Breaking Valves with a Mini-Pump

"Michael D" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I had a puncture on the way home last night & set about fixing it,
with the help of the(Specialized Air Force 4) mini-pump that I carry
with me for emergencies.

Luckily I've hardly had to use this pump but I've still managed to
snap two (Presta) valves with it. I've tried to be gentle but I was
wondering if there's some kind of a cunning (or even obvious) trick
that I'm missing to using these things. Is it a general problem or is
it just me?

You have to wrap your fingers around the end of the pump and the valve and
brace against the
wheel so that the valve doesn't flex too much while pumping with your other
hand.

KC

Michael D said:

I had a puncture on the way home last night & set about fixing it,
with the help of the(Specialized Air Force 4) mini-pump that I carry
with me for emergencies.

Luckily I've hardly had to use this pump but I've still managed to
snap two (Presta) valves with it. I've tried to be gentle but I was
wondering if there's some kind of a cunning (or even obvious) trick
that I'm missing to using these things. Is it a general problem or is
it just me?

Regards,

Michael

I have never broken a valve in my twenty odd years of inflating tyres so
it must be you !.

MSeries <[email hidden]> wrote:
: I have never broken a valve in my twenty odd years of inflating tyres so
: it must be you !.

I binned one mini-pump because of this problem. No matter what you did, this
happened. It was just a fundenmentally borked design.

I've gone back to frame fit Zefals now.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune PGP/GPG Key: http://www.clune.org/pubkey.txt
It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness

Arthur Clune said:

MSeries <[email hidden]> wrote:
: I have never broken a valve in my twenty odd years of inflating tyres so
: it must be you !.

I binned one mini-pump because of this problem. No matter what you did, this
happened. It was just a fundenmentally borked design.

I've gone back to frame fit Zefals now.

Arthur

I have only ever inflated two tyres with mini pumps I should add. I am a
Zefal user most of the time and have been since 1990. Thats not strictly
true, I only use the Zefal when out on the road, I use a track pump at home,

Arthur Clune said:

MSeries <[email hidden]> wrote:
: I have never broken a valve in my twenty odd years of inflating tyres so
: it must be you !.

I binned one mini-pump because of this problem. No matter what you did, this
happened. It was just a fundenmentally borked design.

I've gone back to frame fit Zefals now.

Arthur

I have only ever inflated two tyres with mini pumps I should add. I am a
Zefal user most of the time and have been since 1990. Thats not strictly
true, I only use the Zefal when out on the road, I use a track pump at home,

"Michael D" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I had a puncture on the way home last night & set about fixing it,
with the help of the(Specialized Air Force 4) mini-pump that I carry
with me for emergencies.

Luckily I've hardly had to use this pump but I've still managed to
snap two (Presta) valves with it. I've tried to be gentle but I was
wondering if there's some kind of a cunning (or even obvious) trick
that I'm missing to using these things. Is it a general problem or is
it just me?

The proper technique with any hand-held press-on pump is as follows.

(asume right-handed use)

Rotate wheel until valve is in upper 1/2.
Press pump head onto valve.
Hold end of pump with 4th, 3rd, 2nd fingers and thumb of left hand, 1st
finger curls around rim.
Pump, using left hand to keep pump from moving relative to valve; thumb and
2nd finger brace from one direction, 1st from the other, 1st also keeps pump
head on valve.

The above is easier if your wheel has been built with the valve hole in the
proper orientation to your spoking pattern.

Mini-pumps are gadgets that cost more and do less; there is no good reason
for them other than manufacturing (& purchasing) fad.

Michael D said:

I had a puncture on the way home last night & set about fixing it,
with the help of the(Specialized Air Force 4) mini-pump that I carry
with me for emergencies.

Luckily I've hardly had to use this pump but I've still managed to
snap two (Presta) valves with it. I've tried to be gentle but I was
wondering if there's some kind of a cunning (or even obvious) trick
that I'm missing to using these things. Is it a general problem or is
it just me?

If there's a handy wall, fence or similar Hard Thing[1], lean the wheel
against in in such a position that any movement of pump and valve is
arrested by said wall, fence, etc. before it gets very far.

1 - i.e. /not/ Henry Rollins

--

Dave Larrington - http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/
World Domination?
Just find a world that's into that kind of thing, then chain to the
floor and walk up and down on it in high heels. (Mr. Sunshine)

Michael D said:

I had a puncture on the way home last night & set about fixing it,
with the help of the(Specialized Air Force 4) mini-pump that I carry
with me for emergencies.

Luckily I've hardly had to use this pump but I've still managed to
snap two (Presta) valves with it. I've tried to be gentle but I was
wondering if there's some kind of a cunning (or even obvious) trick
that I'm missing to using these things. Is it a general problem or is
it just me?

You should remove the pump from the valve by striking it with your hand
sharply (like a karate chop). Never "wiggle" it off.

in message <[email hidden]>, jtaylor

(') said:

Mini-pumps are gadgets that cost more and do less; there is no good
reason for them other than manufacturing (& purchasing) fad.

Disagree. Frame-fit pumps are of course a good thing provided you have
room for one, but many bikes don't these days. Only one of my four
bikes will take a frame fit pump and that's at cost of a second bottle
cage - and frankly, a second bottle cage is a lot more useful than a
big pump. Small pumps are lighter and good ones are perfectly
effective; and they are much easier to mount on the bike.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

Morning had broken, and we had run out of gas for the welding torch.