Air compressor question...

[Hindmost]

Originally Posted by woolly

How did you attach the presta head to that? Did you replace the entire hose?

Silca has a Presta head that threads on to a Schrader fitting. That's how I did it.

[11.4]

Everything in power tools is going to battery power. Contractors are buying battery-powered tools more and more over pneumatic, and even more so with regard to corded tools. Buying a compressor of any kind is something I'd think twice about. Not only don't they work particularly well (quiet, fast, etc.) but you also have to drain the air tank daily to prevent condensation from rusting out the tank, many of them still need oil, the ones that don't are frequently noisier or have other problems, and they take a bit of room in your workshop or garage.

I've used a couple of the battery powered pistol grip tire inflators and they work great. They're the standard tool at cross races, and plenty of mechanics use them at World Cup track races to take track tires up to racing pressure. If you aren't pumping tires by hand, these are definitely the way to go. If you drive to a starting point of a big ride, you can throw it in the back of the car easily. You can ship it with your bike in a bike case if you travel with the bike. It's just the sane way to go.

[m_moses]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

not enough 'umph' to seat tubeless

Is this a common experience for small pancake air compressors?

I’ve got a Lezyne charge pump for seating tubeless tires and it’s satisfactory most of the time. But I have had those occasions when I’ve had to pump up the charge cylinder 6 or 8 times in a row and that’s not fun. So I’ve considered biting the bullet and buying a small air compressor like the Dewalt or CAT model above specifically for mounting tubeless tires.

For car tires, i have this Ryobi and it works great.




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[alancw3]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

you sound like an excellent candidate for a dedicated battery powered tire inflator. a few of the big boys are now making them, and they run off the same Li Ion batteries as your cordless drill, etc. simple, quiet and always ready. i'm thinking about getting one myself...

bought one of these ryobi pumps at home depot yesterday primarily for use with all of my grandchildren' bikes. was pleasantly surprised at how fast it pum[ped tires up. great addition to my ryobi tools. thanks for the heads up. i would have never known they came out with this item.

oh and just so everyone knows the picture does not show the integral pressure gauge.

[oldpotatoe]

[QUOTE=m_moses;2381026]Is this a common experience for small pancake air compressors?

It is for mine..pretty good for high pressure, low volume, like a standard bike tire(tubular in my case)..but for a big, strong 'ooomph' to seat a tubeless on a A23..couldn't do it. Not enough 'force' and the tank emptied too fast. YMMV and all that.

Have one of these for car tires..works fine.

[m_moses]

[QUOTE=oldpotatoe;2381853]

Originally Posted by m_moses

Is this a common experience for small pancake air compressors?



It is for mine..pretty good for high pressure, low volume, like a standard bike tire(tubular in my case)..but for a big, strong 'ooomph' to seat a tubeless on a A23..couldn't do it. Not enough 'force' and the tank emptied too fast. YMMV and all that.



Have one of these for car tires..works fine.

Thanks for the input. I guess I should save my mula and work on building some upper body strength pushing on the pump handle. I got a little envious watching the guys at my LBS seating tires effortlessly with compressed air. But, I don’t really have any other use for an air compressor. Btw, my charge pump is a Lezyne not Silca.



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[echelon_john]

My pancake compressor (Porter Cable, 6 gal I think) seated tires just fine. The California Air Tools little guy is harder to seat tires with, and it would probably be frustrating if you were doing a lot of loose tires like 29+ or fatbike. The trade off was that the PC was very loud and relatively heavy. The CAT is very quiet and weighs very little. For 99% of what I need, the CAT is adequate.

[ptourkin]

[QUOTE=m_moses;2381963]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

Thanks for the input. I guess I should save my mula and work on building some upper body strength pushing on the pump handle. I got a little envious watching the guys at my LBS seating tires effortlessly with compressed air. But, I don’t really have any other use for an air compressor. Btw, my charge pump is a Lezyne not Silca.



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Getting an Airshot those last pounds from 140 to 160 with a track pump isn't that fun when you weigh 130. I recommend jumping off the steps (carefully.)

[choke]

Originally Posted by woolly

How did you attach the presta head to that? Did you replace the entire hose?

An inexpensive brass presta-schrader adapter does the trick.

[morrisericd]

I second the Porter Cable pancake compressor. Sure it's loud (maybe there's a newer, quieter one?) but they're cheap and along with the Park INF Shop Inflator have been game changers. We have a lot of bikes and having the ability to quickly fill tires and put on tubeless ones has been great. You'd probably be out $250 total but IMO it's completely worth it.

As an aside (maybe everyone already knows this) - if you're having trouble seating a tubeless tire, pull the valve stem out and try again. Usually works the first time and you can either let it deflate as the tire is already seated or be quick on the draw with the ol' thumb to valve stem swap if the tire pops back off again.