Do I need a shock pump?

Good question. I know that psi is psi but I have never seen anyone use a floor pump on their shock or fork. As I think about it a little more, I believe there is a different interface. I know that both Fox fork and shock have a screw on adapter for the pump - not sure about the Rock Shock.

jbvcoaching said:

Did a quick search on this but could not get a definitive answer.

Just got my first mtb in 10 years, and my first air fork (2002 SID Race). So the recommended pressure for me on this fork is 120psi, which my floor pump will easily and accurately do in theory. Do I need a shock pump? If so why, and if not...why not?

Thanks in advance.

I think the question is how much air a pump allows to escape when you disconnect it. Even though the pressure is high, the volume of air is very low in the fork's air chamber, so even allowing a little to escape will significantly lower the pressure in the fork. The high pressure pumps have a screw on connection, and just a tiny bit is lost when it is disconnected. I don't think you could achieve this with a floor pump, especially if it has one of the quick disconnect heads.

Tom

isn't it something to do with the volume of air that is pumped in from a floor pump vs a shock pump.
horses for courses, innit?

You definitly need a shock pump as you are very like to over inflate the shock bladder and cause it some serious damage with a standard high volume tube pump. Also you will not be able to accurrately set the correct bladder pressure as you will have difficulty with getting a secure connection to the shock housing.

There are however a couple of dual purpose shock and tube pumps on the market which have switchable volume chambers. Try cheching out the Specialized Windpipe, no idea how good it is but would probably save you a little weight out on the trails.

Yes you do need a proper shock pump. They only cost around £30 and will save you from trashing you severall hundred pound fork. You don't need to take the pump with you on the trails unless you have no diea what pressure you like, I like a little bit more sag and took the pump with me for the first few rides so I could adjust on the go. They are small enough to fit into a camelback, just try not to crash otherwise you might break the gauge.