Pumps vs Co2 inflators?

[TNC]

I hate CO2 stuff too. I use a Topeak Mountain Morph. It's like a small floor pump with a little foot that you can fold out and step on. It's much easier than having to do the isometric exercise of a hand pump. It always works, and I don't have to worry about whether I have enough CO2.

MOUNTAIN MORPH® | Topeak

[73Eldo]

Battery death from non use was the first thing that popped into my mind. Someone needs to build one that can run in the 48-52 range so we can run it direct off out packs if needed.

[AZguy]

I think the rechargeable would be ok, albeit sort of heavy and large, only if you use them often

If they only get used once a year or so (my carry pump likely doesn't even see that) then it would just be a battery you have to maintain and since they'd be kept charged, likely would get few cycles from them - now running a pump from the bike battery would make a lot more sense for that occasional use I think

[Retrorockit]

I did see a bunch of small rechargeable tire inflators available. IDK anything about them.But looks like better option than manual pumps or CO2.
My NOX cartridges don't have threaded ends, so I guess I'll just have to save them for my whippet powered Iced coffee dispenser.

[Fred]

One of these is another possibility; a little bigger than a small pump, but mine works well. I imagine one coud recharge it (12V) on the road with an inverter or srep-down transformer off the ebike battery,

https://www.amazon.com/Oasser-Compressor-Portable-Inflatables-P1S/dp/B07H3LP4LL/ref=sr_1_35?crid=1MTOC7NUW1OPR&dchild=1&keywords=portable+inflator+pump&qid=1626552527&sprefix=portable+inflator%2Caps%2C262&sr=8-35

[AZguy]

That looks skinny for fat tires

A bit more money but looks a lot better for fat and I'm a huge fan of lezyne pumps: https://ride.lezyne.com/collections/...tubeless-drive

[73Eldo]

This looks maybe interesting. Looks like its a Co2 head that says it threads onto the valve but they added a pump attachment with the same thread as the canisters.

https://www.blackburndesign.com/p/core-co2fer-bike-mini-pump/

[AZguy]

CO2 is liquid (like propane) at relatively low pressures, a few hundred psi, so very dense, and non-flammable

You could always use N2O canisters I suppose but they also have all the downsides of CO2... except if you have leftover you could "relax" a bit

I agree it would be nice if the CO2 inflators would screw onto the valve stem - I don't think the ones I used work that way... after trying them back in the bad old days before stans getting flats about every other ride out here from the goat heads, I just found a pump to be a much better approach

[73Eldo]

Whats an adjustable Co2 inflator? I was concerned about the cold so was looking for one that at least has the insulating sleeve if not fully enclosed. Also trying to figure out which ones lock on somehow vs just kinda push on. Seems like push on could be better chance of leakage and getting frozen.

Ya why did they pick Co2? I can see initially when the idea came up 30 years ago it was an existing standard product that was out there but today it seems like bike people are selling them so why don't they go with say nitrogen? Or can't it me compressed as much? How about hydrogen to compensate for the weight of the valve cap? Or Flubber gas so we could just fly?

I do often help people too. This was the first of 4 patch kits I have used on my own bike, the other 3 were complete strangers. Same with first aid kits, I think I am on my 3rd now and luckily not needed one myself. Back in the olden days I could and did carry basically a 26 x 1.75 and 700 x 25 tube and be able to jam that into just about any adult bike I ran into but today I think I would need a trailer to cover them all so I just offer patch kits now.

[AZguy]

Tried them years ago, hated them. Pumps are fine for me although since I discovered stans haven't needed one in nearly 10,000mi and although I still carry one "just in case" it has only been used to help other people - almost worth it just for that although I'm more likely to help out when she's pretty =]

The CO2 is cold, frost bite is truly an issue - it numbs before it burns so you don't know you've gotten frostbite until your hand or fingers thaw out. The cartridges aren't large enough for the really big fat tires (4-5") and if you have a well defined bead they may not be able to reseat the tire if it's come out of the bead and may need more than one to get much pressure. CO2 is one of the worst gasses to inflate tires with too. It changes pressure with heat and if there's moisture in the tube it will get absorbed into it and become acidic (carbonic acid) while your pressure goes down. I wouldn't be surprised if you lose a fair bit if you have stans in the tire since it's got a lot of water in it.

Pumps are silly reliable and push air instead of yucky CO2 into the tires. Granted it may take a little longer but if you have the right pump (narrow pumps for narrow tires, fat pumps for fat tires) it's not really a workout, just a lot of pumping. You sure as heck aren't going to get frostbite - although I suppose a blister is possible but at least you'll feel that before it happens hahaha!

Did I mention I hate CO2 inflators?

[Diggs Ut]

I carry a CO2 inflater with 2 cartridges. It is the adjustable type (didn't know there was any other kind). It is good until the end of the ride/day as that is when I replace a pierced cartridge. Not sure how long it could last. Small size, no effort, work great - a CO2 inflator seemed to be the way to go. (...although I haven't needed it since I switched to Schwalbe Marathon tires - knock-on-wood)

[73Eldo]

For the last year and about 2000 miles since my return to riding I have been carrying a fairly small pump. I knew it would take a lot of pumping to do my 26x4 or 29x 2-3 inch tires and just to try it did a 26x4 one time. It wasn't horrible. Last week I had my first flat(s) out on the road. Cause seemed to be not especially well fitting or high quality tubes so something I should reasonably be able to avoid in the future so I'm not expecting to needing to be inflating a lot of tires.

Having to inflate 2 29x2.5's on the side of the road one may have been leaking while I was pumping seemed like it took 1000's of strokes. This happened 4 miles into a 40 mile ride so it plus all the pumping really took the mojo out of the whole ride. I plan to still carry a pump just as a backup or for the initial tube inflation or looking for the leaks but am thinking of also getting a co2 system. Weight and space are not a huge deal, its an E bike and I always have some sort of packs. Cost was originally a concern but I probably would have paid someone $100 that other day to shorten that pit stop.

Anyone used the co2 deals? Are there any features to look for or avoid? There seems to be a lot of options for the 'heads'? and only 2 styles of the cartridges along with different yields. Looks like one variable may be some have a valve you actuate to control the flow? Others must be a valve that activates when it hits the tire valve? Once you puncture the canister it seems like they don't have any shelf life? Are we talking minutes of shelf life or maybe a day? Like if you only used half the canister doing your repair would you still be able to get he other half out of it later in the day for a top up or if you had another flat? Just trying to figure out if I would be carrying 2 canisters or a dozen to be useful on a longer ride?

90% of my rides start at home so there I have an air compressor and a Topeak digital shuttle meter that has a fill valve on it too so that is what I use for my pre ride checks. I don't carry any sort of gauge with me but if there was a need or reason I could carry that topeak which does presta or scrhader or I have a low and high pressure presta gauge too. I think my low pressure one goes to 30 which is the max I tend to run but I could be wrong and it only goes to 15, don't use it much since I got the topeak digital. I will have to read about my topeak gauge and see if you can shoot Co2 through it? It wasn't an especially cheap unit so I would hate to damage it.