The Great Debate: Pump or Chuck

I’ve said it once before, but it bears repeating now: adherence to Rule #29 carries with it the ultimate mission of the aspiring Velominatus, which is to geek out endlessly over the minimum amount of gear which yields maximum security in the event of a mechanical incident while riding.

The goal here is twofold. First, with no European Posterior Man Satchel dangling off the back of your bike like an elephant’s nutsack, pocket real estate is at a premium; filling them up with unneeded tools seems wasteful. Second, sagging pockets are as distressing as an EPMS, so care must be taken to ensure the pockets stay as light as possible.

Minimalist multi tool, lightweight inner tube or tubbie goo, and tire levers are all obvious choices; one is left only to endeavor to find the lightest model of each which still functions reliably (a lifetime can be devoted to this task). But that leaves us with the delicate matter of how we choose to resupply the air which provides a simple yet critical element to repairing the most common mechanical of all, the flat tire. The question in this case is, of course, whether to choose a chuck and cartouche c-oh-duex or minipump. Ignoring the obvious utility of being able to challenge someone to a mini-pump duel in the event of irreconcilable difference of opinion on critical matters of La Vie Velominatus, both means of air resupply have their merits.

Dictum 1 above has historically put me in the camp of using a chuck and two C02 cartridges. (One cartouche is not enough, I am much too clumsy to depend on my ability not to bugger the first one up.) First of all, the Lezyne Trigger Drive appeals to my sense of aesthetics; it’s small, nicely crafted, feels great in the hand and can provide hours of fidgeting should it find its way into my pants pocket. I can’t get excited about any particular C02 cartridge, but they are small and simple and I have an inherent appreciation for anything with a thread on it.

Dictum 2, however, does give me some pause; the ensamble is anything but a featherweight. Enter my Lezyne Carbon Roadlite, which was given to me when Lezyne came onboard as Air and Tool Supplier for Keepers Tour 2012. Initially, the pump only accompanied me on wet rides (C02 has a tendency to cause some freezing when discharged in cold, wet weather – very unpleasant). But before long, it began to creep into my thick noggin that the little devil hardly weighs a thing and is more than small enough to fit in my pocket without protruding out of the top, which is most unsightly and considered entirely unacceptable. Today, I find myself reaching for the pump more often than I do the chuck as it lightens my kit a bit, allowing me to consume an additional ale or two without contributing to any overall rider-kit-bike weight gains.

I find myself wondering where others fall in the Great Debate; which path do you walk, Pump or Chuck?

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146 Replies to “The Great Debate: Pump or Chuck”

  1. My head hurts ………  pump this, cartridge that, …..  what to do, what to do ………   Im currently using c02 for the pure reason of minimalization …..BUT ……  having seen that carbon  (oooooh caaarrrrbbbooonnnn) pump I may need to ,um, change.    As my father once said, if you cant play the game, at least look like you can……

  2. @Mark1

    I spent ten years as a marine navigator. Up until the eighties, finding out where you were was a very long and arduous process of using a sextant and getting your head round some complex spherical trigonometry. By the time you’d worked out a position, you were actually an hour away from where you were when you took the sights. Then came satellite navigation… briliant I thought.., less time number crunching, more time watching the waves and actually knowing exactly where you were. No said the Captain, who acted like he’d been on the Cutty Sark, you can’t trust it, can’t be relied upon blah blah blah, best use both, only the sextant is guaranteed to work. The fact that the sextant is perhaps the most delicate bit of kit on a ship and prone to numerous errors didn’t come into it.

    For me there is no choice, CO2 is the future, it has never let me down and used properly should never fail you, used winter and summer. Trouble with freezing? Just ease the valve a little more slowly, you shouldn’t be blasting it in that quickly anyway.

    Less time pumping, more time riding and at decent presssure to boot.

    I always got a kick out of the fish heads having to do celestial from first principles on every shot (just because Nelson didn’t have an Almanac, I guess). Ah, the Navy: 200 years of tradition, unimpeded by progress. I think that if you lose GPS and your inertials, you may have bigger problems than finding out exactly where you are.

    Oh, and CO2, optimism, a credit card, and the assumption that someone else in the group will bail me out for beers if I come to grief (just ask @Harminator).

  3. I carry a top Peak micro air booster, 16g per cylinder and 15g for the adapter about as light as you can get and it works great.

    One downside of the CO2 though is that it is difficult to  put a bit of air into the tube before installing it and so unless you careful you can pinch it as you fit the tyre.

  4. @minion

    One small difference in I use pedro’s levers since I’m a meathead and break other tyre levers very easily.

    I don’t always run clinchers, but when I do, it’s Open Pros and Vittorias — no lever required.

  5. I hate to admit I’ve never used a CO2 cart in my life. I’ve been weaned of my full length pump and now have a little Lezyne pump ON MY FRAME. I already have too much crap in my fucking pockets because I can’t keep anything under my saddle anymore.

    The mini-pump is a pain in the ass when you actually have to use it just because it takes longer. Maybe it’s time to test out the CO2 carts, but then I’d have to put them in my pockets too! Who started this Rule thing anyway? grrrrrr.

  6. @Anais Ninja

    I chuck, but am considering going to pump for one simple concern. Latex tubes and CO2 are not compatible. CO2 leaks out of latex tubes 10x faster than air, and air already leaks out of those babies quite fast. Depending on how far from home you are, you might not make it back.

    Secondly, if you’re running tubeless and use Stan’s, CO2 does not play well with it. I learned this the hard way with my mountain bike. No CO2 for me there.

    That Lezyne Carbon Drive pump is gorgeous. I think I know what I’m getting for Xmas.

    Interesting. I’m using the caffe latex in my road tubless, Maybe the CO2 is a problem. I’ll start compressing my own secret mix of Nitrogen and a few noble gasses and market the hell out of it.

    @Pedale.Forchetta

    One or two CO2, it depends from how long the loop will be, never considered to put a (small) pump on the frame or in the jersey pockets.

    Just once the two CO2 were not enough, but a coach full of german cyclists saved my day!

    No pumps, no cages. You are a minimalist. Very interesting. I can’t do it but I like your attitude.

  7. I know I’m inviting rule violations by uploading this, but Rule #29 has always seemed off to me.  Just look at how well this frame pump fits on the CDale.  Perfect.  I would also argue that if you carbon-riding ninnies don’t have pump pegs or another way to keep the pump in place, you need a classier ride.

  8. Genuine Innovations Second Wind Carbon chuck-cum-pump. Doesn’t have the sculptured (but slippery when wet) aesthetic of Lezyne, but better than suspenders AND a belt.

  9. I’ve never had more than two flats but on that ride I was carrying CO2 and I spent the rest of the ride worrying WTF I would do if I got another. (And don’t forget I’m riding where there are no nearby bike shops, and spending 30 minutes stuck in the sun is Very Bad Idea.)

    That was the last ride I used CO2.

    Apart from speed I just don’t see any advantage to canisters. There is nothing you can do with them that you can’t do with a pump, which has the advantage of being everlasting.

    I can also use the pump when changing tyres to semi-inflate the tube for easy fitting AND to pump the tube to check where the hole is.

    What possible argument can there be, unless you’re so concerned about saving 5 minutes.

    Add a small repair kit and you may be deflated but never defeated.

    I have Zefal BTW… the XtraLight Carbon. Go ahead and hate but it’s about 20g lighter than the Lezyne with a theoretically higher maximum pressure.

  10. @ChrisO

    Apart from speed I just don’t see any advantage to canisters. There is nothing you can do with them that you can’t do with a pump, which has the advantage of being everlasting.

    +1 This all the way.

  11. Blackburn minipump tidily stowed with mini tool, tube, patch kit, funds, ID/insurance card, cash, tissue, and reading spectacles (argh!) in Lezyne CaddySack.  Low mass, quiet, easy to stow in jersey center pocket, low waste, simple, and reliable (given remote area wherein I usually ride).  Only exception is for races, especially time trials, where an event-specific sack containing chuck, CO2 canister, and tube is carried.

    I carry a couple of canisters, chuck, and a tube in my car should, whilst driving, a fellow cyclist with trouble be encountered and need support.

  12. Lezyne Pressure Carbon Drive 2 – looks like it was replaced by the Carbon Drive Lite in their product line.

    Lezyne SV10 multitool, tube, some patches, levers.

  13. Not trying to start trouble, but could benefit from those out there that have preferred carbon cages.

    Found my way to Blackburn and had a great online direct purchase experience. I was sold on this “Red” and it’s design.

  14. @itburns

    Lezyne Pressure Carbon Drive 2 – looks like it was replaced by the Carbon Drive Lite in their product line.

    Lezyne SV10 multitool, tube, some patches, levers.

    not trying to be critical but whats the point of a carbon pump with such a big multi tool? ok I guess that was critical.

  15. ChrisO put it well. I mount my Lezyne pressure drives to my Lezyne bidon cages and don’t look back. I’m not bothered by pumping for a couple extra minutes and it brings me piece of mind.  Since I ride 6.5/7 bar or even 6 on gravè I don’t worry about lack of pressure.

  16. NFW. My Ti frame has Kng Ti cages. There will be no further discussion of this. If the shit is good enough to make fucking submarines out of, its good enough to make a bike frame for me out of.

  17. I think you guys aren’t thinking about this the right way.  Pump in the winter to keep me warm, chuck in the summer to keep me cool.

    I sewed myself a small bag out of some scrap Cordura, tube, chuck, 2 carts, park patch kit, tire lever (not for me, I use loose tires), multitool, Schrader adapter (not really sure why I would need this), extra Cordura for sidewall cuts.  I grab another tube and cart if going long.

  18. @RedRanger

    @itburns

    Lezyne Pressure Carbon Drive 2 – looks like it was replaced by the Carbon Drive Lite in their product line.

    Lezyne SV10 multitool, tube, some patches, levers.

    not trying to be critical but whats the point of a carbon pump with such a big multi tool? ok I guess that was critical.

    The multitool isn’t big – the pump is just really small.  Actually, I wanted the chain tool and compared to the SV5 the weight difference was minimal.

  19. Its got to be the pump/CO2 cross breed. Single CO2 canister with the pump available for those clumsy moments.

  20. If the saddle bag is like an elephants sac off the back, which i totally agree with, it is no phallus statement that the frame pump must be the elephants kabang

    parallel to the top tube, he is good, perched on the seat tube however, his cialis failed yet again

    I have only used CO2, forever.  Never freezes, never failed at all, and your up and running before your out of breath

     

  21. Chuck and 2x16gm cartridges. 1 tube and one Park glueless patch kit. iPhone, ID, credit card and $21. Why $21? Cause $ make great boots when you slice a tire and I’d rather use a $1 than a $20 (which I have a couple times). I don’t take a tool ’cause my shit is straight when I leave the house.

  22. @itburns

    I use the same pump.  I find it to be fantastic, although I have yet to have to use it in emergency.  In ‘controlled testing’ I have found it to achieve 90psi in 200 strokes.  Not too bad.  I am a recent convert from the CO2 world.  The following is what I carry when on my tubular wheels.  If I need room to stow a jacket or other large garments, the tubular gets strapped beneath the saddle.  So far I am really liking this setup.  With a proper fitting, high quality Castelli jersey, the weight of the tubular tire causes no sagging issues whatsoever.

    toolkit

  23. @mxlmax

    @scaler911 Road ID wristband?

    Well, of course. But that doesn’t go in my pocket. One thing I did forget is my mini-med kit with a epi pen and IM/IV Benedryl. I get stung by a honey bee and I’ll die (like for real die).

  24. CO2 for me. Couple of canisters and a spare tub strapped under the seat. A can of Vittoria Pit Stop for longer rides especially when it’s going to be wet or properly hilly when a relying on an unglued tub and air pressure is not going to be an option to get home.

    Lezyne bag with 2 cannisters, Crank Bros multi tool (my shit is probably not as together as @scaler911‘s), Pedros lever to help break the bond, spare contacts and a missing link thingy. Blackberry and credit card/cash in a freebie neoprene case. Plenty of space for a third bottle and some gels if needed.

    [dmalbum: path=”/velominati.com/wp-content/uploads/readers/fleeting moment/2012.09.02.18.36.05/”/]

  25. @scaler911 I need to get myself a road ID. It did occur to me riding around France that if I had a proper accident that I’d be properly fucked if my phone was damaged or the medics didn’t look for ICE numbers.

  26. A multitool isn’t an obvious choice for me. You should check your bike before the ride. Or carry with you also a spare chain, just in case.

    What you need is air (your choice), a spare tube, two levers, mmmaybe a folded bill, and that’s about it.

  27. Lezyne pump as shown above.  Used it just this morning and she’s a beaut.

    One tube.  Two levers.

    ID, Bank Card, Phone.

    No patches, no multitool.

  28. @minion

    @mcsqueak

    I use Co2 because it’s fast, but I do always have a worry in the back of my mind that I’ll somehow bungle two cartridges then be stranded. I do want one of those tiny pumps… the Lezyne carbon drive would fit the bill nicely.

    Too small a pump is a study in frustration. I have the Lezyne, alloy version and I think it might be a smidge bigger, but the hose coupling is what really makes them worthwhile. I’ve used smaller pumps without that hose, and the volume and time it takes to pump a tyre is ridiculous. Can get close to 90-100 psi, or close enought with the Lezyne for it to not be an issue.

    FWIW, I train with a pump and race with chucks. If i go through two cartridges in a race I’m properly screwed anyway so may as well jump in the van.

    I also get a kick out of looking like I’m hunched over a bike, my back to oncoming traffic, looking like I’m furiously masturbating over the dismembered wheels and frame of a bike while pumping up a tyre by hand.

    Last year I punctured at the bottom of a local hill – at the time I had a pump that a) wasn’t a Lezyne and b) had no hose.

    This being the West of Scotland we suffer from midges – a small biting insect that hunts in swarms and can reduce grown men to tears in minutes. This particular evening being damp and windless was the perfect midge environment and they were soon digging in as I sweated to get the tyre off, replace the tube and get the cover back on – every thirty seconds or so I had to run somewhere else with the wheel to get a few seconds relief from the midges furiously wiping the little bastards off my face and out of my hair, ears, nose and eyes – all the time leaving black road grime war paint stripes.

    Whilst this was going on I was aware of being passed by a cyclist going up the hill and then coming down past me again turning and repeating – a club cyclist doing hill reps obviously. Anyway – I started pumping and broke the valve clean off and had to start the process again – I was fumbling because I was being eaten alive.

    As I started again the cyclist doing the reps stopped and revealed herself as a strikingly attractive and very fit Velominata clad in black Lycra. She pulled the tyre back over the rim, whipped out a small pump and began pumping against her black clad inner thigh in exactly the attitude that @Minion describes. I stopped feeling the midge bites at precisely this moment.

    As she pumped away, she asked me what I was up to – I gibbered to the effect that I was no longer too fat to climb and was looking forward to peaking in two months when I would get my race licence and blow away the field in Flanders. At this point she stopped pumping handed my back my fully inflated wheel and said, “yes the veteran racing scene is becoming more popular these days”.

    I now carry the metal version of the carbon Lezyne, a CO2 canister, a self adhesive patch, a very sexy multi tool, two plastic tyre levers, a spare tube and a small tube of midge repellent in my pocket. My ego has not yet recovered.

  29. @Boltzmann

    Blackburn minipump tidily stowed with mini tool, tube, patch kit, funds, ID/insurance card, cash, tissue, and reading spectacles (argh!) in Lezyne CaddySack.  Low mass, quiet, easy to stow in jersey center pocket, low waste, simple, and reliable (given remote area wherein I usually ride).  Only exception is for races, especially time trials, where an event-specific sack containing chuck, CO2 canister, and tube is carried.

    I carry a couple of canisters, chuck, and a tube in my car should, whilst driving, a fellow cyclist with trouble be encountered and need support.

    I keep a tube and track pump in the boot (trunk if you can’t speak the Queen’s English) for the same reason – has helped out on a couple of rainy afternoons.

  30. @unversio

    Just caught the same cage featured thru (cyclingdirt.org)’s Facebook page. Listed among the Top 20 Bottle Cages

    There’s been some sort of publication error as it doesn’t include the Elite Pria Pavè – which is the best cage in the Galaxy and quite possibly the known universe.

  31. I think they dooo error.,, they don’t show an Elite Moro d’Elite either. I guess cyclingdirt has a “sponsored” list.

  32. @the Engine

    @unversio

    Just caught the same cage featured thru (cyclingdirt.org)’s Facebook page. Listed among the Top 20 Bottle Cages

    There’s been some sort of publication error as it doesn’t include the Elite Pria Pavè – which is the best cage in the Galaxy and quite possibly the known universe.

    I’m gonna look for an Elite Pria Pavè. Thanx!

  33. @scaler911

    @mxlmax

    @scaler911 Road ID wristband?

    Well, of course. But that doesn’t go in my pocket. One thing I did forget is my mini-med kit with a epi pen and IM/IV Benedryl. I get stung by a honey bee and I’ll die (like for real die).

    Stung! That brings up another topic — insect nets in the helmet vents. Made it thru this summer without, but will order them to go in the KASK next season.

  34. @Chris

    @scaler911 I need to get myself a road ID. It did occur to me riding around France that if I had a proper accident that I’d be properly fucked if my phone was damaged or the medics didn’t look for ICE numbers.

    Yes you do. Nothing not pro about them, and the commercials are honest. The guys that ride with me know me but either haven’t met the VMH, or don’t have her number if I get blasted by a car (or stung by a bee).

  35. @unversio

    I think they dooo error.,, they don’t show an Elite Moro d’Elite either. I guess cyclingdirt has a “sponsored” list.

    holy Merckx! That is sex. And I love Elite cages. What does that run?

  36. @unversio

    @scaler911

    @mxlmax

    @scaler911 Road ID wristband?

    Well, of course. But that doesn’t go in my pocket. One thing I did forget is my mini-med kit with a epi pen and IM/IV Benedryl. I get stung by a honey bee and I’ll die (like for real die).

    Stung! That brings up another topic “” insect nets in the helmet vents. Made it thru this summer without, but will order them to go in the KASK next season.

    This has been a weird week. Got stung by a bee/wasp at the 64km mark today. Hurt like hell for a half hour then subsided. Fortunately I’m not allergic – plenty of wee buggers have entered the helmet over the years, but never been stung before. Another crap thing this week was a rear puncture that happened 16kms out on Tuesday. I rarely puncture (maybe one a year) and I could swear both spare tubes were good. Nope. Both failed leaving me to hitch home. Got two rides by big guys in pick up trucks. Driver #2 asked if I was a serial killer. I answered in the negative, telling him that I didn’t think serial killers dressed like this – gesturing to my lycra, diadoras, jersey, helmet and shaved legs. He thought that was pretty funny. In a week where Phil Liggett and Cllint Eastwood dropped out off my top 1000 list of guys I respected, it was nice to have met someone who restored some faith in human goodness as we actually drove past his house to get to mine 6 miles away..

  37. I hold this article responsible for the puncture and exploded tyre I got on Sunday. I did enjoy sitting in the sun waiting for my rescuer.

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