 25+ year old silca is still going strong. However, one reason why I bought a silca way back was because all the parts were available for rebuilding, if needed. Nevertheless, one thing I did do to "upgrade" my pump was to get one of the newer urethane washers from EVT tools, which now appears to go for $7 and looks to be the same or at least very similar to the one from silca.

Evt washer
http://www.efficientvelo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/EVT_DAY_3_GASKET.jpg

silca washer
http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0309/9521/products/242_On_White_Low_Gloss.JPG?v=1439922116

[SPOKE]

If I had a RS bike in my garage, I would totally get a matching pump.

My gosh people, lighten up.

I guess I'm going to have to spring for two of the RS pumps😱

[Wakatel_Luum]

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/09/14/476cbbaf1bf1be04cd87752935887bbf.jpg

Ye oldey... 😉

[yakstone]

If your rides are different colors then you for sure need two pumps, even if they are twins, you still need two pumps; one for the main color and ond for thu lug color. Done deal.

[Jeff N.]

I have one of these, but I must admit that I'm not all that thrilled with the pump head. Air leaks from around the tube valve stem with some inner tubes...it's positional...and it's sometimes hard to pull the pump head off the stem when you're done inflating! -Jeff N.

[jlwdm]

...

I like Richard, I like Dario - it cost them nothing to do this, their contribution to the sport is secure (as it should be), however, this is gonna be their version of the Apple Pippin.

I thought Dario painted and signed his and that they sold out immediately.

Jeff

[Charles M]

They did (sell immediately). They had people emailing ahead of the thing going live trying to pre-buy em. Same with the first run or the Martini Racing pumps.

[Charles M]

Agree. My 25+ year old silca is still going strong. However, one reason why I bought a silca way back was because all the parts were available for rebuilding, if needed. Nevertheless, one thing I did do to "upgrade" my pump was to get one of the newer urethane washers from EVT tools, which now appears to go for $7 and looks to be the same or at least very similar to the one from silca.

Evt washer
http://www.efficientvelo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/EVT_DAY_3_GASKET.jpg

silca washer
http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/15-silca-superpista-17.jpg




The newest version (Silca) of the gasket is a pretty nice improvement over the last one...

It's $9 but it's a LOT more durable than urethane with similar softness so it grips as well.

It's also very chemical resistant and seals better over time than urethane.

[velomonkey]

I thought Dario painted and signed his and that they sold out immediately.

Jeff


Yes. That. Might. Have been the case. Seems apple sold out of pippin, too (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Pippin) (drop goes the mic).

[zap]

I have one of these, but I must admit that I'm not all that thrilled with the pump head. Air leaks from around the tube valve stem with some inner tubes...it's positional...and it's sometimes hard to pull the pump head off the stem when you're done inflating! -Jeff N.

You have the current "JP Silca" pump like the one reviewed in pez?

I need a new floor pump so I'm looking at reviews. Not much yet on the JPSilca pumps.

[goonster]

They put the gauge all the way down at your feet, when it would be smarter to place it at the top of the pump, NEAR YOUR EYES!
There is a pressure drop across the line, so the gauge should be as close as possible to the source.

So, I guess you can have it be legible or accurate, but not both . . .

[stackie]

I'm going to just fan the flames on this one.

I'm really considering buying one. My reservation is that I think I'll be disappointed if a Speedvagen or Vanilla version comes out after I buy. Hmm, maybe I'd better shoot Sacha an email to find out about that...

😳😜

Jon

Seriously, I'll buy one. I love my old silva, but like one of the previous posters said, I can have nice things in some areas.

[JeffS]

You can buy a Hyundai for 15K and it will start every time, the AC and heat will fire right up and they will guaranty it for eternity but some people will still spend over $330K for a Ferrari. One might even argue that the Ferrari is not as versatile.
If there is any doubt that there is a market for these pumps the Pegoretti special editions at about $1k have sold out two runs and there is a new Richard Sachs limited run at about $800.
I doubt if Specialized, Park, Joe Blow, etc are losing sleep over Silca since this is a low volume niche. I wouldn't be surprised if the mass market pump makers started making higher end products.
Disclaimer; We are a Silca dealer and sales have exceeded our expectations.


I don't know... based on your name, and your tagline, I'd say it was exactly your expectation.

It's price-raising to imply luxury. I'd wager the "tailored bicycle" doesn't have any "value" brands in-stock.

I couldn't care less about people with a lot of money buying luxury knick-knacks. What does bother me is when they distort the market enough that quality product is no longer readily apparent.

[Mark McM]

There is a pressure drop across the line, so the gauge should be as close as possible to the source.

So, I guess you can have it be legible or accurate, but not both . . .

Try again. Here are the two flaws in your logic:

A: Once the pumping stroke is complete, the (static) pressure is equal through out the system. (Well, except for the altitudinal pressure differences, which are microscopic.)

B: If a gauge is remotely mounted with a an extra hose that taps off the high pressure line, there is no pressure loss in that extra hose because there is no air flow through it.

The reason the pressure gauge is usually at the bottom is because it's simply easier to mount it there, because that's where the high pressure air is (the compressed air exits the barrel at the bottom, then goes through the hose to the valve). Mounting a remote gauge near the top of the pump requires an extra gauge mount and extra hose and fittings to connect it.

[goonster]

Ah, static system. I stand corrected.

[Mikej]

Super pista ultimate is listed at 400 on sale at Colorado cyclist fyi

[Idris Icabod]

Super pista ultimate is listed at 400 on sale at Colorado cyclist fyi

$347 from Merlin in the UK. I'll rattle can it for another $503 for anyone wanting an artist edition.:D

[zank]

I want one bad.

[DerekB]

Charles, great review.
So, are you going to buy one?

[Jeff N.]

I want one bad.I have one. Honestly, it ain't all that. Save your bread. Buy 3 or 4 Topeaks instead.

[zank]

I don't even want to use it; I just want to enjoy the machine work :D

[happycampyer]

I don't even want to use it; I just want to enjoy the machine work :DI would think that someone who makes finely crafted things for a living would recognize immediately how exquisitely executed the pump is.

[fuzzalow]

I would think that someone who makes finely crafted things for a living would recognize immediately how exquisitely executed the pump is.

Yes, I agree and in many respects IMO this is at the heart of the complaints. Most of the gripes IMO originate from a lack of understanding as to how things are really conceived and created. Largely because most people do not know anything in depth about the details and the striving that goes into making an attempt at a differentiated, finer upper end product.

Instead, most people are cultivated and trained as consumers. So all they know is how to choose for themselves that they think is attractive or suitable - using whatever myriad of criteria they can fathom as right for them. And which thereby consistent with their self prepossessed outlook, makes such choice correct, or not, for everyone else as well. A fatal flaw of ignorance.

Now, this is not to turn ,for example, a Michelangelo painting into a critique of execution over and above its existence as a thing of beauty in its own right. Although execution has much to do with its beauty also. Similarly as well as a Silca Ultimate can be simply accepted as an object a cut above the rest.

Hey, what can I tell 'ya - life can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be.

[Lovetoclimb]

Take a $60 Lezyne pump, add a $40 Silca schrader adapter and Presta chuck combo, a $0.50 hose clamp, and boom, you have a downright amazing pump at a much friendlier price. To top it off, if anything on the pump besides the chuck fails, it should be covered under Lezyne's warranty. Of course the Silca parts can always be swapped over to another pump, but I find the Lezyne Classic Floor Drive to currently be the best that I have used.

I do use a cheap Blackburn Air Tower that is much smaller and fits in a suitcase when I travel with my S&S bike however. Also covered under a "lifetime warranty" and also a brand that has performed exceptionally well.

Once I have a house that is paid off, a car that is not 13 years old, and a 401k that is thriving, the Silca pump will jump up my list for sure!

[KF9YR]

I'm sorry but even Silca doesn't "get it" with their $200 floor pump.



When is someone going to increase the size of the dial gauge so you can easily see the difference between say, 28 and 30 psi. when pumping up ATB tires? They put the gauge all the way down at your feet, when it would be smarter to place it at the top of the pump, NEAR YOUR EYES! Some of us are getting old, you know! While even my Park PFP-4 has the gauge near the handle end of the barrel, even that gauge is too small for fine tuning air pressure.


1697907194

Inflator from Lowe's, remove the tiny gauge and replace with 4" from Grainger, add a longer hose with a Hirame pump head and you are ready for tubeless MTB pressures...

I also bought the Silca knockoff of Hirame for my Lezyne pump and it works well. I bought the version that screws on to the schrader valve as it's easy to switch to pump up the kids soccer balls.

[MarleyMon]

... if a Speedvagen or Vanilla version comes out ...

I'm holding out for the Trump branded version - it will be the best, you won't even believe how good it will be!

[cp43]

I have one. Honestly, it ain't all that. Save your bread. Buy 3 or 4 Topeaks instead.

Can you give some more details on what you like and don't like about it? I've been thinking about a Silca, but at the current price, it needs to be really good for me to pick one up.

Thanks,

Chris

[reggiebaseball]

I have never liked the Silca Chuck. I found it would unscrew the valve cores from my tubulars, or not stay on well enough to inflate them.

Topeak Joe Blow for $30 has never let me down in 8 years. When it does, I will pick up a new model for $30 and have another decade or more of service.


When you have veloflex tubulars they loose 1psi of pressure by the time I am exiting my garage, so I dont need the .0004psi accuracy of Silca anyway.

[Charles M]

I'm going to just fan the flames on this one.

I'm really considering buying one. My reservation is that I think I'll be disappointed if a Speedvagen or Vanilla version comes out after I buy. Hmm, maybe I'd better shoot Sacha an email to find out about that...

😳😜

Jon

Seriously, I'll buy one. I love my old silva, but like one of the previous posters said, I can have nice things in some areas.


Nickle says Sasha would paint the pump to match (but would charge a little more than a nickle)... You could send him the baseplate and main tube. The assembly is pretty straight forward.


Try again. Here are the two flaws in your logic:

A: Once the pumping stroke is complete, the (static) pressure is equal through out the system. (Well, except for the altitudinal pressure differences, which are microscopic.)

B: If a gauge is remotely mounted with a an extra hose that taps off the high pressure line, there is no pressure loss in that extra hose because there is no air flow through it.

The reason the pressure gauge is usually at the bottom is because it's simply easier to mount it there, because that's where the high pressure air is (the compressed air exits the barrel at the bottom, then goes through the hose to the valve). Mounting a remote gauge near the top of the pump requires an extra gauge mount and extra hose and fittings to connect it.

You're right... It also requires those added parts to be of equal quality to the Silca in that it requires high quality fittings and a braided, very high quality air line with virtually zero expansion (that will stay that way for a few decades). But even with that, the added air volume between the check valve and the gauge allows for error (along with temp more so than altitude, which is also a bigger deal for nearly all other pumps than the Silca).



Beyond the fact that adding space between the check valve and the gauge does increase error capacity, the bigger reasons not to do it are cost and that you're putting weight (quite a bit of weight) at the top of the pump, blowing the stability.

You could also increase the size and weight of the base plate to offset the gauge move, but the changes would increase the cost quite a bit. Beyond the extra hose (which isn't cheap) and extra fittings (also expensive) you would have to double up the plates... One plate for mounting the gauge and splitting the air to the hose going to the tire and one at the pump bottom to take the pressurized air out of the main tube after the check valve to the hose going back to the top.

Perhaps more important than sacrificing functional stability and a bit of accuracy and adding a 30-40% price increase, there's just not a lot of people that have any difficulty seeing the gauge where it is...

But for those thinking their pump with a gauge at the top is "Better"...

The pump mentioned in the review that I have here that was off by the largest amount versus not just the Silca, but versus itself from one inflation to the next (by more than 4 times the error of the Silca), is a handy dandy gauge at the top pump...


So yeah... You can get a crystal clear view of an inaccurate number with a pump made from cheaper materials throughout and especially between the check valve and the the gauge at the top.




Probably the one thing that I initially thought the pump needed was a bleeder button to let a quick blast of air out for adjusting pressure.

But after using the pump, it's actuation is smooth enough that unlike the pumps I like the bleeder valve on, I have no problem at all stopping right at the required pressure... (and it's an accurate pressure).

[stackie]

The day after I posted, Sacha posted a pic of a Speedvagen painted Silca next to two Dario and a RS painted version at Interbike

https://instagram.com/p/7s4-F8rhmS/?taken-by=thevanillaworkshop

Guess I've committed... Or should be committed. :)

Jon

[Charles M]

LOL, I saw em first hand there :)

[Hindmost]

The reason the pressure gauge is usually at the bottom is because it's simply easier to mount it there...

Ever watched your pump tip over onto a concrete floor? Bottom mount adds a degree of durability.

[sg8357]

So now I have a 1% accuracy pump with latex tubies, how often
should I call the team car for a top up to stay within 1% ?

Is Silca paying Hirame licensing fees for use of their pump head ?

For a $400 pump, I would expect handles of Hawaiian Koa wood moulded from
an impression of my hand.

Keith Anderson paint and Nill Griffe custom carved handles for the ne plus ultra pump.