C02 Inflators

PJ McNally wrote:

CO2 can achieve 90psi? Maybe i need to reconsider it, after all. My mini pump will get me home, but i have to ride 50 psi on the way

Though thankfully no p*nct*res all summer! Good tyres paid off.

I've been running the Blizzards (£8 each) for over a year and none of those p-things so far. I think that riding on the part of the road where car tyres run instead of the gutter (where the sweepings end up), or glass-strewn shared paths, makes a big difference to the deflation frequency. It's safer too.

A decent mini pump should get you to 70 psi or so without your arms dropping off.

Critchio wrote:

I have a small pump on my bike frame but I also carry a co2 rig in a plastic dispenser. My CO2 rig inflates my tyre to over 90psi in 1.5 secs. It gets me home and its just so convenient I would not be without it. My small hand pump won't take my tyre to 90psi, its gets hot and fails at around 75psi according to the pressure gauge on it and it would take several minutes of pumping like a maniac to get it to that. When you're on the road side without track pump available, CO2 all the way. It does the job providing you have a the right size cannister. Im my experience anyway.

What he said. Less time spent faffing, and unless you've spent a lot on your mini pump you're not likely to be able to reach the right pressure anyway....and track pumps just don't fit on my frame or in my pocket.

PJ McNally wrote:

why do people buy co2 canisters? not trolling, genuinely interested.

I think that it's because bike shops sell them, rather than any real need for them.

Decent mini-pump gets my vote every time. CO2 is a little more compact I suppose.

PJ McNally wrote:

why do people buy co2 canisters? not trolling, genuinely interested.

I always thought they were a gimmick, until recently. I invest in good tyres with puncture resistance, so they're a rare occurrence. But when you're out in the middle of no-where in the rain and cold or at night (or even just riding with other people), the ability to inflate a tyre in a matter of seconds without faffing around screwing on valve heads, spending ages pumping up a tube etc, is unrivalled.

Also, many presta valves (Conti I'm looking at YOU) have unscrewable cores which are a nightmare with mini pumps. Got so hacked off having reinflated the same tube 3 times and losing the core every time that it actually catalysed my CO2 investment.

I always carry 2 cartridges and a tiny spring tensioned valve head. Compact, light, quick and easy

I carry a mini pump, either a Lezyne Pressure Drive or Blackburn Airstik SL (16cm long, 60g). Don't feel the need to try CO2.

mattyb95 wrote:

Anything still left in the tyre that is causing the repeat punctures, say a thorn?

In addition to checking this, it's also worth checking that rim tape is still on properly. Mrs Biggins had repeat punctures one day and when I checked it turned out that the rim tape had moved slightly to one side in one place exposing the spoke holes. I straightened the tape out and no p*******s since (touch wood).

Some Fella wrote:

I'm no physicist but CO2 does not have the same properties as air and is able to seep through innertubes.
CO2 will get you home but you need to let it all out and replace it with good honest proper air which is thicker than CO2 - it has bigger atoms or something.
I find good, northern air is much better than that stuff you get down south.

You are no physicist indeed; CO2 is denser than air, hence dry ice (remember Top of the Pops floor.) Air is mostly N2 and O2 which are smaller molecules than CO2.

bikeboy76 wrote:

Some Fella wrote:

I'm no physicist but CO2 does not have the same properties as air and is able to seep through innertubes.
CO2 will get you home but you need to let it all out and replace it with good honest proper air which is thicker than CO2 - it has bigger atoms or something.
I find good, northern air is much better than that stuff you get down south.

You are no physicist indeed; CO2 is denser than air, hence dry ice (remember Top of the Pops floor.) Air is mostly N2 and O2 which are smaller molecules than CO2.