Saxguy's Full Review: Topeak Joe Blow Sprint Floor Pump
Last week, the pump died. it developed a leak where the hose connects to the gauge and tightening the connectors didn't help. I have had the unit more than a year and I found out when I replaced it that the warranty was 90 days.
I replaced it with a Performance house brand pump with all the features I wanted for under $30. I got a Nashbar unit for under $35 as a backup. The state off the art has changed. The Sprint had a reversible head, one side to handle the standard sized valves and the other to handle the thinner Presta valves. Now, the major pump vendors have single heads that can do both, and that is an improvement.
My recommendation now is to buy a floor pump but a house brand like Performance or Nashbar.
The original review is below with some slight modifications
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Thanks to user openroad for adding this pump to the database.
Also, this review is my entry in the “expanding the database” writeoff, hosted by Captaind. The link for the writeoff is here
During the summer of 2004, I made a commitment to serious bicycling, at least more serious than I’ve been. I bought two quality bicycles at prices approaching a grand each, the Cycle Genius ALX 20 squared and the 2004 Jamis Coda Comp. I set to learning how to use them and enjoy them.
In early 2005, when I went for my initial (free) tuneup at my local bike shop, Johnny Sprockets in Chicago, I told the guy that I was getting a little slip on the rear wheel on the corners.
He asked me if I was pumping up the tires before each ride. I said no, he said that was the cause. That was news to me. On my older bike, I just pumped it up at the beginning af the season and left it that way until the end of the season or the tires got soft.
Well, with quality, high pressure tires, you need to pump them up before each ride. I told him I had a hand pump (Nashbar) and he said the floor pumps are much easier to use. Well, duh. I had broken off the valve stem on one of my recumbent tires with the hand pump. So, I let him sell me the Joe Blow Sprint floor pump for $47.95. He said it had good features in the price range. While I figured I could get something similar much less expensively at Nashbar, after I busted the valve stem, I figured that it was worthwhile to have him show me how to use it.
This pump does have really nice features:
1. big floor plate for my feet
2. A nice big pressure gauge located on top of the tube, where I can read it
3. An adjustable target arrow which is even easier to see than the numbers on the gauge
4. Aluminum barrel, 160 psi capacity
5. Twin-head valve for Presta, Schrader and Dunlop valves with thumb lock
6. Padded handle
7. thumb release button for precise air adjustment
8. Attached needles for ball and air bladder inflation
The pump is fairly easy to use. What you do is get the valve ready (for Presta valves, you have to unsrew the tip), slip the correct head over the valve, lock the valve using the thumb lever by pushing it to the opposite side of the valve being used, and then fill the tire.
Sounds simple, right? Well, it should be. This pump works very well. Once I get the valve on the stem, it’s pretty easy and quick to get the tires inflated to where I want them. The hard art is getting them on and off. I find the Presta valves hard to deal with because it takes a little finesse to get it on and you have to wiggle it off instead of pulling it off.
Presta valves are now the standard as opposed to the more traditional Schrader standard tire valves. The Presta proponents say that Presta valves are easier to inflate and quicker because of the smaller thinner size and the spring in the Schrader valves creates resistance.
Well, not for me. I know they’re the new thing and on more expensive bikes, but I just struggle with them. As I said, I’ve broken off two valves in less than a year and a half, I struggle with getting at least one tire inflated each time and the valves on both my bikes are looking a little bent and are getting hard to fit in the pump. That’s not the pump’s fault, but still I hate them.
There are adapters available that convert Presta valves to the old style Scharader valves, and I am going to get some.
Meanwhile, since I pump the tires each time, both bikes are riding smoother and faster. That has helped the quality of my rides, and this pump has helped.
I found my hand pump to be very difficult to use, and the foot pump I had was not much better. This is an improvement
You can find dual-valve pumps for less at Nashbar and other places, but this was a worthwhile purchase. I do feel like I got value for the full retail price I paid for this.
However, since it failed (June 2006), I now recommend the current pumps with the single smart (works with both types) head, and private label brands (Nashbar and Performance) for cost-effectiveness and comparable features.
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